To Alfred Russel Wallace 1 May 1857
Summary
Reports long preparation of work on how species and varieties differ. Agreement with Wallace’s conclusions as reported in Annals and Magazine of Natural History and in his letter to CD of 10 0ct [1856]. On distinction between domestic varieties and those in "a state of nature".
On mating of jaguars and leopards, the breeding of poultry, pigeons, etc.
Requests help for his experimenting on means of distribution of organic beings on oceanic islands.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Alfred Russel Wallace |
| Date: | 1 May 1857 |
| Classmark: | The British Library (Add MS 46434) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2086 |
From Asa Gray [c. 24 May 1857]
Summary
Discusses difficulties involved in deciding which genera are protean in the light of some comments by H. C. Watson.
| Author: | Asa Gray |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | [c. 24 May 1857] |
| Classmark: | DAR 165: 97 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2104 |
To Asa Gray 9 May [1857]
Summary
Thanks for new part of "Statistics".
Interested in disjoined species; do they tend to belong to large or small genera, and are they generally members of small families?
Is glad AG will tackle introduced plants; has noticed that the proportion of a particular family to the whole flora tends to be similar in introduced and indigenous plants.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Asa Gray |
| Date: | 9 May [1857] |
| Classmark: | Archives of the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University (9) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2089 |
To J. D. Hooker 16 [May 1857]
Summary
Asks JDH’s opinion, and botanical evidence, on important law: parts that are highly developed in comparison to other allied species are very variable.
Interest in hairiness of alpine plants revived by reading A. Moquin-Tandon [Éléments de tératologie végétale (1841)]; correlation with dryness. CD seeks interpretation independent of direct environmental effect.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 16 [May 1857] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 197 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2092 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 5, letter to J. D. Hooker, [April 1852] , n. 10). See letter to J. D. Hooker, 3 June [ …
To William Sharpey 22 May [1857]
Summary
Agrees with Thomas Henry Huxley that Albany Hancock has a good claim on a Royal Society medal. Thinks that geology has not been sufficiently honoured by the Royal Society, and suggests Joseph Prestwich. Expresses his strong opinion that Charles Lyell would be a worthy recipient of the Copley Medal.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Sharpey |
| Date: | 22 May [1857] |
| Classmark: | D. and E. Lake Ltd (dealers) (June 2016) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2093F |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Journal of the Geological Society of London 10: 435–54. Record of the Royal Society of …
To J. D. Hooker [2 May 1857]
Summary
JDH has shaved the hair off the alpine plant.
CD apologises for his criticism.
Apparent but false relations of plant structure to climate: heath-like foliage of all Cape of Good Hope plants.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | [2 May 1857] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 195 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2087 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … of seeds sprouted, he then took samples on 10 February from different parts of a pond on …
| letter | (6) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (5) |
| Gray, Asa | (1) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (2) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (1) |
| Gray, Asa | (1) |
| Sharpey, William | (1) |
| Wallace, A. R. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (6) |
| Gray, Asa | (2) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (2) |
| Sharpey, William | (1) |
| Wallace, A. R. | (1) |
Reading my roommate’s illustrious ancestor: To T. H. Huxley, 10 June 1868
Summary
