To Josef Popper 15 February 1881
Down. | Beckenham, Kent. | (Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.)
Feb. 15. 1881
Dear Sir
I am sorry to say that it is impossible for me give you the least aid, as I have never attended to any mechanical subjects.—1 I shd. doubt whether it would be possible to train birds to fly in a certain direction in a body, though I am aware that they have been taught some tricks— Their mental powers are probably much below those of mammals.—
It is said, & I suppose truly, that an Eagle will carry a lamb, this shows that a bird may have great power for a short distance.—
I cannot remember your essay with sufficient distinctness to make any remarks on it.2 When a man is old & works hard, one subject drives others out of his head.—
I hope to read what you say about Mr. Bradlaugh.3
I remain | Dear Sir | Yours faithfully. | Ch. Darwin.
Footnotes
Summary
Cannot help JP [with bird-powered flying machine].
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-13054
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Josef Popper (Josef Popper-Lynkeus)
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- Smithsonian Libraries and Archives (Dibner Library of the History of Science and Technology MSS 405 A. Gift of the Burndy Library)
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 13054,” accessed on 26 September 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-13054.xml