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Darwin in letters, 1871: An emptying nest
Summary
The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, with the publication in February of his long-awaited book on human evolution, Descent of man. The other main preoccupation of the year was the preparation of his manuscript on expression.…
Matches: 25 hits
- … The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, seeing the …
- … on 24 February, and all 2500 copies were sold in a week. ‘Murray says he is “torn to pieces” by …
- … on 28 February . Demand continued throughout the year, and Murray produced three more printings, …
- … promotes the sale’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 26 March 1871 ). The profits for Darwin were …
- … £1470 for the first two printings, Darwin wrote to Murray on 20 March 1871 , ‘It is quite a grand …
- … in memory of the book’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, 20 March 1871 ). Reaction …
- … to read it ( letter from James Crichton-Browne, 19 February 1871 ). The African explorer and …
- … pleasant or not’ (letter from W. W. Reade, 21 February 1871). The geologist William Boyd Dawkins …
- … Oldham … They club together to buy them’ ( letter from W. B. Dawkins, 23 February 1871 ). Thomas …
- … tide-marks!’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 20 February 1871 ). Asa Gray remarked, somewhat …
- … and pointed ears” (letter from Asa Gray, 14 April 1871) Like his previous book, …
- … arms and legs ( letter from C. L. Bernays, 25 February 1871 ). Samples of hair arrived from …
- … to make it darker than the hair on his head ( letter from W. B. Tegetmeier, [before 25 April 1871] …
- … orang-utan foetus ( letter from Hinrich Nitsche, 18 April 1871 ). Darwin thought he might use the …
- … poor return’ ( letter to Hinrich Nitsche, 25 April [1871] ). Animal anecdotes appeared in …
- … space each morning ( letter from Arthur Nicols, 7 March 1871 ; letter from B. J. Sulivan, 11 …
- … expressed by Darwin’s old friend, the former vicar of Down John Brodie Innes. Darwin and Innes had …
- … good way ahead of you, as far as this goes’ ( letter to J. B. Innes, 29 May [1871] ). On …
- … ‘a windbag full of metaphysics & classics’ ( letter to John Murray, 13 April [1871] ). …
- … Gazette , and wrote to its author, who turned out to be John Morley, a leading advocate of …
- … and transmitted by culture, not biology ( letter from John Morley, 30 March 1871 ). …
- … by his wife and children. William offered his assessment of John Stuart Mill’s theory of …
- … he suspected that very few would actually sell (letters to John Murray, 17 August [1871] and …
- … Wallace, 4 August [1871] ). On 23 September he informed Murray that owing to poor health he had …
- … years following the publication of Origin of species . Murray convinced him to appear in Vanity …
Darwin in letters, 1867: A civilised dispute
Summary
Charles Darwin’s major achievement in 1867 was the completion of his large work, The variation of animals and plants under domestication (Variation). The importance of Darwin’s network of correspondents becomes vividly apparent in his work on expression in…
Matches: 8 hits
- … selection in relation to sex ( Descent ), published in 1871, and the chapter on expression into …
- … of the size of the two-volume work from his publisher, John Murray, he wrote to Murray on 3 …
- … a chapter ‘on Man’. After a few days, he wrote back to Murray proposing that some of the more …
- … is as good as praise for selling a Book’ ( letter to John Murray, 31 January [1867] ). A …
- … and the tedious work of correction began. Darwin wrote to Murray on 18 March to say that he …
- … to translate Variation . Indeed, he told his publisher, John Murray, in a letter of 4 April …
- … time it took William Sweetland Dallas to prepare the index. John Murray had engaged Dallas and …
- … was sure that the colours were protective and suggested that John Jenner Weir might conduct …
Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?
