zr. 39.] TO GEORGE BENTHAM. 367 
love for them. I dislike to take the time to study 
out laboriously and guessingly, with incomplete speci- 
mens, and no great herbaria and libraries to refer to, 
these things which are mostly well known to botanists, 
though not to me, and I want to be taken off from 
North American botany for as short a time as possible. 
I must therefore come abroad with them, which the 
pay that is offered will enable me to do. I have 
found a good deal to interest me in the Composite, 
especially those of Rio Negro, of north Patagonia and 
of the Andes of Peru. . . . 
Now, will you take it as a bore, an imposition on 
your kindness, if I frankly ask whether I can possibly 
offer you any sort of inducement to aid me, at least so 
far as to run over the collections with me, and name 
those that are familiar to you as we pass, and refer 
others, as nearly as one can without study, to their 
proper places? Your mere comments in running 
through would save half my time. 
It is most natural that you should not incline to 
any such trouble, and I. know your hands are always 
full; so, if you say no, I shall feel it is quite right, 
and do the best I can... . 
We shall be most glad to visit you at Pontrilas 
House at whatever time best suits Mrs. Bentham and 
yourself, whether in summer or in autumn, any time 
before we settle down into our winter quarters. .. . 
With best wishes to Mrs. B. and yourself for the 
new year, I am very faithfully yours, A. GRAy. 
TO W. J. HOOKER. 
April 2, 1850. 
We were most glad to receive your kind favor of 
January 29, which, however, lay over a fortnight in 
