Bad Request
Your browser sent a request that this server could not understand.
Apache Server at dcp-public.lib.cam.ac.uk Port 443

Darwin’s queries on expression
Summary
When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations more widely and composed a list of queries on human expression. A number of handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller…
Matches: 24 hits
- … handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller, 22 February …
- … in Ceylon, wrote the botanist George Thwaites on 22 July 1868 , “all endeavour to drill their …
- … for other peoples or vice versa. The Scottish botanist John Scott wrote from Calcutta, 4 May 1868 …
- … Correspondence about Darwin’s Questionnaire (click on the letter dates to see the individual letters …
- … funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, and the John Templeton Foundation. …
- … Africa)? ] mentioned in JPM Weale letter, but Bowker's answers not found …
- … Bulmer, J 13 Aug 1868 [Gipps Land, nr. Flemington? …
- … Bunnett, Templeton 13 Aug 1868 Echuca, Australia …
- … Woolston, Southampton, England letter to W.E. Darwin shrugging …
- … Square W London, England enclosed in a letter from Henry Maudsley …
- … Darwin, W.E. [after 29 March 1868] Chester Place, …
- … Darwin, W.E. [7? April 1868] Southampton, England …
- … Darwin, W.E. [22? April 1868] Southampton, England …
- … Forbes, David 26 March 1868 Boulton, England (about …
- … South Africa possibly included in letter from Mansel Weale …
- … Geach, F.F. April 1868 Johore, Malaysia …
- … Glenie, S.O. 22 July 1868 Peradeniya, Ceylon …
- … Egypt] possibly included in letter(s) from Asa Gray Nile …
- … Lake Wellington, Australia letter to F.J.H. von Mueller nodding, …
- … Abbey Place, London, England letter to Emma Darwin baby expression …
- … Penmaenmawr, Conway, Wales letter to Emma Darwin infant daughter …
- … Square W, London, England Enclosed letter from Dr. C. Browne …
- … to East Asia Scott, John 4 May 1868 …
- … India Scott, John 2 July 1869 …
6430_10256
Summary
From Sven Nilsson to J. D. Hookerf1 25 October 1868Lund (Suède)25 Okt. 1868.Monsieur le Professeur! J’ai écrit à deux de mes amis qui ont des connaissances personnelles à la Lapponie, pour avoir les…
Matches: 9 hits
- … From Sven Nilsson to J. D. Hooker f1 25 October 1868 Lund (Suède) 25 Okt. 1868. …
- … Footnotes f1 For a translation of this letter, see Correspondence vol. 16, Appendix I. …
- … An English translation was never published. Earlier in 1868, Longman’s, Green, and Company had …
- … of northern Europe during the Stone Age (Nilsson 1868); see letter to John Lubbock, 15 February …
- … From Sven Nilsson to J. D. Hooker f1 25 October 1868 Lund (Sweden) 25 Oct. 1868 …
- … Footnotes f1 For a transcription of this letter in its original French, see part II: 811–2. …
- … Association for the Advancement of Science in Norwich (see letter from J. D. Hooker, 30 August 1868) …
- … of northern Europe during the Stone Age (Nilsson 1868); see letter to John Lubbock, 15 February …
- … Letter details From Nilsson, Sven To Hooker, J. D. …
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: 24 hits
- … Observers Women: Letter 1194 - Darwin to Whitby, M. A. T., [12 August …
- … silkworm breeds, or peculiarities in inheritance. Letter 3787 - Darwin, H. E. to …
- … observations of cats’ instinctive behaviour. Letter 4258 - Becker, L. E. to Darwin, …
- … to artificially fertilise plants in her garden. Letter 4523 - Wedgwood, L. C. to …
- … be made on seeds of Pulmonaria officinalis . Letter 5745 - Barber, M. E. to …
- … Expression from her home in South Africa. Letter 6736 - Gray, A. & J. L …
- … Expression during a trip to Egypt. Letter 7223 - Darwin to Wedgwood, L. C., …
- … expression of emotion in her pet dog and birds. Letter 5817 - Darwin to Huxley, T. …
- … is making similar observations for him. Letter 6535 - Vaughan Williams , M. S. …
- … of a crying baby to Darwin's daughter, Henrietta. Letter 7179 - Wedgwood, …
- … briefly on her ongoing observations of wormholes. Letter 8611 - Cupples, A. J. …
- … pig and her niece’s ears. Letter 8701 - Lubbock, E. F . to Darwin, [1873] …
- … 6453 - Langton, E. to Wedgwood, S. E., [9 November 1868] Darwin’s nephew, Edmund, …
- … - Langton, E. & C. to Wedgwood S. E., [after 9 November 1868] Darwin’s nephews, Edmund …
- … 6815 - Scott, J. to Darwin, [2 July 1869] John Scott responds to Darwin’s queries …
- … Letter 6139 - Doubleday, H. to Darwin, [22 April 1868] Doubleday responds to Darwin’s …
- … Letter 6046 - Weir, J. J. to Darwin, [24 March 1868] John Weir describes experiments …
- … Letter 6083 - Casparay, J. X. R. to Darwin, [2 April 1868] Casparay details his …
- … Letter 6139 - Doubleday, H. to Darwin, [22 April 1868] Naturalist Henry Doubleday …
- … J., [5 April 1859] Darwin asks his publisher, John Murray, to forward a manuscript copy of …
