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Darwin in letters, 1881: Old friends and new admirers

Summary

In May 1881, Darwin, one of the best-known celebrities in England if not the world, began writing about all the eminent men he had met. He embarked on this task, which formed an addition to his autobiography, because he had nothing else to do. He had…

Matches: 21 hits

  • … in Unconscious memory in November 1880 and in an abusive letter about Darwin in the St James’s …
  • … memory in Kosmos and sent Darwin a separate letter for publication in the Journal of Popular …
  • … could see that Butler, as he told his daughter Henrietta Litchfield on 4 January , ‘would like …
  • … made a small omission ’. Stephen’s reply on 12 January was flattering, reassuring, and …
  • … publishers decided to print ‘500 more, making 2000’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 4 January 1881 ) …
  • … the animal learnt from its own individual experience ( letter from G. J. Romanes, 7 March 1881 ). …
  • … whether observations of their behaviour were trustworthy ( letter to Francis Galton, 8 March [1881] …
  • … about the sale of books being ‘a game of chance’ ( letter to R. F. Cooke, 12 April 1881 ). On 18 …
  • … for more suggestions of such plants, especially annuals ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 21 March …
  • … Darwin had difficulty in obtaining mature plants. On 12 April, he reported to Müller , ‘I have …
  • … to make me happy & contented,’ he told Wallace on 12 July , ‘but life has become very …
  • … supposed he would feel ‘less sulky in a day or two’ ( letter to R. F. Cooke, 29 July 1881 ). The …
  • … dead a work falls at this late period of the season’ ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 30 July 1881 ). …
  • … conversation with you’, a Swedish teacher told him ( letter from C. E. Södling, 14 October 1881 ), …
  • … add, however little, to the general stock of knowledge’ ( letter to E. W. Bok, 10 May 1881 ). …
  • … regular ‘bread-winners’ ( Correspondence vol. 30, letter to C. A. Kennard, 9 January 1882 ). …
  • … any future publication & to acknowledge any criticism’ ( letter to C. G. Semper, 19 July 1881 …
  • … fight’ (letters to J. D. Hooker, 6 August 1881 and 12 August 1881 ). Darwin may have …
  • … else’s judgment on the subject ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 12 July 1881 ). However, some requests …
  • … in heaven’ when the portrait was finished ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 23 July 1881 ). ‘All my family …
  • … after expressing their wish to visit Darwin ( letter from E. B. Aveling, 27 September [1881] ). …

Darwin in letters, 1880: Sensitivity and worms

Summary

‘My heart & soul care for worms & nothing else in this world,’ Darwin wrote to his old Shrewsbury friend Henry Johnson on 14 November 1880. Darwin became fully devoted to earthworms in the spring of the year, just after finishing the manuscript of…

Matches: 20 hits

  • … my grandfather’s character is of much value to me’ ( letter to C. H. Tindal, 5 January 1880 ). …
  • … have influenced the whole Kingdom, & even the world’ ( letter from J. L. Chester, 3 March 1880 …
  • … delighted to find an ordinary mortal who could laugh’ ( letter from W. E. Darwin to Charles and …
  • … much powder & shot’ ( Correspondence vol. 27, letter from Ernst Krause, 7 June 1879 , and …
  • … modified; but now I much regret that I did not do so’ ( letter to Samuel Butler, 3 January 1880 ). …
  • … and ‘decided on laying the matter before the public’ ( letter from Samuel Butler, 21 January 1880 …
  • … , sending one or both to his daughter Henrietta ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 1 February [1880] ). …
  • … he will have the last word’, she warned ( letter from H. E. Litchfield, [1 February 1880] ). ‘He …
  • … the end’, added her husband Richard ( letter from R. B. Litchfield, 1 February 1880 ). Even the …
  • … Darwinophobia? It is a horrid disease’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 3 February 1880 ). All …
  • … leading journalist was sought. Leslie Stephen’s reply on 12 January [1881] echoed that of Huxley …
  • … I was, also, rarely fit to see anybody’ ( letter to S. H. Haliburton, 13 December 1880 ). …
  • … thus one looks to prevent its return’ ( letter from J.-H. Fabre, 18 February 1880 ). Darwin shared …
  • … with diverse backgrounds and interests. In February, a 12-year-old boy asked politely, ‘What causes …
  • … aided in any way direct attacks on religion’ ( letter to E. B. Aveling, 13 October 1880 ). Finally …
  • … biologist of our time’ ( letter from W. D. Roebuck to G. H. Darwin, 25 October 1880 ). The …
  • … 21 years since the Origin appeared”‘ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 11 [April] 1880 ). While praising …
  • … been developed through natural selection’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 11 May 1880 ). Worthy …
  • … prevailing superstitions of this country!’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, [after 26 November 1880] ). …
  • … and spent extended periods with Henrietta and Richard Litchfield in London. The children returned …

