To Alexander Agassiz 1 June [1871]
Summary
Discusses homologies in various animal groups.
Comments on Mivart [Genesis of species].
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Alexander Agassiz |
| Date: | 1 June [1871] |
| Classmark: | DAR 143: 8 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7793 |
From Anton Dohrn 28 February 1871
Summary
Thanks CD for Variation.
From his work on insect embryology he sees a great parallelism between insect and vertebrate embryology.
The zoological station is slowly advancing.
| Author: | Felix Anton (Anton) Dohrn |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 28 Feb 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 162: 206 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7520 |
From H. E. Darwin 21 March [1871]
Summary
Is delighted at the sale of Descent. What CD says about her help pleases her very much and the proposed gift as a memorial will be very precious to her. Is looking forward to seeing the family in London. Comments on a letter comparing CD's appearance to an ape. Is surprised CD has had no effect on Wallace: 'It seems to me his mind can’t be so clear as u used to think it'. Has worked out why she is dissatisfied with T. H. Huxley's essay ‘On the physical basis of life’ (T. H. Huxley 1869).
| Author: | Henrietta Emma Darwin; Henrietta Emma Litchfield |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 21 Mar [1871] |
| Classmark: | Cornford Family Papers (DAR 275: 44) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7605F |
From J. D. Hooker 5 August 1871
Summary
Lengthy discussion of William Thomson’s address [BAAS, Edinburgh 1871].
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 5 Aug 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 103: 73–77 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7896 |
Matches: 5 hits
- … Peter Guthrie. 1869b. On comets. [Read 17 May 1869. ] Proceedings of the Royal Society of …
- … at Edinburgh (1871): lxxxiv–cv. Tyndall, John. 1869. On cometary theory. Philosophical …
- … credited with coining the term ‘agnostic’ in 1869 or 1870 ( OED ). The nature of comets, …
- … in a highly reflective gaseous cloud ( Tyndall 1869 ). In his presidential address Thomson …
- … 17, letter to J. D. Hooker, 7 August [1869] and n. 5. See Thomson 1871 , pp. civ–cv. …
From Francis Galton 9 January 1871
Summary
Definite results have been delayed, but he is optimistic.
| Author: | Francis Galton |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 9 Jan 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 105: A23–4 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7432 |
From V. O. Kovalevsky 14 March 1871
Summary
Russian translation of Descent in progress, but the Minister of Interior has banned CD’s work and the book will be seized.
His foolish brother-in-law, Mayor of Montmartre, attempted to defend their section against the government.
CD’s queries on man and camels have gone to Alexander [Kovalevsky] in Sinai.
| Author: | Vladimir Onufrievich Kovalevsky (Владимир Онуфриевич Ковалевский) |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 14 Mar 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 169: 88 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7583 |
To C. L. Balch 15 April 1871
Summary
Thanks for the report of CLB’s lecture about Descent to the New York Liberal Club on 3 March 1871.
Sends four photographs of himself for the sculptor J. W. A. MacDonald.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Leland Balch |
| Date: | 15 Apr 1871 |
| Classmark: | New York World, 8 May 1871 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7687F |
To William Ogle 12 March [1871]
Summary
Thanks WO for his replies [to 7551]. Discusses the open mouth in surprise; asks WO to investigate its function in hearing and breathing.
Asks why deaf persons generally keep mouths open.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Ogle |
| Date: | 12 Mar [1871] |
| Classmark: | DAR 261.5: 7 (EH 88205905) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7575 |
From Frank Chance [before 25 April 1871]
Summary
His beard is darker than his hair, an exception to CD’s rule in Descent [2: 319]. Encloses sample of his hair, beard, and whiskers.
| Author: | Frank Chance |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | [before 25 Apr 1871] |
| Classmark: | DAR 89: 198–9 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7522 |
From William Bowman 26 January 1871
Summary
Reports his observations on the concurrence of orbicular muscle spasms, engorgement of eyes with blood, and formation of tears.
| Author: | William Bowman, 1st baronet |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 26 Jan 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 160: 269 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7456 |
From J. D. Hooker 22 July 1871
Summary
Has given CD’s name to a species of Abutilon found by Fritz Müller.
Pleased at Henrietta [Darwin]’s engagement.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 22 July 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 103: 61–2 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7877 |
From A. R. Wallace 27 January 1871
Summary
Response to [vol. 1 of] CD’s Descent.
Not yet convinced on sexual selection and protection, though their differences are not so great as CD thinks.
On man, he does not think CD has accounted for every step of his development by "ascertained laws".
| Author: | Alfred Russel Wallace |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 27 Jan 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 106: B96–7 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7460 |
To C. V. Riley 1 July [1871]
Summary
Would be delighted to see CVR at Down, but is in precarious health and cannot talk to anyone for more than an hour.