Summary
'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . . What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…
Matches: 12 hits
- … of man and selection in relation to sex , published in 1871, these books brought a strong if …
- … to spread my views’, he wrote to his publisher, John Murray, on 30 January , shortly after …
- … The public are accustomed to novels for 1s’, he wrote to Murray on 8 January , but Murray …
- … the new edition in the United States, Darwin arranged with Murray to have it stereotyped. Before the …
- … Hooker’s cause was taken up by his friends, in particular John Lubbock and John Tyndall, as one …
- … to Gladstone a week later ( enclosure to letter from John Lubbock to W. E. Gladstone, 20 June 1872 …
- … photographic plates with his overseas publishers, and with John Murray’s assistant, the excitable …
- … of the booksellers, encouraged an originally cautious John Murray to gamble on the book’s success: & …
- … attractive dishes in his `Literary Banquet’ (letters from John Murray, 6 November [1872] and 9 …
- … in those born blind, and filed away other letters, but Murray’s confidence proved misplaced; demand …
- … to supply comparative observations, and Darwin’s protégé John Scott, now employed as a curator in …
- … a copy of Expression to another old Cambridge friend, John Maurice Herbert, who when they were …
Women as a scientific audience
Summary
Target audience? | Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those exchanged with his editors and publisher, reveal a lot about his intended audience. Regardless of whether or not women were deliberately targeted as a…
Matches: 6 hits
- … chapters of Origin of Species to his publisher, John Murray. He hopes that his views are …
- … of Herbert Spencer. Letter 7624 - Bathoe, M . B. to Darwin, [25 March 1871] …
- … Letter 7644 - Barnard, A. to Darwin, [30 March 1871] J. S. Henslow’s daughter, …
- … 7651 - Wedgwood, F. J. to Darwin, H. E., [1 April 1871] Frances Wedgwood offers …
- … 7411 - Pfeiffer, E. J. to Darwin, [before 26 April 1871] The poet Emily Pfeiffer …
- … Letter 8055 - Hennell, S. S. to Darwin, [7 November 1871] Sarah Hennell writes to Darwin …
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: 24 hits
- … had been in two volumes and had cost twenty-four shillings.) Murray’s partner, Robert Francis Cooke, …
- … Quarterly Review discussing works on primitive man by John Lubbock and Edward Burnett Tylor. It …
- … of anonymous reviews. Its proprietor was none other than John Murray, Darwin’s publisher. So …
- … wording of both the letter to the editor and the letter to Murray to accompany it. The depth of …
- … a new publisher’ and advised that Darwin should not push Murray to the point of cutting off …
- … [6 or 7 August 1874] ). When the letter was finally sent to Murray, Darwin referred only to their …
- … ‘asking a favour ‘. He explained why he had written to Murray and not the editor of the Quarterly …
- … to review me in a hostile spirit’ ( letter to John Murray, 11 August 1874 ). Darwin was …
- … St G. J. Mivart, 11 January [1872] ). To Darwin’s relief, Murray replied immediately: ‘I have lost …
- … number of the Review & in the same type’ ( letter from John Murray, 12 August 1874 ). George …
- … anonymous reviews. While staying with Hooker over Christmas, John Tyndall, professor at and …
- … as ‘the natural outflow of his character’ ( letter from John Tyndall, 28 December 1874 ). …
- … fourth son, Leonard, who had joined the Royal Engineers in 1871, went to New Zealand as photographer …
- … in almost total failure of observations in New Zealand (see G. B. Airy ed. 1881). Darwin’s …
- … in prettiness & snugness’ ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October [1874] ). …
- … position of vicar of Deptford ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October [1874] ), but …
- … to purchase the wooded land, which he had been renting from John Lubbock, led to a straining of …
- … the sale was agreed in April for £300 ( letter from John Lubbock, 2 April 1874 ), a high price …
- … for about a week ( letter from E. E. Klein, 14 May 1874 ). John Burdon Sanderson sent the results …
- … of other insect-eating plants. The surgeon and botanist John Ralfs sent Utricularia from …
- … in order to work on its difficult structures ( letter to John Ralfs, 13 July [1874] ). The …
- … children shedding tears as tiny babies ( letter from F. S. B. François de Chaumont, 29 April 1874 …
- … a printed appeal for funds, raising £860 ( Circular to John Lubbock, P. L. Sclater, Charles Lyell, …
- … from E. A. Darwin, 17 [March 1874] ). He tried to persuade John Murray to publish a second edition …
Animals, ethics, and the progress of science
Summary
Darwin’s view on the kinship between humans and animals had important ethical implications. In Descent, he argued that some animals exhibited moral behaviour and had evolved mental powers analogous to conscience. He gave examples of cooperation, even…
Matches: 4 hits
- … sleep to-night’ ( letter to E. R. Lankester, 22 March [1871] ). In Descent , Darwin described …
