To G. H. Darwin 2 December [1874]
Summary
Appleton will bring out the new edition of Descent in the U. S., so GHD’s work will now be in three editions.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | George Howard Darwin |
Date: | 2 Dec [1874] |
Classmark: | DAR 210.1: 41 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9741 |
Matches: 5 hits
- … To G. H. Darwin 2 December [1874] …
- … DAR 210.1: 41 Charles Robert Darwin Down 2 Dec [1874] George Howard Darwin …
- … D. Appleton & Co. , [ c. 19] November 1874). George had helped edit this edition ( letter …
- … to G. H. Darwin, 27 November [1874] ). A German translation was also being prepared ( …
- … letter from J. V. Carus, 27 October 1874 ). …
To J. D. Hooker 2 December [1874]
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 2 Dec [1874] |
Classmark: | DAR 95: 349 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9739 |
Matches: 6 hits
- … To J. D. Hooker 2 December [1874] …
- … DAR 95: 349 Charles Robert Darwin Down 2 Dec [1874] Joseph Dalton Hooker …
- … in the letter to J. D. Hooker, 26 November [1874] . The Darwins stayed in London …
- … Henrietta Emma Litchfield from 3 to 12 December 1874 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)). …
- … of Farrer ( ODNB ). See letter to T. H. Farrer, 29 November [1874] , and letter to J. …
- … D. Hooker, 30 November [1874] . Farrer’s note has not been found. Hooker’s ‘own letter’ …
From Mary Treat 2 December 1874
Author: | Mary Lua Adelia (Mary) Treat |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 2 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 58.1: 109–10 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9740 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … From Mary Treat 2 December 1874 …
- … 58.1: 109–10 Mary Lua Adelia (Mary) Treat Vineland, N.J. 2 Dec 1874 Charles Robert Darwin …
- … Vineland, N. Jersey. Dec. 2, 1874. Dear Mr. Darwin. I have been studying the bladder- …
- … see letter to John Ralfs, 13 July [1874] ). Treat published her observations in a letter …
To Thomas Belt 3 December [1874]
Summary
Invites TB to visit. Wants to make his acquaintance.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Thomas Belt |
Date: | 3 Dec [1874] |
Classmark: | DAR 143: 80 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9742 |
Matches: 5 hits
- … To Thomas Belt 3 December [1874] …
- … DAR 143: 80 Charles Robert Darwin London, Bryanston St, 2 3 Dec [1874] Thomas Belt …
- … Sir’. CD was in London from 3 to 12 December 1874 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)). He had …
- … CD evidently did not meet Belt in December 1874 since in his letter of 24 February 1875 ( …
- … s house in Bryanston Street on 3 December in 1874 and probably in 1879 (CD’s ‘Journal’ ( …
From J. D. Hooker [3 December 1874?]
Summary
Probably a discussiion of J. D. Hooker’s feelings after death of his wife, Frances Harriet, on 13 November 1874: the letter is badly damaged.
Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | [3 Dec 1874?] |
Classmark: | DAR 166: 263 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9719F |
Matches: 7 hits
- … From J. D. Hooker [3 December 1874? ] …
- … DAR 166: 263 Joseph Dalton Hooker [3 Dec 1874? ] Charles Robert Darwin …
- … death of his wife, Frances Harriet, on 13 November 1874: the letter is badly damaged. …
- … D. Hooker, 2 December [ 1874] ; in fact, he stayed until 12 December, probably due to an …
- … and the letter to Hooker of 2 December [1874], and from the apparent references to the …
- … who had died suddenly on 13 November 1874 ( Allan 1967 , p. 225). Hooker seems to be …
- … Kew; CD had written that he would be in London from 3 to 10 December 1874 ( letter to J. …
To William Ogle [4 December 1874, 10 December 1875, 17 December 1875, or 12 January 1877]
Summary
Invites WO to lunch.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | William Ogle |
Date: | [4 Dec] 1874 or [10 or 17] Dec 1875 or [12 Jan] 1877 |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.460) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9219 |
From G. H. Darwin 5 December 1874
Summary
Has finished the "cousin paper" and will offer it to W. Farr for the Statistical Society.
Describes other work in progress.
Has CD heard of A. M. Mayer’s curious work on audition of insects [Am. J. Sci. 3d ser. 8 (1874): 89–103?]
Author: | George Howard Darwin |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 5 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 210.2: 45 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9743 |
Matches: 14 hits
- … From G. H. Darwin 5 December 1874 …
- … 210.2: 45 George Howard Darwin Trinity College, Cambridge 5 Dec 1874 Charles Robert Darwin …
- … refers to Erasmus Alvey Darwin. See n. 2, above, and Mayer 1874–5 , pp. 377–8. …
- … M. Mayer’s curious work on audition of insects [ Am. J. Sci. 3d ser. 8 (1874): 89–103? ] …
- … and New York: Macmillan. Mayer, Alfred Marshall. 1874–5. Researches in acoustics. —No. …
- … V. Philosophical Magazine 4th ser. 48 (1874): 266–274, 371–85, 445–52; (1875) 513–25. …
- … the Statistical Society of London 37 (1874)), and Ebenezer Norman, the Down schoolmaster, …
- … Researches in acoustics. —No. V’ ( Mayer 1874–5 ), and on p. 385 announced his intention …
- … spent some time in the Lake District in September 1874 (letter from Emma Darwin to H. …
- … E. Litchfield, 16 September [1874] (DAR 219.9: 117)). Harriet Ann Jevons. Henry and …
- … were in London from 3 to 12 December 1874 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)). George also …
- … of the series appeared in the November 1874 issue of Philosophical Magazine ; the other …
- … letter from G. H. Darwin, 18 October 1874 ), and had it copied by Norman in early …
- … letter from G. H. Darwin, [8 November 1874] . He refers to the Contemporary Review . No …