Wrote to CVR a few weeks ago to thank him for his book [see 7794].
Will expect CVR on Thursday unless he hears otherwise.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Valentine Riley |
| Date: | 1 July [1871] |
| Classmark: | Profiles in History (dealers) (Fall 1996 catalogue) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7846F |
To K. T. E. von Siebold 4 December 1871
Summary
Thanks for the letter, photograph, and kind words about CD’s scientific work. [See 8088.]
CTEvS’s view of pseudova is new to CD;
he has not yet received the recent work on parthenogenesis
though he did receive the memoir on Polistes.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Carl Theodor Ernst von Siebold |
| Date: | 4 Dec 1871 |
| Classmark: | Museo Nacional de Etnología, Madrid (FD4472) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-8094A |
To John Morley 14 April [1871]
Summary
Comments on JM’s review of Descent, vol. 2 [Pall Mall Gaz. 13 (1871): 1358–9].
Mistake CD made "in speaking of greatest happiness as the foundation of morals" is unintelligible to CD. Discusses J. S. Mill’s view of moral feelings as natural. Discusses basis of conscience.
Glad to read remarks on hive-bees.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | John Morley, Viscount Morley of Blackburn |
| Date: | 14 Apr [1871] |
| Classmark: | DAR 146: 410 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7685 |
From J. D. Hooker 2 November 1871
Summary
Henry Holland is taking an active part in helping JDH in the Ayrton affair.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 2 Nov 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 103: 96–7 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-8046 |
From James Crichton-Browne 16 February 1871
Summary
Values CD’s approbation more than that of anyone else now living.
CD’s "searching questions". Sends answers separately.
Offers his observation on morbid pigmentation of skin.
Offers photographs of abnormal features in patients – ears with bristles, women with two sets of nipples.
Encloses notes on weeping and laughter in the insane.
| Author: | James Crichton-Browne |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 16 Feb 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 161: 312 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7484 |
From J. E. Gray 2 April 1871
Summary
Sexual differences in sloths. J. G. Wagler article on sloths [Isis 24 (1831): 604–12].
| Author: | John Edward Gray |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 2 Apr 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 88: 95–6 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7652 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … to the paralytic stroke he suffered in 1869, from which he never fully recovered ( ODNB ). …
To Vernon Lushington 24 July [1871]
Summary
Thanks for providing turtle soup.
Not quite so sure he thanks VL for introducing Richard Buckley Litchfield into the Darwin family to be CD’s son-in-law.
Asks about the lip position of a pouting child.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Vernon Lushington |
| Date: | 24 July [1871] |
| Classmark: | Linnean Society of London (Quentin Keynes Collection) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7880F |
From Hermann Müller 9 October 1871
Summary
Is preparing a work on fertilisation of flowers, and wants to add a list of works containing observations on cross-fertilisation of plants. Asks CD for any references he may have.
| Author: | Heinrich Ludwig Hermann (Hermann) Müller |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 9 Oct 1871 |
| Classmark: | DAR 171: 297 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-7997 |
| Darwin, C. R. | (48) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (5) |
| Reade, W. W. | (4) |
| Carus, J. V. | (3) |
| Crichton-Browne, James | (3) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (79) |
| Crichton-Browne, James | (3) |
| Agassiz, Alexander | (2) |
| Airy, Hubert | (2) |
| Darwin, Francis | (2) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (127) |
| Crichton-Browne, James | (6) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (6) |
| Reade, W. W. | (4) |
| Agassiz, Alexander | (3) |
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: 27 hits
- … At the start of 1869, Darwin was hard at work making changes and additions for a fifth edition …
- … that is something’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [22 January 1869] ). Much of the remainder of …
- … to be the case’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 13 January 1869 ). Hooker went straight to a crucial …
- … probable’ (see also letter to A. R. Wallace, 22 January [1869] , and letter from A. R. Wallace, …
- … in distribution’ ( letter to James Croll, 31 January [1869] ). Darwin had argued ( Origin , pp. …
- … formation’ ( letter to James Croll, 31 January [1869] ). Croll could not supply Darwin with an …
- … have got that yet’ ( letter from James Croll, 4 February 1869 ). Darwin did not directly …
