To J. D. Hooker 9 January [1867]
Summary
Criticisms and comments on JDH’s "Insular floras" in Gardeners’ Chronicle [(1867): 6].
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 9 Jan [1867] |
| Classmark: | DAR 94: 3–4 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5353 |
Matches: 6 hits
- … and suggested this to Hooker in his letter of 12 January [1858] ( Correspondence vol. 7). …
- … vol. 7, letter to the Gardeners’ Chronicle , [before 13 November 1858] ( Collected papers …
- … For Hooker’s response, see ibid. , ,letter from J. D. Hooker, 15 January 1858 . CD …
- … 2 ( 1858): 459–65. See also Origin , pp. 94–5, and Correspondence vol. 13, letter to …
- … 1858 regarding the pollination of Leguminosae in New Zealand, and also continued conducting his own experiments on cross-fertilisation in the family (see DAR 157a); he published a letter …
- … letter of 25 December 1866 ( Correspondence vol. 14), Hooker wrote: ‘Orchids & Leguminosæ are scarce in Islets because the necessary fertilizing insects have not migrated with the plants. Perhaps you have published this’. In 1858, …
From Julius von Haast 12 May – 2 June 1867
Summary
JvH will help with expression queries. Considers CD’s investigation highly important and original. Sends list of men to whom he is sending copies of the questions.
| Author: | John Francis Julius (Julius) von Haast |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 12 May – 2 June 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 166: 11 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5534 |
From J. D. Hooker 18 June 1867
Summary
Has been reading [H. C. Fleeming Jenkin’s] review in North British Review. Would answer it if not so lazy.
Has read Mount Sorel [A. Marsh-Caldwell (1845)] and Disraeli’s life of Lord G. Bentinck [1852]. Bad science, bad literature, bad politics.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 18 June 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 102: 167–8 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5570 |
To J. P. M. Weale 22 February [1867]
Summary
Discusses JPMW’s paper on Bonatea [see 5411].
Mentions Robert Brown’s views on pollen.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | James Philip Mansel Weale |
| Date: | 22 Feb [1867] |
| Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.326) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5409 |
From Ernst Haeckel 28 June 1867
Summary
Is engaged to marry Agnes Huschke. Will make wedding trip to Switzerland and Italy in autumn; therefore cannot visit CD as hoped.
Discusses present research. Comments on Protoamoeba with respect to origin of life. Says it makes question of common or separate origin of phyla unimportant.
CD to receive honorary diploma from Imperial Zoological Botanical Society in Vienna.
Sends photograph of Viennese botanist, August Kanitz.
| Author: | Ernst Philipp August (Ernst) Haeckel |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 28 June 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 166: 45 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5576 |
To T. H. Huxley 7 January [1867]
Summary
Gives up plan to have Haeckel’s Generelle morphologie translated.
His big book [Variation] has gone to printer. Thinks of adding a chapter on man.
Will order Duke of Argyll’s book [Reign of law (1867)].
"Nature never made species mutually sterile [by selection]; nor will man.–"
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Thomas Henry Huxley |
| Date: | 7 Jan [1867] |
| Classmark: | Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine Archives (Huxley 5: 233) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5348 |
From Andrew Smith 26 March 1867
Summary
On Hottentot ideas of beauty in women; their preference for women with large posteriors. [See Descent 2: 345–6.]
| Author: | Andrew Smith |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 26 Mar 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 85: A103–5 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5465 |
From William Henry Kinnaird Gibbons 7 February 1867
Summary
Asks CD whether he has given any thought to the phenomena of spiritualism.
| Author: | W. H. S Gibbons |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 7 Feb 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 165: 36 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5394 |
To J. D. Hooker 24 [March 1867]
Summary
Returns Charles Naudin’s letter with its case in support of CD’s view of impregnation.
Twits JDH for trying to wriggle out of error made in his lecture and admires his "candour in letting the rat out of the bag". [See 5449 and 5451.]
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 24 [Mar 1867] |
| Classmark: | DAR 185: 92 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5457A |
From Frederick Du Cane Godman 21 December [1867]
Summary
Sends a copy of his paper in Ibis [2d ser. 2 (1866): 88–109] on the birds of the Azores,
and one by G. R. Crotch on the Coleoptera [Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. (1867): 359–91].
| Author: | Frederick Du Cane Godman |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 21 Dec [1867] |
| Classmark: | DAR 165: 59 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5737 |
From Joseph Plimsoll 3 December 1867
Summary
A sermon.
| Author: | Joseph Plimsoll |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 3 Dec 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 174: 53 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5704 |
From J. D. Hooker 19 November 1867
Summary
Will not be inclined to challenge Pangenesis.
Admits CD’s victory over JDH’s continental hypothesis (but will not give up Greenland).
Relation of variation to circumstances is shown by discovery of endemic St Helena umbellifer having same palm-like habit as an endemic Madeiran species.
Has completed Boott’s Carices [Illustrations of the genus Carex, pt 4 (1867)],
is printing W. H. Harvey’s work [Genera of South African plants, 2d ed. (1868)],
and is revising English edition of Alphonse de Candolle’s Laws of botanical nomenclature [trans. H. A. Weddell (1868)].
Arrangements at Kew. Gardener [John Smith] is very ill; Oliver reigns supreme in the Herbarium.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 19 Nov 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 102: 182–4, DAR 47: 191 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5683 |
From Fritz Müller 1 April 1867
Summary
Cites cases of difference in coloration between the sexes of some species of Crustacea, annelids, and spiders.
Discusses dimorphic plants and self-sterility.
Outlines some experiments involving the crossing of different species of orchids.
