第46章
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  \"Inhismostrecentwork’OntheOriginofSpecies,’althoughopinionsmaybedividedorundecidedwithrespecttoitsmeritsinsomerespects,allwillallowthatitcontainsamassofobservationsbearinguponthehabits,structure,affinities,anddistributionofanimals,perhapsunrivalledforinterest,minuteness,andpatienceofobservation。Someamongstusmayperhapsinclinetoacceptthetheoryindicatedbythetitleofthiswork,whileothersmayperhapsinclinetorefuse,oratleasttoremitittoafuturetime,whenincreasedknowledgeshallaffordstrongergroundsforitsultimateacceptanceorrejection。Speakinggenerallyandcollectively,wehaveexpresslyomitteditfromthegroundsofouraward。\"

  IbelieveIamrightinsayingthatnolittledissatisfactionatthePresident’smannerofallusiontothe’Origin’wasfeltbysomeFellowsoftheSociety。

  ThepresentationoftheCopleyMedalisofinterestinanotherway,inasmuchasitledtoSirC。Lyellmaking,inhisafter—dinnerspeech,a\"confessionoffaithastothe’Origin。’\"Hewrotetomyfather(’Life,’

  vol。ii。page384),\"IsaidIhadbeenforcedtogiveupmyoldfaithwithoutthoroughlyseeingmywaytoanewone。ButIthinkyouwouldhavebeensatisfiedwiththelengthIwent。\"]

  CHARLESDARWINTOT。H。HUXLEY。

  Down,October3[1864]。

  MydearHuxley,IfIdonotpouroutmyadmirationofyourarticle(\"CriticismsontheOriginofSpecies,\"’Nat。Hist。Review,’1864。Republishedin’LaySermons,’1870,page328。TheworkofProfessorKollikerreferredtois’UeberdieDarwin’scheSchopfungstheorie’(Leipzig,1864)。TowardProfessorKollikermyfatherfeltnotonlytherespectduetosodistinguishedanaturalist(asentimentwellexpressedinProfessorHuxley’sreview),buthehadalsoapersonalregardforhim,andoftenalludedwithsatisfactiontothevisitwhichProfessorKollikerpaidatDown。)onKolliker,Ishallexplode。Ineverreadanythingbetterdone。I

  hadmuchwishedhisarticleanswered,andindeedthoughtofdoingsomyself,sothatIconsideredseveralpoints。Youhavehitonall,andonsomeinaddition,andoh!byJove,howwellyouhavedoneit。AsIreadonandcametopointafterpointonwhichIhadthought,Icouldnothelpjeeringandscoffingatmyself,toseehowinfinitelybetteryouhaddoneitthanIcouldhavedone。Well,ifanyone,whodoesnotunderstandNaturalSelection,willreadthis,hewillbeablockheadifitisnotasclearasdaylight。OldFlourens(’ExamendulivredeM。Darwinsurl’originedesespeces。’ParP。Flourens。8vo。Paris,1864。)washardlyworththepowderandshot;buthowcapitallyyoubringinabouttheAcademician,andyourmetaphorofthesea—sandisINIMITABLE。

  Itisamarveltomehowyoucanresistbecomingaregularreviewer。Well,Ihaveexplodednow,andithasdonemeadealofgood……

  [Inthesamearticleinthe’NaturalHistoryReview,’Mr。HuxleyspeaksofthebookabovealludedtobyFlourens,theSecretairePerpetueloftheAcademiedesSciences,asoneofthetwo\"mostelaboratecriticisms\"ofthe’OriginofSpecies’oftheyear。Hequotesthefollowingpassage:——

  \"M。Darwincontinue:’Aucunedistinctionabsoluen’aeteetnepeutetreentrelesespecesetlesvarietes!’Jevousaidejaditquevousvoustrompiez;unedistinctionabsolueseparelesvarietesd’aveclesespeces。\"

  Mr。Huxleyremarksonthis,\"BeingdevoidoftheblessingsofanAcademyinEngland,weareunaccustomedtoseeourablestmentreatedinthiswayevenbyaPerpetualSecretary。\"AfterdemonstratingM。Flourens’

  misapprehensionofNaturalSelection,Mr。Huxleysays,\"Howoneknowsitallbyheart,andwithwhatreliefonereadsatpage65’JelaisseM。

  Darwin。’\"

