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FELIX WOYTKOWSKI
ENTOMOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS
PERU - SOUTH AMERICA

Of course, I would have sent you the entire collection; were it not for obstacles, that at the time seemed unsurmountable, viz., most plants were dying at Plant Quarantine fumigation, - "new exchange regulations," "export difficulties" and absurdly expensive plane-freight.

Now, after three years, I state it - and please, you must believe me. I did not gain anything by selling the plants at Lima. I had to work for the whole next year at the British Embassy - taking care of said plants; the first few months I received a salary of 50 dollars and later on only 15 dollars-per month.

I had to abandon my comfortable cottage and garden, and to move into a 3rd rate department.

Then I went to Talara. During the whole year I could not sleep more than 2-4 hours daily. Each day sleeping-pills; each day Vitamin tablets. I felt so lonely upon the horrid sand dunes, ever driven by sand storms - from place to place. I needed women to do my work, and they gave one mostly only 4. I could have planted ten thousands of trees yearly, and could not obtain either laborers or sufficient water. - My dear dog-companion was poisoned.

Resigned. - All the Company's people were kindest to me. They offered me even the "moon". And when I was bidding them good-bye, the Chief Engineer Mr. P. J. Johansen told me: "you are going to come back to us."

Professionally, I did there a good job: Sr. Francisco Ruiz Marco (Garden "La Moda Elegante", Lima), wrote an article about the impossibility of propagating algarrobo {Prosopis-sp.} from seed; said that the seed's surface should be scraped thin, that incisions should be made, that in Mexico they produced a chemical compound