My dear Darwin

Oliver² & I have little to say about your observation on the gyratory motion of the upper internode of Echinocystis except that it is most curious & important & goes a long way towards explaining the secondary causes which result in tendrils seeking & finding. indeed in so far as I know it is the first step in that direction—³ I have set our people to watch various climbers with tendrils.

I am greatly relieved to find you like Bentham’s address, I was very anxious about its result.⁴ I wonder if Lyell will read it.⁵

We are overwhelmed with—& almost knocked up by visitors & visiting—of which there is no end & I have been atrociously idle of late— of course I have my Garden & Herb^m work from 9 till 6, but my evening work, from which all my science used to be evolved is no where & I am disgusted with the extra part of the last 4 months— but then what am I to do?— unlike you, I have health & strength, & no large family connection with whom my children can mix, & I must keep up some society for them to mix in by & bye. added to which my position here demands large sacrifices of that sort. What a complicated machine life has become! I went to the Guards ball the other night & was deeply interested—⁶ of course I knew so few people that I had abundant time & opportunity to roam about & observe & listen—admire & despise—the contrasts of old & young were ghastly— my God there were hideous old women in brides robes enough to keep you in night mares for a month of Sundays, & lovely girls enough to fill all the paradises of all the Turks.

The intellectual cut & exceeding handsomeness of both men and women was very satisfactory in the main, as was the cleanlyness & general health of the whole stock of high-bred humanity. To compare these with an equal number of the lower classes suggested many reflections—& strengthened me in my dogma that Brains x Beauty = Breeding + wealth.⁷ I should extremely like to go to a similar selection in America, France or Austria; my impression is that the comparison would be ludicrous. Pray tell M^rs Darwin & Henrietta⁸ that I thought the Princess very charming looking, but neither pretty nor handsome, & that she was very badly dressed with a huge coronet of white roses enough to sink a ship— The Prince looked an utter nincompoop—& smiles with his lips only—a detestable savage feature.⁹

Have you read Goldwin Smiths “Empire”¹⁰   I am much interested in it, probably most so because I had previously read only the abuse of his letters in the Times.¹¹ I think that after a mild course of Darwinism something might be made of him!

Ev yr affec & abandoned | Jos D Hooker