- … writing. Letter 3001 - Darwin to Lubbock, J., [28 November 1860] Darwin …
- … Letter 6046 - Weir, J. J. to Darwin, [24 March 1868] John Weir describes experiments …
- … Letter 6066 - Weir, H. W. to Darwin, [28 March 1868] Harrison Weir passes on …
- … Letter 6081 - Darwin to Bowman, W., [2 April 1868] Darwin requests surgeon and …

Darwin in letters, 1862: A multiplicity of experiments
Summary
1862 was a particularly productive year for Darwin. This was not only the case in his published output (two botanical papers and a book on the pollination mechanisms of orchids), but more particularly in the extent and breadth of the botanical experiments…
Matches: 24 hits
- … but really I do think you have a good right to be so’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [15 and] 20 …
- … species. Darwin attempted to dissuade him from this view ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 14 [January 1862 …
- … partially sterile together. He failed. Huxley replied ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 20 January 1862 …
- … and pronounced them ‘simply perfect’, but continued ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 18 December [1862] ) …
- … resigned to their difference of opinion, but complained ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 28 December [1862 …
- … of sterility between varieties of Verbascum . When John Scott, foreman of the propagating …
- … letters, Darwin, impressed, gave him the commission ( see letter to John Scott, 11 December [1862] …
- … Towards the end of the year, he wrote to Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 12 [December 1862] ): …
- … and added, ‘new cases are tumbling in almost daily’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 22 January [1862] ). In …
- … hopeful, became increasingly frustrated, telling Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 7 March [1862] ) …
- … to publish on Linum ‘at once’ ( letter to John Scott, 11 December [1862] ), writing up his …
- … buy it. When he submitted the manuscript to his publisher, John Murray, he boasted: ‘I can say with …
- … in the least , whether the Book will sell’ ( letter to John Murray, 9 [February 1862] ). To his …
- … paper for the Natural History Review ( see letter to John Lubbock, 16 [December 1862] ). Aware …
- … of the old Beagle crew, Bartholomew James Sulivan, John Clements Wickham, and Arthur Mellersh, …
- … of this, he prescribed strict conditions for a meeting with John Lubbock: ‘if you could … let me go …
- … at 9 o clock I do not think it would hurt me’ ( letter to John Lubbock, 23 October [1862] ). …
- … on botany. Even at the start of their correspondence he told John Scott: ‘Botany is a new subject to …
- … odds & ends of botany & you know far more’ ( letter to John Scott, 19 November [1862] ). …
- … Lyell, 14 October [1862] ). Moreover, when the physicist John Tyndall, fresh from a summer in the …
- … of Darwin’s circle was in Switzerland in the summer: John Lubbock briefly met up with Tyndall and …
- … discovered prehistoric lake-dwellings ( see letter from John Lubbock, 23 August 1862 ). Lubbock …
- … to view the prehistoric sites near Amiens ( see letter from John Lubbock, 15 May 1862 ), and he …
- … about the antiquity of the human species ( see letter from John Lubbock, 6 January 1862 ). …
5935_4582
Summary
From J. D. Hooker 26[–7] February 1868KewFeby 26th/68Dear Darwin I have been bursting with impatience to hear what you would say of the Athenæum Review & who wrote it— I could not conceive who…
Matches: 8 hits
- … From J. D. Hooker 26[–7] February 1868 Kew Feby 26 th /68 Dear Darwin …
- … Next morning — After rereading all this vaporous letter I shall try to answer your last page in a …
- … some] ‘(5)’ added before blue crayon Top of letter : ‘London— Athen. Lewes’ f10 blue …
- … of Variation in the Athenæum to Richard Owen (see letter to J. D. Hooker, 23 February [1868] …
- … 1867) was reviewed in the Athenæum , 8 February 1868, pp. 217–18. f3 CD had discussed …
- … f10 These annotations are for CD’s reply. See letter to J. D. Hooker, 28 February [1868] and nn. …
- … Letter details From Hooker, J. D. To Darwin, C. R. …
- … Tries to answer question on last page of CD’s letter anent sexuality. …

Darwin in letters, 1865: Delays and disappointments
Summary
The year was marked by three deaths of personal significance to Darwin: Hugh Falconer, a friend and supporter; Robert FitzRoy, captain of the Beagle; and William Jackson Hooker, director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and father of Darwin’s friend…
Matches: 29 hits
- … on a paper on Verbascum (mullein) by CD’s protégé, John Scott, who was now working in India. …
- … also a serious dispute between two of Darwin’s friends, John Lubbock and Charles Lyell . These …
- … The death of Hugh Falconer Darwin’s first letter to Hooker of 1865 suggests that the family …
