To J. D. Hooker 25 June [1857]1
Moor Park, Farnham | Surrey
June 25th
My dear Hooker.
This requires no answer, but I will ask you whenever we meet.— Look at enclosed seedling gorzes, especially at one with top knocked off.— The leaves succeeding cotyledons being almost Clover-like in shape, seem to me feebly analogous to embryonic resemblances in young animals,—as, for instance the young Lion being striped.— I shall ask you whether this is so.—
Etty is gaining strength steadily but slowly: her pulse has certainly improved, & she is very happy here.2 The owners, Dr. Lane & wife & mother-in-law Lady Drysdale are some of the nicest people, I have ever met.
I return home on 30th.—
GoodBye— My dear Hooker | Ever yours | C. Darwin
Footnotes
Summary
Seedling leaves of gorse look like clover leaves. This is like young lions being striped. Thus, laws of animal embryology apply to plants.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-2112
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- Sent from
- Moor Park
- Source of text
- DAR 114: 205
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 2112,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-2112.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 6