Dear Mr. Darwin!

Permit me to confer once more the Zoolog. Station’s and my own kindest congratulations for the return of Your birthday, and to tell You, that the Zool. Station is steadily growing in all its different departments.¹

It has been my desire from the very beginning to erect a physiological Department along with the manifold arrangements to favour the progress of morphological Science,—but it is only now, that I can really say, this desire is going to be fulfilled.² A very fine locality has been got, outside the great building of the Station, which has no more room enough for all the different branches of the whole undertaking. It will be connected by two tubes for conducting seawater with the main building and offer thus every facility for experiments both chemical and physical. I hope to be able thus to offer to Physiologists a new opportunity for the special study of Torpedo, and to receive in exchange their cooperation in many questions, which interest Morphologists more specially.³

The other fields of our activity are well progressing. Four volumes of the Fauna & Flora of the Gulf of Naples are in course of execution in print and plates, and new ones are begun in study.⁴ The Zool. Jahresbericht has had its second year, and though I have failed to gain the cooperation and amalgamation of the Brit. Record Association I have succeeded in getting support from Continental Academies, Societie’s and Governments.⁵ I am sorry, that the animosity against this literary Enterprise of ours has moved a critic in the Annals and Magazine to overstep largely the boundaries of fair criticism, but I am afraid, he will regret that himself much more, than the Zool. Station.⁶

I take the liberty to send You a small paper of mine with statements regarding the formation of the Mouth and Hypophysis in Teleostians.⁷ You recollect perhaps that in a former pamphlet I tried to explain the Origin of Vertebrates in another way, than it was generally understood.⁸ I always felt bound to give statements of fact for the support of my views, but could not find among other occupations time and energy enough to follow them up. Even now I have had to postpone studies in this direction, but I hope, what I have published may lead to a new inspection by others of the facts, which I believe to have ascertained in Fishes.

It was very curious, that when I happened to assist the Meeting at York Professor Owen should have read a paper, whereby he gave his assent to similar views. He seemed not to be aware, that they had already formed the object of continued discussions, and that since Cuvier and Geoffroy de St Hilaire several important attempts had been made to state and solve the problem, whose importance he most distinctly pointed out.⁹ It is even sometimes comical, to see how every involution on the back of invertebrates is suspected by some people to be homologous with the supposed ancient or the present Vertebrate mouth, as if this question could be treated with any chance of success, if not only the mouth but the whole of the organization were to be taken in account and to be reduced or derived to and from the supposed ancestor.

I have heard to my sincerest regret, that by the fault of my Publisher You have after all paid the subscription for the first year of the Fauna & Flora, whilst I had asked it as a privilege from Your side to accept the Volumes from the Zool. Station as a gift. I hope, that now my orders are better respected, and that You will accept my excuse.¹⁰

I was glad to have met Your Sons George and Horace at York, and to hear both from them and from Mr. Balfour, who lately visited us here, that your health was comparatively good.¹¹ Please accept my kindest wishes and regards which I present to Yourself Mrs. Darwin and all Your family, and which I would gladly have offered orally last year, had I not been afraid of disturbing You.

Yours | most respectful | Anton Dohrn

To | Charles Darwin Esq. | Down.