To J. V. Carus 27 September 1876
Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.
Sept. 27. 76
My dear Sir
I sent by this morning’s Post the 4 first perfect sheets of my new book, the title of which you will see on first page, & which will be published early in November.1
I am sorry to say that it is only shorter by a few pages than my “Insectivorous Plants”.2 The whole is now in type, though I have corrected finally only half the volume.— You will therefore rapidly receive the remainder.— The book is very dull.— Chapters II to VI inclusive are simply a record of experiments.
Nevertheless I believe (though a man can never judge his own books) that this book is valuable. You will have to decide whether it is worth translating— I hope so— It has cost me very great labour, & the results seem to me remarkable & well established.
If you translate it, you could easily get aid for Chap. II to VI, as there is here endless, but I have thought necessary repetition.3 I shall be anxious to hear what you decide. My Orchid book has been almost remodelled & the corrected sheets & M.S have been long ready & will soon be sent to the Printers.4
I most sincerely hope that your health has been fairly good this summer.—
My dear Sir | Yours very truly | Ch. Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Climbing plants: On the movements and habits of climbing plants. By Charles Darwin. London: Longman, Green, Longman, Roberts & Green; Williams & Norgate. 1865.
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
Cross and self fertilisation: The effects of cross and self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1876.
Freeman, Richard Broke. 1977. The works of Charles Darwin: an annotated bibliographical handlist. 2d edition. Folkestone, Kent: William Dawson & Sons. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, Shoe String Press.
Insectivorous plants. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1875.
Orchids 2d ed.: The various contrivances by which orchids are fertilised by insects. By Charles Darwin. 2d edition, revised. London: John Murray. 1877.
Summary
Sends first sheets of Cross and self fertilisation. The book is a very dull record of experiments, but nevertheless CD believes it is valuable for its remarkable and well-established results.
Orchids [2d ed.] will soon go to the printer.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-10619
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Julius Victor Carus
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin – Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Slg. Darmstaedter Lc 1859: Darwin, Charles, Bl. 147–148)
- Physical description
- ALS 4pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 10619,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-10619.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 24