To the Darwin children 21 February 1879
Summary
Circular about the distribution of the overplus of his income and advice on investment.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Elizabeth (Bessy, Lizzy) Darwin; Francis Darwin; George Howard Darwin; Horace Darwin; Leonard Darwin; William Erasmus Darwin; Henrietta Emma Darwin; Henrietta Emma Litchfield |
| Date: | 21 Feb 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 210.6: 153 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-11896 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … letter from Frederick Ransome, 7 February 1866 ). George Howard and Francis Darwin were in …
- … who was an expert on finance. CD’s sister Catherine Langton died in 1866. According …
- … to her will, dated 9 January 1866, date of …
- … probate, 4 June 1866, a trust was created by her marriage settlement through two …
To G. H. Darwin 7 [July 1879]
Summary
Francis wants a copy of a book on "Shakespeare’s merry tales" to present to a friend in Würzburg.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | George Howard Darwin |
| Date: | 7 [July 1879] |
| Classmark: | DAR 210.1: 85 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12135 |
From Francis Darwin 4 July 1879
Summary
Heliotropism nomenclature. Apheliotropic mustard roots grow more quickly in dark. Measures growth with microscope as S. H. Vines did in mould. Studying air roots.
FD’s and Stahl’s negative opinion of Sachs.
| Author: | Francis Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 4 July 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 209.3: 334 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12134 |
To Henry Woodward 13 February [1879]
Summary
Has signed a paper [unspecified];
thanks HW for his interesting letter and kind expressions about himself and his son.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Henry Woodward |
| Date: | 13 Feb [1879] |
| Classmark: | McGill University Library, Rare Books and Special Collections (Blacker-Wood Manuscript Collection, Woodward Collection of Autographs v. 3) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12474 |
From Otto Hahn 1 September 1879
Summary
Sends copy of Die Urzelle [1879].
Clerical party in Germany rejoicing because science cannot explain all facts at once.
| Author: | Otto Hahn |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 1 Sept 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 166: 82 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12211 |
From H. A. Pitman 9 May 1879
Summary
CD awarded the Baly Medal of the Royal College of Physicians.
| Author: | Henry Alfred Pitman |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 9 May 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 174: 46 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12043 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … award, was founded from a gift received in 1866 from Frederick Daniel Dyster ( British …
To Raphael Meldola 19 [June 1879]
Summary
Shares RM’s misgivings about Fritz Müller’s mutually protecting mimics. Would expect bird’s response to distasteful caterpillars to be instinctive. Believes J. J. Weir or Thomas Belt may have investigated the point.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Raphael Meldola |
| Date: | 19 [June 1879] |
| Classmark: | Oxford University Museum of Natural History (Hope Entomological Collections 1350: Hope/Westwood Archive, Darwin folder) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12115 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … at the Entomological Society on 3 December 1866 ( see Transactions of the Entomological …
To W. T. Thiselton-Dyer 13 March 1879
Summary
Thanks for seeds and for kindness to Frank Darwin.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Turner Thiselton-Dyer |
| Date: | 13 Mar 1879 |
| Classmark: | Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (Darwin: Letters to Thiselton-Dyer, 1873–81: f. 165) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-11929 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Correspondence English Letters COO–DEW 1866–1900 volume 83 f.230–231, Archives, Royal …
From J. F. Moulton 13 December 1879
Summary
Herbert Spencer, though not the scientific thinker he sees himself to be, was extremely important in conditioning the generation’s acceptance of evolution. Compares Spencer and Robert Chambers as teachers, rather than discoverers, of new ideas.
| Author: | John Fletcher Moulton, Baron Moulton |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 13 Dec 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 171: 279 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12356 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … 14, letter from A. R. Wallace, 2 July 1866 and n. 5). On Spencer’s evolutionary theories, …
From J. S. Burdon Sanderson 14 May 1879
Summary
Has received CD’s letter [see 12050]. Gives CD the history of the Baly Medal and names previous recipients. It is not necessary for CD to be present for the award, but if he chooses to attend, arrangements could be made for him to arrive just before the presentation. CD will not be required to make an acceptance speech.
| Author: | John Scott Burdon Sanderson, 1st baronet |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 14 May 1879 |
| Classmark: | University of British Columbia Library, Rare Books and Special Collections (Darwin - Burdon Sanderson letters RBSC-ARC-1731-1-41) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12052A |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Pembrokeshire, Wales, had founded the medal in 1866 in memory of Baly , who had died in a …
From Francis Darwin to Emma Darwin 30 June 1879
Summary
Last night had tremendous thunderstorm. Will ask Goebel about proshelismus. Describes experiments on beans. Please send Bessy’s address. Has got to know nice Englishman named Purdy and his wife. Bathes nearly every night with the Finlander.
