AtthesametimeIfeelthatyouhaveaperfectrighttorefusetoanswersuchquestionsasIhaveaskedyou。Sciencemusttakeherpath，andTheologyhers，andtheywillmeetwhenandwhereandhowGodpleases，andyouareinnosenseresponsibleforitifthemeeting—pointshouldstillbeveryfaroff。IfIreceivenoanswertothisletterIshallinfernothingfromyoursilence，exceptthatyoufeltIhadnorighttomakesuchenquiriesofastranger。
[Myfatherrepliedasfollows:]
Down，December14，[1866]。
DearMadam，ItwouldhavegratifiedmemuchifIcouldhavesentsatisfactoryanswerstoyourquestions，or，indeed，answersofanykind。ButIcannotseehowthebeliefthatallorganicbeings，includingman，havebeengeneticallyderivedfromsomesimplebeing，insteadofhavingbeenseparatelycreated，bearsonyourdifficulties。These，asitseemstome，canbeansweredonlybywidelydifferentevidencefromscience，orbytheso—called\"innerconsciousness。\"Myopinionisnotworthmorethanthatofanyothermanwhohasthoughtonsuchsubjects，anditwouldbefollyinmetogiveit。
Imay，however，remarkthatithasalwaysappearedtomemoresatisfactorytolookattheimmenseamountofpainandsufferinginthisworldastheinevitableresultofthenaturalsequenceofevents，i。e。generallaws，ratherthanfromthedirectinterventionofGod，thoughIamawarethisisnotlogicalwithreferencetoanomniscientDeity。Yourlastquestionseemstoresolveitselfintotheproblemoffreewillandnecessity，whichhasbeenfoundbymostpersonsinsoluble。Isincerelywishthatthisnotehadnotbeenasutterlyvaluelessasitis。Iwouldhavesentfullanswers，thoughIhavelittletimeorstrengthtospare，haditbeeninmypower。Ihavethehonourtoremain，dearMadam，Yoursveryfaithfully，CHARLESDARWIN。
P。S。——Iamgrievedthatmyviewsshouldincidentallyhavecausedtroubletoyourmind，butIthankyouforyourjudgment，andhonouryouforit，thattheologyandscienceshouldeachrunitsowncourse，andthatinthepresentcaseIamnotresponsibleiftheirmeeting—pointshouldstillbefaroff。
[Thenextletterdiscussesthe’ReignofLaw，’referredtoafewpagesback:]
CHARLESDARWINTOC。LYELL。
Down，June1[1867]……IamatpresentreadingtheDuke，andamVERYMUCHinterestedbyhim;
yetIcannotbutthink，cleverasthewholeis，thatpartsareweak，aswhenhedoubtswhethereachcurvatureofthebeakofhumming—birdsisofservicetoeachspecies。Headmits，perhapstoofully，thatIhaveshowntheuseofeachlittleridgeandshapeofeachpetalinorchids，andhowstrangehedoesnotextendtheviewtohumming—birds。Stillodder，itseemstome，allthathesaysonbeauty，whichIshouldhavethoughtanonentity，exceptinthemindofsomesentientbeing。HemighthaveaswellsaidthatloveexistedduringthesecondaryorPalaeozoicperiods。I
hopeyouaregettingonwithyourbookbetterthanIamwithmine，whichkillsmewiththelabourofcorrecting，andisintolerablydull，thoughI
didnotthinksowhenIwaswritingit。Anaturalist’slifewouldbeahappyoneifhehadonlytoobserve，andnevertowrite。
WeshallbeinLondonforaweekinaboutafortnight’stime，andIshallenjoyhavingabreakfasttalkwithyou。
Yoursaffectionately，C。DARWIN。
[Thefollowingletterreferstothenewandimprovedtranslationofthe’Origin，’undertakenbyProfessorCarus:]
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。VICTORCARUS。
Down，February17[1867]。
MydearSir，Ihavereadyourprefacewithcare。ItseemstomethatyouhavetreatedBronnwithcompleterespectandgreatdelicacy，andthatyouhavealludedtoyourownlabourwithmuchmodesty。IdonotthinkthatanyofBronn’sfriendscancomplainofwhatyousayandwhatyouhavedone。Formyownsake，Igrievethatyouhavenotaddednotes，asIamsurethatIshouldhaveprofitedmuchbythem;butasyouhaveomittedBronn’sobjections，I
