To Asa Gray 9 August [1862]
Summary
Believes Lythrum is trimorphic. Asks AG for seeds of plants he suspects are polymorphic.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 9 Aug [1862] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (71) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3685 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … see also this volume, letter to Daniel Oliver, 12 [April 1862] ). CD had told Gray of his …
From Asa Gray [10–16] June [1863]
Summary
Possible dimorphism in Phlox.
Knows of no U. S. law prohibiting marriage of cousins.
Gives references to papers on phyllotaxy.
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | [10–16] June [1863] |
Classmark: | DAR 165: 136 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-4198 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … letter to Asa Gray, 11 May [1863] and n. 12; the reference is to Joseph Dalton Hooker . …
To Asa Gray 5 September [1857]
Summary
Encloses an abstract of his ideas on natural selection and the principle of divergence; the "means by which nature makes her species".
Discusses varieties and close species in large and small genera, finding some data from AG in conflict with his expectations.
Has been observing the action of bees in fertilising kidney beans and Lobelia.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 5 Sept [1857] |
Classmark: | Archives of the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University (48) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2136 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … fertilisation in kidney beans (see n. 12, below). See letter to Asa Gray, 20 July [ …
To Asa Gray 23[–4] July [1862]
Summary
AG’s orchid observations are admirable.
Owen has lectured on birds’ descending from one form.
French criticism of CD’s Primula paper.
Only AG has seen that Orchids was "a ""flank movement"" on the enemy".
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 23[–4] July [1862] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (76) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3662 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Darwin had been sent home from school on 12 June 1862 suffering from scarlet fever; his …
To Asa Gray 21 [and 22] January 1878
Summary
Thanks for AG’s review of Forms of flowers [Am. J. Sci. 3d ser. 15 (1878): 67–73].
Thomas Carlyle’s letter about CD was a forgery.
Gives Hermann Müller’s observations on Valeriana dioica.
Is unsure about function of "bloom"; are glaucous plants more or less common in arid parts of U. S.?
Observations on heliotropism.
Thomas Meehan reports that Linum perenne is self-fertile; CD thinks that he has mistaken the species.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 21 and 22 Jan 1878 |
Classmark: | Archives of the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University (123 and 127) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-11330 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … pp. 67–8, and Forms of flowers , pp. 12–13. CD had suggested the terms gyno-dioecious for …
To Asa Gray 11 December [1861]
Summary
Discusses the worsening relations between their two countries and the possibility of war.
Expects Orchids and his Primula paper [Collected papers 2: 45–63] to be out soon.
Thanks AG for some facts on dimorphism.
George Bentham has given him a list of Oxalis and Mentha species that are dimorphic like Primula.
Is in a "thick mud" regarding design in nature.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 11 Dec [1861] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (62) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3342 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … of Gray (see Dupree 1959 , pp. 311–12). The historian Henry Thomas Buckle promoted the …
From Asa Gray 1 September 1863
Summary
Sees difficulties in adhering to the concept of design in nature.
Is surprised at Hooker’s and Daniel Oliver’s ignorance regarding spontaneous movements of tendrils.
CD should continue his work on climbing plants, "it will be fruitful in your hands".
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 1 Sept 1863 |
Classmark: | DAR 157.2: 108; DAR 165: 139, 140 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-4288 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … included the articles Gray refers to (see n. 12, above), explained that all the compiled …
To Asa Gray 13 September [1864]
Summary
Has finished Climbing plants;
resuming work on Variation.
Sends abstract of John Scott’s paper [see 4332].
Has received review of Herbert Spencer but cannot believe AG wrote it unless he has muddled his brains with metaphysics.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 13 Sept [1864] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (89) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-4611 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 1864 (see ‘Journal’ ( Correspondence vol. 12, Appendix II)). However, CD continued making …
To Asa Gray 1 July [1862]
Summary
Thanks for notes on Cypripedium and Platanthera hookeri, which is really beautiful and quite a new case.
His son, George, has been observing the insect fertilisation of orchids.
CD has been crossing peloric flowers of Pelargonium, but doubts he will get good results with respect to sterility of hybrids.
Rhexia glandulosa does not appear to be dimorphic. Lythrum is trimorphic.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 1 July [1862] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (69) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3634 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … experimental notes in DAR 51 (ser. 2): 4–9, 12–13; see also letter to Daniel Oliver, 8 …
From Joseph Trimble Rothrock to Asa Gray 31 March 1867
Summary
Answers to CD’s questions on expressions among the Atnah and Espyox Indians of Nass River [see Expression, pp. 22, 232, 252, 260].
