My dear Sir

I cannot tell you how sorry I am to hear of the enormous size of my Book.¹ I fear it can never pay. But I cannot shorten it now; nor indeed, if I had foreseen its length, do I see which parts ought to have been omitted.

If you are afraid to publish it, say so at once I beg you, & I will consider your note as cancelled. If you think fit get anyone whose judgment you rely on, to look over some of the more legible chapters; viz the Introduction & on Dogs & on Plants; the latter chapters being in my opinion the dullest in the book.² There is a Hypothetical & curious Chapter called Pangenesis which is legible, & about which I have no idea what the instructed public will think; but to my own mind it has been a considerable advance in knowledge—³ The list of Chapters, & the inspection of a few, here & there, w^d give a good judge a fair idea of the whole Book. Pray do not publish blindly, as it would vex me all my life if I led you to heavy loss. I am extremely much vexed at the size; but I believe the work has some value, though of course I am no fair judge.—

You must settle all about type & size according to your own judgment; but I will only say that I think, & hear on all sides incessant complaint of the fashion which is growing of publishing intolerably heavy volumes:—⁴

I have written my concluding Chapter; whether that on Man, shall appear, shall depend on size of book, on time & on my own strength.⁵

My dear Sir | Yours very sincerely | Ch. Darwin