My roommate at Harvard College was Tom Baum, now a Hollywood screenwriter. Tom’s full name is Thomas Henle Baum, his middle name a reference to a German physician ancestor for whom the ‘Loop of Henle’ in the kidney had been named. Other than this iconic…
Matches: 1 hits
- … catch my interest. And as I did so, my eyes fell on a 10 June 1868 Darwin letter to Huxley in which …
Darwin in letters, 1865: Delays and disappointments
Summary
The year was marked by three deaths of personal significance to Darwin: Hugh Falconer, a friend and supporter; Robert FitzRoy, captain of the Beagle; and William Jackson Hooker, director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and father of Darwin’s friend…
Matches: 8 hits
- … given it up by early July ( see letter to J. D. Hooker, [10 July 1865] ). In July, he …
- … finished hearing it read aloud ( letter to Fritz Müller, 10 August [1865] ). Over the next few …
- … ( see letter from Fritz Müller, [12 and 31 August, and 10 October 1865] ; since it is impossible …
- … similarly coloured varieties (see Correspondence vol. 10, letter to John Scott, 19 November …
- … ‘industry & ability’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [10 March 1865] ). Scott took these …
- … of transmutation to humans (see Correspondence vol. 10, letter from J. H. Balfour, 14 January …
- … ( Correspondence vol. 11, letter from J. D. Hooker, 10 June 1863 ). However, probably …
- … Cresy, 7 September [1865] , and letter from Edward Cresy, 10 September 1865 ). Francis 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: 6 hits
- … self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom , published on 10 November 1876, was the result of a …
- … of the young plants is highly remarkable’ ( To Asa Gray, 10 September [1866] ). By early December, …
- … great measure my further working’ ( From Hermann Müller, 10 June 1873 ). Darwin, in turn, had …
- … had ‘begun to prepare for press observations continued for 10 years on the effects of crossing …
- … 12 November 1876 ). The book was published on 10 November 1876. Within days, Darwin received …
- … of rye and wheat that he had studied ( From A. W. Rimpau, 10 December 1877 ). By the end of …
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, 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: 5 hits
- … within the family, Henrietta explained to Stephen on 10 January , hoping that he did not think …
- … investigate aggregation. He explained to Fritz Müller on 10 September why he had embarked on …
- … to the general stock of knowledge’ ( letter to E. W. Bok, 10 May 1881 ). Josef Popper, an expert …
- … to R. F. Cooke, 5 October 1881 ). The publication date was 10 October, but by 7 October Darwin …
- … of soil, while his brother James Geikie told Darwin on 10 October that no one would ‘any longer …
Schools Gallery: Using Darwin’s letters in the classroom
Summary
English| History| Science English Pupils in Cumbria lead the way Year 9 English pupils at Ulverston Victoria High School spent several weeks studying Darwin’s letters, including comparing sections from Darwin’s ‘Voyage of the Beagle’ to letters…
Darwin's notes for his physician, 1865
Summary
On 20 May 1865, Emma Darwin recorded in her diary that John Chapman, a prominent London publisher who had studied medicine in London and Paris in the early 1840s, visited Down to consult with Darwin about his ill health. In 1863 Chapman started to treat…
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
- … now in the balance & I can laugh & talk & settle Bradshaw 10 etc etc just as …
- … me so. If I cannot be a good wife I have indeed neglected my 10 talents. 11 July 5th. …
- … all the world to me to see him smile to hear his voice 10 years on how will it be when we are 50 …
- … . 9 Richard Buckley Litchfield . 10 Bradshaw’s railway guide . …
Was Darwin an ecologist?
Summary
One of the most fascinating aspects of Charles Darwin’s correspondence is the extent to which the experiments he performed at his home in Down, in the English county of Kent, seem to prefigure modern scientific work in ecology.
Matches: 1 hits
- … to me.— Charles Darwin to J. D. Hooker, 10 December [1866] . The ‘hard …
