284 SPENCER FULLERTON BAIRD 



In speaking of your collections before, I forgot to say that your 

 wishes in regard to the Academy shall be faithfully attended to. 



A thousand thanks for your kind promise to make additional col- 

 lections in Texas. I need not say that I want everything. Corpus 

 Christi, if you are there, is a most important point. You are so suc- 

 cessful in alcoholic collections, that I hope you will continue these. 

 Gather all kinds of fishes and reptiles, of the former, especially the 

 small fry. Skins and skulls of all kinds of quadrupeds, big and little. 

 Any bird skins or eggs, shells, crabs, and the like. Look out for fossil 

 bones. Do you know Capt. Van Vliet, at Ft. Brown? He is a capital 

 fellow and has been a very kind friend of mine. 



From David G. Farragut to S. F. Baird. 



NORFOLK, Dec. 31, 1852. 

 DEAR PROFESSOR: 



I am somewhat afraid that you will say of me that "the mountain 

 in labor has brought forth a mouse." My intentions were certainly 

 good to send you a collection of the Fish from this Quarter of the 

 Country; You may reply as the Parson did "that Hell is paved with 

 good intentions." But to the fact. I sent a keg (which I hope you 

 have rec'd. by our little Steamer) down to the Fishery on the Bay, and 

 I was sent down to Old Point to prove Guns, but I collected all the 

 little sea-devils I could find, and not having Alcohol I put them into 

 common Whiskey, and sent them up from time to time to the apothe- 

 cary to be put in Alcohol with the others. I returned from the Point 

 only a month since, and have awaited a convenient opportunity to 

 send you the Fish. But, alas, when I called for the Fish, I was told 

 that those little things which he supposed were of not much conse- 

 quence, were so offensive that they had been compelled to throw them 

 away. So you see how is lost the pride of my collection. I do not 

 know what the Keg contains. I had one fish and still have it in a 

 separate jar, they call it a Toad fish; but I think I saw one in the Keg. 

 They tell me it is a rare fish here. It is ugly enough to be rare. I was 

 very much in hopes that you or Girard would have been down last 

 summer and spent a few days at Old Point. I am certain that you 

 could have made a profitable visit of it, to say nothing of the agree- 

 able; which considering that Mrs. F. and myself were there, would be 



