Praises and comments on JL’s essay on insects ["Origin of insects", J. Linn. Soc. Lond. 11 (1873): 422–5].

Discusses problems of obtaining money for the alteration of Down church.

Thanks for JL’s willingness to sell land.

JL’s two articles in Nature ["Common wild flowers", 10 (1874): 402–6, 422–6].

Cautions against C. K. Sprengel’s notion of bees’ being deceived by nectarless nectary.

Colour of calyces.

Writes regarding local difficulties concerning Down School and the setting up of a reading-room; his strained relationship with G. S. ffinden following some misunderstanding.

Arrangements to invite the Duke [unidentified].

Writes regarding an [unspecified] election at a university. JL wonders whether William Darwin would speak to two Southampton men about it.

Thanks for queen-bee larva and pupa.

Nervous system of Coccus.

Gives CD references to papers on eyes of lower animals.

Is sorry to hear of bad health of CD and his daughter.

Discusses, with an example, the difficulty of explaining structural differences between closely allied species.

Embryology of Diptera. Development of insects; metamorphosis. JL feels all insects go through metamorphosis but that in some of them, part takes place before birth.

Sends paper [on ancient Swiss lake-habitations, Nat. Hist. Rev. n.s. 2 (1862): 26–51] for CD’s opinion.

Sir George Clerk to be new President of the Zoological Society.

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

Will visit CD on Saturday.

Hopes CD will come to lunch on Saturday. The Busks and J. D. Hooker are with JL.

JL is going on a geological excursion with Joseph Prestwich and John Evans.

Thanks for Orchids.

"The big book [Variation] will no doubt go on again now."

JL is writing on Somme implements ["Evidence of antiquity of man", Nat. Hist. Rev. n.s. 2 (1862): 244–69].

JL’s Swiss tour with Tyndall and Huxley.

Lake-habitations.

CD’s health is bad.

Would like to visit CD on Friday.