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1879 Letters now online
Summary
In 1879, Darwin continued his research on movement in plants and researched, wrote, and published a short biography of his grandfather Erasmus Darwin as an introduction to a translation of an essay by Ernst Krause on Erasmus’s scientific work. Darwin’s son…
Matches: 6 hits
- … myself a perfect fool to have undertaken such a job. ( Letter to J. D. Hooker, 1 December [1879] ) …
- … to common sense & not to professional advisors . ( Letter to the Darwin children, 21 …
- … not to require some sound financial advice. His eldest son, William, a banker himself, responded …
- … a specialised centre for receiving certain irritations ( Letter t o Francis Darwin, 2 July …
- … other to attend to the real interests of the country . ( Letter to T. H. Farrer, 23 October 1879 …
- … or distinction, & more even than strong health . ( Letter to T. H. Farrer, 13 October 1879 ) …
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 was ‘dry 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 …
- … an additional worry: the engagement of his son Horace to Ida Farrer, stepdaughter of Darwin’s niece …
- … 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 …
- … office to complete Horace’s marriage settlement ( letter from W. M. Hacon, 31 December 1879 ). …
- … but they were ‘as nice and good as could be’ ( letter from Karl Beger, [ c. 12 February 1879] ) …
- … on your life’s work, which is crowned with glory’ ( letter from Ernst Haeckel, 9 February 1879 ). …
- … to wish Darwin a ‘long and serene evening of life’. This letter crossed with one from Darwin, …
- … the statement ‘In the beginning was carbon’ ( letter from Hermann Müller, 14 February 1879 ). …
- … as the ‘organ of “uncultivated materialism”’ ( letter from Francis Darwin, [after 2 June 1879 ]). …
- … up the glory & would please Francis’, he pointed out ( letter from E. A. Darwin, 13 March [1879 …
- … wholly & shamefully ignorant of my grandfathers life’ ( letter to Ernst Krause, 14 March 1879 …
- … known philosopher and poet’ ( Correspondence vol. 1, letter from Francis Beaufort to Robert …
- … these things with the when & the where, & the who—’ ( letter from V. H. Darwin, 28 May …
- … research (first during his stay in Southampton with Sara and William Darwin in May and then while on …
- … The other cloud on the horizon was Thomas Henry Farrer’s objection to the engagement between his …
- … Hall, on several occasions. Horace had first approached Farrer to request Ida’s hand in marriage in …
- … Ida must cease. Emma Darwin persuaded her husband to meet Farrer. ‘This proved most useful’, Emma …
- … Darwin, [1 July 1879] (DAR 219.1: 123)). Darwin wrote to Farrer on 27 June to request ten …
- … the marriage; but I believe he knows that all his family (Farrer & Erskines) will disapprove so …
- … very pleasant, but, ‘Oh—such shouting’, she wrote to William Darwin: ‘He has been coasting round the …
- … was that his contact at the Board of Trade was Thomas Farrer, who remained steadfast in his wish …
Casting about: Darwin on worms
Summary
Earthworms were the subject of a citizen science project to map the distribution of earthworms across Britain (BBC Today programme, 26 May 2014). The general understanding of the role earthworms play in improving soils and providing nutrients for plants to…
Matches: 3 hits
- … book Darwin claimed had ‘much influence on my mind’ ( letter to W. T. Preyer, 17 February [1870 ]) …
- … From 1872, few members of the family were not involved. William, armed with a skewer and trowel, …
- … whole soul is absorbed with worms just at present!’ ( letter to W. T. Thiselton Dyer, 23 November …
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: 25 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 ) …
- … Drosera filiformis . Hooker, with the assistance of William Turner Thiselton-Dyer, was engaged in a …
- … but not in others. He encouraged research by Thomas Henry Farrer on a complex floral structure in …
- … 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 …
- … 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 …
- … by an individual could be transmitted to its offspring ( letter from J. T. Moggridge, 1 February …
- … a related discussion in Nature magazine, forwarding a letter from William Huggins on a case of …
- … Kepler who was fearful of butchers and butcher’s shops ( letter to Nature , [before 13 February …
- … smell. Darwin joined the debate, writing to Nature ( letter to Nature , [before 13 March …
- … noted his passion for collecting, the value of Euclid and William Paley as educational influences, …
- … Lubbock, Herbert Spencer, John Tyndall, George Busk, and William Spottiswoode met with Darwin in …
- … June, stayed with the Farrers in Surrey and with their son William in Southampton in August, and …
Volume 29 (1881) is published!
