My dear Sir,

First of all let me thank you for your photograph, by which you made me happy. I longed for it and yet I did not venture to ask you directly. As you were so kind to express your wish with regard to mine, I enclose it being proud of the quite undeserved honour conferred upon my figure.¹

As for the translation I try to make it a really true one; to make it good, that is rather impossible without rewriting it.² Yet I do my best to make it at any rate more German and readable. Some mistakes of Bronn’s are quite ridiculous³   For instance he translates “turnspit dog” by “that sort of dogs used in England to turn the spits”. You mean the Canis fam. vertagus, where already Linnaeus gives the quotation: “Turnspit, Pennant, Brit. Zool.”⁴ It is our “Dachshund”, which word Bronn uses as the translation of “terrier”, which is on the contrary our Pinscher, viz. Canis fam. gryphus.⁵ These places of course you did not mark. I am obliged to read and compare the whole verbatim. Till now I did the first three chapters. There is one thing in these I must ask you. You mention the sweet pea. Bronn translates “Sugar-pea”, which is false.⁶ I am almost sure of the plant you mean, but cannot get hold of our German name without knowing first the botanical. On p. 23 of the fourth edition (which I have got) you mention the laugher. There Bronn doubts if you had meant Columba risoria.⁷ I think there is no occasion for doubting. I should therefore leave off his note, as I do with the others where he did not give an addition of yours⁸   For myself I shall not append notes, as I do not think it proper to bring my individuality forward in such a way. All I should do would be to give a short appendix especially on the mechanical or physiological relations of every germ, whether egg or bud or the product of partition, on which variability depends, and, if you allow it, on spontaneous generation with special regard to Haeckel’s new book.⁹ As to Nägeli’s pamphlet I should feel very much obliged if you should write a note on it and tell me the place where I ought to put it.¹⁰ He gives some very striking instances of selection in certain alpine plants and so on; but he is not quite consistent, what I felt just in the opinion of his, which you mentioned.¹¹

Before I beg leave, may I ask you another great kindness? The publisher of one of our Cyclopaedias, who knows that I am acquainted with a pretty number of English naturalists thought me the right man to write biographical articles on your dear life and on that of Th Huxley.¹² I shall never forget that meeting of the combined sections of the British Association when at Oxford 1860, where Admiral Fitzroy expressed his sorrows for having given you the opportunities of collecting facts for such a shocking theory as yours. The poor man is gone, and yet we thank him.¹³ As I welcome the opportunity of giving to the public in a widely spread work for reference an abstract of your results I should be very much pleased if I could rely for the little biographical sketch on the best authority possible, on yourself   Now, if it gives not too much trouble to you, would you be so very kind as to give me some details on your life? Birthday, school, and so on. If you should not like it I trust you will tell me quite openly and will not be angry with me. In the meantime I shall go on with your work, and whenever I find some doubts, will you excuse my writing again and trespassing on your time?

Once more my most hearty thanks for the kind gift. Believe me, | My dear Sir, | Yours very sincerely. | J. Victor Carus