Dear M^rs. Darwin

Why do the heathen so violently rage together? he will have all the parish against him. I don’t know whether Beaumont is still on the School board—or if he was only on the Farnboro’ one—but I have written to him on the chance. We shall get our way, I don’t doubt, & I will break out with a chessboard or some more books if we do.²

I hate begging—so now you will perceive I am going to beg. Yesterday I was at the Busks’, & M^r. Busk was groaning & lamenting over his Presidency of the Anthro—(I never can spell the horrid word)—Society—the name irritates him, as it does John, & it isn’t the right one.³ We never wanted to be merged & swallowed whole in and by this mushroom society, with no good men in it— So I said well, why not alter it back to the Ethnological, which was the first & real root of the thing?⁴ To which he said despondently that they were in debt £700.

I said we would collect it: on which he brightened up & said if we could screw together half that, he should be in a position to say “take this if you become the Ethnological again: otherwise it will be returned to those who gave it.”⁵

Now I want M^r. Darwin if he will to head the subscription: his name will go so far— I don’t ask for the actual money, because we may never come to realize the sum wanted: but I ask for his name & a promise of something, if we see our way. John would help I know, but I don’t like to speak for him. Poor old M^r. Crawford would have given every penny he had, in fact I should think he turned in his grave when his pet Society was named after his bitterest enemies.⁶ Will you ask M^r. Darwin to suggest a few people we might apply to.—

I am afraid I beg badly— I never did it but once before—but I am rather heart & soul in this matter. You see John was President for some years & the amalgamation or rather swamping of his society vexed him very much.⁷

I hope you won’t think me very meddlesome   I felt so sorry for M^r. Busk—I don’t think he’s well, either.

With love to you all I am yours affectionately EFL