Summary
In October 1881, Darwin published his last book, The formation of vegetable mould through the action of worms: with observations on their habits. A slim volume on a subject that many people could understand and on which they had their own opinions, it went…
Matches: 8 hits
- … his demise on his mind. He increasingly relied on his son William for help with his financial …
- … the enthusiasm with which the book has been received. Letter t o Francis Darwin, 9 November …
- … in my life as for its success. Letter to A. B. Buckley, 4 January 1881 …
- … suitable signatories, and sent it to the prime minister, William Gladstone. Wallace was relieved and …
- … & I have no little jobs which I can do. Letter to J. D. Hooker, 15 June 1881 …
- … Letter to W. E. Darwin, 4 August [1881] In …
- … seemed to me admirable. Letter to T. H. Farrer, 28 August 1881 …
- … Letter t o B. J. Sulivan, 1 December 1881 …
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: 30 hits
- … Hooker, ‘or as far as I know any scientific man’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 14 December [1878] ). …
- … man if I do not observe a seedling Cactus’, he wrote to William Turner Thiselton-Dyer on 9 May. He …
- … 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] ). …
- … & yet it seems so ungracious to refuse,’ he wrote to William Spottiswoode on 7 July . Pinker …
- … of the “imperfection of the Geological Record”’ ( letter from Edmund Mojsisovics von Mojsvár, 28 …
- … science our atlas would not have come together’ ( letter from Arnold Dodel-Port, 18 June 1878 ). …
- … publish it. While he was in London, Darwin consulted Thomas Farrer at the Board of Trade, who …
- … 28 [February 1878] ). Further meetings were held with Farrer and James Caird, a member of the Royal …
- … been questioned by the Agricultural Society’s botanist, William Carruthers, and an earlier effort to …
- … of the sight of which you must be sick’, he wrote to Farrer on 13 March 1878 . ‘Mr. Torbitt’s …
- … Richard Litchfield, several weeks in Southampton with William and his wife Sara, and visits to the …
- … in central London. Darwin was uncertain of theirvalue, but William assured him of the soundness of …
2.19 Montford, bust at the Royal Society
Summary
< Back to Introduction Horace Montford’s marble bust of Darwin at the Royal Society, dating from 1898, derives from his bronze statue at Shrewsbury. It was normal for sculptors to re-use their models in this way for the creation of busts and…
Matches: 4 hits
- … shaped circular socle. The bust was commissioned by Thomas Farrer, 1 st Baron Farrer, who had …
- … Hensleigh was Darwin’s brother-in-law and cousin. Farrer’s granddaughter married Edward Ettingdene …
- … Gallery, London, in January 1905, and also one of Lord Farrer’s bust now at the Royal Society. …
- … Society, from the Society’s records. Royal Society New Letter Book for 1902, letters from Robert …
Darwin in letters, 1868: Studying sex
Summary
The quantity of Darwin’s correspondence increased dramatically in 1868 due largely to his ever-widening research on human evolution and sexual selection.Darwin’s theory of sexual selection as applied to human descent led him to investigate aspects of the…
Matches: 29 hits
- … in satisfying female preference in the mating process. In a letter to Alfred Russel Wallace in 1864, …
- … of changing the races of man’ (Correspondence vol. 12, letter to A. R. Wallace, 28 [May 1864] ). …
- … book would take the form of a ‘short essay’ on man ( letter to Ernst Haeckel, 3 July 1868 ). But …
- … as well say, he would drink a little and not too much’ ( letter to Albert Günther, 15 May [1868] ) …
- … The index of Variation had been entrusted to William Sweetland Dallas, a naturalist with long …
- … would be a great loss to the Book’. But Darwin’s angry letter to Murray crossed one from Dallas to …
- … of labour to remuneration I shall look rather blank’ ( letter from W. S. Dallas, 8 January 1868 ). …
- … if I try to read a few pages feel fairly nauseated’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 3 February [1868] ). …
- … reviews. On 7 August 1868 , he wrote him a lengthy letter from the Isle of Wight on the formation …
- … would strike me in the face, but not behind my back’ ( letter to John Murray, 25 February [1868] ) …
- … ignorant article… . It is a disgrace to the paper’ ( letter from A. R. Wallace, 24 February [1868] …
- … ‘he is a scamp & I begin to think a veritable ass’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 1 September [1868] …
- … wrote of the colour of duck claws on 17 April 1868 . The letter was addressed to ‘the Rev d C. …
- … proved very fruitful. On 1 May , Darwin received a letter from George Cupples, who was encouraged …
- … with the enthusiastic breeder, who apologised in a letter of 11–13 May 1868 for his ‘voluminuous …
- … of science On 27 February , Darwin sent a letter of thanks to the naturalist and …
- … he later added, ‘for it is clear that I have none’ ( letter to J. J. Weir, 30 May [1868] ). …