- … having all the Boys at home: they make the house jolly’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 7 January [1865] …
- … had failed to include among the grounds of the award ( see letter from Hugh Falconer to Erasmus …
- … his letters to Darwin, and Darwin responded warmly: ‘Your letter is by far the grandest eulogium …
- … may well rest content that I have not laboured in vain’ ( letter to Hugh Falconer, 6 January [1865] …
- … always a most kind friend to me. So the world goes.—’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 February [1865] …
- … for our griefs & pains: these alone are unalloyed’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 3 February 1865 …
- … gas.— Sic transit gloria mundi, with a vengeance’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 9 February [1865] ). …
- … added, ‘I know it is folly & nonsense to try anyone’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 7 January [1865] …
- … Appendix II). In May, he invited a new doctor, John Chapman, to Down and began a course of Chapman’s …
- … Variation . In March Darwin wrote to his publisher, John Murray, ‘Of present book I have 7 …
- … forward, except the last & concluding one’ ( letter to John Murray, 31 March [1865] ). In …
- … will be ready for the press in the autumn’ ( letter to John Murray, 4 April [1865] ). In early …
- … ‘I am never idle when I can do anything’ ( letter to John Murray, 2 June [1865] ). It was not …
- … illness and delay, the book was not published until January 1868. 'Climbing plants' …
- … questions and suggesting new lines of research. John Scott A similar, though not so …
- … effort took place in the beginning of the year when John Scott, a protégé of Darwin’s whom Darwin …
- … varieties (see Correspondence vol. 10, letter to John Scott, 19 November [1862] ). Darwin had …
- … in 1863 (see Correspondence vol. 11, letter from John Scott, 21 September [1863] ), and wrote …
- … 1864, despite suffering from sea-sickness ( letter from John Scott, 21 July 1865 ). This may have …
- … would take up the work again when he had time ( letter from John Scott, 21 July 1865 ); at the …
- … manuscript was published as chapter 27 of Variation in 1868. The wider debate …
- … serenity of the Christian world’ (Brewster 1862, p. 3). John Hutton Balfour, though he had sent …
- … 1862 ). According to Hooker, Balfour’s prejudice against John Scott, who had worked under Balfour …
- … At the end of May, the dispute between Charles Lyell and John Lubbock over alleged plagiarism by …
- … in Correspondence vol. 13, Appendix V. In 1865, Lubbock published Prehistoric times , …
- … now ready to make observations for him in India (John Scott) and Brazil (Fritz Müller). Although not …
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: 24 hits
- … and colonial authorities. In the nineteenth-century, letter writing was one of the most important …
- … in times of uncertainty, controversy, or personal loss. Letter writing was not only a means of …
- … botanist Asa Gray. Darwin and Hooker Letter 714 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D. …
- … and he is curious about Hooker’s thoughts. Letter 729 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D., …
- … to Hooker “it is like confessing a murder”. Letter 736 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D. …
- … wide-ranging genera. Darwin and Gray Letter 1674 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, …
- … and asks him to append the ranges of the species. Letter 1685 — Gray, Asa to Darwin, C. …
- … and relationships of alpine flora in the USA. Letter 2125 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, …
- … and their approach to information exchange. Letter 1202 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D …
- … first describer’s name to specific name. Letter 1220 — Hooker, J. D. to Darwin, C. R., …
- … perpetuity of names in species descriptions. Letter 1260 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. …
- … ends with a discussion of lamination of gneiss. Letter 1319 — Hooker, J. D. to Darwin, …
- … up his doubts about Darwin’s doctrines. In his second letter he talks about his visit with Falconer. …
- … Mentors Darwin's close relationship with John Stevens Henslow, the professor of botany …
- … he mentored. The first is between Darwin and his neighbour, John Lubbock and the second is between …
- … Letter 1585 — Darwin, C. R. to Lubbock, John, [Sept 1854] Darwin sends Lubbock a beetle he …
- … Letter 1720 — Darwin, C. R. to Lubbock, John, 19 [July 1855] Darwin congratulates Lubbock on …
- … Letter 1979 — Darwin, C. R. to Lubbock, John, 27 Oct [1856] Darwin provides detailed …
- … Letter 5770 — Müller, H. L. H. to Darwin, C. R., Jan [1868] Müller thanks Darwin for his …
- … expert William Bernard Tegetmeier and the Scottish gardener John Scott, illustrate how the rigid …
