From Charles Lyell [16 January 1857]
Summary
Enumerates fossil mammals known in Secondary strata.
Lack of angiosperm plants in rocks older than Chalk is no reason to anticipate rarity of warm-blooded quadrupeds.
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | [16 Jan 1857] |
Classmark: | DAR 205.9: 394 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2039 |
From Charles Lyell 18 September 1860
Summary
It is strange that Agassiz, who is for the "sanctity of species", should favour Pallas’s view of hybrid origin of domestic dog.
CL has not meant to advocate successive creation of types but to question assumption that all mammals descended from single stock. Why should a Triassic reptile or bird not move towards mammalian form because an ancestral marsupial has appeared? Believes recent appearance of rodents and bats in Australia explains their lack of development.
Can CD supply a reference on plant extinction on St Helena?
Believes marsupials better adapted for surviving drought in Australia than higher mammals.
Will not press argument about lack of development of mammalian forms on islands, but CD should note objection.
Does CD’s belief in multiple origin of dogs affect faith in single primates in different regions?
Does time lapse between putative independently descended mammalian forms mean first form will "keep down" later incipient one? Thus Homo sapiens has prevented improvement of other anthropomorphs; bats and rodents on islands would prevent improvement of lower forms into mammalian.
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 18 Sept 1860 |
Classmark: | The University of Edinburgh Centre for Research Collections (Lyell collection Coll-203/A3/6: 187–95d) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2920C |
Matches: 2 hits
- … made by Agassiz in a letter prefixed to Nott and Gliddon eds. 1857, p. xiv: ‘I have …
- … letter to Charles Lyell, 12 September [1860] . Louis Agassiz discussed the possible origin of dogs in the first volume of the Contributions to the natural history of the United States of America , where he stated ( Agassiz 1857– …
From Charles Lyell 17 June 1856
Summary
CD forgets an author [CD himself in Coral reefs] "who, by means of atolls, contrived to submerge archipelagoes (or continents?), the mountains of which must originally have differed from each other in height 8,000 (or 10,000?) feet".
CL begins to think that all continents and oceans are chiefly post-Eocene, but he admits that it is questionable how far one is at liberty to call up continents "to convey a Helix from the United States to Europe in Miocene or Pliocene periods".
Will CD explain why the land and marine shells of Porto Santo and Madeira differ while the plants so nearly agree?
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 17 June 1856 |
Classmark: | DAR 146: 475 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1905 |
From Charles Lyell 25 September 1860
Summary
Returns "excellent" MS in which CD favours hybrid origin of domestic dog, which CL believes strengthens case for common progenitor of wild species.
Doubts CD’s authorities for antiquity of dingo.
Variation will raise many points for investigation.
"Leporine" hare–rabbit hybrid should be investigated.
Has re-read passages in Origin that CD suggested.
Annals of Natural History would probably reprint Gray’s review of Origin at their own expense.
CD’s thought that modern reptiles could not develop into existing Mammalia but only into another high form is a "grand notion" compatible with "the infinite capacity of the creative power".
Comments on New Guinea marsupials.
Still thinks that the Australian genera and species are so well fitted for extraordinary droughts that they would get the better of the dingo.
Suggests that once there were more races of man, though from common stock. Competition and then hybridity checked divergence.
Falconer’s views on elephant classification. CL attaches little value to Falconer’s objection that mastodons and elephants do not come in chronologically, as they should in CD’s view.
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 25 Sept 1860 |
Classmark: | The University of Edinburgh Centre for Research Collections (Lyell collection Coll-203/A3/7: 3–12) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2927A |
Matches: 3 hits
- … 1857–8 and 1863). He had recently discovered a ‘small elephant, the size of a Shetland pony, in the small island of Malta. ’ (K. M. Lyell ed. 1881, 2: 339). See also letter …
- … letter to Charles Lyell, 23 [September 1860] . Göppert 1842 . See Anca 1860 . Falconer was engaged in an extensive study of the fossil elephants and mastodons of Europe and America. He published a paper on the British and European species in 1857 …
- … 1857–8 , ‘Synoptical table of the species of Mastodon and elephant’, facing p. 319; and Falconer 1863 , pp. 96–101). The edition of Origin usually referred to as the second was published in January 1860. Lyell evidently considered this to have been a corrected reprint and rather refers to the major alterations that CD was intending to incorporate into the third edition of Origin , published in 1861. Lyell refers to the supposed hybrid between a hare and a rabbit said to have been bred in Angoulême, France. See letter …
From Charles Lyell 30 September 1860
Summary
Expects lack of diversification of immigrant mammals on long isolated islands will come to show slowness of selective change.
Asks whether CD has speculated on turtles becoming terrestrial on remote islands.
Perhaps non-diversification on islands is explained by tiny proportion of variable species. Those that vary on continent may not do so on island.