believethatyouhaveactedwithexcellentjudgmentandfairnessinleavingthetextwithoutcommenttotheindependentverdictofthereader。I
heartilycongratulateyouthatthemainpartofyourlabourisover;itwouldhavebeentomostmenaverytroublesometask，butyouseemtohaveindomitablepowersofwork，judgingfromthosetwowonderfulandmostusefulvolumesonzoologicalliterature（’BibliothecaZoologica，’1861。）
editedbyyou，andwhichIneveropenwithoutsurpriseattheiraccuracy，andgratitudefortheirusefulness。IcannotsufficientlytellyouhowmuchIrejoicethatyouwerepersuadedtosuperintendthetranslationofthepresenteditionofmybook，forIhavenowthegreatsatisfactionofknowingthattheGermanpubliccanjudgefairlyofitsmeritsanddemerits……
Withmycordialandsincerethanks，believeme，MydearSir，yoursveryfaithfully，CH。DARWIN。
[TheearliestletterwhichIhaveseenfrommyfathertoProfessorHaeckel，waswrittenin1865，andfromthattimeforwardtheycorresponded（thoughnot，Ithink，withanyregularity）uptotheendofmyfather’slife。HisfriendshipwithHaeckelwasnotnearlygrowthofcorrespondence，aswasthecasewithsomeothers，forinstance，FritzMuller。HaeckelpaidmorethanonevisittoDown，andthesewerethoroughlyenjoyedbymyfather。Thefollowingletterwillservetoshowthestrongfeelingofregardwhichheentertainedforhiscorrespondent——afeelingwhichIhaveoftenheardhimemphaticallyexpress，andwhichwaswarmlyreturned。ThebookreferredtoisHaeckel’s’GenerelleMorphologie，’publishedin1866，acopyofwhichmyfatherreceivedfromtheauthorinJanuary1867。
Dr。E。Krause（’CharlesDarwinundseinVerhaltnisszuDeutschland，’1885。）
hasgivenagoodaccountofProfessorHaeckel’sservicestothecauseofEvolution。Afterspeakingofthelukewarmreceptionwhichthe’Origin’metwithinGermanyonitsfirstpublication，hegoesontodescribethefirstadherentsofthenewfaithasmoreorlesspopularwriters，notespeciallylikelytoadvanceitsacceptancewiththeprofessorialorpurelyscientificworld。AndheclaimsforHaeckelthatitwashisadvocacyofEvolutioninhis’Radiolaria’（1862），andatthe\"Versammlung\"ofNaturalistsatStettinin1863，thatplacedtheDarwinianquestionforthefirsttimepubliclybeforetheforumofGermanscience，andhisenthusiasticpropagandismthatchieflycontributedtoitssuccess。
Mr。Huxley，writingin1869，paidahightributetoProfessorHaeckelastheCoryphaeusoftheDarwinianmovementinGermany。Ofhis’GenerelleMorphologie，’\"anattempttoworkoutthepracticalapplication\"ofthedoctrineofEvolutiontotheirfinalresults，hesaysthatithasthe\"forceandsuggestiveness，and……systematisingpowerofOkenwithouthisextravagance。\"ProfessorHuxleyalsotestifiestothevalueofHaeckel’s’Schopfungs—Geschichte’asanexpositionofthe’GenerelleMorphologie’
\"foraneducatedpublic。\"
Again，inhis’EvolutioninBiology’（Anarticleinthe’EncyclopaediaBritannica，’9thedition，reprintedin’ScienceandCulture，’1881，page298。），Mr。Huxleywrote:\"Whateverhesitationmay，notunfrequently，befeltbylessdaringminds，infollowingHaeckelinmanyofhisspeculations，hisattempttosystematisethedoctrineofEvolution，andtoexhibititsinfluenceasthecentralthoughtofmodernbiology，cannotfailtohaveafar—reachinginfluenceontheprogressofscience。\"
InthefollowinglettermyfatheralludestothesomewhatfiercemannerinwhichProfessorHaeckelfoughtthebattleof’Darwinismus，’andonthissubjectDr。Krausehassomegoodremarks（page162）。Heaskswhethermuchthathappenedintheheatoftheconflictmightnotwellhavebeenotherwise，andaddsthatHaeckelhimselfisthelastmantodenythis。