- … him to publish in his journal. The debate about John Scott Letter 3800 — …
- … Letter 3805 — Darwin, C. R. to Scott, John, 12 Nov [1862] Darwin thanks Scott for bringing …
- … in the anthers. Letter 4463 — Scott, John to Darwin, C. R., 14 Apr [1864] Scott …
- … to Gray, Asa, 13 Sept [1864] Darwin sends abstract of John Scott’s paper [see 4332 ] and …

Darwin in letters, 1863: Quarrels at home, honours abroad
Summary
At the start of 1863, Charles Darwin was actively working on the manuscript of The variation of animals and plants under domestication, anticipating with excitement the construction of a hothouse to accommodate his increasingly varied botanical experiments…
Matches: 23 hits
- … that he was ‘unwell & must write briefly’ ( letter to John Scott, 31 May [1863] ), and in a …
- … persevered with his work on Variation until 20 July, his letter-writing dwindled considerably. The …
- … from ‘some Quadrumanum animal’, as he put it in a letter to J. D. Hooker of 24[–5] February [1863] …
- … ‘I declare I never in my life read anything grander’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 26 [February 1863] …
- … than Origin had (see Correspondence vol. 8, letter to Charles Lyell, 10 January [1860] ). …
- … from animals like the woolly mammoth and cave bear ( see letter from Jacques Boucher de Perthes, 23 …
- … leap from that of inferior animals made him ‘groan’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 6 March [1863] ). …
- … out that species were not separately created’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 17 March [1863] ). Public …
- … book he wished his one-time mentor had not said a word ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 24[–5] February …
- … were himself, Hooker, Huxley, Alfred Russel Wallace, and John Lubbock. Honours abroad …
- … of the Royal Society ( see letter from Edward Sabine to John Phillips, 12 November 1863 ). …
- … year with the Hertfordshire nurseryman Thomas Rivers. John Scott Darwin had found a …
- … of hybridity and sterility at the end of the previous year. John Scott, a gardener at the Royal …
- … Primula crosses, the results of which were published in 1868 ( see letter to John Scott, 25 and …
- … hoped would counteract Huxley’s criticism ( letter from John Scott, 23 July [1863] ). Darwin …
- … Darwin had also encouraged him to write ( see letter to John Scott, 12 April [1863] ). In this …
- … that your paper will have permanent value’ ( letter to John Scott, 31 May [1863] ). Scott received …
- … the “Origin” is not at all palatable!’ ( letter from John Scott, [3 June 1863] ). Darwin’s …
- … a position offered in Darjeeling, India ( see letter from John Scott, 22 May 1863 , and letter …
- … 1860; it continued to capture his attention ( see letter to John Scott, 12 April [1863] ). …
- … months. However, the two-volume work was not published until 1868. Roping in the family …
- … to Malvern the following week. Three letters in August from John Goodsir, professor of anatomy at …
- … of all such matters as your stomach’ ( see letter from John Goodsir, 21 August [1863] ; letter …

Darwin in letters,1866: Survival of the fittest
Summary
The year 1866 began well for Charles Darwin, as his health, after several years of illness, was now considerably improved. In February, Darwin received a request from his publisher, John Murray, for a new edition of Origin. Darwin got the fourth…
Matches: 21 hits
- … of scientific admirers at Down, among them Robert Caspary, John Traherne Moggridge, and Ernst …
- … Pound foolish, Penurious, Pragmatical Prigs’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [29 December 1866] ). But …
- … ( Variation ). Although it was not published until 1868, all but the concluding chapter of the …
- … able to write easy work for about 1½ hours every day’ ( letter to H. B. Jones, 3 January [1866] ). …
- … once daily to make the chemistry go on better’ ( letter from H. B. Jones, 10 February [1866] ). …
- … regime led to Darwin’s being teased by his neighbour, John Lubbock, about the prospect of riding to …
- … work doing me any harm—any how I can’t be idle’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 24 August [1866] ). …
- … production of which Tegetmeier had agreed to supervise ( letter to W. B. Tegetmeier, 16 January …
- … of “Domestic Animals & Cult. Plants” to Printers’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 24 December [1866] …
- … On 21 February Darwin received notification from John Murray that stocks of the third edition of …
- … good deal I think, & have come to more definite views’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 22 December …
- … Henry Walter Bates’s article on mimetic butterflies, Lubbock’s observations of diving Hymenoptera …
- … ‘I quite follow you in thinking Agassiz glacier-mad’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 8[–9] September …