- … perseverance’ ( letter to Nature , [before 27 April 1871] ). When Galton could no longer look …
- … ‘Siamesing’ ( letter from Francis Galton, 13 September 1871 ). Several years later, proof …
- … into close contact with England’s leading physiologists, John Scott Burdon Sanderson, Thomas Lauder …
Darwin in letters, 1868: Studying sex
Summary
The quantity of Darwin’s correspondence increased dramatically in 1868 due largely to his ever-widening research on human evolution and sexual selection.Darwin’s theory of sexual selection as applied to human descent led him to investigate aspects of the…
Matches: 14 hits
- … March 1868, Darwin wrote to the entomologist and accountant John Jenner Weir, ‘If any man wants to …
- … domestication . Having been advertised by the publisher John Murray as early as 1865, the two …
- … increased the amount of work substantially. Darwin asked Murray to intervene, complaining on 9 …
- … a great loss to the Book’. But Darwin’s angry letter to Murray crossed one from Dallas to himself, …
- … a cheque to Dallas for £55 s ., and recommended to Murray that Dallas receive additional payment. …
- … of the book were sold within a month of its release, and Murray made immediate arrangements for a …
- … profound contempt of me. I feel convinced it is by Owen’. John Edward Gray, a colleague of Richard …
- … me in the face, but not behind my back’ ( letter to John Murray, 25 February [1868] ). Wallace …
- … R. Wallace, 24 February [1868] ). The review was in fact by John Robertson, a Scottish journalist …
- … a letter of thanks to the naturalist and customs offcial John Jenner Weir for a paper on apterous …
- … depends on the actions of the female’, and of rats, John Bush observed on 30 March that two …
- … the whole System is sustained.’ The former Down clergyman, John Brodie Innes, passed easily over …
- … and joy. Satisfaction in one’s children, Darwin wrote to John Price on 26 November , was ‘the …
- … poets, and men of science, including Adam Sedgwick, John Stevens Henslow, and William Jackson Hooker …
Darwin and the Church
Summary
The story of Charles Darwin’s involvement with the church is one that is told far too rarely. It shows another side of the man who is more often remembered for his personal struggles with faith, or for his role in large-scale controversies over the…
Matches: 9 hits
- … scientific interests. Indeed, Darwin’s Cambridge mentor, John Stevens Henslow, and his friend and …
- … the work of Non-conformist preachers in the village. John Brodie Innes Many of the …
- … S. Henslow, 17 January [1850] and n. 6; and letter to J. B. Innes, 29 May [1871] ). …
- … Please think of my request favourably—’ (letter from J. B. Innes, 26 May 1871 ). Indeed Innes had …
- … relating to the Down school and organ funds (letter to J. B. Innes, 13 January 1871 ). …
- … but preaches, I hear, very dull sermons’ (letter to J. B. Innes, 18 January [1871] ). Mr Powell …
- … testimonials to his wife’s qualifications’ (letter from J. B. Innes, 5 June 1871 ). Particularly …
- … to such strained relations that Darwin’s neighbour, John Lubbock, was forced to send a series of …
- … chapter . Edited by Francis Darwin. 3 vols. London: John Murray. 1887–8. Moore, James. 1985. …
Darwin's in letters, 1873: Animal or vegetable?
Summary
Having laboured for nearly five years on human evolution, sexual selection, and the expression of emotions, Darwin was able to devote 1873 almost exclusively to his beloved plants. He resumed work on the digestive powers of sundews and Venus fly traps, and…
Matches: 12 hits
- … Thomas Lauder Brunton, a specialist in pharmacology, and John Scott Burdon Sanderson, a professor at …
- … “for Heaven knows when it will be ready” ( letter to John Murray, 4 May [1873] ). Keeping …
- … with leading physiologists such as David Ferrier and John Hughlings Jackson. Darwin declined to …
- … Instinct In February, Darwin received a letter from John Traherne Moggridge on the nature of …
- … fund was first suggested in early April by Katharine Murray Lyell in conversation with Emma Darwin, …
- … A group of Huxley’s close friends, including Hooker, John Lubbock, Herbert Spencer, John Tyndall, …
- … edition was called for. There were commercial advantages for Murray in bringing out a substantially …
- … your own power & usefulness”, citing the examples of John Stuart Mill and Charles Lyell, who …
- … from Ernst Meitzen, 17 January 1873 ). A poor-law officer, John Farr, wrote: “Faith like Species, …
- … more permanent than species are permanent” ( letter from John Farr, 7 July 1873 ). Further …
- … vicar, George Sketchley Ffinden, who had been appointed in 1871. Darwin had usually been on good …
- … closer to home, when he was graced by an invitation from John Jenner Weir to act as a patron of the …
Forms of flowers
Summary
Darwin’s book The different forms of flowers on plants of the same species, published in 1877, investigated the structural differences in the sexual organs of flowers of the same species. It drew on and expanded five articles Darwin had published on the…
