skip to content

Darwin Correspondence Project

To Basil Hall   [7 January 1840]1

12 Upper Gower St

Tuesday

My dear Sir

I am sorry that I have caused you any inconvenience by having Krusentern’s atlas2 in my possession.—

Sulphur Isld is laid down in the chart of the Loo Choo Archipelago in

27o 56’ N

128 . 27’ E. of Greenwich. (as near as I can take the degrees off with compasses) There is, also, in the general chart of the northern Pacific a Sulphur Rock (Position Doubtful) in 31o. 28’ N. and 142o. 18’ E. Greenwich—

There is (in the plan of Japan and adjacent islands) a “I. du Volcan”, in 30o 44’ N. 130o. 24’ E of Greenwich as near as I can take them with compasses which would give nearly the same longitude, when corrected to Paris obser; as that you mention.— I have an indistinct recollection that this isld was formerly called Sulphur isld

I presume you will find a full account of Krusentern’s authority for these positions in his memoir3 of 1827—which I have not here, but is at the Geograph. Soc.

Believe me | very truly yours | Chas. Darwin

P.S.| Of course if you want Krusentern, I will return it immediately.—

I believe there is a copy at the Admiralty should you want to see it, before I can return that belonging to the Soc.

Footnotes

Dated from a notation by Hall.

Bibliography

Krusenstern, Adam Johann von. 1824–7. Recueil de mémoires hydrographiques: pour servir d’analyse et d’explication à l’Atlas de l’Océan Pacifique. 2 vols. St Petersburg: Impr. du Département de l'instruction publique.

Summary

CD regrets inconvenience caused by his having Royal Geographical Society’s copy of Krusenstern’s Atlas [de l’océan Pacifique (1824–7)]. Locates Sulphur Island from it.

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-550
From
Charles Robert Darwin
To
Basil Hall
Sent from
London, Upper Gower St, 12
Source of text
American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.)
Physical description
ALS 4pp

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 550,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-550.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 2

letter