From J. D. Hooker 13 March 1879
Royal Gardens Kew
March 13/79.
My dear Darwin
Dyer has kept me informed of the steps he took regarding Frank’s appointment to the Examinership at Cambridge; from the conversation he had with Horace onwards: & I must plead guilty of having given him every encouragement, in the belief that Horace’s wishes were Frank’s & your’s too.1
I now write to back his suggestion, that Frank should reconsider the matter of his non-acceptance; & at the risk of appearing intrusive I would urge it for his own sake, primarily—for I cannot but think that a little public duty is an excellent thing for any man who has health energy & acquirements enough to perform it—& I think I am not wrong in surmising that in Frank’s case such a duty would be eminently beneficial. I well remember my own extreme aversion to undertake public duties, & your affectionate encouragement on very many occasions, when I would fain have held back.2 I now know how good it has been for me—& how grateful I am to you for your encouragement I only know.
Then again Frank’s holding back will be a great disappointment to Cambridge; not only on account of his being the best man, & a Cambridge man,3 & your son; but because I do not know where they are to get another fit man at all!
I need not add that of Frank’s entire competency there cannot be a question— were it to conduct a hack examination of medical students in the shape of system, morphology, pharmacy, & physiology, that they had picked up in the course of the so called “Botany class”—it would be a different matter, but the functions of the Cambridge Examiners are of another order altogether—& the amount of Morphology & system required from the Examiner & candidate are what the ordinary text books supply.4
No doubt there may be cogent reasons for Frank’s reluctance—& of which I know nothing— if there are such pray forgive me for going so far as I have; & believe my dear old friend that I think only (& as much) of Frank as of Cambridge in this matter; & nothing at all of the disappointment to Dyer & myself.
We are all well—&, as usual, it seems an age since we have had any communication.
Shall you be coming to Town soon? Smith’s illness keeps me pretty close here.5
Ever affy Yrs | Jos. D. Hooker.
Footnotes
Bibliography
Alum. Cantab.: Alumni Cantabrigienses. A biographical list of all known students, graduates and holders of office at the University of Cambridge, from the earliest times to 1900. Compiled by John Venn and J. A. Venn. 10 vols. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1922–54.
Walters, Stuart Max. 1981. The shaping of Cambridge botany. A short history of whole-plant botany in Cambridge from the time of Ray into the present century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Summary
Urges Frank to reconsider his refusal of Cambridge Examinership.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-11938
- From
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Kew
- Source of text
- DAR 104: 125–7
- Physical description
- ALS 6pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 11938,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-11938.xml