To H. A. Huxley [5 December 1874]
Summary
Wants to see Huxley tomorrow, but knows he is going down to High Elms to see Colenso.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Henrietta Anne Huxley |
Date: | [5 Dec 1874] |
Classmark: | Janet Huxley (private collection) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9743F |
Matches: 5 hits
- … To H. A. Huxley [5 December 1874] …
- … private collection) Charles Robert Darwin London [5 Dec 1874] Henrietta Anne Huxley …
- … Colenso, bishop of Natal, visited England in 1874 to protest against harsh treatment of …
- … Cox 1888 , 2: 388–401). CD met T. H. Huxley on 6 December 1874; see letter to G. …
- … H. Darwin, [6 December 1874] . No card from Henrietta Anne Huxley has been found. …
To G. H. Darwin [6 December 1874]
Summary
Returns historical sketch [of GHD’s "cousin paper"?] with comments. "For Heavens sake put a sentence in some conspicuous place that your results seem to indicate that consanguineous marriage, as far as insanity is concerned, cannot be injurious in any very high degree."
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | George Howard Darwin |
Date: | [6 Dec 1874] |
Classmark: | DAR 210.1: 42 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9746 |
Matches: 11 hits
- … To G. H. Darwin [6 December 1874] …
- … 210.1: 42 Charles Robert Darwin London, Bryanston St, 2 [6 Dec 1874] George Howard Darwin …
- … the relationship between this letter and the letter from G. H. Darwin, 5 December 1874 . …
- … In 1874, the Sunday after 5 December was 6 December. See letter …
- … from G. H. Darwin, 5 December 1874 . CD had presumably read the last part of George’s …
- … letter to H. A. Huxley, [5 December 1874] . St George Jackson Mivart had attacked an …
- … John Lubbock and Edward Burnett Tylor in the Quarterly Review ( [Mivart] 1874 , p. 70). …
- … s response, discussed at length with CD in letters in August 1874, appeared in the October …
- … issue of Quarterly Review (137 (1874): 587–8), followed by a rejoinder, presumably by …
- … Burnett Tylor. ] Quarterly Review 137 (1874): 40–77. ODNB : Oxford dictionary of national …
- … letter from G. H. Darwin, 5 December 1874 . Erasmus Alvey Darwin. CD refers to Thomas …
From W. G. Walker 6 December 1874
Summary
On voluntary vomiting. Dogs re-swallow vomited food.
Author: | William Gregory Walker |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 6 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 181: 5 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9745 |
From A. R. Wallace 6 December 1874
Summary
Thanks for new edition of Descent.
His work on geographical distribution; drudgery and the often unsatisfactory nature of the result.
Author: | Alfred Russel Wallace |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 6 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 106: B120 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9744 |
To G. J. Romanes [7 December 1874]
Summary
Speaks of visiting GJR at the Brown Institution.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | George John Romanes |
Date: | [7 Dec 1874] |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.453) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9747 |
Matches: 7 hits
- … To G. J. Romanes [7 December 1874] …
- … Charles Robert Darwin London, Bryanston St, 2 [7 Dec 1874] George John Romanes …
- … letter to G. J. Romanes, [9 December 1874] ). Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242) records ‘ …
- … had not met. In his letter of 16 December 1874, CD addresses Romanes as ‘Dear M r Romanes’ …
- … Street, London, from 3 to 12 December 1874 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)); the only Monday …
- … was 7 December. CD’s correspondence with Romanes began in July 1874 ( letter from G. …
- … J. Romanes, 10 July 1874 ). Romanes studied under John Scott Burdon Sanderson, who was …
To John Fiske 8 December [1874]
Summary
Praises JF’s book [Cosmic philosophy (1874)].
Has long wished to understand H. Spencer but is not convinced by him and some others. CD cannot trust deduction from a starting principle, as his mind is so fixed by the inductive method.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John Fiske |
Date: | 8 Dec [1874] |
Classmark: | The Huntington Library (FK 1110–1112) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9749 |
Matches: 13 hits
- … To John Fiske 8 December [1874] …
- … Charles Robert Darwin London, Bryanston St, 2 Down letterhead 8 Dec [1874] John Fiske …
- … ibid. , p. 431). Descent 2d ed. was published in November 1874 ( letter from R. …
- … F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). …
- … Praises JF’s book [ Cosmic philosophy (1874)]. Has long wished to understand H. Spencer …
- … in relation to sex. By Charles Darwin. 2d edition. London: John Murray. 1874. Fiske, …
- … John. 1874. Outlines of cosmic philosophy: based on the doctrine of evolution, with …
- … this letter and the letter to John Fiske, 3 November 1874 . Fiske had sent CD a copy of …
- … of cosmic philosophy based on the doctrine of evolution ( Fiske 1874 ; see letter to …
- … John Fiske, 3 November 1874 ). In his book, Fiske aimed to show that there was no conflict …
- … with anthropomorphic theism ( Fiske 1874 , 1: xi, 162–87, 2: 381–431; for causation, see …
- … 1: 146–61). Fiske wrote ( Fiske 1874 , 1: 184): Cosmism … assigns to religion the same …
- … See ‘The beginnings of life’, Fiske 1874 , 1: 418–37. Fiske wrote, ‘the mere consolidation …
From J. D. Hooker 8 December 1874
Summary
Delighted with Farrer’s assistance. A. Helps has also spoken to Sir S. Northcote.
JDH is getting on well but has periods of great depression.
Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 8 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 103: 232–3 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9750 |
