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Belgrave Mansions S[outh?]

My dear Hodgson

I had a talk with G. Marshall today about your portfolios from wh[ich] he seems to have already abstracted such memoranda as [?] on the [Capitonida?] wh[ich] is the [work?] he has in hand. The rest of the contents of y[ou]r collection he wishes to catalogue for Hume's benefit and such a catalogue is a [?] for the [?] of naturalists generally. He hopes to find time for clarifying and cataloguing all y[ou]r drawings before he leaves England and in the interval will get Hume's reply to the letter wh[ich] he has written [explaining?] all that he has seen at Alderley. We both think that [regard?] being had to his own available space you had better send me portfolio at a time. He will write to you himself on this subject. I don't think from the tenor of our conversation that Hume's [?] book presents itself to him in a more definite shape than it does to me. But there appear to be some printed sheets of the work on their way to Engl[and] and these will show us something of the plan and if you approve of this and Hume expresses a wish to profit by your notes for the rest of his book you can hereafter supply him with the materials he requires. This methinks w[oul]d be preferable to sending out all yr portfolios indiscriminately. Marshall is evidently incorrect and may be relied on for [?] that he undertakes. He expects to publish his first [no?] of the Barbets on the 1st prox[imity]. I shall not be able to visit you for another fortnight or 3 weeks - My daughter Mrs [Strepwell?] will have I find to leave London to seek a milder climate in the I. of Wight. I have been looking at the so called Maracus Pelops in the Zoo, the animal is quite different from that I believe you to have described. I s[houl]d like to see from figures and notes of all the monkees your collection may contain. You might put these with the first portfolio wh[ich] you send up to us.

With Kind Regards to
Mrs. H.

Ever Y[our]s S[incerel]y

A. Grote

Belgrave Mansions S[ou]th

30 Jan[uar]y

My dear Hodgson,

I wrote to your yesterday in some hurry from the club and had not y[ou]r letter with me. On referring to the latter I find that you describe the material with wh[ich] you [anticipate?] supplying Marshall as bulky? - Not I know what a valuable collection of drawings you have in those large portfolios of yours and it would be a great treat to me to have them to reach in at my leisure - but please bear in mind that I am only fixed for some 6 months and have but limited space at my command. My [traps?], books, specimens etc. are all at the warehouse hard by Taylor's Depository. Marshall will have to confine his labours to the subject of his special Monograph - the [climbing?] Barbets there is already a question raised as to what families of the order sh[oul]d come into the group thus defined so that for his present purpose he will hardly require many of y[ou]r drawings. Suppose therefore you in the first instance only send y[ou]r ornithology drawings or shall I ascertain from M. what he would like to have of them, before you despatch any. He told you I suppose that he and his brother are only at home on a short leave. They seem to me to have already undertaken more than they can well do during their stay in England and I fear you may be disappointed if you expect much work from them on your materials [?] I say this without the least intention to disparage the bona fides of the 2 brothers in whatever they may have engaged with you to do - they are full of the true Zoolog. enthusiasm and will do their best. I was unable to attend the last meeting of the Z.S. I sh[oul]d probably have met them there, they do a great deal of their work there with [?] Sharpe out librarian whose monograph on the Kingfisher you probably know. Have you seen [Beauves?] Editor of Sir H. Elliot's Glossary he has done his work very well.

S[incerel]y y[our]s

A. Grote