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Darwin Correspondence Project

From John Murray   31 May [1871]1

50A, Albemarle St. | W.

May 31

My Dear Sir

Cooke has had no little trouble in collecting the information needed to decide between the different styles of Photography, wch will account for the delay in furnishing it to you. I have no doubt you have made the best choice.2

It seems to me essential that every plate shd be numbered for the sake of reference—& it will not greatly matter if the numbers do not quite agree with the order of precedence in the book. This will be a lesser evil than delaying the printing off of Photographs wch depend often on the weather—

An arrangement ought however to be made beforehand with Mr Rejlander3 that the glass plates of his negatives shall be of such a size as to allow room below the heads—for a number & a Title—Laughter—Anger—Sorrow or the like, wch shd be neatly scratched out on the glass in a clear writing

We have made out an estimate for a cheap Edition of the Origin of Species & find it may be got into a volume, somewhat like Lyells Elements (Students Edn) of about 450 pages & sold for 7/6—4 The profit will of course be limited, in proportion to the number sold— but for this I dare say you will be prepared, as I am

I remain My Dear Sir | Yours very sincerely | John Murray

Chas Darwin Esq

CD annotations

Top of letter: ‘(Copy of Origin) | [Cookes] Cost’5 pencil

Footnotes

The year is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to R. F. Cooke, 28 May [1871].
On the cheap edition of Origin (Origin 6th ed.), see the letter to John Murray, 12 May [1871]. The reference is to Charles Lyell’s The student’s elements of geology (Lyell 1871).
CD had inquired about the cost of engravings for Expression in the letter to R. F. Cooke, 28 May [1871].

Bibliography

Expression: The expression of the emotions in man and animals. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1872.

Lyell, Charles. 1871. The student’s elements of geology. London: J. Murray.

Origin 6th ed.: The origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. 6th edition, with additions and corrections. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1872.

Origin: On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859.

Summary

On photographic illustrations [for Expression].

Estimates 7s 6d price for a cheap edition of Origin [6th].

Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-7784
From
John Murray
To
Charles Robert Darwin
Sent from
London, Albemarle St, 50a
Source of text
DAR 171: 400
Physical description
ALS 3pp †

Please cite as

Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 7784,” accessed on 28 March 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-7784.xml

Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 19

letter