- … ten times more than the belief of a dozen physicists’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [28 February 1866] …
- … past few years. Emma described the Royal Society event in a letter to George: ‘Your father … entered …
- … you—& told me to worship Bence Jones in future—’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 13 May 1866 ). …
- … George Henslow, the son of his Cambridge mentor, John Stevens Henslow, stayed for two days in April …
- … In June, Darwin was visited by the orchid specialist John Traherne Moggridge, whose work on the self …
- … out, ‘business would be totally paralysed’. Similarly, John Murray gave as a reason for his decision …
- … ‘gaieties travelling & War Bulletins’ ( letter from John Murray, 18 July 1866 ). I …
- … for the criminal prosecution of the colonial governor Edward John Eyre. In his efforts to suppress …
Religion
Summary
Design|Personal Belief|Beauty|The Church Perhaps the most notorious realm of controversy over evolution in Darwin's day was religion. The same can be said of the evolution controversy today; however the nature of the disputes and the manner in…
Matches: 21 hits
- … of departure reviews of Origin . The second is a single letter from naturalist A. R. Wallace to …
- … everything is the result of “brute force”. Letter 2855 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, 3 …
- … nature, as he is in a “muddle” on this issue. Letter 3256 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, …
- … shares a witty thought experiment about an angel. Letter 3342 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, …
- … He asks Gray some questions about design. Letter 6167 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, 8 …
- … of my precipice”. Darwin and Wallace Letter 5140 — Wallace, A. R. to Darwin, …
- … of variations. Darwin and Graham Letter 13230 — Darwin, C. R. to Graham, …
- … of people, including members of his own family. Letter 441 — Wedgwood, Emma to Darwin, …
- … about his “honest & conscientious doubts”. Letter 471 — Darwin, Emma to Darwin, C. …
- … there is a danger in giving up revelation”. Letter 2534 — Kingsley, Charles to Darwin, …
- … need of an act of intervention to bring change. Letter 2548 — Sedgwick, Adam to Darwin, …
- … with that knowledge which only He can give me.” Letter 5303 — Boole, M. E. to Darwin, C …
- … that his theory be compatible with her faith. Letter 5307 — Darwin, C. R. to Boole, M. …
- … Letter 12041 — Darwin, C. R. to Fordyce, John, 7 May 1879 In this letter marked “private”, …
- … and School Letter 1536 — Darwin, C. R. to Lubbock, J. W. (b), 11 Oct [1853] Darwin …
- … R. to Down School Board, [Nov–Dec 1873] Darwin, Sir John Lubbock, Ellen Frances Lubbock, and S. …
- … 6223 — Horsman, S. J. H. to Darwin, C. R., 2 June [1868] Horsman attempts to convince Darwin …
- … Letter 6241 — Innes, J. B. to Darwin, C. R., 13 June 1868 J. B. Innes, vicar of Down writes …
- … Letter 6486 — Darwin, C. R. to Innes, J. B., 1 Dec 1868 Darwin writes to J. B. Innes, vicar …
- … Letter 6492 — Innes, J. B. to Darwin, C. R., 4 Dec 1868 J. B. Innes, vicar of Down provides …
- … Letter 6501 — Innes, J. B. to Darwin, C. R., 12 Dec 1868 J. B. Innes, vicar of Down is …

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: 20 hits
- … scientific interests. Indeed, Darwin’s Cambridge mentor, John Stevens Henslow, and his friend and …
- … & I can see it even through a grove of Palms.—’ (letter to Caroline Darwin, 25–6 April [1832] …
- … wrote to the contrary: ‘I am sorry to see in your last letter that you still look forward to the …
- … near the British Museum or some other learned place’ (letter from E. A. Darwin, 18 August [1832] …
- … it is a sort of scene I never ought to think about—’ (letter to W. D. Fox, [9–12 August] 1835 ). …
- … the work of Non-conformist preachers in the village. John Brodie Innes Many of the …
- … However, what remains is cordial; in the first extant letter of the correspondence, Darwin wrote to …
- … (a local charity), which he administered from 1848 to 1869 (letter to J. B. Innes, [8 May 1848] …
- … he would make an excellent Guardian [of the Poor Fund]’ (letter to J. W. Lubbock, 28 March [1854] …
- … club the use of his own lawn for its meetings (Moore 1985; letter to J. S. Henslow, 17 January …
- … the family’s dog, Quiz, when he moved away from Down (letter to J. B. Innes, 15 December [1861] ) …
- … was considered to be a cross between a cow and a red deer (letter from J. B. Innes, 7 December …
- … ancestor. Please think of my request favourably—’ (letter from J. B. Innes, 26 May 1871 ). Indeed …
- … and leaves Moses to take care of himself. Letter from J. B. Innes, 1 December 1878 …
- … he left behind (letter from S. J. O’H. Horsman, 2 June [1868] ). Among the reasons justifying his …
- … the church’s organ fund (letter to J. B. Innes, 15 June [1868] ). So embroiled in this process …