Matches: 6 hits
- … From J. D. Hooker 8 December 1874 …
- … DAR 103: 232–3 Joseph Dalton Hooker Kew 8 Dec 1874 Charles Robert Darwin …
- … the meeting of the Royal Society of London on 10 December 1874 ( Proceedings of the Royal …
- … Society of London 23 (1874–5): 93). …
- … see letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 December [1874] ). He had asked Thomas Henry Farrer to …
- … Hooker, Hooker’s wife, died on 13 November 1874 ( Allan 1967 , p. 225). Harriet Anne …
From T. H. Huxley 8 December 1874
Summary
K. G. Semper’s article ["On the relationship of the Vertebrata and Annelida", Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 15 (1875): 94–5] is ill-natured. Misinterprets facts already discovered by F. M. Balfour.
Has been working on Amphioxus. Puts his theory of vertebrate skulls on firm footing at last.
Author: | Thomas Henry Huxley |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 8 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 103: 234–5 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9748 |
Matches: 12 hits
- … From T. H. Huxley 8 December 1874 …
- … 234–5 Thomas Henry Huxley London, Marlborough Place, 4 8 Dec 1874 Charles Robert Darwin …
- … Bibliography Balfour, Francis Maitland. 1874. A preliminary account of the development of …
- … 4 Marlborough Place | NW Dec. 8 th 1874 My dear Darwin Best thanks for Semper It is an …
- … between vertebrates and annelids (Semper 1874), a copy of which is in the Darwin Pamphlet …
- … for the Advancement of Science in September 1874 and published in the Quarterly …
- … which retained holoblastic ova ( Balfour 1874 , p. 337). Ernst Haeckel had maintained …
- … Journal of Microscopical Science ( Balfour 1874 ). Both Semper and Balfour described …
- … the segmented tubules of the kidney in the shark embryo ( Balfour 1874 , p. …
- … 358, Semper 1874). Huxley …
- … had met CD on Sunday 6 December 1874 (see letter to H. …
- … A. Huxley, 5 December 1874 ). Huxley’s first publication on the vertebrate skull was T. …
To F. C. Noll 8 December [1874]
Summary
Thanks for the essay on a curious new cirripede. He will not accept the offer of microscopical preparations.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Friedrich Carl Noll |
Date: | 8 Dec [1874] |
Classmark: | Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin (Historische Sammlungen EH 112) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9750F |
To G. J. Romanes [9 December 1874]
Summary
Invites GJR to visit.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | George John Romanes |
Date: | [9 Dec 1874] |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.454) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9751 |
Matches: 5 hits
- … To G. J. Romanes [9 December 1874] …
- … Charles Robert Darwin London, Bryanston St, 2 [9 Dec 1874] George John Romanes …
- … relationship between this letter and the letter to G. J. Romanes, [7 December 1874] . CD …
- … had invited Romanes for Wednesday 9 December 1874 (see letter to G. …
- … J. Romanes, [7 December 1874] ), but Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242) records that he was in …
To ? [9 December 1874, 14 December 1875, or 10 January 1877]
Summary
Invites correspondent to luncheon on Friday or Saturday.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Unidentified |
Date: | [9 Dec] 1874 or [14 Dec] 1875 or [10 Jan] 1877 |
Classmark: | John Wilson (dealer) (catalogue 76 1994) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9724F |
From C.-F. Reinwald 10 December 1874
Summary
Sends French translation of Journal of researches and will send the £20 due to CD when 750 copies have been sold.
Author: | Charles-Ferdinand Reinwald |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 10 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 176: 103 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9752 |
From Asa Gray 11 December 1874
Summary
Cannot help with Pinguicula or Utricularia. Mrs Mary Treat is studying Utricularia.
Forwards his short piece on duration of varieties [New York Tribune 8 Dec 1874; Am. J. Sci. 3d ser. 9 (1875): 109–14].
Author: | Asa Gray |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 11 Dec 1874 |
Classmark: | DAR 165: 187 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-9753 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … From Asa Gray 11 December 1874 …
- … DAR 165: 187 Asa Gray Botanic Garden, Cambridge, Mass. 11 Dec 1874 Charles Robert Darwin …
- … of varieties [ New York Tribune 8 Dec 1874; Am. J. Sci. 3d ser. 9 (1875): 109–14]. …
- … Dalton Hooker’s wife, died on 13 November 1874 ( Allan 1967 , p. 225). There is a lightly …
- … Botanic Garden, Cambridge, Mass. Dec. 11 1874. My Dear Darwin, I must be owing you an …
- … CD’s last letters to Gray were those of 25 June 1874 and …
- … 30 June [1874]; CD asked Gray about Pinguicula (butterwort) in both letters. No letter has …
- … See letter from Mary Treat, 2 December 1874 . CD published his work on Drosera (sundew) …
letter | [X] |
Darwin, C. R. | (38) |
Hooker, J. D. | (6) |
Huxley, T. H. | (3) |
Mivart, S. G. J. | (2) |
Oliver, Daniel | (2) |
Belt, Thomas | (1) |
Crichton-Browne, James | (1) |
Darwin, C. R. | (24) |
Darwin, G. H. | (3) |
Dodel-Port, Arnold | (2) |
Eimer, Theodor | (1) |
Fiske, John | (1) |
Gray, Asa | (1) |
Haeckel, Ernst | (1) |
Hooker, J. D. | (6) |
Huxley, H. A. | (1) |
Huxley, T. H. | (4) |
Lubbock, John | (1) |
Messrs Asher | (1) |
Mivart, S. G. J. | (2) |
Murray, John (b) | (1) |
Nevill, D. F. | (1) |
Noll, F. C. | (1) |
Ogle, William | (1) |
Oliver, Daniel | (1) |
Reinwald, C.-F. | (1) |
Romanes, G. J. | (5) |
Sidgwick, Henry | (1) |
Tyndall, John | (1) |
Unidentified | (2) |
Darwin, C. R. | (62) |
Hooker, J. D. | (12) |
Huxley, T. H. | (7) |
Romanes, G. J. | (5) |
Darwin, G. H. | (4) |

