From George Busk 16 March 1871
32 Harley St
March 16 1871
My dear Darwin
As I already have a copy of your Work I shall have no occasion to avail myself of your kind offer to send me a copy of the Reprint, which I am very glad to hear has so soon been demanded.—1
With regard to the inter-condyloid perforation I would remark, although perhaps it may not affect your argument materially, that its presence in Man no more indicates his Simian relations than it does those in which he stands to numerous other animals Such as Canis, Tapir (sometimes) Tragulus, Coypu & I believe most rodents—Hyrax—Orycteropus—Erinaceus, Jerboa Loris—Proteles &c or whilst, though generally present in the Orang & usually but not always in the Gorilla, it is rarely or never exhibited in the Chimpanzee.2
Its greater prevalence, however in several priscan3 populations is a very curious circumstance
Yours very truly | Geo: Busk
Footnotes
Bibliography
Descent: The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1871.
OED: The Oxford English dictionary. Being a corrected re-issue with an introduction, supplement and bibliography of a new English dictionary. Edited by James A. H. Murray, et al. 12 vols. and supplement. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1970. A supplement to the Oxford English dictionary. 4 vols. Edited by R. W. Burchfield. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1972–86. The Oxford English dictionary. 2d edition. 20 vols. Prepared by J. A. Simpson and E. S. C. Weiner. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1989. Oxford English dictionary additional series. 3 vols. Edited by John Simpson et al. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1993–7.
Summary
The presence of the inter-condyloid perforation in man no more indicates his simian relations than it does his relations to numerous other animals.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-7591
- From
- George Busk
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- London, Harley St, 32
- Source of text
- DAR 87: 29–30
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 7591,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-7591.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 19