The Witness attacks THH’s lecture.

Assures CD he spoke more favourably of his doctrines than the reports show.

Agrees with CD’s arguments on sterility of hybrids and predicts physiological experiments will produce physiological species sterile inter se. Has come even closer to CD’s view especially since Primula paper. Will soon be more Darwinian than CD.

Discusses Stellaria and other plants said to be dimorphic.

Asks for plants he wants for experiments.

Preparing a little book on Orchids.

He will send CD one of his sketches to add to the two CD has kept since Beagle days.

Asks for FitzRoy’s address.

Has received a satisfactory answer from Lord Tankerville.

Seeks to define oldest fossil cirripede.

Much amused at the Witness.

Pleased at what THH says on hybridity.

Odd that objectors never allude to the arguments that alone have weight in their favour – affinities, rudimentary organs, etc.

Has 16 ill in the house!

Natural History Review a capital number.

Dimorphism: "new cases are tumbling in almost daily".

U. S. politics.

Reports that the orchids Myanthus and Catasetum are identical.

Has had 16 in the household ill.

Wants to meet JL.

Praises JL’s paper ["Ancient lake-habitations of Switzerland", Nat. Hist. Rev. n.s. 2 (1862): 26–51].

His answer to Asa Gray.

On JDH’s view of aristocracy. Primogeniture is dreadfully opposed to selection.

Orchid book proofs ready soon – has no idea whether it is worth publishing.

Huxley on Owen.

Feeble letter from J. H. Balfour against Huxley’s lectures ["Relation of man to lower animals", pt 2 of Man’s place in nature (1863)].

Has received the "astounding" Angraecum sesquipedale with nectary 1ft long: "what insect could suck it?"

Thanks CD for returned MS and letter with its good opinion. Asks CD to write to Murray.

Grateful for CD’s approval of "Lake-habitations".

H. W. Bates is, at CD’s urging, writing a book of travel and natural history. CD suggests JM might be interested in publishing it. Recommends HWB and his MS highly.

The Japan pig, an unusual domestic species with no wild prototype.

Will visit CD on Saturday.

Has sent CD the published part of his work on Carex [Illustrations of the genus Carex (1858–67)]. Hopes to add 200 more figures. Comments on great variability among the 600–odd species, and on their geographical distribution.

Owen’s paper on the aye-aye [Rep. BAAS 32 (1862) pt 2: 114–16];

his attacks on CD and his theories.

Discusses manuscript by H. W. Bates [Naturalist on the river Amazons (1863)].

Mentions CD’s forthcoming book [Orchids].

Is JDH sure it is a Bletia, just received? Its pollen very different from any Epidendreæ he has seen. If it is Bletia, Lindley’s grand divisions are fanciful.

Accepts JDH’s offer to collect cases of dimorphism.

James Bateman has sent a lot of orchids with Angraecum sesquipedale. What a proboscis the moth that sucks its 11½ inch nectary must have!

Encloses seeds.

Lecoq’s work mentions instances of apparent dimorphism. [H. Lecoq, Études sur la géographie botanique de l’Europe, 9 vols. (1854–8).]