My dear Charles.

I beg many apologies for not writing sooner, but I have y^e same excuse as you had. I am very glad to hear that all the glass & earthenware apparatus has arrived safe, & return my thanks for y^e payment of y^e Extra Money. You say you are very full. I should recommend y^e first two or three shillings there are to spare in y^e Lab, to have a shelf put up either in y^e place over y^e retort shelf or else under it; or both. The 10£ which Poor Miss Congreve has left & of which we are to be the trustees, will come in very nicely for an Air Pump or some such thing. As far as I can make out you are not carrying on any experiments in y^e Lab. I will recommend you a few which will employ you some time, & will not be expensive. To obtain pure alumina from Alum, & pure Silex from Rock Crystal, & likewise to obtain pure metals from y^e Metal of Commerce, such as Copper, Lead, Tin, &c &c, or any which you find easy. Have you my “Ure’s” Dict¹ in y^e Lab?— If it is there (& if not it is lost), that & Brande² will be y^e best books for particular directions. You could try also to obtain y^e silver in a sixpence free from y^e Copper. While I remember, & if it is not too late, get a red Cabbage³ dried by Blunt, cut into strips, & then put into green bottles, (such as y^e lime was in) & well sealed up. I hope there are good many Evaporating Dishes come, for I forget how many we ordered. The shape of y^e Crucibles I like very much, & more especially their having covers is a very great improvement upon y^e old ones. How does y^e old fireplace get on. I have formed a plan when that is quite done for, it is to have a little stove (y^e same shape as that in y^e Servant hall) with a moveable top so as to have a sand bath or a kettle or any thing else to fit on y^e top. They have oil gas, & they condense into vessels to carry about. A curious looking liquid seperates from y^e condensed gas. It resembles Naptha in appearance, & is rather volatile, it burns with a great light & smoke. It smells worse than y^e most rancid oil you can conceve. Professor Henslow (on Mineralogy) has twice shewn us y^e experiment of y^e test of Arsenic by burning it with a blow pipe but I was so far off, that I neither time smelled y^e garlic odour which they describe He has 16 guineas worth in one set of wooden crystals, besides many others. The Lectures are very entertaining, & this is his first course so that he will have improved by y^e time you come up.⁴

Give my Love to Massie, & say I hope his hand is better. Ask W Downes⁵ to write a few arguments, if he has time— | I remain yours affectionately | E Darwin

P.S. The first page of your letter was very well written so I give you a

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