
          25th, wrote to the Duke of Bedford to tell him of the failure
of the Santa Fee [Fé] Expedition & that if he would frank an
enclosure of mine to Messrs. Shaw & Vance they would 
return him his bill. This was in complainer with 
your remark, "that the Duke of Bedford's bill was 
not drawn & that those gentlemen wd [would] return [crossed out: the] it."
But they tell me they know nothing about the bill.
I then sent them the extract from your bill & two 
letters of theirs to me dated at different periods & each acknowledging 
a bill received by them from me on your 
account. But they say both these letters refer to my 
£10 the one acknowledging when they, the other when
you received it, & that they never received the Duke 
of Bedford's bill. This I dare say is all very fine,
& perhaps I sent his Grace's bill at once to you &
that you have yet to return it to me through 
Messrs. Shaw & Vance. Is it not so? It will be soon
settled correctly I doubt not. It was your saying 
that your Livl. [Liverpool] friends would pay it on demand, 
which induced me to suppose that the Duke's bill
was with them.

I am glad the exploring expedition has at length
sailed. The Treasury chest I suppose is removed from 
the back of the sluggish tortoise. But you have not 
told me who is the botanist that accompanied it. 
I am wishing for just such an appointment, that is
Surgeon & Naturalist, if they must be united, for my 
second son, Joseph. He is now staying with Dr.
Richardson at Haslar Hospital, for to that [higher?] 
situation Dr. R. [Richardson] is removed from Chatham. I was 
much pleased yesterday at hearing a sermon from a New 
York Episcopal clergyman at our chapel. If I understood 
rightly it was a Mr. or Dr. Schouder, but I am invited 
to dine on Wednesday with a friend, where I hope I 
shall meet him, & there my first question shall be on
enquiring after you & your family.

Many thanks to Dr. Gray for the nice specimens of 
the Hipnum, no. 9 of former collection, and for the charming 
specimens of Bruym roseum. 
        