  OnthesamesubjectmyfatherwrotetoMr。Wallace:——

  \"Agreatgun,Flourens,haswrittenalittledullbookagainstmewhichpleasesmemuch,foritisplainthatourgoodworkisspreadinginFrance。

  Hespeaksofthe\"engouement\"aboutthisbook[the’Origin’]\"sofullofemptyandpresumptuousthoughts。\"Thepassageherealludedtoisasfollows:——

  \"Enfinl’ouvragedeM。Darwinaparu。Onnepeutqu’etrefrappedutalentdel’auteur。Maisqued’ideesobscures,qued’ideesfausses!Queljargonmetaphysiquejetemalaproposdansl’histoirenaturelle,quitombedanslegalimatiasdesqu’ellesortdesideesclaires,desideesjustes。Quellangagepretentieuxetvide!Quellespersonificationspuerilesetsurannees!Olucidite!Osoliditedel’espritfrancais,quedevenez—

  vous?\"]

  1865。

  [Thiswasagainatimeofmuchill—health,buttowardsthecloseoftheyearhebegantorecoverunderthecareofthelateDr。Bence—Jones,whodietedhimseverely,andasheexpressedit,\"half—starvedhimtodeath。\"

  Hewasabletoworkat’AnimalsandPlants’untilnearlytheendofApril,andfromthattimeuntilDecemberhedidpracticallynowork,withtheexceptionoflookingoverthe’OriginofSpecies’forasecondFrenchedition。HewrotetoSirJ。D。Hooker:——\"Iam,asitwere,readingthe’Origin’forthefirsttime,forIamcorrectingforasecondFrenchedition:anduponmylife,mydearfellow,itisaverygoodbook,butoh!

  mygracious,itistoughreading,andIwishitweredone。\"(Towardstheendoftheyearmyfatherreceivedthenewsofanewconverttohisviews,inthepersonofthedistinguishedAmericannaturalistLesquereux。HewrotetoSirJ。D。Hooker:\"IhavehadanenormousletterfromLeoLesquereux(afterdoubts,Ididnotthinkitworthsendingyou)onCoalFlora。Hewrotesomeexcellentarticlesin’Silliman’against’Origin’

  views;buthesaysnow,afterrepeatedreadingofthebook,heisaconvert!\")

  ThefollowingletterreferstotheDukeofArgyll’saddresstotheRoyalSocietyofEdinburgh,December5th,1864,inwhichhecriticisesthe’OriginofSpecies。’MyfatherseemstohavereadtheDuke’saddressasreportedinthe\"Scotsman\"ofDecember6th,1865。Inalettertomyfather(January16,1865,’Life,’vol。ii。page385),Lyellwrote,\"Theaddressisagreatsteptowardsyourviews——fargreater,Ibelieve,thanitseemswhenreadmerelywithreferencetocriticismsandobjections。\"]

  CHARLESDARWINTOC。LYELL。

  Down,January22,[1865]。

  MydearLyell,Ithankyouforyourveryinterestingletter。IhavethetrueEnglishinstinctivereverenceforrank,andthereforelikedtohearaboutthePrincessRoyal。(\"Ihad……ananimatedconversationonDarwinismwiththePrincessRoyal,whoisaworthydaughterofherfather,inthereadingofgoodbooks,andthinkingofwhatshereads。Shewasverymuchaufaitatthe’Origin,’andHuxley’sbook,the’Antiquity,’etc。\"——(Lyell’s’Life,’

  vol。ii。page385。)YouaskwhatIthinkoftheDuke’saddress,andI

  shallbegladtotellyou。ItseemstomeEXTREMELYclever,likeeverythingIhavereadofhis;butIamnotshaken——perhapsyouwillsaythatneithergodsnormencouldshakeme。IdemurtotheDukereiteratinghisobjectionthatthebrilliantplumageofthemalehumming—birdcouldnothavebeenacquiredthroughselection,atthesametimeentirelyignoringmydiscussion(page93,3rdedition)onbeautifulplumagebeingacquiredthroughSEXUALselection。Thedukemaythinkthisinsufficient,butthatisanotherquestion。AllanalogymakesmequitedisagreewiththeDukethatthedifferenceinthebeak,wingandtail,arenotofimportancetotheseveralspecies。IntheonlytwospecieswhichIhavewatched,thedifferenceinflightandintheuseofthetailwasconspicuouslygreat。

