From W. S. Dallas 29 July 1879
21 Alma Square N. W.
29 July 1879
My dear Mr. Darwin
I had hoped to have finished your work some days ago, but the difficulties of it are so great that I have been able to make but slow progress— It is not only the wretched small writing, which I can only read by daylight, that makes delay, but in many cases the author has referred to wrong pages for his quotations from Buffon & Erasmus Darwin, & in others has given no references at all, making it necessary to seek out the passages required by means of the context.—1
I am at home today hard at work upon it but do not expect to get done until Thursday, for which I am sorry, as it throws me too late for you to get the translation at home.— It will not, however, be long after you in reaching the Lakes, & I hope it will prove satisfactory—2 Shall I make up the books into a parcel & send them also to Coniston? I fancy you will want them if you are going to work upon the memoir while you are away.— I will send my address as soon as I know what it will be,3
Meanwhile, | Believe me | Yours truly | W. S. Dallas
CD annotations
Footnotes
Bibliography
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
Difficulties with Krause’s handwriting and the time required to correct his sources have delayed the translation [of Erasmus Darwin].
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-12177
- From
- William Sweetland Dallas
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- London, Alma Square, 21
- Source of text
- DAR 99: 112–13
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp †
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 12177,” accessed on 25 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-12177.xml