NeverthelesshethinksthateventhesethingsmayhaveworkedwellforthecauseofEvolution，inasmuchasHaeckel\"concentratedonhimselfbyhis’UrsprungdesMenschen—Geschlechts，’his’GenerelleMorphologie，’and’Schopfungs—Geschichte，’allthehatredandbitternesswhichEvolutionexcitedincertainquarters，\"sothat，\"inasurprisinglyshorttimeitbecamethefashioninGermanythatHaeckelaloneshouldbeabused，whileDarwinwasheldupastheidealofforethoughtandmoderation。\"]
CHARLESDARWINTOE。HAECKEL。
Down，May21，1867。
DearHaeckel，Yourletterofthe18thhasgivenmegreatpleasure，foryouhavereceivedwhatIsaidinthemostkindandcordialmanner。YouhaveinparttakenwhatIsaidmuchstrongerthanIhadintended。Itneveroccurredtomeforamomenttodoubtthatyourwork，withthewholesubjectsoadmirablyandclearlyarranged，aswellasfortifiedbysomanynewfactsandarguments，wouldnotadvanceourcommonobjectinthehighestdegree。AllthatI
thinkisthatyouwillexciteanger，andthatangersocompletelyblindseveryone，thatyourargumentswouldhavenochanceofinfluencingthosewhoarealreadyopposedtoourviews。Moreover，Idonotatalllikethatyou，towardswhomIfeelsomuchfriendship，shouldunnecessarilymakeenemies，andthereispainandvexationenoughintheworldwithoutmorebeingcaused。ButIrepeatthatIcanfeelnodoubtthatyourworkwillgreatlyadvanceoursubject，andIheartilywishitcouldbetranslatedintoEnglish，formyownsakeandthatofothers。Withrespecttowhatyousayaboutmyadvancingtoostronglyobjectionsagainstmyownviews，someofmyEnglishfriendsthinkthatIhaveerredonthisside;buttruthcompelledmetowritewhatIdid，andIaminclinedtothinkitwasgoodpolicy。ThebeliefinthedescenttheoryisslowlyspreadinginEngland（InOctober1867hewrotetoMr。Wallace:——\"Mr。Warringtonhaslatelyreadanexcellentandspiritedabstractofthe’Origin’beforetheVictoriaInstitute，andasthisisamostorthodoxbody，hehasgainedthenameoftheDevil’sAdvocate。Thediscussionwhichfollowedduringthreeconsecutivemeetingsisveryrichfromthenonsensetalked。IfyouwouldcaretoseethenumberIcouldsendityou。\"），evenamongstthosewhocangivenoreasonfortheirbelief。NobodyofmenwereatfirstsomuchopposedtomyviewsasthemembersoftheLondonEntomologicalSociety，butnowIamassuredthat，withtheexceptionoftwoorthreeoldmen，allthemembersconcurwithmetoacertainextent。IthasbeenagreatdisappointmenttomethatIhaveneverreceivedyourlongletterwrittentomefromtheCanaryIslands。Iamrejoicedtohearthatyourtour，whichseemstohavebeenamostinterestingone，hasdoneyourhealthmuchgood。
Iamworkingawayatmynewbook，butmakeveryslowprogress，andtheworktriesmyhealth，whichismuchthesameaswhenyouwerehere。
VictorCarusisgoingtotranslateit，butwhetheritisworthtranslation，Iamratherdoubtful。IamverygladtohearthatthereissomechanceofyourvisitingEnglandthisautumn，andallinthishousewillbedelightedtoseeyouhere。
Believeme，mydearHaeckel，Yoursverysincerely，CHARLESDARWIN。
CHARLESDARWINTOF。MULLER。
Down，July31[1867]。
MydearSir，IreceivedaweekagoyourletterofJune2，fullasusualofvaluablematterandspecimens。Itarrivedatexactlytherighttime，forIwasenabledtogiveaprettyfullabstractofyourobservationsontheplant’sownpollenbeingpoisonous。Ihaveinsertedthisabstractintheproof—
sheetsinmychapteronsterility，anditformsthemoststrikingpartofmywholechapter。（In’TheVariationofAnimalsandPlants。’）Ithankyouverysincerelyforthemostinterestingobservations，which，however，I
