From George Henslow 7 April 1866
10 South Crescent | Bedford Sq | W.C.
April 7th /66
My dear Sir
I send by this post a few copies of the “Science Gossip”, which I happen to have as duplicates, so that you can obtain a knowledge of their General character.1 Also one or two Nos. of the Leisure Hour in which I have written short papers, that may perhaps interest you, as being connected with my fathers doings. Please to accept them. (One has not my name attached viz: “Phosphate Nodules”.)—2
I have already exhibited the Coryanthes—you so kindly gave me—to the delight & astonishment of several: it certainly is a most wonderful contrivance.3
With regard to the remark I made about the relative Nos. expressive of the fertility of Primrose.— I was referring to the Tab. II p. 89. P. veris
By calculation
good pods Weight of seed in grains Long: styled as 100 to 42*
Homoc.) long styled) ‘ 100 ’ 62
Heteroc.) Short styled:) ‘ 100 ’ 30
Homoc.) Short styled) ‘ 100 ’ 44*4
Heteroc.)
Comparing these (*) it seems, they run very close!5 does that proportion mean that the seed from every 100 good pods weighed, on average (by calculation of course) 42 grains?
Again thanking you for a very pleasant visit last Monday,6
Believe me | My dear Sir, | Yours very faithfully | Geo Henslow
C. Darwin Esq.
Footnotes
Bibliography
Collected papers: The collected papers of Charles Darwin. Edited by Paul H. Barrett. 2 vols. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press. 1977.
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
‘Dimorphic condition in Primula’: On the two forms, or dimorphic condition, in the species of Primula, and on their remarkable sexual relations. By Charles Darwin. [Read 21 November 1861.] Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society (Botany) 6 (1862): 77–96. [Collected papers 2: 45–63.]
‘Fertilization of orchids’: Notes on the fertilization of orchids. By Charles Darwin. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 4th ser. 4 (1869): 141–59. [Collected papers 2: 138–56.]
[Henslow, George]. 1863. Phosphate nodules. Leisure Hour 12: 436–8.
Henslow, George. 1864. The wild flowers of Shakespeare. Leisure Hour 13: 229–31.
Orchids 2d ed.: The various contrivances by which orchids are fertilised by insects. By Charles Darwin. 2d edition, revised. London: John Murray. 1877.
Orchids: On the various contrivances by which British and foreign orchids are fertilised by insects, and on the good effects of intercrossing. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1862.
Origin 4th ed.: On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. 4th edition, with additions and corrections. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1866.
Summary
Sends copies of Science gossip and The leisure hour.
Enjoyed visit.
His criticism of Primula fertility referred to table 2 [Collected papers 2: 56] where weight of seeds produced from good pods by long-styled homostylous cross and short-styled heterostylous cross are virtually identical.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-5048
- From
- George Henslow
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- London, South Crescent, 10
- Source of text
- DAR 166: 157
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 5048,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-5048.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 14