My dear Sir,

I thank you for your most kind agreement to my request. I am delighted to hear that you intend your sketch a little, & I feel sure that it will be our best plan to wait until this is done.¹ Before hearing from you we had decided that it would be useless to apply to the Fortnightly.² I hope that you will be so good as to send us the sheets as they are printed off, so that the translation may be making progress. Unfortunately I have no copy of Miss Seward’s life, I have sent for one from a public library but I could not lend this copy.³ I will order a search for a second-hand copy, & if I succeed will send it you. But please to observe that I distinctly remember my father saying that this life was not only grossly incorrect, but maliciously false. When it appeared he threatened to publish some letters injurious to her Miss Seward’s fame if she did not publicly retract some of her statements, & I believe that she did so.⁴ A well known physician in London D^r Richardson, several years ago told me that he had collected materials for the life of D^r Darwin, but afterwards gave up the intention. I will write to him and ask whether he has any materials which he could put at your disposal.⁵ I am myself wholly & shamefully ignorant of my grandfathers life & I can be of no assistance to you in correcting your M.S; moreover I am a very poor German scholar, often make mistakes & read the language slowly. My brother has a good picture of Eras Darwin & we thought of getting autotype (photographic) copies made of it for the translation. I will get one of my sons who understands photography to see about it, & I will send you a specimen.⁶ My copy of the Bot Garden which seems to be the first edit was published in 1791.⁷

Believe me, my dear Sir | Yours faithfully | & obliged | Charles Darwin