regretthatyoudidnotpublishindependently。IhavebeenforcedtoabbreviateoneortwopartsmorethanIwished……Yourlettersalwayssurpriseme，fromthenumberofpointstowhichyouattend。IwishIcouldmakemylettersofanyinteresttoyou，forIhardlyeverseeanaturalist，andliveasretiredalifeasyouinBrazil。Withrespecttomimeticplants，IrememberHookermanyyearsagosayinghebelievedthatthereweremany，butIagreewithyouthatitwouldbemostdifficulttodistinguishbetweenmimeticresemblanceandtheeffectsofpeculiarconditions。Whocansaytowhichofthesecausestoattributetheseveralplantswithheath—likefoliageattheCapeofGoodHope？Isitnotalsoadifficultythatquadrupedsappeartorecogniseplantsmorebytheir[scent]thantheirappearance？WhatIhavejustsaidremindsmetoaskyouaquestion。SirJ。LubbockbroughtmetheotherdaywhatappearstobeaterrestrialPlanaria（thefirsteverfoundinthenorthernhemisphere）andwhichwascolouredexactlylikeourdark—colouredslugs。Nowslugsarenotdevouredbybirds，liketheshell—bearingspecies，andthismademerememberthatI
foundtheBrazilianPlanariaeactuallytogetherwithstripedVaginuliwhichIbelieveweresimilarlycoloured。Canyouthrowanylightonthis？I
wishtoknow，becauseIwaspuzzledsomemonthsagohowitwouldbepossibletoaccountforthebrightcoloursofthePlanariaeinreferencetosexualselection。Bytheway，Isupposetheyarehermaphrodites。
Donotforgettoaidme，ifinyourpower，withanswerstoANYofmyquestionsonexpression，forthesubjectinterestsmegreatly。Withcordialthanksforyournever—failingkindness，believeme，Yoursverysincerely，CHARLESDARWIN。
CHARLESDARWINTOC。LYELL。
Down，July18[1867]。
MydearLyell，Manythanksforyourlongletter。Iamsorrytohearthatyouareindespairaboutyourbook（The2ndvolumeofthe10thEditionofthe’Principles。’）;Iwellknowthatfeeling，butamnowgettingoutofthelowerdepths。Ishallbeverymuchpleased，ifyoucanmaketheleastuseofmypresentbook，anddonotcareatallwhetheritispublishedbeforeyours。MinewillappeartowardstheendofNovemberofthisyear;youspeakofyoursasnotcomingouttillNovember，1868，whichIhopemaybeanerror。ThereisnothingaboutManinmybookwhichcaninterferewithyou，soIwillorderallthecompletedcleansheetstobesent（andothersassoonasready）toyou，butpleaseobserveyouwillnotcareforthefirstvolume，whichisamererecordoftheamountofvariation;butIhopethesecondwillbesomewhatmoreinteresting。ThoughIfearthewholemustbedull。
Irejoicefrommyheartthatyouaregoingtospeakoutplainlyaboutspecies。MybookaboutMan，ifpublished，willbeshort，andalargeportionwillbedevotedtosexualselection，towhichsubjectIalludedinthe’Origin’asbearingonMan……
CHARLESDARWINTOC。LYELL。
Down，August22[1867]。
MydearLyell，Ithankyoucordiallyforyourlasttwoletters。TheformeronedidmeREALgood，forIhadgotsoweariedwiththesubjectthatIcouldhardlybeartocorrecttheproofs（Theproofsof’AnimalsandPlants，’whichLyellwasthenreading。），andyougavemefreshheart。IrememberthinkingthatwhenyoucametothePigeonchapteryouwouldpassitoverasquiteunreadable。Yourlastletterhasinterestedmeinverymanyways，andI
havebeengladtohearaboutthosehorridunbelievingFrenchmen。IhavebeenparticularlypleasedthatyouhavenoticedPangenesis。Idonotknowwhetheryoueverhadthefeelingofhavingthoughtsomuchoverasubjectthatyouhadlostallpowerofjudgingit。ThisismycasewithPangenesis（whichis26or27yearsold），butIaminclinedtothinkthatifitbeadmittedasaprobablehypothesisitwillbeasomewhatimportantstepinBiology。