- … towards [Thomson]’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 19 March [1869] ). Towards Descent …
- … ‘everlasting old Origin’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 1 June [1869] ), he was able to return to work on …
- … ( letter from Robert Elliot to George Cupples, 21 June 1869 ). Details on mating behaviour …
- … in the garden ( letter from Frederick Smith, 8 October 1869 ). Albert Günther, assistant in the …
- … varieties ( letter to W. B. Tegetmeier, 25 February [1869] ). The data contined to …
- … cocks & hens.—’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 13 November [1869] ). Yet completion of the work was …
- … for Descent . Researching emotion In 1869, Darwin still expected that Descent …
- … hatred—’ ( from Asa Gray and J. L. Gray, 8 and 9 May [1869] ). James Crichton-Browne and …
- … ( enclosure to letter from Henry Maudsley, 20 May 1869 ). Darwin had often complained of the …
- … in regard to Man’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 14 April 1869 ). More remarkable still were Wallace …
- … seem to you like some mental hallucination’ ( 18 April 1869 ). Since his marriage to Annie …
- … (Wallace 1869a; letter to A. R. Wallace, 22 March [1869] ), and scolded him for again being too …
- … demands justice’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 14 April 1869 ). Proceeding on all fronts …
- … South American cordillera ( letter to Charles Lyell, 20 May 1869 ), and fossil discoveries in …
- … investigated in depth ( letter from C. F. Claus, 6 February 1869 ). In a letter to the Gardeners …
- … of the soil ( letter to Gardeners’ Chronicle , 9 May [1869] ). In March, Darwin received …
- … in the early 1860s ( letter to W. C. Tait, 12 and 16 March 1869 ). This research contributed to …
- … editions ( see letter from Victor Masson, 29 September 1869 ). The work had been undertaken, like …
- … Animals”’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 19 November [1869] ). Angered by these proceedings, Darwin …
- … of Fritz Müller’s Für Darwin (Dallas trans. 1869). The book, an explication of Darwinian …
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: 11 hits
- … Crichton-Browne, James 20 May 1869 32 Queen Anne St. …
- … Crichton-Browne, James 19 May 1869 West Riding …
- … Gray, Asa 9 May [1869] [Alexandria, Egypt] …
- … Gray, Jane 9 May [1869] [Alexandria, Egypt] …
- … Gray, Asa 8 & 9 May 1869 Florence, Italy (about …
- … King, P.G. 25 Feb 1869 Sydney, Australia …
- … Maudsley, Henry 20 May 1869 32 Queen Anne St. …
- … Reade, Winwood W. 17 Jan 1869 Sierra Leone, Africa …
- … Reade, Winwood W. 28 June [1869] Sierra Leone, …
- … Reade, Winwood W. 26 Dec 1869 Sierra Leone, Africa …
- … Scott, John 2 July 1869 Royal Botanic Gardens, …
A beginning, & that is something: To J. D. Hooker, [22 January 1869]
Summary
Alison Pearn talks about a letter Darwin wrote to his friend Joseph Dalton Hooker after finishing corrections to the fifth edition of Origin of Species in 1869.
Matches: 1 hits
- … corrections to the fifth edition of Origin of Species in 1869. …
Perfect copper-plate hand: From Adolf Reuter, 30 May 1869
Summary
My favourite correspondent was chosen not because he is a brilliant conversationalist or a significant scientific thinker – but after a decade of reading a series of challenging hand writings, my favourite is the one who wrote in a perfect copper-plate…
Matches: 1 hits
- … My favourite correspondent was chosen not because he is a brilliant conversationalist or a …
Cross and self fertilisation
Summary
The effects of cross and self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom, published on 10 November 1876, was the result of a decade-long project to provide evidence for Darwin’s belief that ‘‘Nature thus tells us, in the most emphatic manner, that she abhors…
Matches: 5 hits
- … of self-fertility over subsequent generations. In June 1869, Müller remarked, on receiving a new …
- … sometimes depends’ ( From Fritz Müller, 15 June 1869 ). By May 1870, Darwin reported that he was …
- … Müller ( To Fritz Müller, 28 November 1868 ). In March 1869, Müller reported results of …
- … pod were mutually sterile ( From Fritz Müller, 14 March 1869 ). ‘The case of the Abutilon sterile …
- … of this plant sent by Müller ( To Fritz Müller, 18 July [1869] ). Darwin sent specimens of plants …
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: 4 hits
- … Letter 6736 - Gray, A. & J. L to Darwin, [8 & 9 May 1869] Jane Loring Gray, …
- … Williams , M. S. to Darwin, H. E., [after 14 October 1869] Darwin’s niece, Margaret, …
- … Letter 6815 - Scott, J. to Darwin, [2 July 1869] John Scott responds to Darwin’s …
- … - Darwin to Gunther, A. C. L. G., [21 September 1869] Darwin asks Gunther for “a great …
Diagrams and drawings in letters
Summary
Over 850 illustrations from the printed volumes of The Correspondence of Charles Darwin have been added to the online transcripts of the letters. The contents include maps, diagrams, drawings, sketches and photographs, covering geological, botanical,…
