Summary

Weight statistics on deerhound puppies born 23 Sept 1869.

Summary

Will send deerhound puppy.

Is critical of Herbert Spencer.

Summary

Will send CD a deerhound puppy.

Reaffirms his statement that dogs in breeding form decided preferences toward each other, based on size, colour, or character.

Summary

CD’s deerhound puppy will be ready soon.

Summary

Delay in sending deerhound puppy.

Summary

Glad "Bran" [deerhound puppy] arrived safely.

Summary

Thanks for presentation copy of Descent.

Summary

On reception of Descent in Edinburgh.

Anecdote about a dog helping another by separating combatants.

Summary

Praise for Expression.

Summary

Missed hostile review of Expression in Edinburgh Review. Agrees it might be by J. H. Stirling [see 8935], who has written in a deplorably polemical style on Huxley and Sir William Hamilton.

Summary

J. V. Carus’ lecture.

Edinburgh intellectual climate.

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s visit to Edinburgh.

J. H. Stirling did not write anonymous review of Expression in Edinburgh Review. Suggests T. Spencer Baynes of St Andrews. [? T. S. Baynes, "Darwin on expression", 137 (1873): 492–528.]

Summary

Responds to CD’s queries about breeders’ practices in destroying and saving males or females in litters of deerhounds.

Summary

Will send CD’s query to eight or ten people.

Summary

Answers to queries are being sent.

Enclosure 1: statistics on puppies bred by Rayner in 1873.

Enclosure 2 from W. N. Massey: number of males or females raised depends entirely on preference of greyhound breeders.

Enclosure 3 from E. L. Williams: breeders prefer to destroy bitch pups.

Enclosure 4: Thomas Morse answers CD’s three queries, transmitted by GC: (1) in deerhounds, females predominate, three to one; (2) in all but cattle, females are less worth preserving; (3) TM rears all the young.

Enclosure 5: John Wright responds to CD’s queries about proportion of sexes in births of horses, cattle, and dogs.

Enclosure 6: G. W. Hickman cannot give reliable answers to CD’s queries on proportion of sexes born [in greyhounds?].

Summary

Promises answers to CD queries on dogs.

Enclosure 1: G. A. Graham responds to CD’s questions (transmitted by GC) on greyhound breeding and proportion of sexes reared.

Enclosure 2: J. W. Robertson’s general rule has been to preserve male deerhound puppies in preference to females.

Enclosure 3: Proportion of sexes in dog litters [for Descent, 2d ed.] from W. Forbes.

Summary

Thanks for presentation copy of Descent, 2d ed.