Darwin in letters, 1874: A turbulent year

Summary

The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working on second editions of Coral reefs and Descent of man; the rest of the year was mostly devoted to further research on insectivorous plants. A…

Matches: 23 hits

  • … be done by observation during prolonged intervals’ ( letter to D. T. Gardner, [ c . 27 August …
  • … pleasures of shooting and collecting beetles ( letter from W. D. Fox, 8 May [1874] ).  Such …
  • … And … one looks backwards much more than forwards’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 11 May [1874] ). …
  • … was an illusory hope.— I feel very old & helpless’  ( letter to B. J. Sulivan, 6 January [1874] …
  • … inferred that he was well from his silence on the matter ( letter from Ernst Haeckel, 26 October …
  • … in such rubbish’, he confided to Joseph Dalton Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 18 January [1874] …
  • … that Mr Williams was ‘a cheat and an imposter’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 27 January 1874 ). …
  • … he was thus free to perform his antics’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 29 January [1874] ). This did …
  • … sweetly all the horrid bother of correction’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 21 [March 1874] ). The …
  • … (letters from George Cupples, 21 February 1874 and 12 March 1874 ); the material was …
  • … the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii; letters from T. N. Staley, 12 February 1874 and 20 February 1874 …
  • … I have pounded the enemy into a jelly’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 14 April 1874 ). The technical …
  • … and never mind where it goes’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 16 April 1874 ). The second …
  • … print runs would be very good ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). Darwin's …
  • … conciseness & clearness of your thought’ ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 20 April 1874 ). …
  • … over the ‘scurrilous libel’ on his son ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [27 July 1874] ).  George, …
  • … Review & in the same type’  ( letter from John Murray, 12 August 1874 ). George’s letter
  • … he finally wrote a polite, very formal letter to Mivart on 12 January 1875 , refusing to hold any …
  • … & snugness’ ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October [1874] ).   More …
  • … artificial gastric juice  for about a week ( letter from E. E. Klein, 14 May 1874 ). John Burdon …
  • … try to get it exhibited at a Royal Society of London soirée  (see letter from Anton Dohrn, 6 April …
  • … nephew, the fine-art specialist Henry Parker ( letter from E. A. Darwin, 17 [March 1874] ). He …
  • … could not weary the German public ( letter to H. E. Litchfield,  21 [March 1874] ). …

Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?

Summary

'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . .  What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…

Matches: 26 hits

  • What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’ ( letter to Francis Galton, 8 November [1872] …
  • anything more on 'so difficult a subject, as evolution’ ( letter to ARWallace,  27 July
  • best efforts, set the final price at 7 s.  6 d.  ( letter from RFCooke, 12 February 1872 ) …
  • condition as I can make it’, he wrote to the translator ( letter to JJMoulinié, 23 September
  • translation remained unpublished at the end of the year ( letter from C.-FReinwald, 23 November
  • to the comparative anatomist St George Jackson Mivart ( letter to St GJMivart,  11 January
  • comparison of Whale  & duck  most beautiful’ ( letter from ARWallace, 3 March 1872 ) …
  • a person as I am made to appear’, complained Darwin ( letter to St GJMivart, 5 January 1872 ). …
  • Darwin would renounce `fundamental intellectual errors’ ( letter from St GJMivart, 6 January
  • was silly enough to think he felt friendly towards me’ ( letter to St GJMivart, 8 January [1872
  • hoping for reconciliation, if only `in another world’ ( letter from St GJMivart,  10 January
  • have been ungracious in him not to thank Mivart for his letterHe promised to send a copy of the
  • partly in mind, `chiefly perhaps because I do it badly’ ( letter to ARWallace, 3 August [1872] …
  • selection is somewhat under a cloud’, he wrote to JETaylor on 13 January , and he complained
  • Darwinism is to be the theme. Surely the world moves!’ ( letter from Mary Treat, 13 December 1872
  • to find that Weismann accepted it at least in part ( letter to August Weismann, 5 April 1872 ). ‘I
  • few naturalists in England seem inclined to believe it’ ( letter to Herman Müller, [before 5 May
  • the theories of natural and sexual selection to bees (HMüller 1872), and with his reply Darwin
  • for myself it is dreadful doing nothing’ ( letter to THHuxley, 22 October [1872] ). He was far
  • origins of music provided by her husband, Richard Buckley Litchfield ( letter to HELitchfield, …
  • … 'I know that I am half-killed myself’ ( letter to HELitchfield, 25 July 1872 ). A
  • a week later ( enclosure to letter from John Lubbock to WEGladstone, 20 June 1872 ).  Darwin
  • turn into an old honest Tory’ ( letter to JDHooker, 12 July [1872] ). Darwin and
  • Charlton Bastians recent book on the origin of life (HCBastian 1872; Wallace 1872d) left him
  • pleasant letters & never answer them’ ( letter to THHuxley, 22 October [1872] ). But not
  • than usual. One such old friend was Sarah Haliburton, née Owen, to whose sister, Fanny, Darwin had

