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Darwin Correspondence Project

To Daniel Oliver   20 [January 1863]1

Down. | Bromley. | Kent. S.E.

20th

Dear Oliver

Many thanks. I have some analogous cases, but I am very glad to have what you have sent.—2 Have I not been very good, & not given you any trouble for an age?3

Ever yours sincerely | C. Darwin

I have been this morning copying out References on subjects which concern me from N. Hist. R.—4 What an enormous benifit you have conferred on everyone by your gigantic labours. No wonder that you are “omniscient”.—5

Do you remember my suggesting that if ever you had spare time (so likely this is!!) that you might do good work by discussing F. Water plants.—6 Now it occurred to me the other day (& I then much wished to know,) whether there is not an unusual proportion of such plants with separated sexes. I merely mention this, as showing one little point which would turn up in such an examination.

Footnotes

The date is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter from Daniel Oliver, 22 January 1863.
The reference has not been identified.
There are no extant letters from CD to Oliver from the period between the letter to Daniel Oliver, 23 [November 1862] (Correspondence vol. 10), and this letter.
CD refers to Oliver’s ‘Botanical bibliography’ in the Natural History Review ([Oliver] 1862a; see letter from Daniel Oliver, 22 January 1863).

Bibliography

Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.

Summary

Has been copying out references from Natural History Review [possibly D. Oliver, "The structure of the stem in dicotyledons; being references to the literature of the subject", Nat. Hist. Rev. n.s. 2 (1862): 298–329].

Suggests DO study high incidence of separate sexes in freshwater plants.

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-3776
From
Charles Robert Darwin
To
Daniel Oliver
Sent from
Down
Source of text
DAR 261.10: 38 (EH 88206021)
Physical description
ALS 3pp

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 3776,” accessed on 24 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-3776.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 11

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