From T. H. Farrer 9 October 1880
Abinger Hall, | Dorking. | (Gomshall S.E.R. | Station & Telegraph.)
9 Oct/80
My dear Mr Darwin,
I return the plans marked as well as I can.1 But what a treacherous thing is memory. I should have put the Upper Trench at the Eastern boundary of the 4th room. But that cannot be: it was not excavated till October, and you were here in August. The one trench must have been where I have put the X X. at the eastern end of the first room. The other trench I cannot remember: If parallel to the first it must have been about [CROSS IN CIRCLE] to [CROSS IN CIRCLE]: if at right angles probably next to the wall O to O.
The compass bearing in the printed plan is wrong. Allowing for magnetic pole the walls of the building run nearly due N & S & E & W— the hedge running E & W.2
The ground slopes from E to W
I will send you my rough notes of what was done at the time in a copy book.3
What is history & what are records when we are so much puzzled by what we did ourselves three years ago?
I have been astounded lately by the quantity which antiquarians manage to write about Avebury Sibbury and Silchester,4 as compared to the next to nothing which they know.
Effie has Mrs. Ds kind note this morning: and feels sure that if she can be of use or comfort she will be sent for— but the answer is what we looked for.5 Indeed there is little to be done, and what we have to hope is as little suffering as possible.
Ida & Horace come this evg which is very nice as Tom will be here too.6
Ever yrs sincerely | T H Farrer
No worm casts on the concrete this morning. Wise worms to keep indoors this weather!
I return your note as you may like to see your own questions—7 Please send it back to me.
CD annotations
Footnotes
Summary
Sends the marked plans of the Abinger Hall excavation site.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-12748
- From
- Thomas Henry Farrer, 1st baronet and 1st Baron Farrer
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Abinger Hall
- Source of text
- DAR 164: 101
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp †
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 12748,” accessed on 19 October 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-12748.xml