Henrietta Darwin's diary

Summary

Darwin's daughter Henrietta kept a diary for a few momentous weeks in 1871. This was the year in which Descent of Man, the most controversial of her father's books after Origin itself, appeared, a book which she had helped him write. The small…

Matches: 4 hits

  • … expression of emotion (see letters from F. J. Wedgwood to H. E. and C. R. Darwin, [1867–72],  letter
  • … my telegram & I feared so to find from G. Lushingtons. 12 I think he  must  care—it can …
  • … when I feel my day made bright & happy by one short letter. I want him to take me in his arms …
  • … parable of the talents see Matt. 25: 14–30. 12 Godfrey Lushington and Beatrice Ann …

Origin is 160; Darwin's 1875 letters now online

Summary

To mark the 160th anniversary of the publication of Origin of species, the full transcripts and footnotes of nearly 650 letters to and from Charles Darwin in 1875 are published online for the first time. You can read about Darwin's life in 1875…

Matches: 7 hits

  • very much more about the wide distribution of my books.  ( Letter to RFCooke, 29 June [1875] ) …
  • over the sickening work of preparing new Editions .  ( Letter to JDHooker, 18 August [1875] ) …
  • insensible, if  the experiment made this possible  ( Letter to HELitchfield, 4 January [1875] …
  • me in the vestry of having made false statements  ( Letter to John Lubbock, 8 April 1875 ) …
  • Such energy as yours almost always succeeds  ( Letter to GHDarwin, 13 October [1875] ) …
  • done in science I owe to the study of his great works ( Letter to ABBuckley, 23 February 1875
  • act which any scientific Socy. has done in my time  ( Letter to JDHooker, [12 December 1875] ) …

Referencing women’s work

Summary

Darwin's correspondence shows that women made significant contributions to Darwin's work, but whether and how they were acknowledged in print involved complex considerations of social standing, professional standing, and personal preference.…

Matches: 20 hits

  • … earthworms . Selected letters Letter 1113 - Darwin to Whitby, M. …
  • … work are referenced throughout Variation . Letter 2395 - Darwin to Holland, …
  • … her identity is both anonymised and masculinised. Letter 3316 - Darwin to Nevill, D …
  • … Darwin’s Fertilisation of Orchids . Letter 4038 - Darwin to Lyell, C., …
  • … being acknowledged publicly as a science critic. Letter 4370 - Wedgwood, L. C. to …
  • … are identified only as “friends in Surrey”. Letter 4794 - Darwin to Lyell, C., [25 …
  • … Sir C. Lyell” or received from “Miss. B”. Letter 7060 - Wedgwood, F. J. to …
  • … was referenced in the final publication. Letter 7223 - Darwin to Wedgwood, L. C …
  • … are not cited in Expression . Letter 5817 - Darwin to Huxley, T. H., …
  • … description of a crying baby in Mary Barton. Letter 8321 - Darwin to …
  • … he would “feel the public humming” at him. Letter 7345 - Wedgwood, L. C. to Darwin, …
  • … lady, on whose accuracy I can implicitly rely”. Letter 8427 - Darwin to Litchfield H …
  • … of Henrietta’s considerable editorial input. Letter 8719 - Darwin to Treat, M., [1 …
  • … Letters relating to Earthworms Letter 7428 - Wedgwood, F. to Darwin, [4 …
  • … depth of furrows in an old field near his house. Letter 8168 - Ruck, A. R. to …
  • … activity in the fields of North Wales. Letter 8193 - Ruck, A. R. to Darwin, H …
  • … published discussion of earthworm activity . Letter 8224 - Darwin to Ruck, A. …
  • … discussion of turf-based worm castings . Letter 7345 - Wedgwood, L. C. to Darwin, …
  • … lady, on whose accuracy I can implicitly rely”. Letter 11221 - Darwin to Darwin …
  • … . Letter 12745 - Darwin to Wedgwood, K. E. S., [8 October 1880] Darwin …

Darwin's in letters, 1873: Animal or vegetable?