- … clergyman was unsuitable for entirely different reasons. John Warburton Robinson seemed not to be an …
- … the Down parish church (letter to J. B. Innes, 1 December 1868 ). Darwin wrote of the next …
- … 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 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: 28 hits
- … Darwin reckoned that he had started writing on 4 February 1868, only five days after the publication …
- … shall be a man again & not a horrid grinding machine’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 25 December …
- … anything which has happened to me for some weeks’ ( letter to Albert Günther, 13 January [1870] ) …
- … corrections of style, the more grateful I shall be’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ) …
- … who wd ever have thought that I shd. turn parson?’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ). …
- … abt any thing so unimportant as the mind of man!’ ( letter from H. E. Darwin, [after 8 February …
- … thro’ apes & savages at the moral sense of mankind’ ( letter to F. P. Cobbe, 23 March [1870?] …
- … how metaphysics & physics form one great philosophy?’ ( letter from F. P. Cobbe, 28 March [1870 …
- … the folded margin. Darwin, who had posed for the sculptor in 1868, an experience he described as …
- … in thanks for the drawing ( Correspondence vol. 16, letter to J. D. Hooker, 26 November [1868] …
- … patients, but it did not confirm Duchenne’s findings ( letter from James Crichton-Browne, 15 March …
- … muscle’, he complained, ‘is the bane of existence!’ ( letter to William Ogle, 9 November 1870 ). …
- … to their belief that all demons and spirits were white ( letter from W. W. Reade, 9 November 1870 …
- … . . Could you make it scream without hurting it much?’ ( letter to A. D. Bartlett, 5 January [1870] …
- … or crying badly; but I fear he will not succeed’ ( letter to James Crichton-Browne, 8 June [1870] …
- … Lucy Wedgwood, who sent a sketch of a baby’s brows ( letter from L. C. Wedgwood, [5 May 1870] ). …
- … is the inclination to finish my note on this subject’ ( letter from F. C. Donders, 17 May 1870 ). …
- … the previous year (see Correspondence vol. 17, letter to A. R. Wallace, 14 April 1869 ). His …
- … (in retrograde direction) naturalist’ (letter to A. R.Wallace, 26 January [1870]). …
- … towards each other, though in one sense rivals’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 20 April [1870] ). …
- … version of the theory of descent by natural selection in a letter to Darwin, prompting much anxiety …
- … But who is to criticise them? No one but yourself’ ( letter from H. W. Bates, 20 May 1870 ). …
- … me to be able to say that I never write reviews’ ( letter to H. W. Bates, [22 May 1870] ). …
- … design. Darwin commented on Mivart’s essay in a letter to William Henry Flower: ‘I am glad …
- … 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 …
- … 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 …

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: 28 hits
- … of the five physicians Darwin had consulted in 1863. In a letter of 26[–7] March [1864] , Darwin …
- … and he received more letters of advice from Jenner. In a letter of 15 December [1864] to the …
- … As Darwin explained to his cousin William Darwin Fox in a letter of 30 November [1864] , ‘the …
- … observations indoors ( Correspondence vol. 11). In a letter of [27 January 1864] , Darwin …
- … gradation by which leaves produce tendrils’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [8 February 1864] ). …
- … fearfully for it is a leaf climber & therefore sacred’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 June [1864] …
- … matters which routinists regard in the light of axioms’ ( letter from Daniel Oliver, [17 March 1864 …
- … long series of changes . . .’ When he told Asa Gray in a letter of 29 October [1864] that he was …
- … paper was published, Darwin remarked to Hooker in a letter of 26 November [1864] that nothing …
- … of the two species with the common oxlip. In a letter of 22 October [1864] , Darwin triumphantly …
- … oxlip ( P. elatior ), and published his results in an 1868 article (‘Illegitimate offspring of …
- … the ‘splendid case of Dimorphism’ in Menyanthes ( letter from Emma and Charles Darwin to W. E. …
- … this interest. At the start of the year, he received a letter, insect specimens, and an article on …
- … that it was ‘the best medicine for my stomach’ ( letter to Daniel Oliver, 17 February [1864] ). …
- … 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 …
- … two years, with his stipend being paid by Darwin himself ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [1 April 1864] …
- … is difficult enough to play your part over them’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [2 April 1864] ). …
