To W. W. Baxter 8 September [1873]1
Down, | Beckenham, Kent.
Septr 8th
Dear Sir
I thank you sincerely for your kind & prompt assistance. I see that the Chloride of Antimony does not dissolve at all well & the Chloride of Tin imperfectly. Could you make or procure for me any soluble salts—(nitrates or acetates wd be best) of these 2 metals?2
The ammonio-citrate of Bismuth wd be of no use, as ammonia in all states acts with extraordinary energy on my plant, viz Drosera.—3 Will any of your Books tell you what percentage of the Chlorides of Antimony or Tin are dissolved?—
I have got, or tried, the following acids4
1 Hydrocyanic
2 Hodrychloric
3 Sulphuric
4 Nitric
5 Acetic
6 Boracic
7 Citric
8 Oxalic
9 Tartaric
10 Arsenious
11 Chromic
12 Phosphoric5
Have you any other acid, pure, which is soluble; if so, could you send me, one, two or three or four more.
Vegetable acids wd. perhaps be best.
Perhaps Iodic acid wd be worth trying
Yours faithfully & | obliged | Ch. Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Insectivorous plants. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1875.
Summary
Requests chemicals for Drosera experiments. Lists 12 acids tried so far.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-9046
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- William Walmisley Baxter
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR 261.11: 6 (EH 88206058)
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 9046,” accessed on 19 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-9046.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 21
