De Profundis (letter) De Profundis (letter) De Profundis (Latin: "from the depths") is a letter written by Oscar Wilde during his imprisonment in Reading Gaol, to "Bosie" (Lord Alfred Douglas). In its first half Wilde recounts their previous relationship and extravagant lifestyle which eventually led to Wilde's conviction and imprisonment for gross indecency. He indicts both Lord Alfred's vanity and his own weakness in acceding to those wishes. In the second half, Wilde charts his spiritual development in prison and identification with Jesus Christ, whom he characterises as a romantic, individualist artist. The letter began "Dear Bosie" and ended "Your Affectionate Friend". Wilde
Alfred Douglas Hardy Alfred Douglas Hardy Alfred Douglas Hardy (1870 – 1958) was an Australian amateur collector of freshwater algae specimens. He worked as a draftsman and botanical officer for the Victorian Forest Commission until his retirement in 1936. He was also an amateur naturalist, initially with wide interests but later specialising in freshwater algae. He sent many specimens to George S. West, some of which were described as new species by West. In 1909, West published a major paper on the freshwater algae of Yan Yean Reservoir, based entirely upon specimens collected by Hardy. One of the new species published therein was