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To Brian H. Hodgson Esq
Political Resident in Nepal

From The Royal Asiatic Society London

My dear Sir,

London 6th July 1836

I have to return you my thanks for your very interesting letter of 28th June 1835. As soon as I received it I called upon Sir James R. Garnac, the then Deputy and the present Chairman of the East India Company. I also called upon Colonel Sykes. I shewed your letter to them, to the first with a view of pointing out to him and through him to the Court of Directors, the value and importance of your intended publication; to the second with the view of ascertaining from him in what manner the Royal Asiatic Society could most effectively forward your object. Sir J.R. Carnac assured me that he was fully aware of the [utiIity?] of such a publication; and that he would give it every encouragement in his power. Colonel Sykes explained to me the nature and extent of the support which you may expect to receive in London. I likewise consulted with your relative the Dean of Carlisle and with Mr. Bennett the secretary of the Zoological Society, and I called the attention of Sir William Jardine, of Jardine Hall in the county of Dumfries to the subject. Sir William who is equally distinguished by the knowledge he possesses of Natural History and by the zeal with which he himself cooperates with others in promoting its ability study, enters very warmly into your views, and has, at my request, as he tells me, written to you explaining the course which he would advise you to pursue. I am convinced that no person in this country is more capable than he is of affording you valuable assistance; and I am therefore extremely happy to find that he has opened a communication directly with you. I shall as soon as you let me know the details of the plan which you have adopted, be most ready to lay them before the Royal Asiatic Society, the Board of Control, and the Court of Directors, and to urge each of these powerful bodies to afford such aid as they may respectively be enabled to do. I shall, in a short time, send out to Lord Auckland a resolution of the Committee of Correspondence, expressive of their sense of the great advantages which the peoples of England and the Natives of India must derive from your exertions, and of their hope that Lord Auckland wiIl both publicly and privately, patronize your researches to the utmost of his power. Allow me to add that all my friends in this country entertain the greatest admiration for the activity which you shew in promoting science and literature and will feel the greatest pleasure in taking every opportunity to make the public aware of the debt of gratitude which all those who have an interest in the improvement of the native of British India ought to acknowledge to you for the able manner in which you have directed your researches to the investigation of questions which are so intimately connected with their happiness and prosperity . I think it of so much importance that your views as to the Natural History of India should be generally known on the continent of Europe and in America that I shall have your letter to me upon this subject published in the next number of the Quarterly Journal of the R.A. Society, a work which has I understand a very extensive circulation. I send you a copy of the Proceedings of the last Anniversary meeting of the R.A.S. By this you will be able to see that I alluded to your
plan in my Report as Chairman of the Committee of Correspondence.

I remain etc etc
(Signed)
Alexander Johnston

British Museum
To A. Gunther

20. 7. 1867

My dear Sir

Many thanks for your very kind note which settles the question. I dare say I shall make use of your memoranda in next month's Annals and Mag and send you a proof before it is printed. Shall I send it your present address? In this case do not trouble yourself with a reply to this or to Dursley.

Yours very truly
A. Surtees

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

To B.H. Hodgson

Lord Derby wrote to me that you have written to him shall I send off his box of Specimens? The list of Drawings only refer to The Mammalia

My Dear Sir
The list sent are correct in the numbers but the names as I am aware are ludicrously wrong but this arrived from the ignorance of the copyer but I thought you would be able to recognise them when you send them back the names shall be corrected. It was quite impossible to describe the new species until the whole collection was [sorted?] that the new and old might be compared and you appeared so fearfull that we should keep all that I concluded the sooner we could get the duplicates out of the Museum the better you would be please. The Mammalia their Heads and Horns exclusive of the of the more or less imperfect skeletons which are not yet unpacked have been sorted as follows
Skins Head and Horns
British Museum 170 195
Skins Skull and Horns
Collection n. 1 102 Ind. H
n. 2 78 ? [Leiden]
n. 3 48 Paris
n.4 37 Berlin
Collection Skull etc for Col. Surg 50 [58]
Horns for India House 45
Collection 5 - 7 For Mus. Frankf
6 - 1 [?] taken by Mr. Ogilby
Horns [Promican?] to Mus. Canterbury 2-

Bird Skins
British Museum 1753
No 1. Leyden M 655
2 Paris Leyden 536
4 Berlin 411
5 Frankfurt 352
6 321
7 290
8 259
No 9 237
No 10 213
11 205
12 169

The birds names are nearly finished I much fear that there are many errors in the numbering of them two very differing kind[s] having the same number and the Bills shew they evidently do not belong to the genus of the [?]

We have seen no more of Mr. Howard. Have you written to Mr Rees of the Zool. Soc. about the Drawing? I believe they have no or very few Birds [Bones] at the Zool. Soc. The anatomical museum I mentioned was Haslar near Gosport under the care of Dr. John Richardson the arctic traveller.
Yours ever
J.E. Gray

7 Nov 1837

A minute of this date refers to Mr. Hodgson's proposed publication on the Zoology of Nepal, and gives a statement from one of Mr. Hodgson's letters to the effect that he had despatched to the case of the Royal Asiatic Society, 26 sheets of Mammals and Birds, and will continue to send others till the series be complete, which he recommends to the Keeping of the Society: stating also that he had despatched [8] boxes in Jany last by Captain Robinson with directions to deposit them with The Royal Asiatic Society, in case his prior stores should have been removed from the keeping of the Zoological Society - the Minute concluded thus:-
'None of the above articles having been received the Committee directed that the matter should lie over [for] the present.

