being acini Colonial Secretary) I brought the two together, 
-and it was arranged that Mr•Ridley should in retirement 
write his Flora. I, his successor, am a botanist of the 
Higher plants, like him, but I am also an Economic botanist. 
I planned to write in retirement a dictionary of the Economic 
products of the Malay Peninsula, and chiefly though Mr •Cubitus 
advocacy this is being arranged. I arranged (Mr. lUlkinson 
being Colonial Secretary) that the Assistant Director, 
appointed in 1914, should be a botanist of the Lower pints. 
I urged for a man able to feucceed me, because the preparation 
for the work to be done on his retirement required his life¬ 
time, and Major Chiep was appointed, succeeded after the T1, ar 
by Mr. Holttum. This officer is intetidad to write a Flora 
of some part of the world of Lower pints when he comes to 
retirement. I planned that over the time of his Directorship, 
that is from the date of the 103s of my services to his, his 
Assistant Director should be a botanist of the ^Higher plants, 
in order that the Department might effectively cover the plant- 
Kingdom. As the retirement of the last may only come aboue 
1950 I *aav*iot> justified in planning work for that year though 
I can Y for3see work to be done. That was my programme for work 
and each scientific officer in the chain needs for his duo 
efficiency the moans of cultivaing plants* I think that it has 
been lost sight of* 
It is also lost to the sight of those who bring to bear 
no real interest in the advancement oi Science that the I’oal^work 
of the Botanic Gardens is behind the display of colour, and it 
Is also not clearly realised by the same that botanists are * 
pioneers e for agriculturists and others concerned wioh 
economic questions, but not their servants. 
5. Had my programme been understood, the commencement (in 
secret) of a rival collection of dried plants in the Kuala 
Lumpur Museum would not have been allowed, and r. 
ultimately appointed botanist there, would rather have been 
" anpointed to ray staff, so that we should have had one botanic 
front line, as we have one geologis, one agricultural, and^ a 
one forestry on the peninsula. Then again if these , ,j r ' A 
are to be kept of each other some administratibe and / « - 
wide!" sympathetic offic^might be charged with all of them, 
both Governments,or the opportunism of the present arrangement 
is bad# 
6* Iiifiislike intensely the necessity of writing this letter 
to you, but see no better course# My wife wisheo me to 
unite her kind regards with mine to you and to Lady Guillemard. 
I am. 
Sincerely yours, 
(SgdJ#N#Burkill* 
Sir Laurence Guillemard, G#G *h#G•, 
