To R. A. Blair 14 April 1878
Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.
Ap. 14. 1878
Dear Sir,
You will think that I have been very neglectful, in not having sooner thanked you for the wing of the goose, the photograph & your last interesting letter; but I thought it best to wait until receiving Professor Flower’s report, & you will see by the enclosed the cause of his delay.1 If you are willing to take the trouble to get your interesting case thoroughly investigated, it will be necessary to procure from the owner the wings of half a dozen birds, some of them quite young; & if possible the old one which had his wing broken. They ought to be sent in spirits, & they had better be addressed to Prof. Flower2
Royal Coll of Surgeons
Lincoln’s Inn Fields
London
And I had better be informed when they are dispatched. Should you be inclined to take so much trouble, I hope that you will allow me to say that I should be very glad to pay for the geese & for the several other contingent expenses. Your first letter & Prof: Flower’s had better be returned to me hereafter3
There is one other point which ought if possible to be ascertained; viz when the old gander had his wing broken was it wounded so that blood was discharged? If wounded did the wound suppurate? Did the wing heal quickly or slowly These are important points in relation to the inheritance of mutilations.
Pray accept my best thanks for your kindness & I remain, Dear Sir, | Yours faithfully | Charles Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Summary
Encloses report by W. H. Flower on goose’s wing.
Asks RAB to obtain wings from young birds and broken wing from old one. Asks about details of injury.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-11475
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Reuben Almond Blair
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.535)
- Physical description
- LS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 11475,” accessed on 27 September 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-11475.xml