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: 5 hits
- … however, continued to be raised in various ways. On 10 January, Charles O’Shaughnessy , an Irish …
- … them to such extent?’ enthused Hermann Hoffmann on 10 January , while on 23 June, Auguste Forel …
- … of plant digestion further, had already reported on 10 January that he had confirmed the ‘more …
- … Caroline home, they had experienced a further calamity. On 10 May, William suffered serious …
- … mentioned his oldest daughter Annie, who died at the age of 10 in 1851, but William, who was 11 …
Darwin in letters,1866: Survival of the fittest
Summary
The year 1866 began well for Charles Darwin, as his health, after several years of illness, was now considerably improved. In February, Darwin received a request from his publisher, John Murray, for a new edition of Origin. Darwin got the fourth…
Matches: 5 hits
- … of coffee to two cups a day, since coffee, with the ‘10 drops of Muriatic acid twice a day (with …
- … the chemistry go on better’ ( letter from H. B. Jones, 10 February [1866] ). Darwin began …
- … you are in for it’ ( letter from H. E. Darwin, [ c . 10 May 1866] ). Henrietta’s letter …
- … know how to begin’ ( letter to Fritz Müller, [before 10 December 1866] ). The intrusion of …
- … other German states and Austria in June and July. Writing on 10 May from Württemberg, one of the …
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…
Darwin in letters, 1863: Quarrels at home, honours abroad
Summary
At the start of 1863, Charles Darwin was actively working on the manuscript of The variation of animals and plants under domestication, anticipating with excitement the construction of a hothouse to accommodate his increasingly varied botanical experiments…
Matches: 6 hits
- … (see Correspondence vol. 8, letter to Charles Lyell, 10 January [1860] ). In the same letter …
- … had been published in 1862 (see Correspondence vol. 10). He sent a copy to Asa Gray to review in …
- … of species, when crossed’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 10 [January 1863] ). He reminded Huxley again …
- … Verbascum and Zea (see Correspondence vol. 10, Appendix VI). However, when Evidence as …
- … other acquired differences’ (see Correspondence vol. 10, Appendix VI). In addition to crossing …
- … orchid genus Acropera (see Correspondence vol. 10). Their 1863 letters reveal Darwin’s …
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…
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
Matches: 12 hits
- … you sent me as well as I could. DARWIN: 10 My dear Dr Gray. I really hardly know …
- … Hooker is younger than Darwin and Gray by about 10 years. Like Gray, he is a professional botanist …
- … right when he said the whole subject would be forgotten in 10 years. But now that I hear you will …
- … a lesser degree ‘Blood’s One Penny Envelope, 1, 3, and 10 cents’. If you will make him this present, …
- … HOOKER: 208 We had a horrid scare 10 days ago, in the form of a Telegram from ‘Nature’ to …
- … XVII, 1882 4 C DARWIN TO JD HOOKER 10 MAY 1848 5 C DARWIN TO JD HOOKER …
- … 9 A GRAY TO C DARWIN, 22 MAY 1855 10 C DARWIN TO A GRAY, 24 AUGUST 1855 …
- … JOURNAL OF SCIENCE 72 A GRAY TO C DARWIN, 10 JANUARY 1860 73 C DARWIN TO …
- … A GRAY, 21 JULY 1861 120 A GRAY TO JD HOOKER, 10 JUNE 1861 121 A GRAY TO C …
- … 18 FEBRUARY 1862 129 JD HOOKER TO C DARWIN, 10 MARCH 1862 130 C DARWIN …
- … 23 NOVEMBER 1862 136 C DARWIN TO A GRAY, 10–20 JUNE 1862 137 A GRAY TO …
- … AND 26 JANUARY 1862 142 A GRAY TO C DARWIN, 10 NOVEMBER 1862 143 A …
Darwin in letters, 1860: Answering critics
Summary
On 7 January 1860, John Murray published the second edition of Darwin’s Origin of species, printing off another 3000 copies to satisfy the demands of an audience that surprised both the publisher and the author. It wasn't long, however, before ‘the…
Matches: 4 hits
- … form’, namely those of embryology ( letter to Asa Gray, 10 September [1860] ). Only his theory, he …
- … with other animals’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 10 January [1860] )— he and others were well aware …
