skip to content

Darwin Correspondence Project

From G. H. Lewes   30 July 1868

The Priory, | 21. North Bank, | Regents Park.

30 July 68

My dear Mr Darwin

It quite distresses me to think of your forced idleness and I reproach myself for having inconsiderately asked you to bother yourself over my papers. Pray consider my request withdrawn—at any rate so far withdrawn as not to involve a moment’s interruption of your idleness or of any other work.1

Since it must be a long while before my work can be prepared, even after the articles are finished there is no necessity for you to fix any time for marginalia.2

When I was in Freiburg Dr Weismann—one of the hopes of zoology—delivered an Eintritt’s Vorrede on your views, which excited great sensation. I was not present at it, but he told me the line he was going to adopt & shortly we shall have it in print.3 Poor fellow! he nearly lost his sight with microscopic excesses— what asses we are, we who ought to know, & do know (for others) the penalties of overwork!

Believe me | Very sincerely yours | G. H. Lewes

Footnotes

See letter to G. H. Lewes, 28 July [1868]. Lewes had asked CD for comments on his articles in the Fortnightly Review (Lewes 1868b).
August Weismann’s inaugural lecture at Freiburg University (Weismann 1868) was in favour of Darwinism.

Bibliography

Lewes, George Henry. 1868b. Mr. Darwin’s hypotheses. Fortnightly Review n.s. 3: 353–73, 611–28; 4: 61–80, 492–509.

Weismann, August. 1868. Über die Berechtigung der Darwin’schen Theorie: ein akademischer Vortrag gehalten am 8 Juli 1868 in der Aula der Universität zu Freiburg im Breisgau. Leipzig: W. Engelmann.

Summary

In consideration of CD’s health, withdraws his request for notes on GHL’s articles.

While in Freiburg, heard that August Weismann’s inaugural address on CD’s views [Über die Berechtigung der Darwin’schen Theorie (1868)] created a sensation.

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-6297
From
George Henry Lewes
To
Charles Robert Darwin
Sent from
London, Regents Park
Source of text
DAR 106: D9–10
Physical description
ALS 3pp

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 6297,” accessed on 6 October 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-6297.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 16

letter