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: 23 hits
- … The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the …
- … intervals’ ( letter to D. T. Gardner, [ c . 27 August 1874] ). The death of a Cambridge friend, …
- … and collecting beetles ( letter from W. D. Fox, 8 May [1874] ). Such reminiscences led Darwin to …
- … much more than forwards’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 11 May [1874] ). I feel very old & …
- … old & helpless’ ( letter to B. J. Sulivan, 6 January [1874] ). Darwin mentioned his poor …
- … on the matter ( letter from Ernst Haeckel, 26 October 1874 ). Séances, psychics, and …
- … Joseph Dalton Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 18 January [1874] ). Later in the month, …
- … and an imposter’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 27 January 1874 ). Darwin agreed that it was ‘all …
- … perform his antics’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 29 January [1874] ). This did not stop word getting …
- … at his home ( letter from T. G. Appleton, 2 April 1874 ). Back over old ground New …
- … Charles Lyell ( letter to Smith, Elder & Co., 8 January 1874 , letter to J. D. Hooker, 8 …
- … of correction’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 21 [March 1874] ). The book came out in June with the …
- … Darwin on this point ( letter from J. D. Dana, 21 July 1874 ); however, he did not retract his …
- … dog breeders (letters from George Cupples, 21 February 1874 and 12 March 1874 ); the material …
- … Islands (Hawaii; letters from T. N. Staley, 12 February 1874 and 20 February 1874 ; letters …
- … islanders ( letter from William Dealtry, 16 January 1874 ). One of the most significant …
- … enemy into a jelly’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 14 April 1874 ). The technical nature of Huxley’s …
- … mind where it goes’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 16 April 1874 ). The second edition of …
- … would be very good ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 November 1874 ). Darwin's son George …
- … of your thought’ ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 20 April 1874 ). The Mivart affair …
- … mental and physical disorders (G. H. Darwin 1873b). In July 1874, an anonymous essay appeared in the …
- … libel’ on his son ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [27 July 1874] ). George, however, consulted with his …
- … [a] lying scoundrel’ ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 1 August [1874] ). He drafted a brief statement of …