Discusses the debate in America over the relationship among Indian tribes. JTR does not believe Indians are all of one race; they are as varied as Europeans.
[Forwarded to CD by Asa Gray.]
Author: | Joseph Trimble Rothrock |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 31 Mar 1867 |
Classmark: | DAR 176: 218 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5478 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … decidedly " 9 — " 10 — " 11 Exactly So. " 12 Laughter is often excessive, tho I know …
To Asa Gray 19 January [1863]
Summary
Comments on his own review of Bates’s butterfly paper [Collected papers 2: 87–92].
Thanks AG for information on Platanthera.
Has been wasting more time with Melastomataceae; can find no nectar in Monochaetum; is there any in Rhexia?
Hopes Lincoln’s "fiat against Slavery" will have some effect.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 19 Jan [1863] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (57) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3927 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … for the journal (see letter to H. W. Bates, 12 January [1863] and n. 2, and letter from …
From H. C. Watson to Asa Gray 13 March 1857
Summary
Describes problems of classifying species in highly variable genera. Lists highly variable genera. Comments on the list of Asa Gray. Says species may be made to appear more or less variable according to whether a genus is divided into few or many species.
Author: | Hewett Cottrell Watson |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 13 Mar 1857 |
Classmark: | DAR 181: 36 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2065 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Hieracia into one dozen species (Hudson, 12) we readily distinguish the type examples from …
To Asa Gray 5 June [1861]
Summary
AG’s review of John Phillips’ book [Life on earth (1860), in Am. J. Sci. 2d ser. 31 (1861): 444–9].
Thinks his experiments will explain Primula dimorphism.
Insect fertilisation of orchids.
Wishes that the "greatest curse on Earth", slavery, were abolished.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 5 June [1861] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (60) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3176 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 23 May [1861] and n. 3. In Herschel 1861 , p. 12 n. , Herschel stated that he could not …
To Asa Gray 17 September [1861]
Summary
U. S. politics and relations with England.
Wants examples of dimorphism similar to Primula.
Structure and function of Spiranthes flower.
Observations and experiments on Drosera.
CD’s views on design.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 17 Sept [1861] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (72) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3256 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … of the union. See McPherson 1988 , pp. 311–12. CD was an avid reader of the ‘Foreign …
From Asa Gray 22 September 1862
Summary
Last chapter of Orchids opens up a "knotty sort of question about accident or design".
Changes in orchid flowers as they age.
Thinks CD may find trimorphism in Nesaea verticillata.
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 22 Sept 1862 |
Classmark: | DAR 165: 118, 119 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3736 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 90, though I never saw the latter, nor the 12, 20 & 24 on envelopes. (the 24 ct per se he …
To Asa Gray 16 October [1862]
Summary
Lythrum salicaria is coming out clear.
Would be glad of Nesaea seed.
Is disappointed with Melastoma, but is sure there is something curious to be made out.
His experiments with poisons on Drosera lead him to conclude that it possesses something analogous to nervous matter.
Comments on natural hybrids of Verbascum.
Deplores the Civil War and the feelings it has fostered in Britain.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 16 Oct [1862] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (81) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3766 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 1862] , and letter from J. D. Hooker, [12 October 1862] . See letter from Asa Gray, 22 …
From Asa Gray to J. D. Hooker 6 July 1863
Summary
Includes comments about George Bentham’s anniversary address to the Linnean Society with particular notice of the favourable attention to Darwin, except for Natural Selection, and to AG’s essay in the Atlantic Monthly.
He defends [W. B.] Carpenter and [Jeffries] Wyman against [Richard] Owen.
Gossip about scientific honours and other matters.
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 6 July 1863 |
Classmark: | Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (Asa Gray correspondence: 328–9) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-4232F |
Matches: 1 hit
- … I have to thank you for a nice letter of June 12, and later, for the draft on your bankers …
To Asa Gray 22 May [1860]
Summary
Opinions and reviews of Origin.
CD’s view on design in nature; although he does not believe in the necessity of design, he finds it hard to conclude that everything is the result of "brute force".
Comments on Owen’s review of Origin [Edinburgh Rev. 111 (1860): 487–532].