Icannothelpstillregrettingthatyouhaveeverlookedattheslips，forIhopetoimprovethewholeagooddeal。Itissurprisingtome，anddelightful，thatyoushouldcareintheleastabouttheplants。AltogetheryouhavegivenmeoneofthebestcordialsIeverhadinmylife，andI
heartilythankyou。IdespatchedthismorningtheFrenchedition。（Ofthe’Origin。’ItappearsthatmyfatherwassendingacopyoftheFrencheditiontoSirCharles。TheintroductionwasbyMdlle。Royer，whotranslatedthebook。）Theintroductionwasacompletesurprisetome，andIdaresayhasinjuredthebookinFrance;nevertheless……itshows，I
think，thatthewomanisuncommonlyclever。OnceagainmanythanksfortherenewedcouragewithwhichIshallattackthehorridproof—sheets。
Yoursaffectionately，CHARLESDARWIN。
P。S。——ARussianwhoistranslatingmynewbookintoRussianhasbeenhere，andsaysyouareimmenselyreadinRussia，andmanyeditions——howmanyI
forget。SixeditionsofBuckleandfoureditionsofthe’Origin。’
CHARLESDARWINTOASAGRAY。
Down，October16[1867]。
MydearGray，IsendbythispostcleansheetsofVolumeI。uptopage336，andthereareonly411pagesinthisvolume。IamVERYgladtohearthatyouaregoingtoreviewmybook;butifthe\"Nation\"（ThebookwasreviewedbyDr。Grayinthe\"Nation\"，March19，1868。）isanewspaperIwishitwereatthebottomofthesea，forIfearthatyouwillthusbestoppedreviewingmeinascientificjournal。Thefirstvolumeisalldetails，andyouwillnotbeabletoreadit;andyoumustrememberthatthechaptersonplantsarewrittenfornaturalistswhoarenotbotanists。ThelastchapterinVolumeI。is，however，Ithink，acuriouscompilationoffacts;itisonbud—
variation。InVolumeII。someofthechaptersaremoreinteresting;andI
shallbeverycurioustohearyourverdictonthechapteroncloseinter—
breeding。ThechapteronwhatIcallPangenesiswillbecalledamaddream，andIshallbeprettywellsatisfiedifyouthinkitadreamworthpublishing;butatthebottomofmyownmindIthinkitcontainsagreattruth。Ifinishmybookwithasemi—theologicalparagraph，inwhichI
quoteanddifferfromyou;whatyouwillthinkofit，Iknownot……
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。
Down，November17[1867]。
MydearHooker，Congratulateme，forIhavefinishedthelastreviseofthelastsheetofmybook。Ithasbeenanawfuljob:sevenandahalfmonthscorrectingthepress:thebook，frommuchsmalltype，doesnotlookbig，butisreallyverybig。Ihavehadhardworktokeepuptothemark，butduringthelastweekonlyfewrevisescame，sothatIhaverestedandfeelmoremyself。
Hence，afterourlongmutualsilence，Ienjoymyselfbywritinganotetoyou，forthesakeofexhaling，andhearingfromyou。Onaccountoftheindex（TheindexwasmadebyMr。W。S。Dallas;Ihaveoftenheardmyfatherexpresshisadmirationofthisexcellentpieceofwork。），Idonotsupposethatyouwillreceiveyourcopytillthemiddleofnextmonth。IshallbeintenselyanxioustohearwhatyouthinkaboutPangenesis;thoughIcanseehowfearfullyimperfect，eveninmereconjecturalconclusions，itis;yetithasbeenaninfinitesatisfactiontomesomehowtoconnectthevariouslargegroupsoffacts，whichIhavelongconsidered，byanintelligiblethread。Ishallnotbeatallsurprisedifyouattackitandmewithunparalleledferocity。Itwillbemyendeavourtodoaslittleaspossibleforsometime，but[I]shallsoonprepareapaperortwofortheLinneanSociety。InashorttimeweshallgotoLondonfortendays，butthetimeisnotyetfixed。NowIhavetoldyouadealaboutmyself，anddoletmehearagooddealaboutyourownpastandfuturedoings。Canyoupayusavisit，earlyinDecember？……Ihaveseennooneforanage，andheardnonews……AboutmybookIwillgiveyouabitofadvice。SkiptheWHOLEofVolumeI。，exceptthelastchapter（andthatneedonlybeskimmed）andskiplargelyinthe2ndvolume;andthenyouwillsayitisaverygoodbook。