Summary

Having laboured for nearly five years on human evolution, sexual selection, and the expression of emotions, Darwin was able to devote 1873 almost exclusively to his beloved plants. He resumed work on the digestive powers of sundews and Venus fly traps, and…

Matches: 22 hits

  • … I omitted to observe, which I ought to have observed” ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 12 January [1873] …
  • … work your wicked will on it—root leaf & branch!” ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 January 1873 ) …
  • … parts of the flower would become modified & correlated” ( letter to T. H. Farrer, 14 August …
  • … it again, “for Heaven knows when it will be ready” ( letter to John Murray, 4 May [1873] ). …
  • … we take notes and take tracings of their burrows” ( letter from Francis Darwin, 14 August [1873] ) …
  • … in importance; and if so more places will be created” ( letter to E. A. Darwin, 20 September 1873 …
  • … our unfortunate family being fit for continuous work” ( letter from E. A. Darwin, 25 September …
  • … of November 1872 and sold quickly. He wrote to Hooker on 12 January [1873] , “Did I ever boast to …
  • … on any point; for I knew my own ignorance before hand” ( letter to George Cupples, 28 April [1873] …
  • … “he would fly at the Empr’s throat like a bulldog” ( letter from L. M. Forster to H. E. Litchfield, …
  • … force & truth of the great principle of inheritance!” ( letter to F. S. B. F. de Chaumont, 3 …
  • … the heavy breathing that accompanied sexual intercourse? (letter from ?, [1873?]). The Scottish …
  • … with up lines; & sadness & decay with the reverse—” ( letter from William Main, 2 April …
  • … with the advance of civilisation and good breeding ( letter from Henry Reeks, 3 March 1873 ). …
  • … have never felt an inclination to have a second dose” ( letter from Robert Swinhoe, 26 March 1873 …
  • … of an orbital one produces snapping of the jaws” ( letter from James Crichton-Browne, 16 April 1873 …
  • … that illustrated the physiognomy of the disease ( letter to James Crichton-Browne, 30 December 1873 …
  • … it would offend his father ( enclosure to letter from T. H. Huxley, 3 December 1873 ).  In …
  • … we should feel it a privilege to offer” ( letter from E. F. Lubbock, [before 7 April 1873] ). …
  • … to us to the last day of our lives” ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 23 April 1873 ). Huxley was …
  • … been without energy & without hope” ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 24 April 1873 ). He accepted …
  • … to starve sweat & purge it away” ( letter from G. H. Darwin, [1 October 1873] ). He also …

Darwin in letters, 1879: Tracing roots

Summary

Darwin spent a considerable part of 1879 in the eighteenth century. His journey back in time started when he decided to publish a biographical account of his grandfather Erasmus Darwin to accompany a translation of an essay on Erasmus’s evolutionary ideas…

