To George Henslow 15 [June 1866]1
Down. | Bromley. | Kent. S.E.
15th
My dear Mr Henslow.
I do most strongly believe in Reversion. There can be no shadow of doubt both in uncrossed & in crossed varieties.— I have seen many instances.2
The evidence of Kölreuter & Gärtner is distinct for Hybrids, & some of Naudin’s cases leave no doubt whatever in my mind.—3 I have been writing a chapter on subject, & the cases of Reversion in ordinary Hybrids appeared so clear that I have not thought it worth while to give instances, only references.4 So that I have discussed only more curious cases. Think over that of Cytisus adami—5
I had forgotten whether Herbert gave cases.6 But I know that he believed to largest extent in Reversion, as I remember in conversation7 & as I think is stated in his remarks on stripes in Asses & Horses—8 but this latter case does not concern you, as it does not refer to Hybrids.— I fully believe that Gärtner is right when he says that Reversion occurs only rarely in hybrids made from plants, which have not been cultivated 9 Hence wide difference in Wichura’s & Naudin’s results.—10
Your’s very sincerely | Ch. Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Gärtner, Karl Friedrich von. 1849. Versuche und Beobachtungen über die Bastarderzeugung im Pflanzenreich. Mit Hinweisung auf die ähnlichen Erscheinungen im Thierreiche, ganz umgearbeitete und sehr vermehrte Ausgabe der von der Königlich holländischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Stuttgart: E. Schweizerbart.
Herbert, William. 1837. Amaryllidaceæ; preceded by an attempt to arrange the monocotyledonous orders, and followed by a treatise on cross-bred vegetables, and supplement. London: James Ridgway & Sons.
Marginalia: Charles Darwin’s marginalia. Edited by Mario A. Di Gregorio with the assistance of Nicholas W. Gill. Vol. 1. New York and London: Garland Publishing. 1990.
Natural selection: Charles Darwin’s Natural selection: being the second part of his big species book written from 1856 to 1858. Edited by R. C. Stauffer. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1975.
Origin 4th ed.: On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. 4th edition, with additions and corrections. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1866.
Origin: On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859.
Variation: The variation of animals and plants under domestication. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1868.
Wichura, Max Ernst. 1865. Die Bastardbefruchtung im Pflanzenreich erläutert an den Bastarden der Weiden. Breslau: E. Morgenstern.
Summary
CD believes most strongly in reversion. J. G. Kölreuter’s, K. F. v Gärtner’s, and some of Charles Naudin’s cases leave no doubt in his mind. Forgets whether Herbert gave cases but in conversation he certainly believed in it. Thinks Gärtner is right to say reversion occurs only rarely in plant hybrids which have not been cultivated. [See 5120.]
Variation
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-5123A
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- George Henslow
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR Library: tipped into George Henslow’s copy of Variation
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 5123A,” accessed on 19 October 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-5123A.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 14