  TheDuke,whoknowsmyOrchidbooksowell,mighthavelearntalessonofcautionfromit,withrespecttohisdoctrineofdifferencesformerevarietyorbeauty。Itmaybeconfidentlysaidthatnotribeofplantspresentssuchgrotesqueandbeautifuldifferences,whichnooneuntillately,conjecturedwereofanyuse;butnowinalmosteverycaseIhavebeenabletoshowtheirimportantservice。Itshouldberememberedthatwithhummingbirdsororchids,amodificationinonepartwillcausecorrelatedchangesinotherparts。Iagreewithwhatyousayaboutbeauty。

  Iformerlythoughtagooddealonthesubject,andwasledquitetorepudiatethedoctrineofbeautybeingcreatedforbeauty’ssake。IdemuralsototheDuke’sexpressionof\"newbirths。\"Thatmaybeaverygoodtheory,butitisnotmine,unlessindeedhecallsabirdbornwithabeak1/100thofaninchlongerthanusual\"anewbirth;\"butthisisnotthesenseinwhichthetermwouldusuallybeunderstood。ThemoreIworkthemoreIfeelconvincedthatitisbytheaccumulationofsuchextremelyslightvariationsthatnewspeciesarise。IdonotpleadguiltytotheDuke’schargethatIforgetthatnaturalselectionmeansonlythepreservationofvariationswhichindependentlyarise。(\"Strictlyspeaking,therefore,Mr。Darwin’stheoryisnotatheoryontheOriginofSpeciesatall,butonlyatheoryonthecauseswhichleadtotherelativesuccessandfailureofsuchnewformsasmaybebornintotheworld。\"——\"Scotsman\",December6,1864。)IhaveexpressedthisinasstronglanguageasIcoulduse,butitwouldhavebeeninfinitelytedioushadIoneveryoccasionthusguardedmyself。Iwillcry\"peccavi\"whenIhearoftheDukeoryouattackingbreedersforsayingthatmanhasmadehisimprovedshorthorns,orpouterpigeons,orbantams。AndIcouldquotestillstrongerexpressionsusedbyagriculturists。Mandoesmakehisartificialbreeds,forhisselectivepowerisofsuchimportancerelativelytothatoftheslightspontaneousvariations。Butnoonewillattackbreedersforusingsuchexpressions,andtherisinggenerationwillnotblameme。

  Manythanksforyourofferofsendingmethe’Elements。’(Sixtheditioninonevolume。)Ihopetoreaditall,butunfortunatelyreadingmakesmyheadwhizmorethananythingelse。Iamablemostdaystoworkfortwoorthreehours,andthismakesallthedifferenceinmyhappiness。Ihaveresolvednottobetemptedastray,andtopublishnothingtillmyvolumeonVariationiscompleted。YougavemeexcellentadviceaboutthefootnotesinmyDogchapter,buttheiralterationgavemeinfinitetrouble,andI

  oftenwishedallthedogs,andIfearsometimesyouyourself,inthenetherregions。

  We(dictatorandwriter)sendourbestlovetoLadyLyell。

  Yoursaffectionately,CHARLESDARWIN。

  P。S。——IfeveryoushouldspeakwiththeDukeonthesubject,pleasesayhowmuchinterestedIwaswithhisaddress。

  [InhisautobiographicalsketchmyfatherhasremarkedthatowingtocertainearlymemorieshefeltthehonourofbeingelectedtotheRoyalandRoyalMedicalSocietiesofEdinburgh\"morethananysimilarhonour。\"ThefollowingextractfromalettertoSirJosephHookerreferstohiselectiontotheformerofthesesocieties。ThelatterpartoftheextractreferstotheBerlinAcademy,towhichhewaselectedin1878:——

  \"Hereisareallycuriousthing,consideringthatBrewsterisPresidentandBalfourSecretary。IhavebeenelectedHonoraryMemberoftheRoyalSocietyofEdinburgh。Andthisleadsmetoathirdquestion。DoestheBerlinAcademyofSciencessendtheirProceedingstoHonoraryMembers?I

  wanttoknow,toascertainwhetherIamamember;Isupposenot,forI

  thinkitwouldhavemadesomeimpressiononme;yetIdistinctlyrememberreceivingsomediplomasignedbyEhrenberg。Ihavebeensocareless;I

  havelostseveraldiplomas,andnowIwanttoknowwhatSocietiesIbelongto,asIobserveevery[one]tackstheirtitlestotheirnamesinthecatalogueoftheRoyalSoc。\"]