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | 22 May [1860] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (26 and 37a) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2814 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 1860 reported in the Literary Gazette , 12 May 1860, p. 582. See also letter from J. …
To Asa Gray [3–]4 September [1862]
Summary
Glad AG will publish some separate notes on orchids ["Fertilization of orchids through the agency of insects", Am. J. Sci. 2d ser. 34 (1862): 420–9].
Trimorphism in Lythrum.
Bee behaviour.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Asa Gray |
Date: | [3–]4 Sept [1862] |
Classmark: | Gray Herbarium of Harvard University (68) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3710 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … of flower wrong: the so called calyx, with its 12 bundles of spiral vessels, appears to …
From Asa Gray 31 December 1861
Summary
Discusses dimorphism and suggests CD investigate Valeriana.
Praises CD’s views with respect to the U. S. Civil War and relations with England. Worsening relations between Britain and U. S.
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 31 Dec 1861 |
Classmark: | DAR 110 (ser. 2): 65, DAR 165: 104–105 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-3354 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 1861] . See also Dupree 1959 , pp. 311–12. As a result of the Trent affair, the British …
letter | (105) |
Darwin, C. R. | (53) |
Gray, Asa | (50) |
Gray, J. L. | (1) |
Rothrock, J. T. | (1) |
Watson, H. C. | (1) |
Gray, Asa | (55) |
Darwin, C. R. | (49) |
Hooker, J. D. | (1) |
Gray, Asa | |
Darwin, C. R. | (102) |
Gray, J. L. | (1) |
Hooker, J. D. | (1) |
Rothrock, J. T. | (1) |
Watson, H. C. | (1) |
Lost in translation: From Auguste Forel, 12 November 1874
Summary
You receive a gift from your scientific hero Charles Darwin. It is a book that contains sections on your favourite topic—ants. If only you had paid attention when your mother tried to teach you English you might be able to read it. But you didn’t, and you…
Matches: 1 hits
- … barely understand a word. Writing in French on 12 November 1874 to thank Darwin for the …
Darwin’s hothouse and lists of hothouse plants
Summary
Darwin became increasingly involved in botanical experiments in the years after the publication of Origin. The building of a small hothouse - a heated greenhouse - early in 1863 greatly increased the range of plants that he could keep for scientific…
Matches: 9 hits
- … Correspondence vol. 10, letter to J. D. Hooker, 12 [December 1862] and n. 13). Initially, …
- … Stove [that is, cool hothouse]’ ( Correspondence vol. 12, letter to J. D. Hooker, 26[–7] March …
- … of different temperatures’ (letter to W. C. Tait, 12 and 16 March [1869] , Calendar no. 6661) …
- … 100 yards’ to the greenhouses ( Correspondence vol. 12, letter to J. D. Hooker, [25 January …
- … in mid-February (see letter from L. C. Treviranus, 12 February 1863 ). The second list is …
- … Anoectochilus argenteus 12 5 s . …
- … punctatum. 11. Mormodes aurantiaca 12. ‘Anoectochilus argenteus 5 s .’ deleted in …
- … Bolbophyllum barbigerum 12 major …
- … Ampelidae. 11. Alloplectus chrysanthus. 12. Bulbophyllum barbigerum. 13. …
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: 12 hits
- … Seventy years old Darwin’s 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 a ‘long and …
- … well, and with little fatigue’ ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 12 July 1879 , and letter from Leonard …
- … ever about life of D r . D’ ( letter to Francis Darwin, 12 July [1879] ). It was little …
- … Thiselton-Dyer, 5 June 1879 , and letter to G. H. Darwin, 12 July 1879 ). Darwin’s final task …
- … inn ‘ very comfortable’, but told Leonard Darwin on 12 August that there were ‘too many human …
- … not to have come up when the Darwins lunched with him on 12 August (Darwin’s ‘Journal’). Nor did …
- … the world. At the end of the year he was awarded a prize of 12,000 francs by the Turin Academy of …
- … which greatly pleased Darwin ( letter from Grant Allen, 12 February 1879 ). One of Allen’s targets …
- … engagement being made public ( letter from T. H. Farrer, 12 October 1879 ). Darwin’s response not …
- … accurate in its treatment’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 12 November 1879 ). The comment that …
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: 11 hits
- … (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 …
- … was published in November 1874 ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). Though containing …
- … print runs would be very good ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). Darwin's …
- … 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 …
- … vicar of Deptford ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October [1874] ), but to her …
- … mechanism that Darwin agreed with ( letter to F. J. Cohn, 12 October 1874 ). Darwin’s American …
- … bank with enormous tips to his ears ( letter from Asa Gray, 12 May 1874 ). The Manchester …
- … excellent, & as clear as light’ ( letter to John Tyndall, 12 August [1874] ). Hooker …