Darwin's 1874 letters go online
Summary
The full transcripts and footnotes of over 600 letters to and from Charles Darwin in 1874 are published online for the first time. You can read about Darwin's life in 1874 through his letters and see a full list of the letters. The 1874 letters…
Matches: 9 hits
- … of over 600 letters to and from Charles Darwin in 1874 are published online for the first time. …
- … ( Letter to G. H. Darwin, 1 August [1874] ) The Mivart affair highlights …
- … are some other highlights from Darwin's correspondence in 1874: I feel as old as …
- … signifying so much. ( Letter to W. D. Fox, 11 May [1874] ) At the age of 65, Darwin …
- … more quietly was severely tested by some of the events of 1874. He had a clear idea of the shape of …
- … must be enough for me ( Letter to W. D. Fox, 11 May [1874] ) During the year he …
- … the positive ( Letter to J. D. Hooker, 30 August [1874] ) – he mourned after several …
- … day’s work ( Letter to D. F. Nevill, 18 September [1874] ) Darwin’s family continued …
- … have to do— ( Letter to J. D. Hooker, 30 November [1874] ) Darwin’s continuing …

St George Jackson Mivart
Summary
In the second half of 1874, Darwin’s peace was disturbed by an anonymous article in the Quarterly Review suggesting that his son George was opposed to the institution of marriage and in favour of ‘unrestrained licentiousness’. Darwin suspected, correctly,…
Matches: 16 hits
- … In 1874, the Catholic zoologist St George Jackson Mivart caused Darwin and his son …
- … appeared to have created very little stir, until, in July 1874, Mivart published an anonymous review …
- … of the Quarterly ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 29 July 1874 ). Darwin hastily advised against …
- … to wish to circulate ( letter to G. H. Darwin, 1 August [1874] ). Darwin provided a draft of the …
- … to endorse them ( letter from G. H. Darwin, 5 August 1874 ). He sent a second draft, which Darwin …
- … a fair copy of his letter with his letter of 6 [August] 1874 . George and Darwin were also …
- … George’s letter to Murray with his letter of 11 August 1874 , and was no doubt relieved to …
- … to all he asked ( letter from John Murray, 12 August 1874 ). In October, George’s letter …
- … a Pickwickian sense’ ( letter to John Murray, 18 October 1874 ). In other words, Mivart had used …
- … reaction was savage ( letter to G. H. Darwin, [6 December 1874] ). Hooker and Huxley between them …
- … the attack on George ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 14 December 1874 ). Huxley met Mivart at an evening …
- … ( Enclosure to letter from J. D. Hooker, 21 December 1874 .) A reply soon came from Mivart . …
- … of a gentleman’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 23 December 1874 ). However, Huxley still wrote to …
- … this. 124 Gower St W.C. Dec. 24th 1874. Private & Confidential …
- … to John Tyndall ( letter from John Tyndall, 28 December 1874 , and letter from J. D. Hooker, 29 …
- … 16 January 1875, p. 66, signed, ‘The Quarterly Reviewer of 1874’. In it he reiterated his claim that …