Matches: 24 hits

  • his publishers, he warned that it wasdry as dust’ ( letter to R. F. Cooke, 9 September 1879 ). …
  • turned out, alas, very dull & has disappointed me much’ ( letter to Francis Galton, 15 [June
  • home again’, he fretted, just days before his departure ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, [after 26
  • many blessings, was finding old agea dismal time’ ( letter to Henry Johnson, 24 September 1879 ) …
  • wrinkles one all over like a baked pear’ ( enclosure in letter from R. W. Dixon, 20 December 1879
  • itself, or gone some other way round?’ At least the last letter of 1879 contained a warmer note and
  • Seventy years old Darwins seventieth birthday on 12 February was a cause for international
  • and good as could be’ ( letter from Karl Beger, [ c. 12 February 1879] ). The masters of
  • … ). The botanist and schoolteacher Hermann Müller wrote on 12 February to wish Darwin along and
  • … & would please Francis’, he pointed out ( letter from E. A. Darwin, 13 March [1879 ]). …
  • with the when & the where, & the who—’ ( letter from V. H. Darwin, 28 May [1879] ). On the
  • thoughtperfect in every way’ ( letter from E. A. Wheler, 25 March 1879 ). She suggested that
  • own family found his first draft lacked interest. Henrietta Litchfield thought itvery dull,—almost
  • and well, and with little fatigue’ ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 12 July 1879 , and letter from
  • ever about life of D r . D’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 12 July [1879] ). It was little
  • to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 5 June 1879 , and letter to G. H. Darwin, 12 July 1879 ). Darwins
  • Aunt Elizabeth (Bessy) Darwin, and Henrietta and Richard Litchfield to the Lake District for a
  • … … neither cross nor ennuied’ (Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, [4 August 1879] (DAR 219.1: 125)). Darwin
  • wait for three months. ‘Nothing can be more useless than T.Hs conduct’, Emma Darwin pointed out, …
  • say that he has opposed it’ (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, [4 August 1879] (DAR 219.1: …
  • to get home ‘& began drumming at once’ (Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield, [27 August 1879] (DAR
  • … & I may not be equal to the exertion’ ( letter to H. A. Pitman, [13 May 1879] ). In the end, …
  • it dominated the picture (letter from Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield, [17 July 1879] (DAR 219.9: …
  • men of science quarrelled (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, [6 September 1879] (DAR 219.1: …

Animals, ethics, and the progress of science

Summary

Darwin’s view on the kinship between humans and animals had important ethical implications. In Descent, he argued that some animals exhibited moral behaviour and had evolved mental powers analogous to conscience. He gave examples of cooperation, even…

Matches: 14 hits

  • … by the prospect of animals suffering for science. In a letter to E. Ray Lankester, he wrote: ‘You …
  • … another word about it, else I shall not sleep to-night’ ( letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871 …
  • … pangenesis. Darwin was taken aback, and swiftly replied in a letter to Nature , insisting that he …
  • … deserved credit for his ‘ingenuity and perseverance’ ( letter to Nature , [before 27 April 1871] …
  • … for further cross-circulation and ‘Siamesing’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 13 September 1871 ). …
  • … Some of the results were promising, but inconclusive (see letter from G. J. Romanes, 14 July 1875 …
  • … results will be necessary to convince physiologists’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 18 July 1875 ). …
  • … for your work; & I suppose birds can be chloroformed (letter to G. J. Romanes, 27 December …
  • … branded physiologists as ‘demons let loose from hell’ ( letter to F. B. Cobbe, [14 January 1875] ) …
  • … detail here . He stated his position most frankly in a letter to Henrietta, 4 January [1875] . …
  • … point of view I have rejoiced at the present agitation. ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 4 January …
  • … science of Physiology as doomed to death in this country. ( letter To T. H. Huxley, 14 January 1875 …
  • … are now in the position of a persecuted religious sect’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 4 June [1876] ) …
  • … of the utility of experiment amongst people in general’ ( letter from T. L. Brunton, 12 February …

Darwin and vivisection

Summary

Darwin played an important role in the controversy over vivisection that broke out in late 1874. Public debate was sparked when the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals brought an unsuccessful prosecution against a French physiologist who…

Matches: 19 hits

  • me) attack on Virchow for experimenting on the Trichinae’ (letter to H. E. Litchfield, 4 January
  • progress of physiology. He reiterated these concerns in a letter to Thomas Henry Huxley ten days
  • I love with all my heart’ ( Correspondence vol. 19, letter to ?, 19 May [1871] ). As a
  • farmers and their staff (see Correspondence vol. 14, letter to a local landowner, [1866?] ). …
  • by the prospect of animals suffering for science. In a letter to E. Ray Lankester, he wrote: ‘You
  • I shall not sleep to-night’ ( Correspondence vol. 19, letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871
  • was a sensitive subject within Darwins family. In his letter of 14 January 1875 to Huxley, …
  • ones (men of course) or I might get one or two’ (letter from Emma Darwin to F. P. Cobbe, 14
  • to serve as the basis for a petition, and gave it to Huxley (letter from J. S. Burdon Sanderson, …
  • with Huxley, who produced a new sketch for a petition (letter from T. H. Huxley, [4 April 1875] ) …
  • who drafted a memorial, sending it to Darwin on 7 April (letter from J. S. Burdon Sanderson, 7
  • in order to gather signatures. More alterations were made (letter from J. S. Burdon Sanderson, 10
  • of Lushington and Darwins son-in-law Richard Buckley Litchfield. On 11 April, Darwin learned
  • to Down, however, it was decided to draft a formal bill. Litchfield drew up a sketch that was
  • … ‘we wd do whatever else you think best’ (letter to E. H. Stanley, 15 April 1875 ). After further
  • in Parliament. The final bill was submitted by Playfair on 12 May.   The Darwin Archive
  • of the documents contain marginal notes and revisions in Litchfields hand. The changes made to the
  • for each offence. This version also contained notes in Litchfields hand for an alternative title
  • expressed their dismay at this alteration (letter from T. H. Huxley, 19 May 1875 , letter from J. …

