September 29-30, 1893.
Dear Dr. Fletcher,—We were very glad to hear you had safely returned home. I wish we could have had a longer chat, but I will be thankful for the very great pleasure of chatting with you at all.
Just after you had left (or rather, I think, were leaving) England the Rothamsted Jubilee took place, which brought very many distinguished agriculturists to this part of the country, and you may imagine how much it was wished that you could have been present. I did not attend, but a few friends from long distances off looked in here on their way.
November 26 and December 1, 1893.
I have long been owing you a letter, and thanks, too, for your “Entomological Report,” which I read at once when it reached me. You know the pleasure and the confidence I feel in all I learn from your writings. They and your kind co-operation have been an immense help to my work and me for many a year, which I have never ceased to appreciate most gratefully. I am working now on my next Annual Report. There has been a good deal of nice fresh matter sent in, and (so far as I could) I have tried not to go over old ground. I have a grand paper on Locusts (fig. [55]), my specimens being identified at Madrid by Senor Don Igo Bolivar. Wasps were a terrible plague—and I have got some charming observations, so entertaining! but I have taken great care to have them on good authority—and M. Schoyen kindly sent me some notes by the Swedish State Entomologist of an enormous appearance at Tromsoe a few years ago. As this is so high up in the Arctic circle I thought the record would be of interest scientifically, and it is so spirited I have had many a good laugh over it (p. [239]).
But what I hope you may be really pleased with is, that through the kind introduction of Dr. Friedrich Thomas, of Ohrdruf, whom you will know, I think, as one of our leading European Phytopathologists, I was put in communication with Dr. A. Nalepa (of Vienna), who for some years back has quite especially devoted himself to the study of Phytoptidæ (Blister galls). So that now we have in his successive publications first-rate specific descriptions, with measurements and everything requisite for certain identification of all the species which he has studied so far. Also in very many cases he gives good magnified figures, and he added to his many kindnesses to myself by sending me a plate with the details of the creatures marked with the technical names. In his treatises already published he has given excellent accounts of very many species as well as a good serviceable classification, and I rather think that the work which has been coming out in the Reports of the Imperial Scientific Society of Vienna is to be completed this spring.
This letter has been lying by me for a few days for an addition I wanted to make, and now I have to thank you very heartily for the great kindness which you have shown to poor Mr. T—— December 5, 1893. A hasty line to catch post, about Dr. Nalepa’s books. I have just heard from Messrs. Wesley that they have ordered (as I asked them) a duplicate set of the four of Dr. N.’s pamphlets which I have, and sent you the names of yesterday. When these arrive I shall send them on to you, hoping you will kindly accept them, if for no other reason, to be a trifling reminder to you of how much I appreciate your always kind help to myself. The money value, as I mentioned to you, is small, but I am very desirous that you should have them as soon as possible, and ordering from here will save some delay. Mr. Sinclair [the editor] wrote me thanks for your paper, and that he is having a figure of your fly copied for the “Live Stock Journal.” This will attract attention surely.