To Enrico Morselli 10 April 1874
Down, | Beckenham, Kent.
Ap 10 1874
Dear Sir
I have received the Essay which you have been so kind as to send me, & have had parts translated to me.1 As far as I understand the discussion, I am inclined to agree with you.2 Atavism strictly means the return of a character possessed by some former progenitor, & I cannot understand how new modifications can thus arise. The more I study nature, the more I feel convinced that species generally change by extremely slight modifications.
As I am much engaged I hope that you will excuse the brevity of this letter, & with my best thanks I remain | dear Sir | yours faithfully | Charles Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Descent 2d ed.: The descent of man, and selection in relation to sex. By Charles Darwin. 2d edition. London: John Murray. 1874.
Morselli, Enrico. 1872. Sopra una rara anomalia dell’osso malare. Annuario della Società dei Naturalisti in Modena 7: 1–50.
Summary
Thanks EM for essay ["Sopra un rara anomalia dell’osso malare", Annu. Soc. Nat. Modena 7 (1873): 1–50]. CD agrees as far as he understands. Cannot see how new modifications could arise by atavism. "The more I study nature, the more I feel convinced that species generally change by extremely slight modifications."
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-9403
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Enrico Morselli
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- Piero Leonardi (private collection)
- Physical description
- LS 2pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 9403,” accessed on 18 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-9403.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 22