- … 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 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, 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: 18 hits
- … an illustration of how selection might work in nature ( letter from Charles Lyell, 1–2 May 1856, n. …
- … the real structure of varieties’, he remarked to Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 8 September [1856 …
- … ‘& I mean to make my Book as perfect as ever I can.’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 8 February [1857] …
- … The variation of animals and plants under domestication (1868) and that it was destroyed or lost …
- … plants, he asked Asa Gray, vary in the United States ( letter to Asa Gray, 2 May 1856 )? What …
- … plants pretty effectually’ complained Darwin in 1857 ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [2 May 1857] ). …
- … acknowledged when told by his neighbour and young protégé John Lubbock that his method of …
- … ‘Darwin, an absolute & eternal hermaphrodite’ ( letter to to T. H. Huxley, 1 July [1856] ), …
- … which the bird had naturally eaten have grown well.’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 10 December [1856] …
- … he wrote to Syms Covington in New South Wales ( letter to Syms Covington, 9 March 1856 ). …
- … Athenæum Club. Several letters touch on the publication of John Tyndall’s theory concerning the …
- … phenomenon of cleavage, still unresolved in 1856, with John Phillips and entered into a useful …
- … his work on species and the preparation of his manuscript ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 1 May 1857 ) …
- … a preliminary sketch was apparently first made in a letter written by Lyell from London on 1–2 May …
- … and went up to London to see Lyell to discuss it further ( letter to Charles Lyell, 3 May [1856] ) …
- … Hearing about the party afterwards, Lyell reported in a letter to his brother-in-law that, ‘When …
- … so far, and not embrace the whole Lamarckian doctrine.’ ( letter from Charles Lyell, 1–2 May 1856, …
- … in his views to explain them in explicit detail in a long letter to Asa Gray ( letter to Asa Gray, …

Darwin in letters, 1860: Answering critics
Summary
On 7 January 1860, John Murray published the second edition of Darwin’s Origin of species, printing off another 3000 copies to satisfy the demands of an audience that surprised both the publisher and the author. It wasn't long, however, before ‘the…
Matches: 29 hits
- … On 7 January 1860, John Murray published the second edition of Darwin’s Origin of species , …
- … learn that the book was on sale even in railway stations ( letter to Charles Lyell, 14 January …
- … the book, thinking that it would be nice easy reading.’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 22 May [1860] ). …
- … he told Hooker, did not at all concern his main argument ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 3 January [1860] …
- … his theory would have been ‘ utterly smashed’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 3 July [1860] ). (A …
- … from right principles of scientific investigation.—’ ( letter to J. S. Henslow, 8 May [1860] ). …
- … a theory solely by explaining an ample lot of facts.’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 18 February [1860] ). …
- … phenomena it comes in time to be admitted as real.’ ( letter to C. J. F. Bunbury, 9 February [1860] …
- … . Fawcett asserted that Darwin’s theory accorded well with John Stuart Mill’s exposition of the …
- … natural selection did not necessarily lead to progression ( letter to Charles Lyell, 18 [and 19 …
- … considered it more a failure than a success ( see letter to J. D. Hooker, 14 February [1860] ). …
- … naturalists because more accustomed to reasoning.’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 18 May 1860 ). …
- … two physiologists, and five botanists ( see letter to J. D. Hooker, 3 March [1860] ). Others, like …
- … tail, whenever I gaze at it, makes me sick!’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 3 April [1860] ). By the …
- … favour of change of form’, namely those of embryology ( letter to Asa Gray, 10 September [1860] ). …
- … his study of the geographical distribution of species ( see letter from T. H. Huxley, 6 August 1860 …
- … ‘man is in same predicament with other animals’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 10 January [1860] )— he …
- … book had become ‘topics of the day’ at the meeting in a letter from Hooker written from Oxford. …
- … to hear Samuel Wilberforce, the bishop of Oxford, reply to John William Draper’s paper giving a …
- … Darwin ‘master of the field after 4 hours battle’ (letter from J. D. Hooker, 2 July 1860). Other …
- … that ‘this row is best thing for subject.—’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 3 July [1860] ). Further …
- … if the whole were already proved) to his own views.—’ ( letter from J. S. Henslow to J. D. Hooker, …