Matches: 1 hits
- … of Robinia rubra and Pirus malus , 23 September 1869 Alexander Agassiz's …
Jane Gray
Summary
Jane Loring Gray, the daughter of a Boston lawyer, married the Harvard botanist Asa Gray in 1848 and evidence suggests that she took an active interest in the scientific pursuits of her husband and his friends. Although she is only known to have…
Matches: 3 hits
Rewriting Origin - the later editions
Summary
For such an iconic work, the text of Origin was far from static. It was a living thing that Darwin continued to shape for the rest of his life, refining his ‘one long argument’ through a further five English editions. Many of his changes were made in…
Darwin’s hothouse and lists of hothouse plants
Summary
Darwin became increasingly involved in botanical experiments in the years after the publication of Origin. The building of a small hothouse - a heated greenhouse - early in 1863 greatly increased the range of plants that he could keep for scientific…
3.18 Elliott and Fry photos, c.1869-1871
Summary
< Back to Introduction The leading photographic firm of Elliott and Fry seems to have portrayed Darwin at Down House on several occasions. In November 1869 Darwin told A. B. Meyer, who wanted photographs of both him and Wallace for a German…
Matches: 9 hits
- … Darwin at Down House on several occasions. In November 1869 Darwin told A. B. Meyer, who wanted …
- … down here on purpose’. Payments to the firm on 25 July 1869 and 5 April 1870 in Darwin’s banking …
- … widely disseminated images of Darwin were taken in summer 1869, and which in summer 1871: the …
- … were dated by Darwin’s daughter Henrietta on the backs to 1869. By 1871-2 some of Elliott and Fry’s …
- … it ‘abt. 1870’, then crossed this date out in favour of 1869 – the date which John van Wyhe assigns …
- … some of the Elliott and Fry group as having been taken in 1869 and 1871, but dates others (still …
- … to this source. It is significant that none of these 1869–71 Elliott and Fry photographs were …
- … as belonging to groups of photographs taken in summer 1869 and summer 1871, possible also in 1874. …
- … letters from Darwin to A.B. Meyer, 27 November [1869], (DCP-LETT-7014), and to Wallace, 5 December …
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…
Photograph album of Dutch admirers
Summary
Darwin received the photograph album for his birthday on 12 February 1877 from his scientific admirers in the Netherlands. He wrote to the Dutch zoologist Pieter Harting, An account of your countrymen’s generous sympathy in having sent me on my…
Matches: 1 hits
- … work on human expression. Donders visited Darwin in 1869 , and a year later Darwin consoled him …
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…
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: 5 hits
- … he attracted many admirers in German-speaking countries. In 1869, his birthday was celebrated by an …
- … vol. 17, letter from F. M. Malven, 12 February [1869] ). An extract from Darwin’s reply to Malven …
- … with his’ ( letter to F. M. Malven, [after 12 February 1869] ). Accompanying this extract was the …
- … some of whom drew substantially on his theory. In 1869, Hermann Müller (brother to Fritz) sent …
- … theory to flowers and flower-visiting insects; H. Müller 1869)). Darwin was full of admiration and …
Science: A Man’s World?
Summary
Discussion Questions|Letters Darwin's correspondence show that many nineteenth-century women participated in the world of science, be it as experimenters, observers, editors, critics, producers, or consumers. Despite this, much of the…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Letter 6976 - Darwin to Blackwell, A. B., [8 November 1869] Darwin thanks Antoinette …
3.12 Edwards, second group of photos
Summary
< Back to Introduction Despite the prior difficulties experienced by both photographer and sitter, it is evident that Ernest Edwards portrayed Darwin again in the late 1860s; but exactly when and in what circumstances is not known. There are strong…
Matches: 3 hits
Race, Civilization, and Progress
Summary
Darwin's first reflections on human progress were prompted by his experiences in the slave-owning colony of Brazil, and by his encounters with the Yahgan peoples of Tierra del Fuego. Harsh conditions, privation, poor climate, bondage and servitude,…
John Beddoe
Summary
In 1869, when gathering data on sexual selection in humans, Darwin exchanged a short series of letters with John Beddoe, a doctor in Bristol. He was looking for evidence that racial differences that appear to have no benefit in terms of survival - and…
Matches: 1 hits
- … In 1869 Darwin exchanged a short series of letters with a John Beddoe, a doctor in …
3.15 George Charles Wallich, photo
Summary
< Back to Introduction In the years around 1868–1871, when professional photographers competed for sittings with Darwin, a doctor called George Charles Wallich approached him with a similar request. Wallich was planning to publish a set of his own…