Matches: 3 hits
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: 10 hits
- … to Darwin, [1873] Ellen Lubbock, wife of naturalist John Lubbock, responds to Darwin’s …
- … 6815 - Scott, J. to Darwin, [2 July 1869] John Scott responds to Darwin’s queries …
- … Letter 7433 - Wedgwood, F. to Darwin, [9 January 1871] Darwin’s brother-in-law, …
- … Letter 8113 - Treat, M. to Darwin, [20 December 1871] Mary Treat describes her …
- … - Weir, J. J. to Darwin, [24 March 1868] John Weir describes experiments he is undertaking …
- … Letter 7605 - Darwin to Darwin, H. E., [20 March 1871] Darwin reports to …
- … Letter 7858 - Darwin to Wa llace, A. R., [12 July 1871] Darwin tells Wallace that …
- … 8089 - Darwin to Litc hfield, H. E., [2 December 1871] Darwin sends a chapter on …
- … editorial criticism of a paper written by English naturalist John Lubbock. In addition to offering …
- … - Weir, J. J. to Darwin, [24 March 1868] John Weir describes experiments he is undertaking …
Darwin in letters, 1864: Failing health
Summary
On receiving a photograph from Charles Darwin, the American botanist Asa Gray wrote on 11 July 1864: ‘the venerable beard gives the look of your having suffered, and … of having grown older’. Because of poor health, Because of poor health, Darwin…
Matches: 13 hits
- … of a paper by another of his orchid correspondents, John Traherne Moggridge, who in June sent him …
- … of insect pollinators in 1864 and following years. John Scott again Much of Darwin’s …
- … plight of another of Darwin’s fellow orchid-experimenters, John Scott. Their correspondence had been …
- … five years. Scott felt that his superiors, James McNab and John Hutton Balfour, no longer treated …
- … indomitable perseverance, and his knowledge’ ( letter to John Scott, 10 June 1864 ). Hooker met …
- … support ‘on the grounds of science’ ( letter to John Scott, 9 April 1864 ), but Scott declined …
- … 1864 ). A notably rambling and long letter arrived from John Beck, a Shrewsbury schoolfellow of …
- … by a merciful deity for the use of humankind ( letter from John Beck, 6 October 1864 ). …
- … his brother Erasmus told him of a subscription fund for John William Colenso, bishop of Natal, South …
- … that a Neanderthal race once extended across Europe. John Lubbock mentioned his forthcoming volume …
- … of man , and selection in relation to sex ( Descent ) in 1871. Along with other publications in …
- … of the Royal Society, Edward Sabine, to the geologist John Phillips revealed Sabine’s fears that in …
- … ever so little degree the Council’s award’ ( letter to John Lubbock, 21 December [1864] ). In …
Darwin in letters, 1869: Forward on all fronts
Summary
At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition of Origin. He may have resented the interruption to his work on sexual selection and human evolution, but he spent forty-six days on the task. Much of the…
Matches: 3 hits
- … and amphibians, while Roland Trimen in South Africa and John Jenner Weir in London sent more …
- … and broadening the forums in which Darwinism was discussed. John Murray brought out the first issue …
- … that to me would have been a pleasing sight’ ( letter to John Murray, [after 18 September 1869] ). …
Descent
Summary
There are more than five hundred letters associated with the research and writing of Darwin’s book, Descent of man and selection in relation to sex (Descent). They trace not only the tortuous route to eventual publication, but the development of Darwin’s…
Matches: 6 hits
- … written around the time of the publication of Descent in 1871 and appear in a clipping from an …
- … ’ Descent was published in two volumes in 1871, yet as late as the summer of 1868 …
- … . There were some signs of nerves: it was certain, he told John Murray, to ‘excite attention & …
- … to ‘ have a say so much ’. In October 1869 John Murray advertised a forthcoming ‘New Work …
- … ’ Descent was published on 24 February 1871, sold out, and was rushed into a second …
- … to, Descent , see Darwin’s Life in Letters: 1871 . …
Darwin in letters,1870: Human evolution
Summary
The year 1870 is aptly summarised by the brief entry Darwin made in his journal: ‘The whole of the year at work on the Descent of Man & Selection in relation to Sex’. Descent was the culmination of over three decades of observations and reflections on…
Matches: 6 hits
- … essays (later revised as Genesis of species (Mivart 1871)), Mivart tried to carve out a position …
- … the mother and foetus during pregnancy. As a case in point, John Jenner Weir described the offspring …
- … also discussed recent experiments by Louis Pasteur and John Tyndall that provided evidence for the …
- … Bruce, about the possibility of inserting a question in the 1871 census about cousin marriage. …
- … a memorandum. He asked his neighbour, the naturalist John Lubbock, who was now MP for Maidstone, to …
- … reference to mankind of much importance ’ ( letter to John Lubbock, 17 July 1870 ). The motion to …