- … provided by the poultry expert and editor of the Field , William Bernhard Tegetmeier, who …
- … to various classes, a dim ray of light may be gained’ ( letter to H. T. Stainton, 21 February [1868 …
- … as well as of ‘victorious males getting wives’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 25 February [1868] ). …
- … of females was remarked upon by other entomologists ( letter from Roland Trimen, 20 February 1868 …
- … and Coleoptera on 9 September . Darwin annotated a letter sent on 3 April by Henry Doubleday …
- … for as sure as life he wd find the odour sexual!’ ( letter to A . R. Wallace, 16 September [1868] …
- … George Robert Crotch, writing to his mother Emma in a letter dated [after 16 October 1868] : ‘I …
- … box of preparations to papa … I will write a less beetley letter soon.’ Other relations …
- … present had taken no particular interest in the dyed hen ( letter from Harrison Weir, 28 March 1868 …
- … to Emma Darwin, 9 February [1868] ). Darwin’s eldest son, William, met on occasion with a …
- … to August Weismann, 22 October 1868 ). To the physiologist William Preyer Darwin wrote on 31 …
- … science, including Adam Sedgwick, John Stevens Henslow, and William Jackson Hooker. ‘I … am …
Darwin in letters, 1869: Forward on all fronts
Summary
At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition of Origin. He may have resented the interruption to his work on sexual selection and human evolution, but he spent forty-six days on the task. Much of the…
Matches: 29 hits
- … edition appeared at the end of 1866 and had told his cousin William Darwin Fox, ‘My work will have …
- … & I am sick of correcting’ ( Correspondence vol. 16, letter to W. D. Fox, 12 December [1868 …
- … Well it is a beginning, & that is something’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [22 January 1869] ). …
- … made any blunders, as is very likely to be the case’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 13 January 1869 ). …
- … than I now see is possible or probable’ (see also letter to A. R. Wallace, 22 January [1869] , …
- … is strengthened by the facts in distribution’ ( letter to James Croll, 31 January [1869] ). Darwin …
- … tropical species using Croll’s theory. In the same letter to Croll, Darwin had expressed …
- … a very long period before the Cambrian formation’ ( letter to James Croll, 31 January [1869] …
- … of the age of the earth much greater than that calculated by William Thomson, but he did point out, …
- … data to go by, but don’t think we have got that yet’ ( letter from James Croll, 4 February 1869 ). …
- … based on recent work of Croll, Andrew Crombie Ramsay, William Whitaker, and others ( Origin 5th …
- … I d have been less deferential towards [Thomson]’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 19 March [1869] ). …
- … completed revisions of the ‘everlasting old Origin’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 1 June [1869] ), he was …
- … him however in his researches I would willingly do so’ ( letter from Robert Elliot to George …
- … with his noisy courting of the female in the garden ( letter from Frederick Smith, 8 October 1869 …
- … his long-time correspondent, the pigeon and poultry fancier William Bernhard Tegetmeier, who sent …
- … doubted her ability to recognise the different varieties ( letter to W. B. Tegetmeier, 25 February …
- … weary of everlasting males & females, cocks & hens.—’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 13 November …
- … with much more of the same description’ ( enclosure to letter from Henry Maudsley, 20 May 1869 ). …
- … in an additional & proximate cause in regard to Man’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 14 April 1869 …
- … orang-utan, and the bird of paradise (Wallace 1869a; letter to A. R. Wallace, 22 March [1869] ) …
- … does himself an injustice & never demands justice’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 14 April 1869 ). …
- … geological structures of the South American cordillera ( letter to Charles Lyell, 20 May 1869 ), …
- … lusitanicum that had been painstakingly collected by William Chester Tait in Portugal. Darwin …
- … since its publication in 1862. Darwin asked his son William to examine the British orchid …
- … in order to better ascertain its manner of pollination. William’s contribution, and those of many …
- … was probably the one he commissioned and paid for himself: William Sweetland Dallas’s edition of …
- … criticism was noted in a letter from Thomas Henry Farrer, who had been reading some of Delpino’s …
- … from Adolf Reuter, 23 September 1869 ). The physiologist William Thierry Preyer enclosed a paper …
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: 29 hits
- … ‘my wife … poor creature, has won only 2490 games’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 28 January 1876 ). …
- … half of 1876 was marked by anxiety and deep grief. In May, William Darwin suffered a serious …
- … cannot bear to think of the future’, Darwin confessed to William on 11 September just hours …
