88 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



the reach of civilization. All his spare time was spent in study- 

 ing the new flora with which he found himself surrounded, and in 

 connection with this work he made expeditions to various parts, 

 then, it must be remembered, difficult of access and peopled with 

 not too friendly natives, such as the Murray scrubs, Guichen Bay, 

 and Mount Brown, the highest point of the Flinders Range, gain- 

 ing in this way his first insight into the Australian flora, which he 

 was subsequently destined to do so much to elucidate. 



Having bought some land in the Bugle Ranges, it was ap- 

 parently at one time his idea to settle down there and cultivate 

 it. Doubtless he intended to have his home in this spot, and to 

 make, when possible, expeditions in various directions. At any 

 rate, he had already devoted a considerable amount of time and 

 energy to collecting plants and noting facts relative to the flora, 

 his earlier papers being written in conjunction with Dr. Soulier, 

 and published in the botanical paper Linncea, issued at Halle, in 

 Germany. 



The life on the land did not, however, prove at all attractive, 

 and in a very short time we find him back again in Adelaide, 

 once more engaged in his old occupation. 



In 1852, at the time of the gold rush, he was attracted to this 

 colony. Evidently his reputation as a botanist had preceded 

 him, for in the same year Governor Latrobe appointed him 

 Government Botanist to the colony of Victoria, and from that time 

 onward he devoted himself with untiring, and one might almost 

 say with phenomenal, energy to the work of the post, which 

 was described as the investigation of the vegetable resources of 

 the colony, though it may be said without any exaggeration 

 whatever that, whilst Victoria had the honour of claiming him as 

 her botanist, the other colonies shared almost equally in the 

 advantages to be derived from his wide knowledge ; he was in 

 fact, though not in name, Government Botanist of Australia. Not 

 only was his reputation world-wide, but, what is more remarkable, 

 there was probably no township or hamlet in the whole of 

 Australia, from Cape York to Hobart and from Sydney to Perth, 

 in which the name of Baron von Mueller was not known and 

 respected. 



When appointed Government Botanist, Mr. Dallachy was 

 Curator of the Botanic Gardens, Dr. Mueller's duties in con- 

 nection with them consisting in the scientific naming and 

 arrangement of the plants. Subsequently, in 1857, he became 

 head of the Gardens ; but, later on again, these were most wisely 

 placed under the charge of Mr. Guilfoyle, Dr. Mueller being 

 thus left free to undertake the more purely scientific work 

 attaching to the Botanical Department — an arrangement which 

 no one will now deny was most wise and of great advantage both 

 to the Gardens and the Department. 



