Darwin, C. R. to Spencer, Herbert
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Has prepared a historical sketch [of writers on origin of species] for foreign editions of Origin. It includes HS. He was too ill to provide it for the 1st ed.
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Sorry Murray has not sent HS his copy of Origin, as he was instructed.
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Huxley will put CD and E. A. Darwin down for HS's gigantic [publishing] programme. Suggests Dr Drysdale be approached about it.
Summary Add
Transcription
Down Bromley Kent
Feb 2
My dear Sir
I know so few people, that I can really think of only one person, to whom it would be any good to send your gigantic programme. This one is
D
I asked Huxley to put my own name & that of my Brothers on the list for copies.—
From your letter I infer that you have not received a copy of my Book, which I am very
sorry for: I told M
I was so much out of health when I was writing my Book, that I grudged every hour of labour, & therefore gave no sort of history of progress of opinion.—
I have now written a Preface for the foreign Editions & for any future English
Edit (sh
My dear Sir | Yours sincerely | C. Darwin
Kindly answer my two questions soon
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- f1 2680.f1
The year is given by the reference to the first volume of Spencer 1860--2. - +
- f2 2680.f2
CD refers to the subscription list for Spencer's ten-volume series entitled `System of synthetic philosophy', the first work of which was First principles (Spencer 1860--2). CD's subscriber's copy of the book is in the Darwin Library--CUL. - +
- f3 2680.f3
Edward Wickstead Lane was the proprietor of Moor Park hydropathic establishment, which CD had visited on several occasions since 1857 (see Correspondence vols. 6 and 7). Dr Drysdale may have been related to Lady Drysdale, Lane's mother-in-law. - +
- f4 2680.f4
See letter to T. H. Huxley, [26 January 1860]. - +
- f5 2680.f5
The publishing firm of Longman, at that time headed by Thomas Longman, published the first volume of Spencer's Essays (Spencer 1858--63). Spencer's name appears on the presentation list CD drew up for Origin (see Appendix III). - +
- f6 2680.f6
On 10 February 1860 Spencer wrote to a friend (Duncan ed. 1908, p. 98):I am just reading Darwin's book (a copy of which has been searching for me since November and has only just come to hand) and want to send him the `Population' [Spencer 1852] to show how thoroughly his argument harmonizes with that I have used at the close of that essay. See also letter from Herbert Spencer, 22 February 1860. - +
- f7 2680.f7
Spencer sent a copy of the first volume of his Essays (Spencer 1858--63) to CD late in 1859 (Correspondence vol. 7, letter to Herbert Spencer, 25 November [1859]). CD's copy is in the Darwin Library--Down. Spencer's essay `The development hypothesis', number 2 of `The Hawthorne papers' originally published in The Leader in 1852, was reprinted in Spencer 1858--63, 1: 389--95. In this essay, Spencer advocated the view that species had been modified and that the modification could be attributed to a change of external conditions. CD cited the essay in his historical preface (Origin US ed., pp. viii--ix, and Origin 3d ed., p. xvii; see Appendix IV). - +
- f8 2680.f8
Spencer 1855. CD's presentation copy is in the Darwin Library--CUL. See Correspondence vol. 6, letter to Herbert Spencer, 11 March [1856]. - +
- f9 2680.f9
Spencer apparently approved of CD's statement: it appears in the historical preface (Origin US ed., p. ix; see Appendix IV).