| Author: | Francis Darwin |
| Addressee: | Emma Wedgwood; Emma Darwin |
| Date: | 30 June 1879 |
| Classmark: | DAR 274.1: 49 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12128F |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Howard Darwin visited Norway in August 1866 ( Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242)). The American …
To E. P. Wright 28 February [1879]
Summary
Has already written a testimonial for [?William Ramsay] McNab as Professor of Botany. Hence what he can write for EPW will not be of much use.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Edward Perceval Wright |
| Date: | 28 Feb [1879] |
| Classmark: | Uppsala University Library: Manuscripts and Music (Waller Ms gb-00525) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-11908 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … of Arran, west of Ireland. [Read 6 December 1866. ] Proceedings of the Natural History …
| letter | (12) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (6) |
| Darwin, Francis | (2) |
| Burdon Sanderson, J. S. | (1) |
| Hahn, Otto | (1) |
| Moulton, J. F. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (5) |
| Darwin, G. H. | (2) |
| Darwin, Elizabeth | (1) |
| Darwin, Emma | (1) |
| Darwin, Francis | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (11) |
| Darwin, Francis | (3) |
| Darwin, G. H. | (2) |
| Burdon Sanderson, J. S. | (1) |
| Darwin, Elizabeth | (1) |
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: 29 hits
- … The year 1866 began well for Charles Darwin, as his health, after several years of …
- … Prigs’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [29 December 1866] ). But the crowning achievement of the year …
- … publisher in December. Much of Darwin’s correspondence in 1866 was focussed on issues surrounding …
- … 1½ hours every day’ ( letter to H. B. Jones, 3 January [1866] ). Darwin had first consulted Jones …
- … go on better’ ( letter from H. B. Jones, 10 February [1866] ). Darwin began riding the cob, …
- … the season is over’ ( letter from John Lubbock, 4 August 1866 ). More predictably, however, Darwin …
- … how I can’t be idle’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 24 August [1866] ). Towards Variation …
- … to supervise ( letter to W. B. Tegetmeier, 16 January [1866] ). Darwin found the evidence of …
- … 13), and continued to refine his hypothesis in 1866. He wrote to Hooker on 16 May [1866] , ‘I … …
- … to Printers’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 24 December [1866] ). When finally published in 1868, it …
- … definite views’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 22 December [1866] ). The fourth edition of …
- … also added material obtained through correspondence in 1866, including observations by the American …
- … undertook an ambitious expedition to Brazil in 1865 and 1866, partly with a view to finding support …
- … ( letter to Charles Lyell, 8[–9] September [1866] ). Darwin had first heard of Agassiz’s …
- … dozen physicists’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [28 February 1866] ). Darwin also ventured to inform …
- … more than a subsidiary agent’, Darwin wrote on 8 March [1866] , prefacing his remark with, ‘I …
- … Jones in future—’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 13 May 1866 ). Darwin himself was jubilant: ‘I have …
- … Garden!!!!!!!!!’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [28 April 1866] ). Celebrity Darwin’s …
- … exalted, and most brilliant intellects of our age’ (Anon 1866, p. 176). At Down, Darwin …
- … in for it’ ( letter from H. E. Darwin, [ c . 10 May 1866] ). Henrietta’s letter …
- … I dread all exertion’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [12 May 1866] ). Darwin’s interest in Caspary’s …
- … The German zoologist had written to Darwin on 11 January 1866 , ‘Every time I succeed in making a …
- … His vast work, Generelle Morphologie , published in 1866, was dedicated to Darwin (as well as to …
- … has ever received’ ( letter to Ernst Haeckel, 18 August [1866] ). Darwin clearly admired parts of …
- … dreadful’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 22 December [1866] ). The Origin in Germany …
- … ( see for example, letter to C. W. Nägeli, 12 June [1866] ). Also in March, however, Christian …
- … C. scoparius , sent to Darwin with his letter of 8 May [1866] , allowed detailed comparisons of …
- … diœcious’ ( letter from W. E. Darwin, [7 May – 11 June 1866] ). On examining more specimens later …
