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Darwin Correspondence Project

To James Paget   14 July 1879

Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.

July 14th. 79

My dear Paget.

It was very kind of you to take the trouble to hunt up the enclosed old Book.— I have been glad to see it, as at least showing that Dr. D’s views were attended to; & I have read it, as these old views on fever seem curious rubbish.—1 I fear that my little life of Dr. D. will be a very poor affair, & never again will I be tempted out of my proper work.2

Believe me yours very sincerely | Charles Darwin

Footnotes

CD had visited Paget on 27 June 1879 and may have borrowed the book at that time (see letter to James Paget, 28 June [1879]). The book was probably Comparative view of the theories and practice of Drs Cullen, Brown and Darwin (Baeta 1800), which CD made reference to in Erasmus Darwin, p. 107 n.
Henrietta Emma Litchfield had found CD’s essay for Erasmus Darwin dull, but other family members were more positive in their assessment (see, for example, letter to Francis Darwin, 12 July [1879] and n. 9).

Bibliography

Baeta, Henrique Xavier. 1800. Comparative view of the theories and practice of Drs. Cullen, Brown, and Darwin: in the treatment of fever, and of acute rheumatism. London: J. Johnson.

Erasmus Darwin. By Ernst Krause. Translated from the German by W. S. Dallas, with a preliminary notice by Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1879.

Summary

Returns an "old book" [? Baeta, Comparative view of the theories and practice of Drs Cullen, Brown and Darwin (1800); see Erasmus Darwin, p. 107]. Glad to see that Dr Erasmus Darwin’s views on fever were attended to.

Fears his life of Dr Darwin will be a poor affair. "Never again will I be tempted out of my proper work."

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-12156
From
Charles Robert Darwin
To
James Paget, 1st baronet
Sent from
Down
Source of text
Indiana University, The Lilly Library (Miscellaneous MSS)
Physical description
ALS 1p

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 12156,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-12156.xml

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