  CHARLESDARWINTOC。LYELL。

  Down,February21[1865]。

  MydearLyell,Ihavetakenalongtimetothankyouverymuchforyourpresentofthe’Elements。’

  Iamgoingthroughitall,readingwhatisnew,andwhatIhaveforgotten,andthisisagooddeal。

  Iamsimplyastonishedattheamountoflabour,knowledge,andclearthoughtcondensedinthiswork。Thewholestrikesmeassomethingquitegrand。IhavebeenparticularlyinterestedbyyouraccountofHeer’sworkandyourdiscussionontheAtlanticContinent。Iamparticularlydelightedattheviewwhichyoutakeonthissubject;forIhavelongthoughtForbesdidanillserviceinsofreelymakingcontinents。

  IhavealsobeenverygladtoreadyourargumentonthedenudationoftheWeald,andyourexcellentresumeonthePurbeckBeds;andthisisthepointatwhichIhaveatpresentarrivedinyourbook。IcannotsaythatIamquiteconvincedthatthereisnoconnectionbeyondthatpointedoutbyyou,betweenglacialactionandtheformationoflakebasins;butyouwillnotmuchvaluemyopiniononthishead,asIhavealreadychangedmymindsomehalf—dozentimes。

  Iwanttomakeasuggestiontoyou。Ifoundtheweightofyourvolumeintolerable,especiallywhenlyingdown,sowithgreatboldnesscutitintotwopieces,andtookitoutofitscover;nowcouldnotMurraywithoutanyotherchangeaddtohisadvertisementalinesaying,\"ifboundintwovolumes,oneshillingoroneshillingandsixpenceextra。\"Youthusmightoriginateachangewhichwouldbeablessingtoallweak—handedreaders。

  Believeme,mydearLyell,Yoursmostsincerely,CHARLESDARWIN。

  OriginateasecondREALBLESSINGandhavetheedgesofthesheetscutlikeaboundbook。(Thiswasafavouritereformofmyfather’s。Hewrotetothe\"Athenaeum\"onthesubject,February5,1867,pointingouthowthatabookcut,evencarefully,withapaperknifecollectsdustonitsedgesfarmorethanamachine—cutbook。Hegoesontoquotethecaseofaladyofhisacquaintancewhowasinthehabitofcuttingbookswithherthumb,andfinallyappealstothe\"Athenaeum\"toearnthegratitudeofchildren\"whohavetocutthroughdryandpicturelessbooksforthebenefitoftheirelders。\"Hetriedtointroducethereforminthecaseofhisownbooks,butfoundtheconservatismofbooksellerstoostrongforhim。Thepresentationcopies,however,ofallhislaterbooksweresentoutwiththeedgescut。)

  CHARLESDARWINTOJOHNLUBBOCK。

  Down,June11[1865]。

  MydearLubbock,Thelatterhalfofyourbook(’PrehistoricTimes,’1865。)hasbeenreadaloudtome,andthestyleissoclearandeasy(weboththinkitperfection)thatIamnowbeginningatthebeginning。Icannotresisttellingyouhowexcellentlywell,inmyopinion,youhavedonetheveryinterestingchapteronsavagelife。Thoughyouhavenecessarilyonlycompiledthematerialsthegeneralresultismostoriginal。ButIoughttokeepthetermoriginalforyourlastchapter,whichhasstruckmeasanadmirableandprofounddiscussion。Ithasquitedelightedme,fornowthepublicwillseewhatkindofmanyouare,whichIamproudtothinkI

  discoveredadozenyearsago。

  Idosincerelywishyouallsuccessinyourelectionandinpolitics;butafterreadingthislastchapter,youmustletmesay:oh,dear!oh,dear!

  ohdear!

  Yoursaffectionately,CH。DARWIN。

  P。S。——Youpaymeasuperbcompliment(’PrehistoricTimes,’page487,wherethewords,\"thediscoveriesofaNewtonoraDarwin,\"occur。),butIfearyouwillbequizzedforitbysomeofyourfriendsastooexaggerated。

  [ThefollowingletterreferstoFritzMuller’sbook,’FurDarwin,’whichwasafterwardstranslated,atmyfather’ssuggestion,byMr。Dallas。Itisofinterestasbeingthefirstofthelongseriesofletterswhichmyfatherwrotetothisdistinguishednaturalist。Theynevermet,butthecorrespondencewithMuller,whichcontinuedtothecloseofmyfather’slife,wasasourceofverygreatpleasuretohim。MyimpressionisthatofallhisunseenfriendsFritzMullerwastheoneforwhomhehadthestrongestregard。FritzMulleristhebrotherofanotherdistinguishedman,thelateHermannMuller,theauthorof’DieBefruchtungderBlumen,’

  andofmuchothervaluablework:]