15 March 1838

The Chairman read before the Committee a letter written to him by J. Princep Esq of Calcutta relative to Mr. Hodgson's work on the Mammalia of Nepal, the publication and circulation of which the Bengal Society are desirous of furthering etc. etc. 'Sir Alexander Johnston stated that he had communicated the contents [of] Mr Princeps letter to Sir Wm Jardine, who had expressed his willingness to cooperate in any measures whereby Mr. Hodgkin's labours might be given to the world

5 March 1842

A Minute of the Council of this date accepts Mr. Howard offer to dedicate Mr Hodgson's Mammalia of Nepal to the R. Asiatic Society, and promised to subscribe for a copy of the work

Canterbury January 3[r]d 1845

The Trustees of the British Museum

My Lords and Gentlemen
I have this day delivered to the Agent of the Museum at this place the following articles in continuation of the series of drawings and specimens illustrative of the Zoology of Nepal and Tibet already presented to the Museum
Drawings of Animals 15 +
Drawings of Birds 70 = 85

Skins of Mammals 402 +
Skins of Birds 4444 = 4846

Osteological specimens of Mammals 406+
Osteological specimens of Birds 663 = 1069
Grand Total as per details Lists delivered to Mr Gerrard 5996

The osteological Specimens have been added to the others in compliance with a suggestion of the Keeper of the Zoological department after inspection of them, and I believe they will be found of high value not only in helping to determine the important question of the true nature and limits of species, but also in forwarding the great end of natural classification not to speak of the aids they will afford towards [fixing?] the particular species of my large Collection upon a firm basis. I shall be glad to learn that the Trustees ratify the suggestion of their Officer.
This branch of the Collection, like the others, is rich in duplicates of which assuming that the originals are permanently deposited in the Museum, it is my request that one series may be hereafter delivered to the College of Surgeons if desired by that institution.
The drawings now presented, amounting to eighty one constitute the regularly numbered sequel of the series to which they belong (20 inches by 12) and which series they nearly complete. What remains to conclude the set shall be prepared and sent as soon as may be. Meanwhile I recommend that prompt measures be taken by the Museum to secure possession of those which went before them and which having fallen into various hands do not seem to be, all of them, forth-coming as they ought to be. The numbered Catalogues according to wh[ich] these drawings were prepared and despatched from India, will afford a ready clue to the amount of drawings that ought to be forthcoming according to the Catalogues adverted to, the number of Species is as follows -
Mammals of Nepal 126
Birds of Nepal 656
Mammals of Tibet 47
Most of these species were separately delineated and of many of them there were several delineations in this series of drawings, not, to mention the larger series preceding it and which likewise, so far as carried, ought to be forthcoming and has been presented to the Museum

Signed
B.H. Hodgson

London Jan[uar]y 23 1845

The Hon [?]
The Court of Directors of the E[ast] I[ndia] Comp[an]y

Gents

I have the honor to tender to the acceptance of the Court of Directors a series of duplicates of my extensive Collection relative to the Zoology of Nepal and Tibet the result of several years research in the district heretofore unexplored

I have etc
B.H. Hodgson
Late Rest. Nepal

655 Birds
102 Mammals
45 Osteological

Canterbury Jan [6] 1845

To Professor Owen
College of Surgeons
London

My dear Sir,

I have the pleasure to acknowledge your letter of the 23 Ulto in reply relative to my osteological Collections averting to what you told me upon the occasion of my visit to the Museum of the College of Surgeons (viz that your space is very limited and your object, merely to exhibit the more striking diversities of structure in the animal Kingdom) I am afraid that my osteological Collection, which is very extensive and abounds in individual specimens, is unsuited to your institution and, as the British Museum has agreed to receive it I have determined to send the whole of the bones as well as the skins there, at least in the first instance and pending such ultimate arrangements as may seem most fitting. In every event I have provided that such of the duplicates shall be at your disposal for the College of Surgeons as that institution may desire to possess and I trust I may yet indulge the hope of obtaining the benefit of your opinion relative to the Collection

• 1049 Specimens

Believe me
Yrs very truly
B.H. Hodgson

Canterbury Feby 4 1845

To the Revd J. Forshall
Secretary British Museum

Sir

I have the honor to acknowledge your letter of the 23 ult. relative to my Zoological collections

2. With reference to the extent of these collections recently, and formerly delivered, it may conduce to future convenience if the Keeper of the Zoology be directed to submit to the Trustees a summary statement showing the totals of what has been received by the Museum, what retained by it, and what distributed elsewhere, in the shape of skins, bones, or Drawings.

3. The following are the parties to which I wish the duplicate skins to be transmitted, in the order in which they are set down. India House, Leyden, Paris, Berlin, Frankfurt, Edinbro, Dublin, Newcastle, Canterbury, Manchester, The Earl of Derby.

4. The duplicate bones, I wish to be delivered to the Royal College of Surgeons, London, to The Zoological Society, London and to the other parties above named and in the same order, as far as the specimens go

5. Letters are prepared by me to accompany these specimens, and I only wait your Keeper's report of what is available and the receipt of the Catalogue he is engaged to furnish, in order to deliver these letters.

6. With regard to the missing Drawings presented to British Museum, I have the honor to state that I have recovered and delivered to your Keeper, sixty-five of them and that the following are the parties (beside Mr. Howard) from whom more of them may be expected to be obtained. The Royal Asi[atic] Society, The Zoological Society, Sir Alex Johnston, Professor H. H. Wilson.

7. Mr Howard, I find it as length forthcoming and admits having a complete set of the Mammal Drawings which however he attempts to retain possession of under pretext the futility of which Mr. Hawkins of your Museum can establish. No time should be lost in recovering these drawings from Mr. Howard.
   I have the honor to be
   Sir
   your most obt. Servant
   B. H. Hodgson
   Late Minister at the Court of Nepal