To Lyon Playfair 28 May [1875]1
Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.
May 28th
My dear Dr. Playfair
I must write one line to thank you for your very kind letter, & to say that after despatching my last note, it suddenly occurred to me that I had been rude in calling one of the provisions of your Bill, “monstrous” or “absurd”—I forget which—.2 But when I wrote the expression it was addressed to the bigots, who I believed had forced you to a compromise.
I cannot understand what Dr. B. Sanderson could have been about not to have objected with respect to clause of not demonstrating on animals rendered insensible.—3 I am extremely sorry that you have had trouble & vexation on the subject.— It is a most disagreeable & difficult one.— I am not personally concerned, as I never tried an experiment on a living animal, nor am I a physiologist, but I know enough to see how ruinous it wd be to stop all progress in so grand a science as physiology.
I commenced the agitation amongst the physiologists for this reason, & because I have long felt very keenly on the question of useless vivisection, & believed though without any good evidences that there was not always, even in this country, care enough taken.—
Pray forgive this note, so much about myself. & believe me | Yours sincerely | Ch Darwin
Footnotes
Summary
Writes again on the Vivisection Bill, expresses his desire not to ruin the progress of physiology whilst avoiding useless vivisection.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-9997
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Lyon Playfair, 1st Baron Playfair of St Andrews
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine Archives (Playfair 207)
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 9997,” accessed on 25 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-9997.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 23