  CHARLESDARWINTOF。MULLER。

  Down,August10[1865]。

  MydearSir,IhavebeenforalongtimesoillthatIhaveonlyjustfinishedhearingreadaloudyourworkonspecies。AndnowyoumustpermitmetothankyoucordiallyforthegreatinterestwithwhichIhavereadit。Youhavedoneadmirableserviceinthecauseinwhichwebothbelieve。Manyofyourargumentsseemtomeexcellent,andmanyofyourfactswonderful。Ofthelatter,nothinghassurprisedmesomuchasthetwoformsofmales。Ihavelatelyinvestigatedthecasesofdimorphicplants,andIshouldmuchliketosendyouoneortwoofmypapersifIknewhow。Ididsendlatelybypostapaperonclimbingplants,asanexperimenttoseewhetheritwouldreachyou。Oneofthepointswhichhasstruckmemostinyourpaperisthatonthedifferencesintheair—breathingapparatusoftheseveralforms。ThissubjectappearedtomeveryimportantwhenIformerlyconsideredtheelectricapparatusoffishes。YourobservationsonClassificationandEmbryologyseemtomeverygoodandoriginal。Theyshowwhatawonderfulfieldthereisforenquiryonthedevelopmentofcrustacea,andnothinghasconvincedmesoplainlywhatadmirableresultsweshallarriveatinNaturalHistoryinthecourseofafewyears。Whatamarvellousrangeofstructurethecrustaceapresent,andhowwelladaptedtheyareforyourenquiry!UntilreadingyourbookIknewnothingoftheRhizocephala;praylookatmyaccountandfiguresofAnelasma,foritseemstomethatthislattercirripedeisabeautifulconnectinglinkwiththeRhizocephala。

  Ifeveryouhaveanyopportunity,asyouaresoskilfuladissector,Imuchwishthatyouwouldlooktotheorificeatthebaseofthefirstpairofcirrhiincirripedes,andatthecuriousorganinit,anddiscoverwhatitsnatureis;IsupposeIwasquiteinerror,yetIcannotfeelfullysatisfiedatKrohn’s(Seevol。ii。,pages138,187。)observations。AlsoifyoueverfindanyspeciesofScalpellum,praylookforcomplementalmales;

  aGermanauthorhasrecentlydoubtedmyobservationsfornoreasonexceptthatthefactsappearedtohimsostrange。

  PermitmeagaintothankyoucordiallyforthepleasurewhichIhavederivedfromyourworkandtoexpressmysincereadmirationforyourvaluableresearches。

  Believeme,dearSir,withsincererespect,Yoursveryfaithfully,CH。DARWIN。

  P。S。——Idonotknowwhetheryoucareatallaboutplants,butifso,I

  shouldmuchliketosendyoumylittleworkonthe’FertilizationofOrchids,’andIthinkIhaveaGermancopy。

  Couldyousparemeaphotographofyourself?Ishouldmuchliketopossessone。

  CHARLESDARWINTOJ。D。HOOKER。

  Down,Thursday,27th[September,1865]。

  MydearHooker,IhadintendedwritingthismorningtothankMrs。Hookermostsincerelyforherlastandseveralnotesaboutyou,andnowyourownnoteinyourhandhasrejoicedme。Towalkbetweenfiveandsixmilesissplendid,withalittlepatienceyoumustsoonbewell。Iknewyouhadbeenveryill,butI

  hardlyknewhowill,untilyesterday,whenBentham(fromtheCranworths(RobertRolfe,LordCranworth,andLordChancellorofEngland,livedatHolwood,nearDown。))calledhere,andIwasabletoseehimfortenminutes。Hetoldmealsoalittleaboutthelastdaysofyourfather(SirWilliamHooker;1785—1865。HetookchargeoftheRoyalGardensatKew,in1840,whentheyceasedtobetheprivategardensoftheRoyalFamily。Indoingso,hegaveuphisprofessorshipatGlasgow——andwithithalfofhisincome。Hefoundedtheherbariumandlibrary,andwithintenyearshesucceededinmakingthegardensthefirstintheworld。Itis,thus,nottoomuchtosaythatthecreationoftheestablishmentatKewisduetotheabilitiesandself—devotionofSirWilliamHooker。While,forthesubsequentdevelopmentofthegardensuptotheirpresentmagnificentcondition,thenationmustthankSirJosephHooker,inwhomthesamequalitiesaresoconspicuous。);IwishIhadknownyourfatherbetter,myimpressionisconfinedtohisremarkablycordial,courteous,andfrankbearing。Ifullyconcurandunderstandwhatyousayaboutthedifferenceoffeelinginthelossofafatherandchild。IdonotthinkanyonecouldloveafathermuchmorethanIdidmine,andIdonotbelievethreeorfourdayseverpasswithoutmystillthinkingofhim,buthisdeathateighty—