Darwin in letters, 1875: Pulling strings

Summary

‘I am getting sick of insectivorous plants’, Darwin confessed in January 1875. He had worked on the subject intermittently since 1859, and had been steadily engaged on a book manuscript for nine months; January also saw the conclusion of a bitter dispute…

Matches: 20 hits

  • … than insectivorous plants. As he confessed to Hooker on 12 December , ‘I have not felt so angry …
  • … On 8 January , he told Hooker: ‘I will write a savage letter & that will do me some good, if I …
  • … from his family, he sent a curt note to Mivart on 12 January , breaking off all future …
  • … to the Editor … Poor Murray shuddered again & again’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 16 January …
  • … of a bill that was presented to the House of Commons on 12 May, one week after a rival bill based on …
  • … offered to pay the costs for printing an additional 250 ( letter to John Murray, 3 May 1875 ). …
  • … & bless the day That ever you were born (letter from E. F. Lubbock, [after 2 …
  • … that the originally red half has become wholly white’ ( letter from G. J. Romanes, [before 4 …
  • … pp. 188–90). He drew attention to this discussion in a letter to George Rolleston, remarking on 2 …
  • … Darwin wrote, ‘I beg ten thousand pardon & more’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, [ c . February …
  • … signed himself, ‘Your affect son … the proofmaniac’ ( letter from Francis Darwin, 1 and 2 May [1875 …
  • … both critical and reverential. On 16 July he received a letter from an advocate of women’s …
  • … The author, Fritz Schultze, contacted Darwin himself on 12 June , describing the aims of his book …
  • … her presentation copy of Insectivorous plants ( letter to D. F. Nevill, 15 July [1875] ). Such …
  • … of my house within the short time I can talk to anyone’ ( letter to John Lubbock, 3 May [1875] ). …
  • … Eeles Dresser. ‘The horror was great’, Henrietta Emma Litchfield wrote to her brother Leonard on 14 …
  • … and had agreed to see him at Down with Thiselton-Dyer ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 7 July 1875 …
  • … scientific Socy. has done in my time,’ he told Hooker on 12 December . ‘I wish that I knew what …
  • … lay of hair in eyelashes and on arms, a typically lengthy letter full of personal observations, …
  • … examination it was pronounced to be of a ‘high type’ ( letter from Woodward Emery, 17 September …

Darwin in letters, 1878: Movement and sleep

Summary

In 1878, Darwin devoted most of his attention to the movements of plants. He investigated the growth pattern of roots and shoots, studying the function of specific organs in this process. Working closely with his son Francis, Darwin devised a series of…

