To W. T. Thiselton-Dyer 21 March [1881]
Summary
Wants plants with two sets of anthers of different colours. Fritz Müller letter [13041a] has made him wish to renew experiments and observations carried out 20 years ago.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Turner Thiselton-Dyer |
| Date: | 21 Mar [1881] |
| Classmark: | Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (Darwin: Letters to Thiselton-Dyer, 1873–81: ff. 212–13) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13094 |
From Fritz Müller 31 May 1881
Summary
Has just received CD’s letter of 12 April [13113]. To answer CD’s query, Heteranthera reniformis is an amphibious plant that grows as well on moist ground as it does in ditches filled with water.
For the past few weeks has been observing Phyllanthus plants that had shown the irregular movement in leaves returning from the positions assumed at night, but none has repeated the irregularity. Perhaps the progeny from the seeds he has collected will inherit the tendency for irregular movement.
Describes his observations of the power of movement in Cassia, Desmodium, and a few other plants.
Paul Mayer has identified seven new species of insects FM found in nine different species of figs.
| Author: | Johann Friedrich Theodor (Fritz) Müller |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 31 May 1881 |
| Classmark: | Möller ed. 1915–21, 2: 410–11 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13185A |
Matches: 4 hits
- … Has just received CD’s letter of 12 April [ 13113 ]. To answer CD’s query, Heteranthera …
- … 31 May 1881. Esteemed Sir! Your kind letter of 12 April has just arrived and I will reply …
- … translation, has been used. See letter to Fritz Müller, 12 April 1881 and n. 5. CD had …
- … Nature , 14 April [1881] ). See letter to Fritz Müller, 12 April 1881 and n. 7. Cassia and …
To W. E. Darwin 14 January [1881]
Summary
Discusses earthworm activity
and animal grazing on slopes.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Erasmus Darwin |
| Date: | 14 Jan [1881] |
| Classmark: | DAR 210.6: 171 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13013 |
To Leslie Stephen 13 January 1881
Summary
Thanks LS for his advice and his kind note. When CD thinks how he has been treated he will say to himself "so good a judge as Leslie Stephen thinks nothing of the accusation".
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Leslie Stephen |
| Date: | 13 Jan 1881 |
| Classmark: | Stockholms Auktionsverk (dealers) (15 December 2015) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13012 |
From E. B. Aveling 9 August 1881
Summary
Sends a copy of his book [The student’s Darwin (1881)]. Hopes he may be forgiven for carrying his reasoning further than CD may allow.
| Author: | Edward Bibbens Aveling |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 9 Aug 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 202: 10 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13283 |
From Leslie Stephen 14 January 1881
Summary
Thanks CD for the offer of one of his books, which he gratefully accepts.
| Author: | Leslie Stephen |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 14 Jan 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 177: 255 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13014 |
To Ernst Krause 29 January 1881
Summary
Sends copy of Nature in which EK’s letter, translated by Balfour, is printed. Thanks him. Now feels easy.
G. J. Romanes’ language in his review of Butler’s book [Unconscious memory] is perhaps too strong. Butler’s vanity is a "real psychological curiosity".
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Ernst Ludwig (Ernst) Krause |
| Date: | 29 Jan 1881 |
| Classmark: | The Huntington Library (HM 36213) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13032 |
From J. D. Hooker 18 June 1881
Summary
At 63 JDH still works hard to support his family. Many friends have died. Memories of times past spent with CD lift his pessimism.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 18 June 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 104: 152–3 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13209 |
From W. E. Darwin 13 January [1881]
Summary
He is buying a portable fire engine, and suggests one is purchased for Down. Wishes to join the Geological Society of London. Is eager to hear Leslie Stephen’s opinion.
| Author: | William Erasmus Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 13 Jan [1881] |
| Classmark: | Cornford Family Papers (DAR 275: 86) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13010F |
From W. M. Hacon to Leonard Darwin 11 October 1881
Summary
More on proposed sale of property to CD by Sydney Sales.
| Author: | William Mackmurdo Hacon |
| Addressee: | Leonard Darwin |
| Date: | 11 Oct 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 166: 32 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13393 |
From F. M. Balfour 13 January [1881]
Summary
Will gladly translate Krause’s letter for Nature; denounces Butler’s book attacking CD.
| Author: | Francis Maitland Balfour |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 13 Jan [1881] |
| Classmark: | DAR 160: 28 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13011 |
To J. D. Hooker 15 June 1881
Summary
CD complains of discomfort, but has not the strength for a project that would let him forget it.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 15 June 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 95: 513–15 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13207 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … See letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 June 1881 . The Hookers had visited Italy with Asa and …
- … L. Huxley ed. 1918 , 2: 251). See letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 June 1881 and n. 3. Genera …
- … creeping wood sorrel; see letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 June 1881 and n. 1). It is an …
- … p. 130; Bentham 1881 ). See letter from J. D. Hooker, 12 June 1881 and n. 4. Hyacinth …
To J. D. Hooker 18 September [1881]
Summary
Comte [de Paris] will have plants next summer.