- … becoming diœcious’ ( letter from W. E. Darwin, 20 June [1866] ). Darwin was excited by …
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
- … … is highly remarkable’ In September 1866, Darwin announced to the American botanist …
- … is highly remarkable’ ( To Asa Gray, 10 September [1866] ). By early December, the French botanist …
- … for several years ( To Édouard Bornet, 1 December 1866 ). Darwin began a series of experiments, …
- … ). Fritz Müller, writing from Brazil in December 1866, noted that plants of this poppy growing in …
- … climatic conditions’ ( From Fritz Müller, 1 December 1866 ). Darwin’s interest was piqued and he …
- … not exist in Britain. During a visit to Darwin in May 1866, Robert Caspary, a specialist in …
Beauty and the seed
Summary
One of the real pleasures afforded in reading Charles Darwin’s correspondence is the discovery of areas of research on which he never published, but which interested him deeply. We can gain many insights about Darwin’s research methods by following these …
Matches: 7 hits
- … a new edition of On the Origin of Species (the fourth) in 1866. Darwin made substantive changes to …
- … … or are they? Towards the end of September 1866 Darwin received a letter from Fritz Müller, …
- … composite of letter from Müller to Darwin, 2 Aug 1866, in Darwin’s experimental notebook"," …
- … Fritz Müller to Charles Darwin, 2 Aug 1866. Darwin immediately responded: I have …
- … Darwin, C. R. to Müller, J. F. T., 25 Sept [1866] This letter must have crossed in the post …
- … me.— Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D., 10 Dec [1866] Hooker replied with …
- … birds. Hooker, J. D. to Darwin, C. R., 14 Dec 1866 Darwin was skeptical about …
Capturing Darwin’s voice: audio of selected letters
Summary
On a sunny Wednesday in June 2011 in a makeshift recording studio somewhere in Cambridge, we were very pleased to welcome Terry Molloy back to the Darwin Correspondence Project for a special recording session. Terry, known for his portrayal of Davros in Dr…
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: 6 hits
- … Charles Darwin to J. D. Hooker, 10 December [1866] . The ‘hard seed for grit’ …
- … did not then exist: even the word was not coined until 1866. There was no academic department that …
- … coined by the German scientist and theorist Ernst Haeckel in 1866. ‘By ecology, we mean the whole …
- … dreadful’, Darwin wrote to T. H. Huxley on 22 December 1866 . ‘He seems to have a passion for …
- … such study to an ‘uncritical’ natural history (Haeckel 1866, 2: 286–7; see also Stauffer 1957, p. …
- … et al . New York: CABI Publishing. Haeckel, Ernst. 1866. Generelle Morphologie der …
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, …
Evolution: Selected Letters of Charles Darwin 1860-1870
Summary
This selection of Charles Darwin’s letters includes correspondence with his friends and scientific colleagues around the world; letters by the critics who tried to stamp out his ideas, and by admirers who helped them to spread. It takes up the story of…
Survival of the fittest: the trouble with terminology Part II
Summary
The most forceful and persistent critic of the term ‘natural selection’ was the co-discoverer of the process itself, Alfred Russel Wallace. Wallace seized on Herbert Spencer’s term ‘survival of the fittest’, explicitly introduced as an alternative way of…
Bartholomew James Sulivan
Summary
On Christmas Day 1866, Bartholomew Sulivan sat down to write a typically long and chatty letter to his old friend, Charles Darwin, commiserating on shared ill-health, glorying in the achievements of their children, offering to collect plant specimens, and…
Religion
Summary
Design|Personal Belief|Beauty|The Church Perhaps the most notorious realm of controversy over evolution in Darwin's day was religion. The same can be said of the evolution controversy today; however the nature of the disputes and the manner in…
Matches: 6 hits
- … Letter 5140 — Wallace, A. R. to Darwin, C. R., 2 July 1866 Wallace writes a lengthy analysis …
- … Letter 5303 — Boole, M. E. to Darwin, C. R., 13 Dec 1866 In this letter marked “private”, …
- … Letter 5307 — Darwin, C. R. to Boole, M. E., 14 Dec 1866 Darwin believes he is unable to …
- … Letter 5003f — Shaw, James to Darwin, C. R., [6--10 Feb 1866] James Shaw transcribes a …
- … Letter 5004 — Darwin, C. R. to Shaw, James, 11 Feb [1866] Darwin thanks James Shaw for the …
- … Letter 5060 — Shaw, James to Darwin, C. R., 19 Apr 1866 James Shaw fills a letter to Darwin …
Have you read the one about....