- … 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 ). …
- … to get positive results in this year’s experiments’ ( letter from G. J. Romanes, [ c . 19 March …
- … in the Encyclopaedia Britannica the previous year ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [after 4 September …
- … and to promote work he admired. He was so interested in a letter from Fritz Müller in Brazil …
- … with the referee. Darwin gave in, admitting to William Thiselton-Dyer on 26 April that Tait’s …
- … before going on to confuse him with another entomologist, William Henry Edwards. The promise in …
- … home, they had experienced a further calamity. On 10 May, William suffered serious concussion after …
- … James Paget advised complete rest for three months, but when William developed symptoms of …
- … he explained to Andrew Clark, who travelled to Down to give William ‘the very devil of an …
- … by Amy. In contrast, Darwin’s letter to his oldest son William sought comfort. He expressed his …
- … daughter Annie, who died at the age of 10 in 1851, but William, who was 11 years old at the time of …
- … on his parents. Darwin’s affection for and reliance on William was clear as he ended his letter in a …
- … respect. ‘She is always able to speak’, Emma told William, before acknowledging, ‘I shall always …
- … Emma and Darwin had made a trip to Southampton to visit William, who was still recuperating, and, …
- … observations carried by out by Darwin’s oldest son William (see Correspondence vol. 12 and the …
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: 29 hits
- … his demise on his mind. He increasingly relied on his son William for help with his financial …
- … 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 …
- … 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 …
- … 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 …
- … had changed his mind on one topic. He readily admitted to William Parker Snow, whose …
- … view of the nature & capabilities of the Fuegians’ ( letter to W. P. Snow, 22 November 1881 ). …
- … the kindly protection of the high priests of science’ ( letter from Francisco de Arruda Furtado, 29 …
- … sent to Darwin, one stood out for capturing his attention: William Graham’s Creed of science , a …
- … Nature , which he thought ‘an excellent Journal’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 4 July [1881] ). In …
- … minds, without being in the least conscious of it’ ( letter to Alexander Agassiz, 5 May 1881 ). …
- … this produced about the year 1840(?) on all our minds’ ( letter to John Lubbock, [18 September 1881 …
- … big one’ and had ‘gone much out’ of his mind ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 20 June [1881] ). Feeling …
- … his ‘killing’; ‘I was a fool to go,’ he told William Darwin on 4 August , ‘but I could hardly …
- … his least scientific son as his most brilliant and when William expressed his wish to join the …
- … [1881 ]), Darwin immediately prepared a certificate for William’s nomination, canvassed supporters, …
- … was nearly 40 years ago!’ Darwin, himself, told Thomas Farrer on 28 August , ‘The death of my …
- … and his estate was settled by his executors George and William Darwin. For much of the year, …
- … his will. ‘We are the luckiest children in the world’, William declared to his father on 6 January …
- … his family, on 11 September he instructed his solicitor, William Hacon , to include bequests of …
Movement in Plants
Summary
The power of movement in plants, published on 7 November 1880, was the final large botanical work that Darwin wrote. It was the only work in which the assistance of one of his children, Francis Darwin, is mentioned on the title page. The research for this…
Matches: 27 hits
- … had considered combining the works in a single volume ( letter to J. V. Carus, 7 February 1875 ). …
- … 1873, while on holiday in Southampton at the home of his son William, Darwin wrote to his friend …
- … and burn sections of the leaf blade. Darwin asked whether Farrer’s gardener had observed the …
- … the lower surface of the leaf faced upward. He described to William Thiselton-Dyer how he ‘ …
- … , a plant that exhibited all three types of movement ( letter from R. I. Lynch, [before 28 July …
- … except the biology of seedling plants ’, he confessed to Farrer. He was not above a little gloating …
- … continue his observations on the emergence of young plants. William Williamson, who had raised …
- … the woodblock using photography for scientific accuracy ( letter from J. D. Cooper, 13 December …
- … lost colour, withered, and died within a couple of days ( letter from A. F. Batalin, 28 February …
- … how their observations could have been so much at odds ( letter to Hugo de Vries 13 February 1879 …
- … the botanist Gaetano Durando, to find plants and seeds ( letter to Francis Darwin, [4 February – 8 …
- … only the regulator & not cause of movement ’. In the same letter, Darwin discussed terminology, …