1868。
[’TheVariationofAnimalsandPlants’was，asalreadymentioned，publishedonJanuary30，1868，andonthatdayhesentacopytoFritzMuller，andwrotetohim:——
\"Isendbythispost，byFrenchpacket，mynewbook，thepublicationofwhichhasbeenmuchdelayed。Thegreaterpart，asyouwillsee，isnotmeanttoberead;butIshouldverymuchliketohearwhatyouthinkof’Pangenesis，’thoughIfearitwillappeartoEVERYONEfartoospeculative。\"]
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。
February3[1868]……IamverymuchpleasedatwhatyousayaboutmyIntroduction;afteritwasintypeIwasasnearaspossiblecancellingthewhole。Ihavebeenforsometimeindespairaboutmybook，andifItrytoreadafewpagesI
feelfairlynauseated，butdonotletthismakeyoupraiseit;forIhavemadeupmymindthatitisnotworthafifthpartoftheenormouslabourithascostme。Iassureyouthatallthatisworthyourdoing（ifyouhavetimeforsomuch）isglancingatChapterVI。，andreadingpartsofthelaterchapters。Thefactsonself—impotentplantsseemtomecurious，andIhaveworkedouttomyownsatisfactionthegoodfromcrossingandevilfrominterbreeding。IdidreadPangenesistheotherevening，buteventhis，mybelovedchild，asIhadfancied，quitedisgustedme。Thedeviltakethewholebook;andyetnowIamatworkagainashardasIamable。
ItisreallyagreatevilthatfromhabitIhavepleasureinhardlyanythingexceptNaturalHistory，fornothingelsemakesmeforgetmyever—
recurrentuncomfortablesensations。ButImustnothowlanymore，andthecriticsmaysaywhattheylike;Ididmybest，andmancandonomore。
WhatasplendidpursuitNaturalHistorywouldbeifitwasallobservingandnowriting！……
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。
Down，February10[1868]。
MydearHooker，Whatisthegoodofhavingafriend，ifonemaynotboasttohim？IheardyesterdaythatMurrayhassoldinaweekthewholeeditionof1500copiesofmybook，andthesalesopressingthathehasagreedwithClowestogetanothereditioninfourteendays！Thishasdonemeaworldofgood，forI
hadgotintoasortofdoggedhatredofmybook。Andnowtherehasappearedareviewinthe\"PallMall\"whichhaspleasedmeexcessively，moreperhapsthanisreasonable。Iamquitecontent，anddonotcarehowmuchI
maybepitchedinto。Ifbyanychanceyoushouldhearwhowrotethearticleinthe\"PallMall\"，dopleasetellme;itissomeonewhowritescapitally，andwhoknowsthesubject。IwenttoluncheononSunday，toLubbock’s，partlyinhopesofseeingyou，and，behangedtoyou，youwerenotthere。
Yourcock—a—hoopfriend，C。D。
[Independentlyofthefavourabletoneoftheableseriesofnoticesinthe\"PallMallGazette\"（February10，15，17，1868），myfathermaywellhavebeengratifiedbythefollowingpassages:——
\"Wemustcallattentiontotherareandnoblecalmnesswithwhichheexpoundshisownviews，undisturbedbytheheatsofpolemicalagitationwhichthoseviewshaveexcited，andpersistentlyrefusingtoretortonhisantagonistsbyridicule，byindignation，orbycontempt。Consideringtheamountofvituperationandinsinuationwhichhascomefromtheotherside，thisforbearanceissupremelydignified。\"
Andagaininthethirdnotice，February17:——
\"Nowherehastheauthorawordthatcouldwoundthemostsensitiveself—
loveofanantagonist;nowheredoeshe，intextornote，exposethefallaciesandmistakesofbrotherinvestigators……butwhileabstainingfromimpertinentcensure，heislavishinacknowledgingthesmallestdebtshemayowe;andhisbookwillmakemanymenhappy。\"