A. Gray is afraid of objections to Origin from imperfection of fossil record.
His argument with Falconer over the hypothesis of limited modifiability.
Are the bird-like characters of the Apteryx parts not yet suppressed or nascent organs?
Extinctions of ammonites, belemnites, and hippurites are striking. Perhaps ammonites made way for higher cuttle-fish.
Believes hybrid origin of domestic dog would weaken objections to treating white man and negro as species. Are there not many reputed species among the Mammalia more closely related than these races?
Objects not to the term "selection" but to what CD assigns to it. It should not be confused with the "Creative power" behind variation and the "capacity of ascending in the scale of being".
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 30 Sept 1860 |
Classmark: | The University of Edinburgh Centre for Research Collections (Lyell collection Coll-203/A3/7: 13–19) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2932A |
Matches: 1 hit
- … letter has been taken from a copy in Lyell’s scientific journal. It is also published in Wilson ed. 1970, pp. 496–8. Hugh Falconer . The Apteryx (Kiwi bird) of New Zealand has rudimentary wings only and is flightless. Christian Erich Hermann von Meyer was a prominent German palaeontologist. His work on the Pterodactyl , a winged fossil reptile, was published in Meyer 1861 and 1862. Lyell had visited Meyer on several occasions and in 1857 …
From Charles Lyell 22 October 1859
Summary
Wishes CD would enlarge on the doctrines of [Pyotr Simon] Pallas about the various races of dogs having come from several distinct wild species or sub-species.
Suggests organisms have a latent principle of improvement which is brought out by selection or breeding.
Author: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 22 Oct 1859 |
Classmark: | The University of Edinburgh Centre for Research Collections (Lyell collection Coll-203/A1/242: 15–24) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2508F |
From J. D. Hooker and Charles Lyell to the Linnean Society 30 June 1858
Summary
Communicate papers by CD and A. R. Wallace on "The Laws which affect the Production of Varieties, Races, and Species". Explain that CD and Wallace have, independently and unknown to each other, arrived at the same theory to account for the appearance and perpetuation of specific forms, and that neither has yet published, although CD first sketched his theory in 1839. Give their reasons for arranging the joint presentation.
Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker; Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Addressee: | Linnean Society |
Date: | 30 June 1858 |
Classmark: | Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society (Zoology) 3 (1859): 45–6 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2299 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … erroneous: the letter to Asa Gray was written on 5 September [1857] (see Correspondence …
- … private letter addressed to Professor Asa Gray, of Boston, U.S. , in October 1857, by Mr. …
- … letter to J. D. Hooker, 8 [June 1858] ). As Brown was a member of council at the time of his death, a new council member had, according to statute, to be elected within three months. Rather than call a special meeting of the society during the summer recess, the council decided to prolong the session of 1857– …
- … 1857. 3. An Essay by Mr. Wallace, entitled “On the Tendency of Varieties to depart indefinitely from the Original Type. ” This was written at Ternate in February 1858, for the perusal of his friend and correspondent Mr. Darwin, and sent to him with the expressed wish that it should be forwarded to Sir Charles Lyell, if Mr. Darwin thought it sufficiently novel and interesting. So highly did Mr. Darwin appreciate the value of the views therein set forth, that he proposed, in a letter …
letter | (7) |
Lyell, Charles | |
Hooker, J. D. | (1) |
Darwin, C. R. | (6) |
Linnean Society | (1) |
Lyell, Charles | (7) |
Darwin, C. R. | (6) |
Hooker, J. D. | (1) |
Linnean Society | (1) |
Six things Darwin never said – and one he did
Summary
Spot the fakes! Darwin is often quoted – and as often misquoted. Here are some sayings regularly attributed to Darwin that never flowed from his pen.