Matches: 27 hits

  • … Hooker, ‘or as far as I know any scientific man’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 14 December [1878] ). …
  • … or arched.… Almost all seedlings come up arched’ ( letter to Sophy Wedgwood, 24 March [1878–80] ). …
  • … when he finds out that he missed sensitiveness of apex’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, [11 May 1878] …
  • … Darwin complained. ‘I am ashamed at my blunder’ ( letter to John Tyndall, 22 December [1878] ). …
  • … accursed German language: Sachs is very kind to him’ ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 18 June …
  • … have nobody to talk to, about my work, I scribble to you ( letter to Francis Darwin, 7 [July 1878] …
  • … but it is horrid not having you to discuss it with’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 20 [July 1878] ). …
  • … determine whether they had chlorophyll, Francis reported ( letter from Francis Darwin, [after 7 …
  • … ‘There is one machine we must have’, Francis wrote ( letter from Francis Darwin, [before 17 July …
  • … ‘He seems to me to jump to conclusions rather’ ( letter from Francis Darwin, [before 3 August 1878] …
  • … the pot-plant every day & never the bedded out one’ ( letter from Francis Darwin, [after 7 July …
  • … ‘I have borrowed Cieselski & read him,’ he reported ( letter from Francis Darwin, [22 June 1878 …
  • … books & red-wine which is here the cure for all evils’ ( letter from Francis Darwin, [24 and 25 …
  • … is very sweet & pretty,’ he added a week later ( letter to Francis Darwin, 14 July [1878] ). …
  • … in a booboo, whereas I ought to have said a gee-gee’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 17 July [1878] ). …
  • … close down on the object, but he will always do so’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 20 August [1878] ). …
  • … idiot, a deaf-mute, a monkey & a baby in your house!’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 2 September …
  • … that I want to play the part of a thieving wasp’ ( letter from G. J. Romanes, 21 June 1878 ). …
  • … than zoology, where his work had been more controversial ( letter from J.-B. Dumas and Joseph …
  • … me Dr Darwin, the title seems to me quite ridiculous’ ( letter to John Price, 2 April [1878] ). …
  • … The Swiss botanist Arnold Dodel-Port announced on 12 June 1878 the first issue of an atlas with …
  • … god with the ‘eternity of matter’ ( letter from H. N. Ridley, [before 28 November 1878] ). Darwin …
  • … myself about such insoluble questions’ ( letter to H. N. Ridley, 28 November 1878 ). Darwin …
  • … without utterly demolishing it’ ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 28 January 1878 ). The matter was …
  • … seminal generations’ ( enclosure to letter to T. H. Farrer, 7 March 1878 ). In the end, the …
  • … vanish like the chaos before the wind’ ( letter from T. H. Noyes, 19 November 1878 ). A …
  • … him of the soundness of London property ( letter from W. E. Darwin, 13 December [1878] ). ‘This is …

Darwin in letters, 1882: Nothing too great or too small

Summary

In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and for the first time in decades he was not working on another book. He remained active in botanical research, however. Building on his recent studies in plant…

Matches: 20 hits

  • … ‘I feel a very old man, & my course is nearly run’ ( letter to Lawson Tait, 13 February 1882 ) …
  • … fertility of crosses between differently styled plants ( letter from Fritz Müller, 1 January 1882 …
  • … François Marie Glaziou (see Correspondence vol. 28, letter from Arthur de Souza Corrêa, 20 …
  • … quite untirable & I am glad to shirk any extra labour’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 6 January …
  • … probably intending to test its effects on chlorophyll ( letter to Joseph Fayrer, 30 March 1882 ). …
  • … we know about the life of any one plant or animal!’ ( letter to Henry Groves, 3 April 1882 ). He …
  • … of seeing the flowers & experimentising on them’ ( letter to J. E. Todd, 10 April 1882 ). …
  • … find stooping over the microscope affects my heart’ ( letter to Henry Groves, 3 April 1882 ). …
  • … H. Gilbert, 9 January 1882, and letter to J. H. Gilbert, 12 January 1882 ). In Earthworms , …
  • … 20 March [1882] ; see also letter from T. L Brunton, 12 February 1882 , and letter to T. L. …
  • … he is a good deal depressed about himself’ (letter from H. E. Litchfield to G. H. Darwin, 17 March …
  • … is very calm but she has cried a little’ (letter from H. E. Litchfield to G. H. Darwin, [19 April …
  • … & it is a consolation to me to think that the last 10 or 12 years were the happiest (owing to …
  • … overflowing in tenderness’ (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, 10 May 1882 (DAR 219.1: 150)). …
  • … he had witnessed an earthquake in 1835 ( letter from R. E. Alison, [March–July 1835 ]). …
  • … without any mercy’ ( letter from Emma Wedgwood to F. E. E. Wedgwood, [28 October 1836] , letter
  • … I cannot tell how or where to begin’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 21 [January 1860] ). Darwin’s …
  • … ’ ( Correspondence vol. 17, letter from F. M. Malven, 12 February [1869] ). An extract from …
  • … the same class with his’ ( letter to F. M. Malven, [after 12 February 1869] ). Accompanying this …
  • … at least be a valid ground for divorce’ ( letter to H. K. Rusden, [before 27 March 1875] ). In …

Darwin in letters, 1876: In the midst of life

Summary

1876 was the year in which the Darwins became grandparents for the first time.  And tragically lost their daughter-in-law, Amy, who died just days after her son's birth.  All the letters from 1876 are now published in volume 24 of The Correspondence…

