AUSTRALIAN EXPLORATION.
14th Februav 1864. Sra—My attention has just been called to the insertion of a letter which I had the honour of sending you some time ago, and which had in vain looked for in the Spectator of the week before. The omission of the letter in the former number was a fortunate accident, in connexion with the ad- vice and cooperation of the deputation of merchants, which, on the very day of its intended insertion in your influential paper, had the honour of an in- terview with the chief of the Colonial Office. With regard to the remarks which have been attached to my letter, I beg to inform you that I have again gone over the documents relating to the proposed exploration of Northern Australia, and beg to assure you, that the proposition did most as. suredly not originate with M. Haug, but with Mr. Arrowsmith, and that Haug withdrew his own wild scheme and adopted those laid down by the Committee of the Royal Geographical Society. The truth of this assertion, which, Sir, you have permitted to be denied in no very courteous terms in your journal, may be easily ascertained by reference to Sir Roderick Murchi- son, or by consulting the documents in question in the possession of the Royal Geographical Society.
I have the honour to be, Sir, your obedient servant, F.R.G.S.
[We stretch a point in order to insert this letter, notwithstanding the great inconvenience we feel in admitting the composition of a correspondent who deals so much in innuendo, and does not append his name. The public will hardly understand, any better than we have been enabled to do, this individual attempt to set aside M. Hang; whose conspicuous, if not leading position, has been recognized by the Geographical Society, the Australian merchants, and the Colonial Minister.]
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