IamindebtedtoMessrs。Smith&ElderfortheinformationthatthesearticleswerewrittenbyMr。G。H。Lewes。]
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。
Down，February23[1868]。
MydearHooker，Ihavehadalmostasmanyletterstowriteoflateasyoucanhave，viz。
from8to10perdiem，chieflygettingupfactsonsexualselection，thereforeIhavefeltnoinclinationtowritetoyou，andnowImeantowritesolelyaboutmybookformyownsatisfaction，andnotatallforyours。Thefirsteditionwas1500copies，andnowthesecondisprintedoff;sharpwork。Didyoulookatthereviewinthe\"Athenaeum\"
（\"Athenaeum\"，February15，1868。MyfatherquotedPouchet’sassertionthat\"variationunderdomesticationthrowsnolightonthenaturalmodificationofspecies。\"ThereviewerquotestheendofapassageinwhichmyfatherdeclaresthathecanseenoforceinPouchet’sarguments，orratherassertions，andthengoeson:\"Wearesadlymistakeniftherearenotclearproofsinthepagesofthebookbeforeusthat，onthecontrary，Mr。
Darwinhasperceived，felt，andyieldedtotheforceoftheargumentsorassertionsofhisFrenchantagonist。\"Thefollowingmayserveassamplesoftherestofthereview:——
\"Henceforththerhetoricianswillhaveabetterillustrationofanti—climaxthanthemountainwhichbroughtforthamouse，……inthediscovereroftheoriginofspecies，whotriedtoexplainthevariationofpigeons！
\"Afewsummarywords。Onthe’OriginofSpecies’Mr。Darwinhasnothing，andisneverlikelytohaveanything，tosay;butonthevastlyimportantsubjectofinheritance，thetransmissionofpeculiaritiesonceacquiredthroughsuccessivegenerations，thisworkisavaluablestore—houseoffactsforcuriousstudentsandpracticalbreeders。\"），showingprofoundcontemptofme？……ItisashamethatheshouldhavesaidthatIhavetakenmuchfromPouchet，withoutacknowledgment;forItookliterallynothing，therebeingnothingtotake。Thereisacapitalreviewinthe\"Gardeners’
Chronicle\"whichwillsellthebookifanythingwill。Idon’tquiteseewhetherIorthewriterisinamuddleaboutmanCAUSINGvariability。Ifamandropsabitofironintosulphuricacidhedoesnotcausetheaffinitiestocomeintoplay，yethemaybesaidtomakesulphateofiron。
Idonotknowhowtoavoidambiguity。
Afterwhatthe\"PallMallGazette\"andthe\"Chronicle\"havesaidIdonotcaread——。
IfearPangenesisisstillborn;Batessayshehasreadittwice，andisnotsurethatheunderstandsit。H。Spencersaystheviewisquitedifferentfromhis（andthisisagreatrelieftome，asIfearedtobeaccusedofplagiarism，bututterlyfailedtobesurewhathemeant，sothoughtitsafesttogivemyviewasalmostthesameashis），andhesaysheisnotsureheunderstandsit……AmInotapoordevil？yetItooksuchpains，I
mustthinkthatIexpressedmyselfclearly。OldSirH。Hollandsayshehasreadittwice，andthinksitverytough;butbelievesthatsoonerorlater\"someviewakintoit\"willbeaccepted。
Youwillthinkmeveryself—sufficient，whenIdeclarethatIfeelSUREifPangenesisisnowstillbornitwill，thankGod，atsomefuturetimereappear，begottenbysomeotherfather，andchristenedbysomeothername。
Haveyouevermetwithanytangibleandclearviewofwhattakesplaceingeneration，whetherbyseedsorbuds，orhowalong—lostcharactercanpossiblyreappear;orhowthemaleelementcanpossiblyaffectthemotherplant，orthemotheranimal，sothatherfutureprogenyareaffected？Nowallthesepointsandmanyothersareconnectedtogether，whethertrulyorfalselyisanotherquestion，byPangenesis。YouseeIdiehard，andstickupformypoorchild。