Matches: 27 hits

  • … ‘my wife … poor creature, has won only 2490 games’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 28 January 1876 ). …
  • … quantity of work’ left in him for ‘new matter’ (letter to Asa Gray, 28 January 1876). The …
  • … to a reprint of the second edition of Climbing plants ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 23 February …
  • … & I for blundering’, he cheerfully observed to Carus. ( Letter to J. V. Carus, 24 April 1876. …
  • … provided evidence for the ‘advantages of crossing’ (letter to Asa Gray, 28 January 1876). Revising …
  • … year to write about his life ( Correspondence vol. 23, letter from Ernst von Hesse-Wartegg, 20 …
  • … nowadays is evolution and it is the correct one’ ( letter from Nemo, [1876?] ). …
  • … him ‘basely’ and who had succeeded in giving him pain ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 17 June 1876 ). …
  • … disgrace’ of blackballing so distinguished a zoologist ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 29 January 1876 ) …
  • … must have been cast by the ‘poorest curs in London’ ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, [4 February …
  • … her questions were ‘too silly to deserve an answer’ ( letter from S. B. Herrick, 12 February 1876 …
  • … on Dionaea ‘to test the insect eating theory’ ( letter from Peter Henderson, 15 November 1876 …
  • … sending Darwin small amendments to his results ( letter from Moritz Schiff, 8 May 1876 ). …
  • … Encyclopaedia Britannica the previous year ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [after 4 September 1876] ). …
  • … ‘all I can say is do not commit suicide’ ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [4 June 1876] ). By midsummer, …
  • … a set of sons I have, all doing wonders.’ ( Letter to G. H. Darwin, 13 July [1876]. ) A …
  • … and eczema, was able to rest his mind ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 2 May [1876] ). Darwin even …
  • letter to Andrew Clark, [late June 1876] ; letter to G. H. Darwin, 13 July [1876] ). The irony …
  • … we have & you are one of the best of all’ ( letter to W. E. Darwin, 11 September [1876] ). …
  • … she confided to Henrietta (letter from Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield, [31 August 1876] (DAR 219.9: …
  • … herself & is so tender’ (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, [13 September 1876] (DAR 210.6 …
  • … completed autobiography (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, [13 September 1876] (DAR 210.6: …
  • … for one so poor at figures as I am’, Gray conceded on 12 November , although he could reassure …
  • … horticulturists and agriculturists in France ( letter from E. M. Heckel, 27 December 1876 ). In …
  • … been the subject of mere observation’ ( letter from T. H. Farrer, 31 December 1876 ). The Swiss …
  • … Darwin’s oldest son William (see Correspondence vol. 12 and the Supplement to vol. 24). By the …
  • … on the method, or remains in utter darkness’ ( letter to H. N. Moseley, 22 November 1876 ). …

Darwin’s observations on his children

Summary

Charles Darwin’s observations on the development of his children, began the research that culminated in his book The Expression of the emotions in man and animals, published in 1872, and his article ‘A biographical sketch of an infant’, published in Mind…

Matches: 14 hits

  • … without a corresponding sensation. D r . Holland[12] informs me children do not  learn …
  • … each scream approaches it.— 8  Between 11 & 12 weeks old in smiling. I observe he …
  • … present when screaming from pain When one day under 12 weeks took hold of Catherines[20] …
  • … the first time he used his right hand, was observed 12 weeks & one day  whilst violently …
  • … it is easy to see, are those of inspiration.— 12  April 20 th .— Took my finger to his …
  • … April 4 14wks & 1 day. 11 – 12     May 16 …
  • … habit he continued for some months Jan 12 th . He observed, & gave cry of recognition …
  • … Anne, on seeing her  often kissed self in glass Jan 12 th — observed image in eye.— …
  • … Door. the  only difference between our door N o  12 and N o  11 is in the slit for the Letter
  • … has learned them from my sometimes changing the first letter in any word he is using—thus I say …
  • … , pp. 131–2. [6]  Correspondence  vol. 2, letter from Emma Wedgwood, [23 January 1839] . …
  • … CD’s original pencil text as closely as possible. [12] Henry Holland. [13] CD wrote …
  • … Emma Darwin’s diary, stayed at Upper Gower Street between 12 February and 16 March 1842. [43] …
  • … evangelical stories and tracts. In her old age, Henrietta Litchfield noted that ‘Little Robert & …