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Darwin Correspondence Project

From J. D. Hooker   [26 January 1865]1

Kew

Thursday

Dr Darwin

John Scott has arrived at Calcutta after 116 days passage!2—with the plants he took out in capital order—3 Anderson has given him an appt. of £240 per annum at Dajeeling! on the spot.4

I am just out of bed having had a threat of Influenza, which has been expelled by Dovers powder.5

I shall take the 4pm. train on Saturday from Charing X. it arrives at Bromley 4.49.6

Ever yrs affec | J D Hooker

I shall dine before I leave.

Footnotes

The date is established by the relationship between this letter, the letter from J. D. Hooker, [20 January 1865], and the letter from F. H. Hooker, [27 January 1865]. In 1865, the Thursday following 20 January was 26 January.
Hooker had asked Scott to look after a Wardian case of plants on his voyage to Calcutta (see Correspondence vol. 12, letter from J. D. Hooker, [4 June 1864] and n. 19, and letter from John Scott, 8 June 1864).
The reference is to Thomas Anderson. Hooker had written to Anderson about employment for Scott in India, and had been informed that Anderson needed a gardener for a proposed botanic garden at Darjeeling (see Correspondence vol. 12, letters from J. D. Hooker, [4 June 1864] and [19 September 1864]). See also letter from John Scott, 20 January 1865 and n. 7.
Dover’s Powder was a compound made from the root of Cephaëlis ipecacuanha, opium, and sulphate of potash. C. ipecacuanha (now Carapichea ipecacuanha) is a South American plant of the family Rubiaceae, which possesses emetic, diaphoretic, and purgative properties. The powder was often taken in a glass of white wine posset, which was to be drunk while the patient was under warm covers and sweating (see Royle and Headland 1865, pp. 456–60).
Owing to continued sickness, Hooker was not able to visit Down. See letter from F. H. Hooker, [27 January 1865].

Bibliography

Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.

Summary

John Scott has arrived in Calcutta and has been given an appointment by Thomas Anderson.

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-4754
From
Joseph Dalton Hooker
To
Charles Robert Darwin
Sent from
Kew
Source of text
DAR 102: 7
Physical description
ALS 1p

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 4754,” accessed on 24 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-4754.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 13

letter