Creator
A[sa] Gray
Recipient
John Muir
Transcription
glacier-ice, but in spicy wild perfume. What Pine seeds were those you sent - in a letter envelope no long ago - have been here 2 or 3 weeks. Your vivid delineation of glacier-life in its last throes, is reproduced in Silliman's Journal for Jan'. Good Torrey was here a month ago - lively, but growing feeble. Ever yours A. Gray with heartiest wishes for the New Year.
00563
BOTANIC GARDEN, CAMBRIDGE, MASS.
January 4 1872
My Dear Muir
Your letter of the 18th Dec. has been here 4 or 5 days. To-night comes the nice - glorious - package by Express. I have taken out the plentiful Torreya seeds, poked thro. a wilderness of superb Pilea mucro- ermata - & some Liliales all in first rate condition but dare not go farther in the warm room for fear of awaking the Primulas. Yet they, I see, were so admirably put up that they must
needs be in good condi- tion. I am sick with a bad cold on lungs & throat, and dare not go now into the cold, where it will be kept till to-morrow my assistant overhauls them. What a splendid plant- finder you are, and I envy, while I shud- der over your walk. It seems to me here and now just astonishing Yet I dare say if I were with you and had my travelling legs on I should have gone with you Considering the very cold weather we have had, I wonder how
the plants got here without repeated freez- ing & thawing, which makes the mischief. But here they are, all right It was well thought of in you to prepay the package. - how much I cant see any record But your next must let me know. Our establishment foots all such bills, and is very thankful to us besides. Pray find a new genus, or at least a new species, that I may have satis- faction of embalming your name, not in
Botanic Garden. Cambridge, Mass.,
January 4, 1872.
My dear Muir:
Your letter of the 18th Dec. has been here 4 or 5 days. To-night comes the nice glorious package by express. I have taken out the plentiful Torreya seeds, poked through a wilderness of superb Pilea mucroermata and some Liliales ail in firstrate condition, but dare not go farther in the warm room for fear of awaking the Primulas. Yet they, I see, were so admirably put up that they must needs be in good condition.
I am sick with a bad cold on lungs and throat, and dare not go now into the cold,where it will be kept till tomorrow my assistant overhauls them.
What a splendid plant-finder you are, and I envy, while I shudder over your walk. It seems to me here and now just astonishing. Yet I dare say if I were with you and had my travelling legs on I should have gone with you.
Considering the very cold weather we have had, I wonder how the plants got here without repeated freezing and thawing, which makes the mischief. But here they are, all right.
It was well thought of in you to prepay the package. How much? I can't see any record. But your next must let me know. Our establishment foots all such bills, and is very thankful to us besides.
Pray find a new genus. or at least a new species, that I may have satisfaction of embalming your name, not in glacier-ice, but in spicy wild perfume.
What Pine seeds were those you sent in a letter-envelope not long ago? Have been here 2 or 3 weeks.
Your vivid delineation of Glacier-life in its last throes, is reproduced in Silliman's Journal for January.
Good Torrey was here a month ago -- lively, but growing feeble.
Ever Yours,
A. Gray
With heartiest wishes for the New Year.
574
00563
Location
Cambridge, Mass
Date Original
1872 Jan 4
Source
Original letter dimensions: 20.5 x 25.5 cm.
Recommended Citation
Gray, Asa, "Letter from A[sa] Gray to John Muir, 1872 Jan 4 ." (1872). John Muir Correspondence (PDFs). 1414.
https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/muir-correspondence/1414
Resource Identifier
muir02_0629-let.tif
File Identifier
Reel 02, Image 0629
Collection Identifier
Online finding aid for the microform version of the John Muir Correspondence http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt0w1031nc
Copyright Status
Copyright status unknown
Copyright Statement
Some letters written to John Muir may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Owning Institution
Holt-Atherton Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library. Please contact this institution directly to obtain copies of the images or permission to publish or use them beyond educational purposes.
Pages
3 pages
Keywords
Environmentalist, naturalist, travel, conservation, national parks, John Muir, Yosemite, California, history, correspondence, letters