  fourcausedmenothingofthatinsufferablegrief(ImayquotehereapassagefromaletterofNovember,1863。Itwaswrittentoafriendwhohadlosthischild:\"HowwellIrememberyourfeeling,whenwelostAnnie。

  ItwasmygreatestcomfortthatIhadneverspokenaharshwordtoher。

  Yourgriefhasmademeshedafewtearsoverourpoordarling;butbelievemethatthesetearshavelostthatunutterablebitternessofformerdays。\")

  whichthelossofourpoordearAnniecaused。Andthisseemstomeperfectlynatural,foroneknowsforyearspreviouslythatone’sfather’sdeathisdrawingslowlynearerandnearer,whilethedeathofone’schildisasuddenanddreadfulwrench。Whatawonderfuldealyouread;itisahorridevilformethatIcanreadhardlyanything,foritmakesmyheadalmostimmediatelybegintosingviolently。Mygoodwomenkindreadtomeagreatdeal,butIdarenotaskformuchscience,andamnotsurethatI

  couldstandit。IenjoyedTylor(’ResearchesintotheEarlyHistoryofMankind,’byE。B。Tylor。1865。)EXTREMELY,andthefirstpartofLecky’TheRiseofRationalisminEurope,’byW。E。H。Lecky。1865。);butIthinkthelatterisoftenvague,andgivesafalseappearanceofthrowinglightonhissubjectbysuchphrasesas\"spiritoftheage,\"\"spreadofcivilization,\"etc。IconfinemyreadingtoaquarterorhalfhourperdayinskimmingthroughthebackvolumesoftheAnnalsandMagazineofNaturalHistory,andfindmuchthatinterestsme。Imissmyclimbingplantsverymuch,asIcouldobservethemwhenverypoorly。

  Ididnotenjoythe’MillontheFloss’somuchasyou,butfromwhatyousaywewillreaditagain。Doyouknow’SilasMarner’?itisacharminglittlestory;ifyourunshort,andliketohaveit,wecouldsenditbypost……WehavealmostfinishedthefirstvolumeofPalgrave(WilliamGiffordPalgrave’s’TravelsinArabia,’publishedin1865。),andIlikeitmuch;butdidyoueverseeabooksobadlyarranged?Thefrequencyoftheallusionstowhatwillbetoldinthefuturearequitelaughable……Bytheway,Iwasverymuchpleasedwiththefoot—note(Thepassagewhichseemstobereferredtooccursinthetext(page479)of’PrehistoricTimes。’ItexpressesadmirationofMr。Wallace’spaperinthe’AnthropologicalReview’

  (May,1864),andspeaksoftheauthor’s\"characteristicunselfishness\"inascribingthetheoryofNaturalSelection\"unreservedlytoMr。Darwin。\"

  aboutWallaceinLubbock’slastchapter。IhadnotheardthatHuxleyhadbackedupLubbockaboutParliament……Didyouseeasneersometimeagointhe\"Times\"abouthowincomparablymoreinterestingpoliticswerecomparedwithscienceeventoscientificmen?RememberwhatTrollopesays,in’CanyouForgiveher,’aboutgettingintoParliament,asthehighestearthlyambition。Jeffrey,inoneofhisletters,Iremember,saysthatmakinganeffectivespeechinParliamentisafargranderthingthanwritingthegrandesthistory。Allthisseemstomeapoorshort—sightedview。I

  cannottellyouhowithasrejoicedmeonceagainseeingyourhandwriting——

  mybestofoldfriends。

  Yoursaffectionately,CH。DARWIN。

  [InOctoberhewroteSirJ。D。Hooker:——

  \"Talkingofthe’Origin,’aYankeehascalledmyattentiontoapaperattachedtoDr。Wells’sfamous’EssayonDew,’whichwasreadin1813totheRoyalSociety,butnot[then]printed,inwhichheappliesmostdistinctlytheprincipleofNaturalSelectiontotheRacesofMan。SopooroldPatrickMatthewisnotthefirst,andhecannot,oroughtnot,anylongertoputonhistitle—pages,’DiscovereroftheprincipleofNaturalSelection’!\"]