- … coinage, ‘diaheliotropism’, suggested by Darwin’s son William in February 1880, probably to replace …
- … experiments and devised a new test, which he described in a letter to his mother, ‘ I did some …
- … and it appeared in 1880 (F. Darwin 1880b). In the same letter, Francis revealed the frustration of …
- … on holiday in the Lake District, Darwin received a long letter from De Vries detailing his latest …
- … described as ‘little discs’ and ‘greenish bodies’ ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 29 October 1879 …
- … of cotton that he had not been able to observe earlier ( letter to W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 20 …
- … might have been too weak to lift the weight of the seed ( letter from Asa Gray, 3 February 1880 ). …
- … germination occurred, the plant would be killed by frost ( letter from Asa Gray, 4 April 1880 ). …
- … Plants’ or ‘The Nature of the Movements of Plants’ ( letter to R. F. Cooke, 23 April [1880] ). …
- … end of May 1880 and Darwin then spent a fortnight at his son William’s in Southampton. Just before …
- … Phytographie (A. de Candolle 1880). In his letter of thanks for the book, Darwin promised to send …
- … for advice about the number of copies they should print ( letter to John Murray, 10 July 1880 ). …
- … works, Murray was willing to publish on the usual terms ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 15 July 1880 ). …
- … & then I shall not lose ’. Darwin was happy to report to William, who also looked after Darwin …
- … says 500 copies urgently required ’. Darwin told William the news as well, noting, ‘ instead of …
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: 24 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] …
- … included George Darwin, the psychic researcher Frederick William Henry Myers, and Thomas Henry …
- … that Mr Williams was ‘a cheat and an imposter’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 27 January 1874 ). …
- … his, ‘& that he was thus free to perform his antics’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 29 January [1874 …
- … Darwin had allowed ‘a spirit séance’ at his home ( letter from T. G. Appleton, 2 April 1874 ). …
- … edition, published in 1842 ( Correspondence vol. 21, letter to Smith, Elder & Co., 17 …
- … Hooker, and finally borrowed one from Charles Lyell ( letter to Smith, Elder & Co., 8 January …
- … to take so sweetly all the horrid bother of correction’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 21 [March …
- … sent an apology for misinterpreting Darwin on this point ( letter from J. D. Dana, 21 July 1874 ); …
- … 22 June 1874 ). A civil servant in the Colonial Office, William Dealtry, also provided information …
- … will say that I have pounded the enemy into a jelly’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 14 April 1874 ). …
- … by none but anatomists; and never mind where it goes’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 16 April 1874 ). …
- … the return on subsequent print runs would be very good ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 …
- … by the conciseness & clearness of your thought’ ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 20 April 1874 ). …
- … legal action over the ‘scurrilous libel’ on his son ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [27 July 1874] ). …
- … false, scurrilous accusation of [a] lying scoundrel’ ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 1 August [1874] ). …
- … and communicating the ‘swell’ of his indignation through William Walter Roberts, a Catholic priest …
- … Taking stock of what he had achieved, he wrote to his cousin William Darwin Fox: ‘I am preparing a …
- … do—It is enough to kill anyone’, and asked Thomas Henry Farrer to attempt to influence the …
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: 22 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 …
- … . ‘In an endeavour to explain away y r . treatment of [William Alvey Darwin],’ George wrote on …
- … 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 …
- … and uncertain about what to do. He drafted two versions of a letter to the Athen æum , sending …
- … in which he will have the last word’, she warned ( letter from H. E. Litchfield, [1 February 1880] …
- … who will fight to the end’, added her husband Richard ( letter from R. B. Litchfield, 1 February …
- … him & given him Darwinophobia? It is a horrid disease’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 3 February …
- … squashing the ‘mosquito inflated to an elephant’ ( letter from Ernst Krause, 9 December 1880 ). …
- … inches of soil as a protection against enemies.’ ‘Your letter … made me open my eyes’, Gray replied …
- … his original description. Darwin was puzzled: ‘If my letter opened your eyes, yours has opened mine …
- … to the same species, should behave so differently.’ ( Letter to Asa Gray, 17 February 1880 .) But …
- … of the plant in its native habitat. He forwarded a letter from a botanist and schoolteacher in …