Joseph Simms
Summary
The American doctor and author of works on physiognomy Joseph Simms wrote to Darwin on 14 September 1874, while he was staying in London. He enclosed a copy of his book Nature’s revelations of character (Simms 1873). He hoped it might 'prove…
Essay: What is Darwinism?
Summary
—by Asa Gray WHAT IS DARWINISM? The Nation, May 28, 1874 The question which Dr. Hodge asks he promptly and decisively answers: ‘What is Darwinism? it is atheism.’ Leaving aside all subsidiary and incidental matters, let us consider–1. What the…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Gray WHAT IS DARWINISM? The Nation, May 28, 1874 The question which Dr. Hodge …
Essay: Evolution & theology
Summary
—by Asa Gray EVOLUTION AND THEOLOGY The Nation, January 15, 1874 The attitude of theologians toward doctrines of evolution, from the nebular hypothesis down to ‘Darwinism,’ is no less worthy of consideration, and hardly less diverse, than that of…
Matches: 1 hits
- … EVOLUTION AND THEOLOGY The Nation, January 15, 1874 The attitude of theologians toward …

Darwin in letters, 1875: Pulling strings
Summary
‘I am getting sick of insectivorous plants’, Darwin confessed in January 1875. He had worked on the subject intermittently since 1859, and had been steadily engaged on a book manuscript for nine months; January also saw the conclusion of a bitter dispute…
Matches: 7 hits
- … attack upon Darwin’s son George, in an anonymous review in 1874 (see Correspondence vol. 22, …
- … had also considered taking up the issue with Murray in 1874, even threatening to break off future …
- … laid to rest, another controversy was brewing. In December 1874, Darwin had been asked to sign a …
- … botanical research and had visited Down House in April 1874 (see Correspondence vol. 22, letters …
- … A scientific friendship had developed between the men in 1874, and this was enhanced by Romanes’s …
- … white’ ( letter from G. J. Romanes, [before 4 November 1874] ). Testing Pangenesis …
- … had learned of Lyell’s failing health from Hooker in 1874 and January 1875. On 22 February, he was …
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: 5 hits
- … 9426 - Story-Maskelyne , T. M. to Darwin, [23 April 1874] Thereza Story-Maskelyne …
- … Letter 9616 - Marshall, T. to Darwin, [September 1874] Theodosia Marshall sends …
- … 9606 - Harrison, L. C. to Darwin, [22 August 1874] Darwin’s niece, Lucy, sends a …
- … Letter 9616 - Marshall, T. to Darwin, [September 1874] Theodosia Marshall details …
- … Letter 9485 - Treat, M. to Darwin, [8 June 1874] Mary Treat details her experiments …