- … ‘how differently different opposers view the subject’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 15 February [1860] …
- … studying the first published piece: 039;I said in a former letter that you were a Lawyer; but I …
- … that these visits have led to changed structure.’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 27 April [1860] ). …
- … several months later, ‘just as at a game of chess.’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 19 [July 1860] ). …
- … I shall improve the Book considerably.—’ ( letter to John Murray, 5 December [1860] ). Although he …
- … to convert people under 20 year,’ he told his friend John Innes, ‘though firmly convinced now …
- … good judge coming some little way with me.’ ( letter to John Innes, 28 December [1860] ). …

Darwin’s reading notebooks
Summary
In April 1838, Darwin began recording the titles of books he had read and the books he wished to read in Notebook C (Notebooks, pp. 319–28). In 1839, these lists were copied and continued in separate notebooks. The first of these reading notebooks (DAR 119…
Matches: 22 hits
- … [Reimarius 1760] The Highlands & Western Isl ds letter to Sir W Scott [MacCulloch 1824 …
- … 1834–40]: In Portfolio of “abstracts” 34 —letter from Skuckard of books on Silk Worm …
- … The Emigrant, Head [F. B. Head 1846] St. John’s Highlands [C. W. G. Saint John 1846] …
- … M rs Fry’s Life [Fry 1847] Horace Walpoles letter to C t . of Ossory [Walpole 1848] …
- … B.M. 6. 6. Black Edin. Longman [Ramsay 1848] St. John’s Nat. Hist. of Sutherlanshire, Murray …
- … 1851]. Packard. A Guide to the Study of Insects 1868. U. States [Packard 1868–9] (an …
- … Liebigs Lectures on Chemistry [Liebig 1851]. Sir John Davies. China during the War and Peace …
- … Asiatic Society ]—contains very little Macleay’s letter to D r Fleming [Macleay 1830] …
- … d . Series. vol 3. p. 1 to 312 30 th Colquhoun (John) The Moor & the Loch [Colquhoun …
- … Buffon [Milne-Edwards 1834–40]. March 5 th St. John’s Highlands [Saint John 1846] 8 …
- … Tone Autobiography [Tone 1826] very amusing March 10 John Galt Autobiography [Galt 1833] poor …
- … 1848] Madam Malguet [Torrens] 1848] —— Lives of John & Alex. Belthune [?Bethune 1840 and …
- … Ireland [Thompson 1849–56]. Vol. I. II & 3 May. St. John’s Tour in Sutherlandshire [Saint …
- … 171] Pagets Travels in Hungary & Transylvania [John Paget 1839]— account of Dogs like …
- … [Heer 1854].— Hooker has it.— Very important Hookers letter Jan. 1859 Yules Ava [Yule 1858] …
- … Empire [Huc 1855] Feb 16 th Pagets Hungary [John Paget 1839] —— Bechsteins …
- … 23] 1858 Life of Montaigne by B. St. John [B. Saint John 1858].— Miss …
- … of the material from these portfolios is in DAR 205, the letter from William Edward Shuckard to …
- … in the Botanist , 5 vols. (1837–41), edited by John Stevens Henslow and B. Maund. 37 …
- … ( Notebooks , pp. 319–28). 55 The letter was addressed to Nicholas Aylward Vigors …
- … to William Jackson Hooker. See Correspondence vol. 3, letter to J. D. Hooker, [5 or 12 November …
- … 2 vols. London. 119: 5a Packard, Alpheus Spring. 1868–9. Guide to the study of …

Discussion Questions and Essay Questions
Summary
There are a wide range of possibilities for opening discussion and essay writing on Darwin’s correspondence. We have provided a set of sample discussion questions and essay questions, each of which focuses on a particular topic or correspondent in depth.…
Matches: 5 hits
- … people? What sort of things could one say in a letter that could not be said in print, and …
- … theories?[Mary Boole (1864), F. E. Abbot (1871-4), John Fordyce (1879), William Graham (1881)] …
- … What was Darwin’s influence on experimental practice? [John Scott and sexual dimorphism (1862), …
- … and earlier), Wallace on the selection of sterility (1868), Wallace on sexual selection (1869-70)] …
- … and human society? [In different human races (David Forbes, 1868, W. Reade, 1870-1) As a product of …

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 …

Visiting the Darwins
Summary
'As for Mr Darwin, he is entirely fascinating…' In October 1868 Jane Gray and her husband spent several days as guests of the Darwins, and Jane wrote a charming account of the visit in a sixteen-page letter to her sister. She described Charles…
Matches: 6 hits
- … but he was far from being antisocial. In October 1868 Jane Gray and her husband Asa Gray , …
- … Jane wrote a charming account of the visit in a sixteen-page letter to her sister, Susan Loring. …
- … experiments. A complete transcript of the letter is below; here are some highlights: …
- … expressions of wonder— Complete text of the letter from Jane Gray to Susan Loring, 28 …
- … went to bed, cheerful with its bright blaze— Sir John & Lady Lubbock, who live near, came …
- … time in England grows short— This morng. came your letter, dear Sue, & accounts of a snow …