[[1]] *1
To Miss Henslow
Darjeeling, Oct. 26. 1848
My dear Frances
It is now 3 mails since I have had any news from home, i.e. 2 Marseilles & one
Southampton. I hear that a great number of Southampton letters are missing &,
you perhaps know that I look upon those which come via Marseilles, as douceurs
not always to be expected:-- So I strive to make myself contented,& to hope that
no news is good news.
I have just written to my father & given him a long detail of my proposed trip to the
Snowy Mountains; & as not infrequently happens, I have to pay the penalty of
rather premature statements; for all my plans have been materially changed, since
that letter was closed. My whole time and thoughts are taken up with this matter; &
you will be content, I know, that I should make this an entirely business letter. So I
begin upon the subject without ceremony; & having no time to address my father
again, I will beg of you to forward this epistle to him at once.
As I mentioned, in the P.S of my last the Rajah objected to my taking the Nepaul
[Nepal] Guard through his country (Sikkim). The matter, however, seemed to be
arranged; but again he refused; & then his refusal was accepted, as extending
also to myself who could not & would not go without that guard. Whatever the
Rajah’s reasons may be, for objecting to let the Ghorkas [Gurkhas] enter Sikkim
(this fear may have some good foundation), he has acted with bad faith towards
me; & he probably did so because he was aware that he could throw no
insurmountable obstacles in my way, so long as I had a party of these Hill
People in my interest. It is highly likely that the Myrmidons of his Sikkim Highness
had received orders to take me 2 or 3 days marches by a wrong road,-- perhaps to
where the rivers were impassable:-- then they would have shrugged their
shoulders & said “we are sorry as can be, Sir, but what can we do?” And the
consequent delays would cost me the season &c. Meanwhile, the Nepaulese
Guard came forward, offering to undertake the responsibility of conducting me to
the Thibet [Tibet] Passes, through their own country, if I chose; after which I might
return through Sikkim, or by the way I went, according to my pleasure. This offer
was so handsome,-- & my intention of going through Sikkim (even if it were
desirable or feasible) without this Nepaulese Guard which had been so promptly
[[2]] sent for me, would have been to put such a slight upon them, that I instantly
closed with the proposition, & am now all ready for the journey. I go due West from
hence, to, & across the frontier of Nepaul;-- & then north to the Western shoulder
of Kinchin Gunga [Kanchenjunga] & the Thibetan Passes. By following this course,
I shall occupy some days longer -- & (what is of more importance to me) shall lose
the familiar landmarks of the mountains, &c, by which I should easily map my
route, had I gone through Sikkim. I carry, however, a good time--keeper of my own
& another chronometer lent to me by Major Crommelia, by which I shall be able to
take longitudes with accuracy sufficient to determine my position approximately.
As the day closes at 6. P.M., there is plenty of time to observe stars during the
clear nights which I hope are coming:-- I say “hope” for October is called
“Darjeeling’s Heavenly month,” though it has been so rainy & cloudy up to the
present time, that I could not have started for the mountains if permission had
been granted 4 weeks ago. Indeed the rains are not yet over, they are singularly
late this year, which would have caused me heavy disappointment if I had been
allowed sooner to travel northward. The double evils of want of earlier permission
& of earlier fine weather thus mitigate one another, on the principle I suppose that
two Blacks do make a White a neutral tint at any rate.
My camp will consist of nearly 40 men, & I leave several here to dry the plants
which I shall send back from the first 8 or 10 marches. Food & its transport are the
great desiderata, & they terribly increase the list of people who must go. I will,
however, be explicit; little as a woman can appreciate that truly masculine quality. - So I proceed . to give you a précis of the intended arrangements for my cruize.
You may divide my camp into 4 portions if you like. 1. Private establishment, 2.