  CHARLESDARWINTOF。W。FARRAR。(CanonofWestminster。)

  Down,November2[1865?]。

  DearSir,AsIhaveneverstudiedthescienceoflanguage,itmayperhapsseempresumptuous,butIcannotresistthepleasureoftellingyouwhatinterestandpleasureIhavederivedfromhearingreadaloudyourvolume(’ChaptersonLanguage,’1865。)

  IformerlyreadMaxMuller,andthoughthistheory(ifitdeservestobecalledso)bothobscureandweak;andnow,afterhearingwhatyousay,I

  feelsurethatthisisthecase,andthatyourcausewillultimatelytriumph。MyindirectinterestinyourbookhasbeenincreasedfromMr。

  HensleighWedgwood,whomyouoftenquote,beingmybrother—in—law。

  Noonecoulddissentfrommyviewsonthemodificationofspecieswithmorecourtesythanyoudo。ButfromthetenorofyourmindIfeelanentireandcomfortableconviction(andwhichcannotpossiblybedisturbed)thatifyourstudiesledyoutoattendmuchtogeneralquestionsinnaturalhistoryyouwouldcometothesameconclusionthatIhavedone。

  HaveyoueverreadHuxley’slittlebookofLectures?Iwouldgladlysendacopyifyouthinkyouwouldreadit。

  ConsideringwhatGeologyteachesus,theargumentfromthesupposedimmutabilityofspecifictypesseemstomemuchthesameasif,inanationwhichhadnooldwritings,somewiseoldsavagewastosaythathislanguagehadneverchanged;butmymetaphoristoolongtofillup。

  Praybelieveme,dearSir,yoursverysincerelyobliged,C。DARWIN。

  1866。

  [Theyear1866isgiveninmyfather’sDiaryinthefollowingwords:——

  \"Continuedcorrectingchaptersof’DomesticAnimals。’

  March1st。——Beganon4theditionof’Origin’of1250copies(receivedforit238pounds),making7500copiesaltogether。

  May10th。——Finished’Origin,’exceptrevises,andbegangoingoverChapterXIII。of’DomesticAnimals。’

  November21st。——Finished’Pangenesis。’

  December21st。——Finishedre—goingoverallchapters,andsentthemtoprinters。

  December22nd。——Beganconcludingchapterofbook。\"

  HewasinLondonontwooccasionsforaweekatatime,stayingwithhisbrother,andforafewdays(May29th—June2nd)inSurrey;fortherestoftheyearhewasatDown。

  Thereseemstohavebeenagradualmendinginhishealth;thushewrotetoMr。Wallace(January1866):——\"MyhealthissofarimprovedthatIamabletoworkoneortwohoursaday。\"

  Withrespecttothe4theditionhewrotetoSirJ。D。Hooker:——

  \"Theneweditionofthe’Origin’hascausedmetwogreatvexations。I

  forgotBates’spaperonvariation(Thisappearstoreferto\"NotesonSouthAmericanButterflies,\"Trans。Entomolog。Soc。,vol。v。(N。S。)。),butI

  rememberedintimehismimeticwork,andnow,strangetosay,IfindIhaveforgottenyourArcticpaper!Iknowhowitarose;Iindexedformybiggerwork,andneverexpectedthataneweditionofthe’Origin’wouldbewanted。

  \"Icannotsayhowallthishasvexedme。EverythingwhichIhavereadduringthelastfouryearsIfindisquitewashyinmymind。\"AsfarasI

  know,Mr。Bates’spaperwasnotmentionedinthelatereditionsofthe’Origin,’forwhatreasonIcannotsay。

  Inconnectionwithhisworkon’TheVariationofAnimalsandPlants,’I

  givehereextractsfromthreelettersaddressedtoMr。Huxley,whichareofinterestasgivingsomeideaofthedevelopmentofthetheoryof’Pangenesis,’ultimatelypublishedin1868inthebookinquestion:]

