Dear Eyton

Very many thanks for your kind note.— I was very sorry not to be at Leeds, & I should have particularly liked to have seen you;² but in fact my health will by no means stand so much excitement.

What a splendid collection of skeletons you have, & how many good irons you have in the fire, for I see that you are, also, going to publish a Book on the Oyster.—³

I will carefully keep your letter with a list of the skeletons: at some future time the loan of some of them would be invaluable to me. I have done domestic Pigeons-skeletons, & a monograph on their history, variation &c &c.— I am so ignorant, that I do not even know the names of many bones; & I am going to take them soon to Falconer to get a little rudimentary knowledge.⁴ My notes are only 4 or 5 pages, & if I had them copied out, would you object to read them & give me your criticisms: I could, also, easily send the few bones, which show any diversity, & then you could best judge of accuracy of my few remarks. But I must first get a lesson from Faloner as soon as he returns to town.

My plans of publication are all changed, for owing to advice of Lyell & Hooker I am preparing an abstract of all my conclusions to be published as small book or read before Linn: Society, & this will for some months stop my regular work. The work is too great for me, but if I live I will finish it: indeed three-fourth is done.

With every good wish & my thanks, believe me, dear Eyton | Yours very sincerely | Ch. Darwin.

As you are a great nimrod,⁵ I wish you could tell me what colours of sire & dam will ever throw a dun coloured horse. By dun I mean a cream-colour mixed with brown or bay. I have asked scores of people, & cannot find out. Nor can I find out what is colour of a colt when born, which will turn into a Dun.—⁶

As I am asking questions I will ask, did you ever see Ass with a double shoulder-stripe on both shoulders? Col. Ham. Smith says he has heard of such.—⁷