To Francis Darwin 8 October [1876]
Bassett | Southampton
Oct 8th
My dear Frank
I send by todays post the Pop. Science Review, as there is a short article by Dallinger well worth your reading. One figure gave me a cold shudder about amœbæ on the summits of the branches of an alga;1 but a few minutes reflexion made me quite easy about your teazle-glands.2
There is near end of vol. a curious little notice about Cats.—3 I shall be glad to hear that you are able to work even for half-an-hour on the Teazle paper, though I well know what an exertion & what dismal work it will be to you my dear boy.—
Hereafter at Down I shd like to try my hand at cutting off under the th inch lens, the top of a gland, so as afterwards for you to see very clearly the nature of the tissue.— I cannot get it out of my head that there ought to be orifices. Could the protoplasm be stained with carmine before the top of gland is cut off,—i.e. if it can be cut off?—4
The Printers are going to set up soon the Orchis book, & then I shall to get your assistance.5
My love to Horace & to your dear second mother, Mrs. Ruck.6 | Yours affectionately | Ch. Darwin
William is fairly cheerful & well. He has had the Bank for 3 days all to himself & this has tried his head a little. His house is an extraordinarily nice one & we are superbly comfortable here.7
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Dallinger, William Henry. 1876. Practical notes on ‘heterogenesis,’ a reputed feature of spontaneous generation. Popular Science Review 15: 338–50.
Orchids 2d ed.: The various contrivances by which orchids are fertilised by insects. By Charles Darwin. 2d edition, revised. London: John Murray. 1877.
Summary
Sends an article for FD.
Is glad he is able to work on his teasel paper [Proc. R. Soc. Lond. 26 (1878): 4–8]; suggests some observations FD could make.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-10635
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Francis Darwin
- Sent from
- Bassett
- Postmark
- OC 9 76
- Source of text
- DAR 211: 16
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 10635,” accessed on 20 October 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-10635.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 24