skip to content

Darwin Correspondence Project

From W. H. M. Christie   12 October 1874

Royal Observatory, Greenwich, | London, S.E.

1874 Oct. 12

Sir,

The Astronomer Royal requests me to inform you that a telegram has just been received announcing the arrival of the “Merope” at Canterbury, but that no date was mentioned.1

I am, Sir | Yours faithfully | W. H. M. Christie

C. Darwin Esqre F.R.S. | &c &c

Footnotes

The expedition to observe the transit of Venus was on board the Merope, which had arrived at Lyttelton, near Christchurch, Canterbury province, New Zealand, on 27 September 1874 (Airy ed. 1881, p. 483; letter from Leonard Darwin to Emma Darwin, [after 26 June – 28 September 1874]). CD’s son Leonard joined the expedition in Plymouth in June 1874 (see letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 24 June [1874]). The astronomer royal was George Biddell Airy; for more on the expedition, see G. B. Airy ed. 1881.

Summary

Announces arrival of the Merope [Leonard Darwin’s ship] at Canterbury, New Zealand.

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-9677
From
William Henry Mahoney Christie
To
Charles Robert Darwin
Sent from
Royal Observatory, Greenwich
Source of text
DAR 161: 147
Physical description
ALS 1p

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 9677,” accessed on 29 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-9677.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 22

letter