From J. D. Hooker 19 March 1871
Royal Gardens Kew
March 19/71
Dear Darwin
I am off for Marocco on the 1st. & shall be glad of any commands from you. I go partly to try & bake out my rheumatism, partly in faint hope of connecting the Atlantic Flora with the African,1 & (perhaps most of all) to taste the delights of savagery again. I have for some time projected such a trip with G. Maw, who is intelligent, pleasant, a capital plant hunter & grower, & fair Geologist— lately J. Ball has all but thrust himself into our party, & though I had rather have been alone with Maw, still Ball is so old a friend, & so good a man, that we shall take him with pleasure.2
Lord Granville has applied to the Sultan for permission & escorts for self & Maw to visit the highest peaks S. of the city of Marocco—but this permit is not yet arrived, & probably will not be granted.3 We take P. & O. to Gibraltar, thence cross to Tangiers & botanize there as far as we can go with safety under the ægis of Sir J. D. Hay—(the Minister), our future movements will depend on circumstances: if there is a chance of the Greater Atlas we shall take the steamer to Mogador & thence head Eastwards—4 We shall not be gone many weeks, & as the success of the whole project is dubious, I do not care to have much talked about it. I expect Alpine Maroccan Botany to be the most novel & interesting of any W. of Central Asia in the Old World. Of course we take Tents Saddles & such like, Soups, Tea, old watches, musical boxes &c—no end of paper for drying plants & so forth.5
I am busy clearing off arrears & prospective work,—& have not read your book yet—very much because every one asks me & worries me about it—& it is safest to say I have not even looked into it— I shall take it with me.6
Have you seen Cunninghams volume,?— it seems very dreary to me, but I have only read some 100 pages.7
I am very sorry to hear that Henrietta is not strong yet.8
Ever yr affly | J D Hooker
Footnotes
Bibliography
Cunningham, Robert Oliver. 1871. Notes on the natural history of the Strait of Magellan and west coast of Patagonia, made during the voyage of H.M.S. ‘Nassau’ in the years 1866, 67, 68, & 69. Edinburgh: Edmonston and Douglas.
Descent: The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1871.
Summary
Describes plans for travel in Morocco with George Maw and John Ball.
Has not yet read Descent.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-7600
- From
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Kew
- Source of text
- DAR 103: 63–4
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 7600,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-7600.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 19