- … ‘Where is the profit for Author or publisher?’ ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 20 July 1880 ). ‘I must …
- … friend, Sarah Haliburton. She was one of the daughters of William Mostyn Owen, the squire of …
- … to check for castings on old furrows in Wales, and wrote to William on 18 June , ‘I very much …
- … He tried to interest the chief secretary for Ireland, William Edward Forster, and when that failed, …
- … . Darwin was also touched by the loss of his second cousin William Darwin Fox. They had been at …
- … health and difficulties with physical theory. He encouraged William’s interest in geology, and …
Darwin in letters, 1877: Flowers and honours
Summary
Ever since the publication of Expression, Darwin’s research had centred firmly on botany. The year 1877 was no exception. The spring and early summer were spent completing Forms of flowers, his fifth book on a botanical topic. He then turned to the…
Matches: 30 hits
- … his son’s own work on plant sensitivity and digestion. William, who had contributed to some of the …
- … of respect and affection’. He hinted as much in his letter of 4 June : ‘you will see I have done …
- … Darwin corresponded most often with the assistant director, William Turner Thiselton-Dyer, who …
- … as rain, wind, temperature, and light. While staying with William in Southampton he made notes on …
- … ‘I got out within 2 minutes of a very heavy shower’, William wrote on 24 August 1877 . ‘The …
- … have shared Hooker’s suspicion of ambitious gardeners ( letter from W. T. Thiselton-Dyer, 25 August …
- … method of recording leaf motion for extended periods. In a letter to Thiselton-Dyer of 11 October …
- … … tap one of the young leaves with a delicate twig’ ( letter to R. I. Lynch, 14 September 1877 ). …
- … , or to the vibratory flagella of some Infusoria’ ( letter from F. J. Cohn, 5 August 1877 ). …
- … in July 1877 (F. Darwin 1877b), and Darwin sent Cohn’s letter vindicating his son’s research to …
- … he had begun in 1839 with the birth of his first child, William. He had used some of this material …
- … attracted immediate attention from other researchers. William Preyer requested a copy and shared …
- … and classical scholars, including the eminent politician William Ewart Gladstone. Darwin wrote to …
- … his sense of form and of motion was exact and lively’ ( letter from W. E. Gladstone, 23 October …
- … the Westphalian Provincial Society for Science and Art. In a letter to Darwin written before 16 …
- … the only one full-page in size. Haeckel sent a personal letter of congratulation on 9 February , …
- … (see Appendix V). The album arrived with a long letter from the director and secretary of the …
- … reported, ‘but found him as soft & smooth as butter’ ( letter to C. E. Norton, 16 March 1877 ) …
- … write to Owen & offer himself you & me to dejeuner!!!’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 14 June …
- … where I hope it may remain for centuries to come’ ( letter from C. C. Graham, 30 January 1877 ). …
- … you in the interests of truth, of man and of societies’ ( letter from Marcellin de Bonnal, [1877] …
- … to the old story to be horsewhipped by a duke!’ ( letter to J. M. Rodwell, 3 June 1877 ). Back …
- … frog spawn; the gospel of dirt the order of the day’ ( letter from E. A. Darwin, 27 January [1877] …
- … , he was criticised for having quoted from an article by William Rathbone Greg on the ‘careless, …
- … C. T. E. Siebold, 10 October 1877 ). An American banker, William Burrows Bowles, having read Ernst …
- … a fossil by a model-maker. The giant’s ‘discoverer’, William Conant, was a colleague of the showman …
- … brought a very happy occasion with the engagement of William to Sara Sedgwick. She was the daughter …
- … Southampton a dull place, but he did his best to recommend William: ‘his temper is beautifully sweet …
- … ‘I enclose my marriage present’, Darwin wrote to William on 3 October , ‘I fear that Sara will …
- … of a Roman villa near Thomas Farrar’s home in Surrey; and Farrer sent him a ‘worm journal’ with …
Volume appendices
Summary
Here is a list of the appendices from the print volumes of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin with links to adapted online versions where they are available. Appendix I in each volume contains translations of letters in foreign languages and these can…
Matches: 5 hits
- … and these can be accessed online by searching for a letter and clicking on the translation tab on …
- … 2 VI Darwin and William Kemp on the vitality of seeds …
- … 8 V Patrick Matthew's letter to the Gardeners’ Chronicle …
- … 11 VII Notices in the Athenaeum on William Benjamin Carpenter’s …
- … 17 IV Thomas Henry Farrer's notes on Passiflora and Tacsonia …
Volume 28 (1880) now published
Summary
1880 opened and closed with an irksome controversy with Samuel Butler, prompted by the publication of Erasmus Darwin the previous year. Darwin became fully devoted to earthworms in the spring of the year, just after finishing the manuscript of Movement in…
