Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D.
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Illness of his son [Leonard]. Has done no work for weeks.
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JDH's hybrid orchids are interesting; CD is surprised many hybrids are not produced.
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George [Darwin] caught a moth sucking Gymnadenia conopsea with a pollen-mass of Habenaria bifolia sticking to it.
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July 26th
My dear Hooker
I sincerely rejoice that your tour answered so well for Mrs. Hooker, & that you have returned safe. I hope it did you good & rested you.—
We have been utterly miserable; but it over now: for now patience alone is wanted; & when he is strong enough we shall take him to the sea.— Did you ever hear of such a catalogue of evil. Scarlet fever, enlarged glands of neck, injured kidneys—recurrent scarlet fever with fresh & bad sore-throat & eruption—dredful erysipelas of the head & face—fever with typhalid petechiæ. Port-wine alone saved him.
I have not done a stroke of work for weeks & it has played old Harry with my experiments.—
Your Hybrid orchids are interesting to me, as I never heard of but one case before.
I was struck also with review of Nat. Hist R. in the Parthenon (which I take in): now you point it out that last page is astounding. I remember being surprised at ``tubular'' stems & wondering what ``squarrose cymes'' were. What an odd case that of the Calluna.— I wrote to you Poste Restante in the Swiss Valley; but there was nothing in my note worth sending.
Goodnight my dear old friend. | C. Darwin
It is surprising that many hybrids orchids are not produced, when clearly allied species grow & flower together. George caught a moth sucking G. conopsea, with the pollen-mass of a Habenaria bifolia attached to its face.—
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- f1 3666.f1
See letter from J. D. Hooker, [24 July 1862] and n. 1. - +
- f2 3666.f2
Leonard Darwin was recovering from scarlet fever (see Emma Darwin's diary (DAR 242); see also letter to Daniel Oliver, 24 July [1862], letter to M. T. Masters, 24 July [1862], letter to W. E. Darwin, [24 July 1862], and letter to Asa Gray, 23[--4] July [1862]). - +
- f3 3666.f3
CD may have intended to write `typhoidal' (see letter to Asa Gray, 23[--4] July [1862]); petechiae are red or purple spots on the skin that may accompany fever (OED). - +
- f4 3666.f4
On CD's experiments, see, for instance, the letters to J. D. Hooker, 30 May [1862] and n. 7, and 23 June [1862] and n. 4, the letter to Alphonse de Candolle, 17 June [1862] and n. 2, and the letter to M. T. Masters, 8 July [1862] and n. 3. - +
- f5 3666.f5
See letter from J. D. Hooker, [24 July 1862]. - +
- f6 3666.f6
CD refers to the review of the first volume of the new series of the Natural History Review published in the Parthenon 1: 373--5 (see also letter from J. D. Hooker, [24 July 1862] and n. 8). - +
- f7 3666.f7
See letter from J. D. Hooker, [24 July 1862]. The reference is to the last page of the April issue of the Natural History Review, which contained numerous typographical errors. - +
- f8 3666.f8
The last page of the April 1862 number of the Natural History Review concluded with an unsigned article recording the occurrence of Calluna vulgaris (misspelled `Callema' throughout) in North America; the author reported Asa Gray's opinion that this might be one of those `species of the old world so sparingly represented in the new, that they are known only at single stations' (Natural History Review n.s. 2 (1862): 346). - +
- f9 3666.f9
CD's letter has not been found. The Hookers had been on holiday in Switzerland from 4 to 23 July 1862 (see letters from J. D. Hooker, 2 July 1862, 10 July 1862, and [24 July 1862]). - +
- f10 3666.f10
George Howard Darwin had made observations in June on the insects visiting several orchid species, including Gymnadenia conopsea (see letter to J. D. Hooker, 30 [June 1862], and letter to Asa Gray, 1 July [1862]). In DAR 70: 30 there is a note, dated 21 June 1862, that states that George had seen the moth Plusia chrysites `with one pollinia of Butterfly! [the butterfly orchid, Habenaria bifolia] it was settled in conopsea & sucking; but had none of conopsea attached!'