Matches: 1 hits
- … Spot the fakes! Darwin is often quoted – and as often misquoted. Here are some sayings regularly …
Darwin in letters, 1856-1857: the 'Big Book'
Summary
In May 1856, Darwin began writing up his 'species sketch’ in earnest. During this period, his working life was completely dominated by the preparation of his 'Big Book', which was to be called Natural selection. Using letters are the main…
Matches: 1 hits
- … On 14 May 1856, Charles Darwin recorded in his journal that he ‘Began by Lyell’s advice writing …
Language: key letters
Summary
How and why language evolved bears on larger questions about the evolution of the human species, and the relationship between man and animals. Darwin presented his views on the development of human speech from animal sounds in The Descent of Man (1871),…
Matches: 1 hits
- … The origin of language was investigated in a wide range of disciplines in the nineteenth century. …
Abstract of Darwin’s theory
Summary
There are two extant versions of the abstract of Darwin’s theory of natural selection. One was sent to Asa Gray on 5 September 1857, enclosed with a letter of the same date (see Correspondence vol. 6, letter to Asa Gray, 5 September [1857] and enclosure).…
Matches: 1 hits
- … There are two extant versions of the abstract of Darwin’s theory of natural selection. One was …
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
Matches: 1 hits
- … Re: Design – performance version – 25 March 2007 – 1 Re: Design – Adaptation of the …
The "wicked book": Origin at 157
Summary
Origin is 157 years old. (Probably) the most famous book in science was published on 24 November 1859. To celebrate we have uploaded hundreds of new images of letters, bringing the total number you can look at here to over 9000 representing more than…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Origin is 157 years old. (Probably) the most famous book in science was published on 24 …
Darwin’s study of the Cirripedia
Summary
Darwin’s work on barnacles, conducted between 1846 and 1854, has long posed problems for historians. Coming between his transmutation notebooks and the Origin of species, it has frequently been interpreted as a digression from Darwin’s species work. Yet…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin’s work on barnacles, conducted between 1846 and 1854, has long posed problems for …
What is an experiment?
Summary
Darwin is not usually regarded as an experimenter, but rather as an astute observer and a grand theorist. His early career seems to confirm this. He began with detailed note-taking, collecting and cataloguing on the Beagle, and edited a descriptive zoology…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin is not usually regarded as an experimenter, but rather as an astute observer and a grand …
Natural Selection: the trouble with terminology Part I
Summary
Darwin encountered problems with the term ‘natural selection’ even before Origin appeared. Everyone from the Harvard botanist Asa Gray to his own publisher came up with objections. Broadly these divided into concerns either that its meaning simply wasn’t…
Matches: 1 hits
- … I suppose “natural selection” was bad term but to change it now, I think, would make confusion …
Women’s scientific participation
Summary
Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants …
Dates of composition of Darwin's manuscript on species
Summary
Many of the dates of letters in 1856 and 1857 were based on or confirmed by reference to Darwin’s manuscript on species (DAR 8--15.1, inclusive; transcribed and published as Natural selection). This manuscript, begun in May 1856, was nearly completed by…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Many of the dates of letters in 1856 and 1857 were based on or confirmed by reference to Darwin’s …
Darwin's bad days
Summary
Despite being a prolific worker who had many successes with his scientific theorising and experimenting, even Darwin had some bad days. These times when nothing appeared to be going right are well illustrated by the following quotations from his letters:
Matches: 1 hits
- … Despite being a prolific worker who had many successes with his scientific theorising and …
The evolution of honeycomb
Summary
Honeycombs are natural engineering marvels, using the least possible amount of wax to provide the greatest amount of storage space, with the greatest possible structural stability. Darwin recognised that explaining the evolution of the honey-bee’s comb…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Honey-bees construct wax combs inside their nests. The combs are made of hexagonal prisms – cells …
Darwin in letters, 1882: Nothing too great or too small
Summary
In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and for the first time in decades he was not working on another book. He remained active in botanical research, however. Building on his recent studies in plant…
Matches: 1 hits
- … In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and …
Scientific Networks
Summary
Friendship|Mentors|Class|Gender In its broadest sense, a scientific network is a set of connections between people, places, and things that channel the communication of knowledge, and that substantially determine both its intellectual form and content,…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Friendship | Mentors | Class | Gender In its broadest sense, a scientific …
Darwin in letters, 1874: A turbulent year
Summary
The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working on second editions of Coral reefs and Descent of man; the rest of the year was mostly devoted to further research on insectivorous plants. A…
Matches: 1 hits
- … The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early …
Alfred Russel Wallace
Summary
Wallace was a leading Victorian naturalist, with wide-ranging interests from biogeography and evolutionary theory to spiritualism and politics. He was born in 1823 in Usk, a small town in south-east Wales, and attended a grammar school in Hertford. At the…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Wallace was a leading Victorian naturalist, with wide-ranging interests from biogeography and …
Darwin in letters, 1858-1859: Origin
Summary
The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet rural existence filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on species, he was jolted into action by the arrival of an unexpected letter from Alfred Russel Wallace…
Matches: 1 hits
- … The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet …
The writing of "Origin"
Summary
From a quiet rural existence at Down in Kent, filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on the transmutation of species, Darwin was jolted into action in 1858 by the arrival of an unexpected letter (no longer extant) from Alfred Russel Wallace outlining a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … When I was in spirits I sometimes fancied that my book w d be successful; but I never even …
Before Origin: the ‘big book’
Summary
Darwin began ‘sorting notes for Species Theory’ on 9 September 1854, the very day he concluded his eight-year study of barnacles (Darwin's Journal). He had long considered the question of species. In 1842, he outlined a theory of transmutation in a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin began ‘sorting notes for Species Theory’ on 9 September 1854, the very day he concluded his …