Dr Edmund Hoffmann
Canning - Nova Scotia - Canada

9-9-1987

Dear Edmund,

Thank you for your letter of 28/8/87 and pleased to hear that George Carter is still buzzing about. I haven’t written to him for awhile, but will be doing so shortly.

Yes, I have been doing a bit of research and fossicking around over the years but I’m afraid I can’t help you too much on the Muscovy. I can’t recall it turning up in any of my material.

However, I do have a fairly comprehensive collection of old books and Poultry papers around and I will endeavour to find some useful material for you. I am enclosing photocopies from some old books but don’t whether it will be much help.

It would appreciated to get a print out of your Muscovy Duck paper, for anything in this area of study is of interest to me.

I have been working on a series of booklets covering The Origin, Evolution, History and Distribution of the Domestic Fowl and have published three parts of it so far. I am getting a bit long in the tooth – 66 years old – so don’t know whether I’ll get through it all. Believe me, it covers a lot of territory when you consider it on and overall basis. I feel I have broken some new ground by collecting a lot of material and putting in one place. It is very satisfying, but at times frustrating and it’s very hard to finish up with much positive evidence. Also some of these fellows go out and dig out bones, then don’t do any follow up work on them. Being out here in Australia makes it difficult as there aren’t very many doing work in this field and we are away from the action. There are however a couple of fellows doing a bit of fossicking around in the Pacific and Thailand. They are from New Zealand. I am hoping to hear from them again shortly on any new information.

I am sending you two of my booklets of the series, and under separate cover by surface mail a book of 100 pages, also in the series on the Gallus Species – Jungle Fowls with my compliments. The last mentioned will take awhile to reach you but mailing costs here in Australia are very high for anything with a bit of weigh, air mail.

I have just started doing a book on the four breeds of chickens created in Australia. It is our Bi-Centenary Year of British settlement next year, so I am trying to finish it for 1988.

I have quite a bit of material on the Distribution question of the chicken and a few ideas of my own, but again very little positive evidence. Will get onto that as soon as I can.

The Pre-Columbian question regarding the chicken in the Americas doesn’t seem to be settled, although George Carter tells me there could have been contact.

I think you might have to make some contact with South America for your Muscovy Duck project. However that would not be easy. Although I wrote to number of Institution over there and only got response from one source. Can’t help you at the moment re diffusion in the Pacific. The Dutch moved around between the Dutch East Indies and west coast of South America, but I don’t think would be much help.

It appears that the Muscovy originated in South America but like most other things not written record.

Regards Dr Donking’s unpublished material nobody seems to want to publish the sort of stuff we are about. I did all my own printing etc, otherwise I never would have got off the ground. It’s a hard road but appears the only way to go. My finished product is pretty rough as you will see, but at least it is in print.

Talked to a fellow in Nova Scotia a little while back via amateur radio but can’t remember where he lived. Don’t hear too many from your area.

I will endeavour to find a bit of info for you but won’t guarantee anything.

All for now. See you next time.

Regards