Encloses extract from Carl Claus, Die freilebenden Copepoden [1863].
| Author: | Johann Friedrich Theodor (Fritz) Müller |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 1 Apr 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 110: B111–12; DAR 81: 167 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5480 |
| letter | (13) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (4) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (2) |
| Gibbons, W. H. S. | (1) |
| Godman, F. D. C. | (1) |
| Haast, Julius von | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (9) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (2) |
| Huxley, T. H. | (1) |
| Weale, J. P. M. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (13) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (4) |
| Gibbons, W. H. S. | (1) |
| Godman, F. D. C. | (1) |
| Haast, Julius von | (1) |
Abstract of Darwin’s theory
Summary
There are two extant versions of the abstract of Darwin’s theory of natural selection. One was sent to Asa Gray on 5 September 1857, enclosed with a letter of the same date (see Correspondence vol. 6, letter to Asa Gray, 5 September [1857] and enclosure).…
Matches: 1 hits
- … There are two extant versions of the abstract of Darwin’s theory of natural selection. One was …
The writing of "Origin"
Summary
From a quiet rural existence at Down in Kent, filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on the transmutation of species, Darwin was jolted into action in 1858 by the arrival of an unexpected letter (no longer extant) from Alfred Russel Wallace outlining a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … When I was in spirits I sometimes fancied that my book w d be successful; but I never even …
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…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Honey-bees construct wax combs inside their nests. The combs are made of hexagonal prisms – cells …
Darwin in letters, 1858-1859: Origin
Summary
The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet rural existence filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on species, he was jolted into action by the arrival of an unexpected letter from Alfred Russel Wallace…
Matches: 1 hits
- … The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet …
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
- … Over 850 illustrations from the printed volumes of The Correspondence of Charles Darwin have …
Dates of composition of Darwin's manuscript on species
Summary
Many of the dates of letters in 1856 and 1857 were based on or confirmed by reference to Darwin’s manuscript on species (DAR 8--15.1, inclusive; transcribed and published as Natural selection). This manuscript, begun in May 1856, was nearly completed by…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Many of the dates of letters in 1856 and 1857 were based on or confirmed by reference to Darwin’s …
Instinct and the Evolution of Mind
Summary
Sources|Discussion Questions|Experiment Slave-making ants For Darwin, slave-making ants were a powerful example of the force of instinct. He used the case of the ant Formica sanguinea in the On the Origin of Species to show how instinct operates—how…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Sources | Discussion Questions | Experiment Slave-making ants For …
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: 1 hits
- … Re: Design – performance version – 25 March 2007 – 1 Re: Design – Adaptation of the …
Women’s scientific participation
Summary
Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants …
Alfred Russel Wallace’s essay on varieties
Summary
The original manuscript about varieties that Wallace composed on the island of Gilolo and sent to Darwin from the neighbouring island of Ternate (Brooks 1984) has not been found. It was sent to Darwin as an enclosure in a letter (itself missing), and was…
Matches: 1 hits
- … The original manuscript about varieties that Wallace composed on the island of Gilolo and sent to …
Controversy
Summary
The best-known controversies over Darwinian theory took place in public or in printed reviews. Many of these were highly polemical, presenting an over-simplified picture of the disputes. Letters, however, show that the responses to Darwin were extremely…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Disagreement & Respect | Conduct of Debate | Darwin & Wallace The best-known …
Fake Darwin: myths and misconceptions
Summary
Many myths have persisted about Darwin's life and work. Here are a few of the more pervasive ones, with full debunking below...
Matches: 1 hits
- … Many myths have persisted about Darwin's life and work. Here are a few of the more pervasive ones, …
Darwin's health
Summary
On 28 March 1849, ten years before Origin was published, Darwin wrote to his good friend Joseph Hooker from Great Malvern in Worcestershire, where Dr James Manby Gully ran a fashionable water-cure establishment. Darwin apologised for his delayed reply to…
Matches: 1 hits
- … On 28 March 1849, ten years before Origin was published, Darwin wrote to his good friend …
Darwin and Fatherhood
Summary
Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten children. It is often assumed that Darwin was an exceptional Victorian father. But how extraordinary was he? The Correspondence Project allows an unusually…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten …
Darwin as mentor
Summary
Darwin provided advice, encouragement and praise to his fellow scientific 'labourers' of both sexes. Selected letters Letter 2234 - Darwin to Unidentified, [5 March 1858] Darwin advises that Professor C. P. Smyth’s observations are not…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin provided advice, encouragement and praise to his fellow scientific 'labourers' of both …
Darwin's bad days
Summary
Despite being a prolific worker who had many successes with his scientific theorising and experimenting, even Darwin had some bad days. These times when nothing appeared to be going right are well illustrated by the following quotations from his letters:
Matches: 1 hits
- … Despite being a prolific worker who had many successes with his scientific theorising and …
John Murray
Summary
Darwin's most famous book On the origin of species by means of natural selection (Origin) was published on 22 November 1859. The publisher was John Murray, who specialised in non-fiction, particularly politics, travel and science, and had published…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin's most famous book On the origin of species by means of natural selection (Origin) was …
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: 1 hits
- … At the start of 1863, Charles Darwin was actively working on the manuscript of The variation of …
Origin
Summary
Darwin’s most famous work, Origin, had an inauspicious beginning. It grew out of his wish to establish priority for the species theory he had spent over twenty years researching. Darwin never intended to write Origin, and had resisted suggestions in 1856…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin’s most famous work, Origin, had an inauspicious beginning. It grew out of his wish to …
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: 1 hits
- … In 1865, the chief work on Charles Darwin’s mind was the writing of The variation of animals and …
