To W. E. Darwin 25 [August 1859]1
Down
25th
My dear William
I was very glad to get your last pleasant note; but sincerely grieved about the news of your other ancle. It is a serious misfortune, which you seem to bear well. I earnestly hope that you will be very careful & on no account use it much.— It is now clear you must consult some eminent surgeon & I will pay Fee. I will soon write & consult Mr Williams of Bromley for address of best, & you must go there on your return home.—2 We shall be most heartily glad to see you & do not delay longer than necessary. The little chaps hurraed, when they heard that you would soon return. I hope as you grow older that the ligament of your ancle will become more rigid: but it is clear that every caution & aid must be applied. I am extremely sorry about it.—
Let us know whenever your day of return is fixed.—
We all went on Saturday to Leith-Hill & I went for rest-sake, as I had become rather bad.3 I returned on Tuesday, & the children yesterday. Mamma was detained by Etty not being quite well, but will, I hope come to night.4 Leith H. was looking beautiful.— I get on very slow with my accursed book; & end of September is very earliest possible time for me to finish; but I daresay I shall be later.
Do you see Times? there has been wonderful account of gigantic fraud carried on for above 70 years by the Stainton family, & I fear the Lipidopterist must be implicated!5
Old Botanic Garden Dr. Darwin, had an illegitimate daughter, who married a surgeon Mr. Hadley, & your Miss H. must be daughter or granddaughter of this surgeon.—6 You had better not mention this—
It will be very jolly having some billiards with you.— Georgy will be cock of the walk before long: he played some games excellently.— He has not touched Heraldry this holidays; I am glad to say; but was very keen after Lepidoptera—7
My dearest Gulielmus. | Your affect Father | C. Darwin
Footnotes
Bibliography
Correspondence: The correspondence of Charles Darwin. Edited by Frederick Burkhardt et al. 29 vols to date. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1985–.
King-Hele, Desmond. 1986. Erasmus Darwin and the Romantic poets. London: Macmillan.
Pearson, Hesketh. 1930. Doctor Darwin. London and Toronto: J. M. Dent and Sons.
Summary
Writes of a visit to Leith Hill and WED’s injured ankle.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-2483
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- William Erasmus Darwin
- Sent from
- Down
- Source of text
- DAR 210.6: 47
- Physical description
- ALS 6pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 2483,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-2483.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 7