  CHARLESDARWINTOT。H。HUXLEY。

  Down,May27,[1865?]……Iwritenowtoaskafavourofyou,averygreatfavourfromonesohardworkedasyouare。ItistoreadthirtypagesofMS。,excellentlycopiedoutandgiveme,notlengthenedcriticism,butyouropinionwhetherImayventuretopublishit。YoumaykeeptheMS。foramonthortwo。Iwouldnotaskthisfavour,butIREALLYknownooneelsewhosejudgmentonthesubjectwouldbefinalwithme。

  Thecasestandsthus:inmynextbookIshallpublishlongchaptersonbud—andseminal—variation,oninheritance,reversion,effectsofuseanddisuse,etc。Ihavealsoformanyyearsspeculatedonthedifferentformsofreproduction。Henceithascometobeapassionwithmetotrytoconnectallsuchfactsbysomesortofhypothesis。TheMS。whichIwishtosendyougivessuchahypothesis;itisaveryrashandcrudehypothesis,yetithasbeenaconsiderablerelieftomymind,andIcanhangonitagoodmanygroupsoffacts。Iwellknowthatamerehypothesis,andthisisnothingmore,isoflittlevalue;butitisveryusefultomeasservingasakindofsummaryforcertainchapters。NowIearnestlywishforyourverdictgivenbrieflyas,\"Burnit\"——or,whichisthemostfavourableverdictIcanhopefor,\"Itdoesrudelyconnecttogethercertainfacts,andIdonotthinkitwillimmediatelypassoutofmymind。\"Ifyoucansaythismuch,andyoudonotthinkitabsolutelyridiculous,Ishallpublishitinmyconcludingchapter。Nowwillyougrantmethisfavour?Youmustrefuseifyouaretoomuchoverworked。

  ImustsayformyselfthatIamaherotoexposemyhypothesistothefieryordealofyourcriticism。

  July12,[1865?]。

  MydearHuxley,IthankyoumostsincerelyforhavingsocarefullyconsideredmyMS。Ithasbeenarealactofkindness。Itwouldhaveannoyedmeextremelytohavere—publishedBuffon’sviews,whichIdidnotknowof,butIwillgetthebook;andifIhavestrengthIwillalsoreadBonnet。Idonotdoubtyourjudgmentisperfectlyjust,andIwilltrytopersuademyselfnottopublish。Thewholeaffairismuchtoospeculative;yetIthinksomesuchviewwillhavetobeadopted,whenIcalltomindsuchfactsastheinheritedeffectsofuseanddisuse,etc。ButIwilltrytobecautious……

  [1865?]。

  MydearHuxley,Forgivemywritinginpencil,asIcandosolyingdown。IhavereadBuffon:wholepagesarelaughablylikemine。Itissurprisinghowcandiditmakesonetoseeone’sviewsinanotherman’swords。Iamratherashamedofthewholeaffair,butnotconvertedtoano—belief。Whatakindnessyouhavedonemewithyour\"vulpinesharpness。\"Nevertheless,thereisafundamentaldistinctionbetweenBuffon’sviewsandmine。Hedoesnotsupposethateachcelloratomoftissuethrowsoffalittlebud;

  buthesupposesthatthesaporbloodincludeshis\"organicmolecules,\"

  WHICHAREREADYFORMED,fittonourisheachorgan,andwhenthisisfullyformed,theycollecttoformbudsandthesexualelements。ItisallrubbishtospeculateasIhavedone;yet,ifIeverhavestrengthtopublishmynextbook,IfearIshallnotresist\"Pangenesis,\"butIassureyouIwillputithumblyenough。Theordinarycourseofdevelopmentofbeings,suchastheEchinodermata,inwhichneworgansareformedatquiteremotespotsfromtheanalogouspreviousparts,seemtomeextremelydifficulttoreconcileonanyviewexceptthefreediffusionintheparentofthegermsorgemmulesofeachseparateneworgan;andsoincasesofalternategeneration。ButIwillnotscribbleanymore。Heartythankstoyou,youbestofcriticsandmostlearnedman……

  [Thelettersnowtakeupthehistoryoftheyear1866。]

  CHARLESDARWINTOA。R。WALLACE。

  Down,July5[1866]。

  MydearWallace,Ihavebeenmuchinterestedbyyourletter,whichisasclearasdaylight。

  IfullyagreewithallthatyousayontheadvantagesofH。Spencer’sexcellentexpressionof\"thesurvivalofthefittest。\"(ExtractfromaletterofMr。Wallace’s,July2,1866:\"Theterm’survivalofthefittest’

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