Guard: 3. Collectors of Plants &c., 4. Porters -- now the Private Establishment
includes myself & my “Friday” -- an Interpreter belonging to the Government here,
called “Adok” (he is a very respectable Bhotea) & another servant -- The Guard
consists of the Havildar, a fine little fellow & 5 soldiers, all Nepaulese. -- The
collectors are 3 of my best Lepchas, & a Shooter and stuffer of Mr Hodgson’s -The Porters, or Coolies , are all Bhoteas: the Headman is a very creditable person:
his name is “Nimbo”: -- the others carry -- 5 of them Papers 2. Instruments: 4. My
own provisions, --1. Takes the tent. 2, the Bedding & Clothes, & 12 are laden with
provisions, chiefly Rice for the others. There are 4 Porters
[[3]] for Mr Hodgson’s shooter and stuffer,-- 2 for the Havildar, -- 1 for “Adok”, & 1
for “Nimbo,” The Havildar is charged with my money: it is his office to buy
provisions along the road, so that the stores with which we set off may remain
untouched as far & as long as possible; & as this same man is the Tax gatherer of
the Villages, in the Districts through which we pass, this arrangement, I think,
promises excellently well. I carry a Cookry[sic] or Ghorka knife, -- a small
Barometer & Telescope, Compass, Matches & a few such little things. My own
servant takes the big Barometer & Plant--box, & some other trifling articles. He & I
& my Lepchas shall thus travel so light that or collecting will not be impeded. Mr
Hodgson has furnished all my personal supplies, Tea, Sugar, Brandy & about
13lbs of preserved meats. Dr. & Mrs Campbell have been most kind; he is
superintending all my arrangements and giving me various useful things, as a
splendid cloak of worsted & flannels: he has provided the food for the coolies, &, at
the cheapest possible cost to me, together with presents of Snuff, Tobacco,
Beads, boxes & looking glasses for the natives. Mrs Campbell has bestowed upon
me some fleecy hosiery mitts & comforters which she brought from England, & has
made a veil to shield my face from the glare of the snow (she tries hard to
persuade me to carry jars of preserve & tin cases of salmon.). My friends the
Müllers, have rated my Timekeepers, overhauled all my Instruments, furnished me
with some capital tin boxes, & done more useful & necessary jobs for me than I
can remember. They have also kindly promised to work out all my observations of
Longitude, Latitude, & elevations, as I shall send them to Darjeeling. So you see I
am admirably cared for, & have only to dread failure, when so much kindness &
trouble have been expended upon me.
The instruments ordered for me by my father arrived this very day: right glad I am
to have them! The Boiling Point Instrument is an admirable one. The
Thermometer, accompanying it arrived broken, by too much stuffing having been
put into the case, which pressed upon the bulb. It was a Superb one, alas!, &
except that which Prof. Henslow gave me I have none with which to take the
temperature of hot Springs. The swimming Belt is a most useful thing, & so are the
pocket knives. The Pocket Sextant is much better than I expected. The Horizon is
very good. But there is no Azimuth (Prismatic) Compass, which my mother
expressly mentions. Luckily I have one, lent me by
[[4]] the Assistant Surveyor General, Capt. Thuillier, who is my very kind friend. I
am extremely obliged for all these things; they are all good and highly serviceable
to me: & I hope that the Quarterly Navy Bills I have transmitted home; will pay for
them; as well as for some other instruments, which are ordered thro’ Mr Reeks of
the Geological Survey. I have another Bill to go home; & £200 of my yearly
allowance is not yet drawn by Mr Vicar & Co so that I feel comfortable on that
point.
The rains have prevented me sending home the seeds, which the damp heat of
the plains must have killed. By this mail (unless too late) there go a few of my
drawings -- viz all those of Fungi, enveloping a Small bundle of Zoological Tracts,
from Mr Hodgson to Mr Darwin. -- I am in capital health, -- never was better;-- & in
high spirits, at being the first to explore this part of the Snowy range,-- which, after
all, redounds rather the less to my credit, because of my being backed with such
valuable protection & aid from Government, that the carelessness of coolies &c is
the only thing to be feared, as perhaps causing failure.-- So, Forbes is married! Do
you know the lady? I tried hard to persuade him to accompany me as a Naturalist:- he always said foreign travelling was his aim, -- & indeed, dear Frances, it affords
almost the only really good opening to a young man in his & my line of life, & it is
worth therefore sacrificing a few years to it.
Oct. 27th Dear Frances, off in earnest;. Goodbye and God bless you
Your ever affectionate | J.D. Hooker.
ENDNOTES
1. This letter is a copy, written in a hand not that of the original author, JDH. The
copy was probably made by JDH's mother or sister.
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