
          Hong Kong May 29th 1854
U.S. Ship Vincennes

My Dear Dr

You and Dr Gray or the mails I think 
have treated me shabbily. All the intelligence I have 
of you [added: both] the year past is contained in a short letter
from Dr Parry. Now I have written several times to Dr
Gray which is much about the same thing as writing to
you & once I beleive [believe] to you. Now I would be glad to know
if I am ever to hear from you direct again and then
will know whether to write any more myself.

All the squadron except the Fennimore [Fenimore] Cooper are now
here and I learn from the officers of the Hancock that had
I been left on board of her I would have had an excellent
time among the small islands of the Java Sea where they 
spent a number of weeks with opportunities of landing
on them every day. As there was not naturalist on the
steamer nothing was done except the preservation of a few
seaweeds. Some shells were picked up by officers but probably
of no great scientific interest.

I am making a good collection of plants here. All that
I collected at the Cape and at Sydney are packed away
in the naval storehouse, to rot likely enough. I suggested 
sending them home but was met with objections
and they may rot for all I care. They are not worth much.
I suppose it will be the same thing here. No opportunity
to go where there is hope of finding anything new. O[oh]! The 
folly of transferring me to the pretty ship always in
the market or the open sea. If he had given me three or 
four hundred dollars and sent me to Europe I could have
bought all these things and taken them home safely which
is more than I can hope of what I find here. The store
ship is full of bilgewater and great quantities of [someday?]
[line?] rotten and why should not my plants suffer the same
fate when they are sent home.

At New York I was removed from this ship to the
        