- … views.—’ ( letter from J. S. Henslow to J. D. Hooker, 10 May 1860 ). What worried Darwin most …
- … serve a purpose in Britain. He immediately wrote to Gray on 10 September after studying the first …
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: 4 hits
- … interesting to the public’ ( letter to Reginald Darwin, 10 April [1879] ). However, even members …
- … he disagreed with Henrietta, or that Krause had written on 10 July to say that he had derived …
- … & experiment’ ( letter from J. F. Moulton, 10 December 1879 ). In reply to Darwin’s response …
- … Leopold Würtenberger fared better. When he wrote on 10 January to ask whether Darwin could find him …
Darwin’s reading notebooks
Summary
In April 1838, Darwin began recording the titles of books he had read and the books he wished to read in Notebook C (Notebooks, pp. 319–28). In 1839, these lists were copied and continued in separate notebooks. The first of these reading notebooks (DAR 119…
Matches: 31 hits
- … Marcel de Serres Cavernes d’Ossements 7 th Ed. 10 8 vo . [Serres 1838] good to trace Europ. …
- … on wheat [Le Couteur 1836] Bechstein on Caged Birds. 10 s 6 d . translated by Rennie …
- … Soc read Prichards. Nat: History of Man. Bailliere. 1.10 [Prichard 1843] must be studied . …
- … Des ). De leur Anatomie, Reproduction et Culture. 4to. Avec 10 planches. Amsterdam, 1768. 12 s . …
- … G. Browne 1799]— well skimmed 1839 Jan 10 All life of W. Scott [Lockhart 1837–8] …
- … Voyage of Kolff to the Molucca Sea [Kolff 1840] 10 th Surville-Marion [Crozet 1783]. …
- … 1839]. References at end. chiefly on instincts 10 th . Blackwalls Researches in Zoology …
- … 1839–40]. references at end.— Maer (June 10 to Nov. 14. 1840) Smellies Buffon 3 d …
- … Hilaire: [I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1841] d[itt]o: 10 th Journal de Phys. [ Observations …
- … [Lyman 1781] [DAR 119: 10b] Dec. 10 th The Hour & Man. H. Martineau [H. …
- … Dog [C. H. Smith 1839–40] 2 d . vol. d[itt]o Nov. 10 th Sprengel. Endeckte Geheimniss. …
- … Nat. Lib. vol 14 [Waterhouse 1841] Marked—— 10 th Veterinary [ Veterinarian ] 1828 Vol 1 …
- … & Mary. & Anne [Smollett 1805].— 1842 Jan 10 M rs Hamilton Grays Etruria [E …
- … Royle Prod. Resources of India [Royle 1840] abst June 10 th Miller’s old Red Sandstone [H. …
- … Clarendons History [Hyde 1704]. 1843 Jan 10. Last Vol of Clarendons History [Hyde …
- … 26 Hinds Regions of Vegetation [Hinds 1843]. June 10 th . Linnæan Trans. [ Transactions of …
- … 3. vols. [Bradley 1724] (nothing) scarcely —— 10 Johnson’s Field Sports of India [D. Johnson …
- … or Geograph. Distrib:” [Gérard 1844–5] Dec. 10 Ray. Society. Vol I. Reports [Ray Society 1845 …
- … French in Algiers [Lamping 1845] 1846 Jan 10 th Mackintosh life of More …
- … St. Lecons de Morph. Bot. [Saint-Hilaire 1841] April 10 Wagners Anatomy by Tulk [Wagner 1845] …
- … of Ægyptians [J. G. Wilkinson 1837–41].— April 10 3 d vol of d[itt]o W. Scotts Life …
- … May 5. Ray’s Memorials of [Ray 1846] —— 10 th The Falcon Family [Savage] 1845] 27 …
- … Misc. Works. 3 vols: [Mackintosh 1846] Aug 10. Appendix to Carlyle’s Cromwell [Carlyle 1845]. …
- … Travels in Brazil [Gardner 1846]. —— 10 th D r . Joseph Adams. Philosoph. Treatise on …
- … Miller First Impressions of England [H. Miller 1847]. Nov. 10 Prichard Physical Researches. Hist. of …
- … et d'Histoire Naturelle de Genève ]. Tom I to 10. —— Annales du Museum [ Annales …
- … W. Tone Autobiography [Tone 1826] very amusing March 10 John Galt Autobiography [Galt 1833] …
- … Chancellors [J. Campbell 1845–7] —— 10 Neander’s Life of St Bernard [Neander 1843] …
- … Miller Footsteps of the Creator [H. Miller 1849] Dec. 10. Dana’s Geology. U.S. Expedition [J. …
- … to 1837. & thence I have read in Journals June 10 th Goulds Birds of Australia [Gould …
- … . Feb. 1. Emigrants Manual [Burton 1851] March 10 th Hind’s Solar System [Hind 1852 …
The evolution of honeycomb
Summary
Honeycombs are natural engineering marvels, using the least possible amount of wax to provide the greatest amount of storage space, with the greatest possible structural stability. Darwin recognised that explaining the evolution of the honey-bee’s comb…