Arruda Furtado will send his mountain plants from Azores.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 18 Sept [1881] |
| Classmark: | DAR 95: 536–7 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13342 |
From W. E. Darwin [16 January 1881]
Summary
Thanks CD for writing for papers to enter Geological Society. Will return Leslie Stephen’s letter. Has had a severe frost. Emma’s puppy died.
| Author: | William Erasmus Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | [16 Jan 1881] |
| Classmark: | Cornford Family Papers (DAR 275: 100) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13023F |
To G. J. Romanes 8 December 1881
Summary
Discusses subscription for Grant Allen. Suggests present of microscope.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | George John Romanes |
| Date: | 8 Dec 1881 |
| Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.603) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13536 |
Matches: 2 hits
- … Romanes I return the letters & acknowledge the cheque for £12..10s. 0d. The circular is a …
- … 12 10 s under the heading ‘Charities’ with a note ‘Repaid by Grant Allen ’ in his Account books–classed accounts (Down House MS); the record is undated, but the accounts are entered by year. The circular was probably a letter …
From E. L. Jellinek 30 July 1881
Summary
Asks whether CD believes in the immortality of the soul.
| Author: | Edward Lincoln Jellinek |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 30 July 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 202: 104 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13263 |
To Francis Darwin 17 October 1881
Summary
Has been reading Julius von Wiesner’s book [Das Bewegungsvermögen der Pflanzen (1881)]. Comments that it is "an excellent book, but he vivisects me in the most grievous terms, but most effectively".
Has been experimenting on aggregation of chlorophyll but with little success.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Francis Darwin |
| Date: | 17 Oct 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 211: 86 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13411 |
Matches: 3 hits
- … Journal’ (Appendix II)). See letter from Leonard Darwin, 12 October [1881] and n. 3; Isaac …
- … dated between 12 August and 5 November 1881, are in DAR 62: 6–11. See letter from Fritz …
- … letter from Francis Darwin, 17 June 1881 ). CD’s notes on aggregation of chlorophyll in Dionaea (Venus fly trap), dated between 8 and 12 …
To F. M. Balfour 28 January 1881
Summary
Thanks FMB for translation of Ernst Krause’s letter for Nature.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Francis Maitland Balfour |
| Date: | 28 Jan 1881 |
| Classmark: | National Records of Scotland (GD433/2/103C/4) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13030 |
From L. M. Forster to H. E. Litchfield [11 June 1881]
Summary
On flowers bending towards light reflected in a mirror.
| Author: | Laura Mary Forster |
| Addressee: | Henrietta Emma Darwin; Henrietta Emma Litchfield |
| Date: | [11 June 1881] |
| Classmark: | DAR 164: 158 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12960 |
From Ernst Krause 2 January 1881
Summary
Encloses reply to Butler [Kosmos 8 (1881): 321–2]. Has also written a reply intended for English reader. Will have it translated for Popular Science Review if CD thinks suitable.
Report of Jäger accident was an error.
Kosmos has been purchased by Eduard Koch in Stuttgart and will continue as in the past.
| Author: | Ernst Ludwig (Ernst) Krause |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 2 Jan 1881 |
| Classmark: | DAR 92: B61; DAR 221.2: 27 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-12969 |
| Darwin, C. R. | (49) |
| Krause, Ernst | (4) |
| Darwin, W. E. | (3) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (3) |
| Aveling, E. B. | (2) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (34) |
| Müller, Fritz | (6) |
| Thiselton-Dyer, W. T. | (6) |
| Darwin, Francis | (5) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (5) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (83) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (8) |
| Müller, Fritz | (8) |
| Darwin, Francis | (6) |
| Darwin, W. E. | (6) |
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
- … You receive a gift from your scientific hero Charles Darwin. It is a book that contains sections …
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: 1 hits
- … The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early …
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: 1 hits
- … There are summaries of all Darwin's letters from the year 1879 on this website. The full texts of …
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: 1 hits
- … Towards the end of 1862, Darwin resolved to build a small hothouse at Down House, for …
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, 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: 1 hits
- … As the sheer volume of his correspondence indicates, 1862 was a particularly productive year for …
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: 1 hits
- … Having laboured for nearly five years on human evolution, sexual selection, and the expression of …
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: 1 hits
- … In May 1881, Darwin, one of the best-known celebrities in England if not the world, began …
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 …
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
- … In 1877, Charles Darwin was sent some unusual birthday presents: two lavishly …
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: 1 hits
- … I am merely slaving over the sickening work of preparing new Editions …
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: 1 hits
- … I think we have proved that the sleep of plants is to lessen injury to leaves from radiation …
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: 1 hits
- … At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition of …
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 …
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…
Matches: 1 hits
- … In May 1865 a dispute arose between John Lubbock and Charles Lyell when Lubbock, in his book …
Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?
Summary
'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . . What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…
Matches: 1 hits
- … ‘My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, ‘is so nearly closed. . . What little more I …
Darwin in letters, 1882: Nothing too great or too small
Summary
In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and for the first time in decades he was not working on another book. He remained active in botanical research, however. Building on his recent studies in plant…
Matches: 1 hits
- … In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and …
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 …
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…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Species theory In November 1845, Charles Darwin wrote to his friend and confidant Joseph …
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…
Matches: 1 hits
- … When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations …
