760 FINAL JOURNEYS AND WORK. [1885, 



needed for the establishment of the fact. De Morgan 

 was not a man to leave his work half done, especially 

 as against Hamilton. 



I only regret that the length to which these most 

 interesting matters extended stood in the way of your 

 giving a more detailed account of Bentham's botani- 

 cal work, on which another article would be timely. 



I must now, before long, attempt something of this, 

 for the American Academy's eloge. And I pray you, 

 if you are not doing it yourself, to send me hints and 

 suggestions. Sheet full, and I will not begin another 

 to-day, but add only my wife's love to you and Lady 

 Hooker. 



January 9, 1885. 



The souvenir of dear Bentham has come to hand, 

 is in its place on my table, and the first use I make 

 of it, now in position, is to write to you this letter of 

 thanks, to you for awarding it to me, and to dear 

 Lady Hooker for so promptly forwarding it. The 

 stand is a beautiful piece of marble, bearing its two 

 inkstands. 1 Was there ever anything to occupy the 

 sunken area between them ? . . . 



Of myself I have not much to write. The pros- 

 pect of getting off for the latter part of winter has 

 just prevented my settling down to the " Flora," and 

 I have found plenty else to keep me actively em- 

 ployed, mainly with a revision of some boragina- 

 ceous genera, now in printer's hands, which I hope, 

 while it unsettles old work, will settle it better and 

 permanently, as far as anything we do can be said to 

 be lasting. 



1 The inkstand is now placed in the library of the herbarium with 

 Sir William J. Hooker's hand-glass, so much used by Dr. Gray. 



