To John Price 17 May 1877
Down, Beckenham, Kent | Railway Station, Orpington. S.E.R
May 17, 1877.
My dear Price
I quite agree with you that stripes on animals offer a curious subject for investigation, and that every stripe has a meaning of some sort.1 But I am not likely ever again to take up this subject. With respect to your “present craze”, as you call it, I would suggest your cutting off a little bit of the stem whilst under water; for de Vries, who is a very good authority, asserts that even a momentary exposure of a young cut stem to air affects the power of the stem to absorb water.2
I hope that you are regaining some tranquility, and I remain, my dear Price
Footnotes
Bibliography
Variation: The variation of animals and plants under domestication. By Charles Darwin. 2 vols. London: John Murray. 1868.
Summary
Stripes on animals curious subject for investigation. Not likely to take it up again.
Recommends cutting plant stems under water.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-10964
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- John Price
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR 147: 279
- Physical description
- C 1p inc
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 10964,” accessed on 20 April 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-10964.xml