Summary
... the atheistical cats, or the old fogies in Cambridge? We've suggested a few - some funny, some serious - but all letters you can read here.
Matches: 1 hits
- … ... the atheistical cats, or the old fogies in Cambridge? We've suggested a few - some funny, some …
Darwin and vivisection
Summary
Darwin played an important role in the controversy over vivisection that broke out in late 1874. Public debate was sparked when the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals brought an unsuccessful prosecution against a French physiologist who…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Correspondence vol. 14, letter to a local landowner, [1866?] ). A regular subscriber to the …
3.10 Ernest Edwards, 'Men of Eminence'
Summary
< Back to Introduction In 1865 Darwin was invited to feature in another series of published photographs, Portraits of Men of Eminence in Literature, Science and Art, with Biographical Memoirs . . . The Photographs from Life by Ernest Edwards, B.A.…
Matches: 8 hits
- … seems to have taken place, in November 1865 and April 1866. Darwin’s account book (among Down House …
- … appeared in volume 5 of Men of Eminence , published in 1866 – the biographical ‘facts’ having …
- … Philosopher’. The beard that Darwin had grown by 1865–1866 helped to enhance this impression of …
- … was clearly taken on the same occasion and is dated 24 April 1866. John van Wyhe believes that two …
- … derived from the three-quarter view photograph of 1865–1866 mentioned above (see separate catalogue …
- … Ernest Edwards date of creation 1865–1866 computer-readable date c. 1865-11 …
- … of his life for the text of Men of Eminence , 3 May [1866], (DCP-LETT-5524). Edward Walford (ed.) …
- … Reeve [later Alfred William Bennett], 1863–1867), vol. 5 (1866), ‘Charles Robert Darwin’, pp. 49–52. …
Darwin in letters, 1867: A civilised dispute
Summary
Charles Darwin’s major achievement in 1867 was the completion of his large work, The variation of animals and plants under domestication (Variation). The importance of Darwin’s network of correspondents becomes vividly apparent in his work on expression in…
Matches: 5 hits
- … had been delivered to the publisher in the final week of 1866. It would take all of 1867 to correct …
- … on human expression that he may have drawn up in late 1866. His correspondents were asked to copy …
- … completely revised the German translation of Origin in 1866, would be called upon to translate …
- … Beagle shipmate Bartholomew James Sulivan at Christmas 1866, Darwin had written at the end of the …
- … work, Generelle Morphologie der Organismen (Haeckel 1866), contained much interesting material, …
'An Appeal' against animal cruelty
Summary
The four-page pamphlet transcribed below and entitled 'An Appeal', was composed jointly by Emma and Charles Darwin (see letter from Emma Darwin to W. D. Fox, [29 September 1863]). The pamphlet, which protested against the cruelty of steel vermin…
3.3 Maull and Polyblank photo 2
Summary
< Back to Introduction Despite the difficulties that arose in relation to Maull and Polyblank’s first photograph of Darwin, another one was produced, this time showing him in three-quarter view. It was evidently not taken at the same session as the…
Matches: 3 hits
- … before the partnership with Polyblank was dissolved c.1866). The full image was reproduced …
- … and publishers. Ernst Haeckel, writing to Darwin in January 1866, thought it was ‘certainly very bad …
- … DCP-LETT-3745. Letter from Ernst Haeckel to Darwin, 11 Jan. 1866, DCP-LETT-4973, and Darwin’s reply, …
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
- … in different ways (letter from Jeffries Wyman, 11 January 1866 ). Concurrently with his …
Science, Work and Manliness
Summary
Discussion Questions|Letters In 1859, popular didactic writer William Landels published the first edition of what proved to be one of his best-selling works, How Men Are Made. "It is by work, work, work" he told his middle class audience, …
Matches: 1 hits
- … Letter 4997 - Wallace, A. R. to Darwin, [4 February 1866] Wallace laments the sense of …
Scientific Practice
Summary
Specialism|Experiment|Microscopes|Collecting|Theory Letter writing is often seen as a part of scientific communication, rather than as integral to knowledge making. This section shows how correspondence could help to shape the practice of science, from…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Letter 5173 — Müller, J. F. T. to Darwin, C. R., 2 Aug 1866 Müller provides some observations …
3.5 William Darwin, photo 2
Summary
< Back to Introduction Darwin’s son William, who had become a banker in Southampton, took the opportunity of a short visit home to Down House in April 1864 to photograph his father afresh. This half-length portrait was the first to show Darwin with a…