Thisletteriswrittenformyownsatisfaction，andnotforyours。Sobearit。
Yoursaffectionately，CH。DARWIN。
CHARLESDARWINTOA。NEWTON。（Prof。ofZoologyatCambridge。）
Down，February9[1870]。
DearNewton，IsupposeitwouldbeuniversallyheldextremelywrongforadefendanttowritetoaJudgetoexpresshissatisfactionatajudgmentinhisfavour;
andyetIamgoingthustoact。Ihavejustreadwhatyouhavesaidinthe’Record’（’ZoologicalRecord。’Thevolumefor1868，publishedDecember1869。）aboutmypigeonchapters，andithasgratifiedmebeyondmeasure。I
havesometimesfeltalittledisappointedthatthelabourofsomanyyearsseemedtobealmostthrownaway，foryouarethefirstmancapableofformingajudgment（exceptingpartlyQuatrefages），whoseemstohavethoughtanythingofthispartofmywork。Theamountoflabour，correspondence，andcare，whichthesubjectcostme，ismorethanyoucouldwellsuppose。Ithoughtthearticleinthe\"Athenaeum\"wasveryunjust;
butnowIfeelamplyrepaid，andIcordiallythankyouforyoursympathyandtoowarmpraise。Whatlabouryouhavebestowedonyourpartofthe’Record’！Ioughttobeashamedtospeakofmyamountofwork。I
thoroughlyenjoyedtheSunday，whichyouandtheothersspenthere，andIremain，dearNewton，yoursverysincerely，CH。DARWIN。
CHARLESDARWINTOA。R。WALLACE。
Down，February27[1868]。
MydearWallace，YoucannotwellimaginehowmuchIhavebeenpleasedbywhatyousayabout’Pangenesis。’Noneofmyfriendswillspeakout……Hooker，asfarasI
understandhim，whichIhardlydoatpresent，seemstothinkthatthehypothesisislittlemorethansayingthatorganismshavesuchandsuchpotentialities。Whatyousayexactlyandfullyexpressesmyfeeling，viz。
thatitisarelieftohavesomefeasibleexplanationofthevariousfacts，whichcanbegivenupassoonasanybetterhypothesisisfound。Ithascertainlybeenanimmenserelieftomymind;forIhavebeenstumblingoverthesubjectforyears，dimlyseeingthatsomerelationexistedbetweenthevariousclassesoffacts。InowhearfromH。Spencerthathisviewsquotedinmyfoot—noterefertosomethingquitedistinct，asyouseemtohaveperceived。
Ishallbeverygladtohearatsomefuturedayyourcriticismsonthe\"causesofvariability。\"IndeedIfeelsurethatIamrightaboutsterilityandnaturalselection……Idonotquiteunderstandyourcase，andwethinkthatawordortwoismisplaced。Iwishsometimeyouwouldconsiderthecaseunderthefollowingpointofview:——Ifsterilityiscausedoraccumulatedthroughnaturalselection，thanaseverydegreeexistsuptoabsolutebarrenness，naturalselectionmusthavethepowerofincreasingit。Nowtaketwospecies，AandB，andassumethattheyare（byanymeans）half—sterile，i。e。producehalfthefullnumberofoffspring。
Nowtryandmake（bynaturalselection）AandBabsolutelysterilewhencrossed，andyouwillfindhowdifficultitis。Igrantindeed，itiscertain，thatthedegreeofsterilityoftheindividualsAandBwillvary，butanysuchextra—sterileindividualsof，wewillsayA，iftheyshouldhereafterbreedwithotherindividualsofA，willbequeathnoadvantagetotheirprogeny，bywhichthesefamilieswilltendtoincreaseinnumberoverotherfamiliesofA，whicharenotmoresterilewhencrossedwithB。ButI
donotknowthatIhavemadethisanyclearerthaninthechapterinmybook。Itisamostdifficultbitofreasoning，whichIhavegoneoverandoveragainonpaperwithdiagrams……Heartythanksforyourletter。Youhaveindeedpleasedme，forIhadgivenupthegreatgodPanasastillborndeity。Iwishyoucouldbeinducedtomakeitclearwithyouradmirablepowersofelucidationinoneofthescientificjournals……
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。
Down，February28[1868]。