1.2 George Richmond, marriage portrait
Summary
< Back to Introduction Few likenesses of Darwin in his youth survive, although more may once have existed. In a letter of 1873 an old Shrewsbury friend, Arthur Mostyn Owen, offered to send Darwin a watercolour sketch of him, painted many years…
Matches: 1 hits
- … < Back to Introduction Few likenesses of Darwin in his youth survive, although more …
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: 6 hits
- … made a small omission ’. Stephen’s reply on 12 January was flattering, reassuring, and …
- … books being ‘a game of chance’ ( letter to R. F. Cooke, 12 April 1881 ). On 18 May he described …
- … 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 …
- … 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 …
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: 3 hits
Darwin in letters, 1862: A multiplicity of experiments
Summary
1862 was a particularly productive year for Darwin. This was not only the case in his published output (two botanical papers and a book on the pollination mechanisms of orchids), but more particularly in the extent and breadth of the botanical experiments…
Matches: 6 hits
- … Hooker: ‘he is no common man’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 12 [December 1862] ). Two sexual …
- … of the year, he wrote to Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 12 [December 1862] ): ‘my notions on …
- … least 3 classes of dimorphism’ ( letter to Daniel Oliver, 12 [April 1862] ), and experimenting to …
- … passed so miserable a nine months’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 12 September [1862] ). A family …
- … ‘Botany is a new subject to me’ ( letter to John Scott, 12 November [1862] ), but, impressed by …
- … into Tyndall’s ears’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 10–12 November [1862] ). Another of Darwin’s …
German and Dutch photograph albums
Summary
Darwin Day 2018: To celebrate Darwin's 209th birthday, we present two lavishly produced albums of portrait photographs which Darwin received from continental admirers 141 years ago. These unusual gifts from Germany and the Netherlands are made…
Matches: 1 hits
- … their generous sympathy. ( Letter to A. A. van Bemmelen, 12 February 1877 ) View the …
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: 5 hits
- … than insectivorous plants. As he confessed to Hooker on 12 December , ‘I have not felt so angry …
- … from his family, he sent a curt note to Mivart on 12 January , breaking off all future …
- … of a bill that was presented to the House of Commons on 12 May, one week after a rival bill based on …
- … The author, Fritz Schultze, contacted Darwin himself on 12 June , describing the aims of his book …
- … scientific Socy. has done in my time,’ he told Hooker on 12 December . ‘I wish that I knew what …
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: 3 hits
Diagrams and drawings in letters
Summary
Over 850 illustrations from the printed volumes of The Correspondence of Charles Darwin have been added to the online transcripts of the letters. The contents include maps, diagrams, drawings, sketches and photographs, covering geological, botanical,…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Rubiaceae with enclosures containing bud samples, 12 May 1878 G. H. Darwin's …
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…
The Lyell–Lubbock dispute
Summary
In May 1865 a dispute arose between John Lubbock and Charles Lyell when Lubbock, in his book Prehistoric times, accused Lyell of plagiarism. The dispute caused great dismay among many of their mutual scientific friends, some of whom took immediate action…
Darwin’s queries on expression
Summary
When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations more widely and composed a list of queries on human expression. A number of handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller…
Darwin in letters, 1847-1850: Microscopes and barnacles
Summary
Darwin's study of barnacles, begun in 1844, took him eight years to complete. The correspondence reveals how his interest in a species found during the Beagle voyage developed into an investigation of the comparative anatomy of other cirripedes and…
Cross and self fertilisation
Summary
The effects of cross and self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom, published on 10 November 1876, was the result of a decade-long project to provide evidence for Darwin’s belief that ‘‘Nature thus tells us, in the most emphatic manner, that she abhors…
Matches: 3 hits
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…
Darwin in letters, 1856-1857: the 'Big Book'
Summary
In May 1856, Darwin began writing up his 'species sketch’ in earnest. During this period, his working life was completely dominated by the preparation of his 'Big Book', which was to be called Natural selection. Using letters are the main…
Matches: 3 hits
Darwin & Glen Roy
Summary
Although Darwin was best known for his geological work in South America and other remote Beagle destinations, he made one noteworthy attempt to explain a puzzling feature of British geology. In 1838, two years after returning from the voyage, he travelled…