George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans)
Summary
George Eliot was the pen name of celebrated Victorian novelist Mary Ann Evans (1819-1880). She was born on the outskirts of Nuneaton in Warwickshire and was educated at boarding schools from the age of five until she was 16. Her education ended when she…
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- … started ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 18 January [1874] ). Darwin took Emma to a Sunday afternoon at …

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…
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- … to Hermanus Hartogh Heijs van Zouteveen, 18 February 1874 ) Zouteveen’s editions of …
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
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- … A GRAY 3 AUGUST 1871 201 TO A GRAY 3 JUNE [1874] 202 FROM A GRAY 16 …
Darwin as mentor
Summary
Darwin provided advice, encouragement and praise to his fellow scientific 'labourers' of both sexes. Selected letters Letter 2234 - Darwin to Unidentified, [5 March 1858] Darwin advises that Professor C. P. Smyth’s observations are not…

Darwin’s Photographic Portraits
Summary
Darwin was a photography enthusiast. This is evident not only in his use of photography for the study of Expression and Emotions in Man and Animal, but can be witnessed in his many photographic portraits and in the extensive portrait correspondence that…
Matches: 5 hits
- … later, would take his camera across the globe to observe the 1874 transit of Venus. Tommy, …
- … Perfilieff , a member of the Tolstoy family in March of 1874, Darwin included the line “I have the …
- … newly-produced carte . Image: Charles Darwin, 1874, Elliot and Fry, Dar 257:11, …
- … ©Cambridge University Library Between 1874 and 1878 Darwin was very busy – too busy, …
- … Darwin’s Pictures: Views of Evolutionary Theory, 1837-1874 . New Haven, USA: Yale University Press, …

Darwin and vivisection
Summary
Darwin played an important role in the controversy over vivisection that broke out in late 1874. Public debate was sparked when the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals brought an unsuccessful prosecution against a French physiologist who…

Moral Nature
Summary
In Descent of Man, Darwin argued that human morality had evolved from the social instincts of animals, especially the bonds of sympathy and love. Darwin gathered observations over many decades on animal behavior: the heroic sacrifices of social insects,…
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- … Letter 9377 : Darwin, C. R. to Abbott, F. E. A., 30 March 1874 Writing to the American …
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…
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- … 9633 - Nevill, D. F. to Darwin, [11 September 1874] Dorothy Nevill tells Darwin …

Clémence Auguste Royer
Summary
Getting Origin translated into French was harder than Darwin had expected. The first translator he approached, Madame Belloc, turned him down on the grounds that the content was ‘too scientific‘, and then in 1860 the French political exile Pierre…

Lydia Becker
Summary
Becker was a leading member of the suffrage movement, perhaps best known for publishing the Women’s Suffrage Journal. She was also a successful biologist, astronomer and botanist and, between 1863 and 1877, an occasional correspondent of Charles Darwin. …
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- … Becker was a leading member of the suffrage movement, perhaps best known for publishing the …

Titus Coan
Summary
In 1874, when Darwin was preparing the second edition of Descent of Man, he received letters from all over the world in reply to his queries about human behaviour; one in particular would have stirred up unexpected memories of his own time among the native…
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- … In 1874, when Darwin was preparing the second edition of Descent of Man , he …

Francis Darwin marries
Summary
The Darwins' son, Francis, marries Amy Ruck; Francis starts work as his father's assistant
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- … The Darwins' son, Francis, marries Amy Ruck; Francis starts work as his father's assistant …