Showing 21–40 of 150 items
Criticises CD’s letter to Nature ["Complemental males in certain cirripedes", Collected papers 2: 177–82].
On the elimination of useless parts.
GHD fails to see the point of CD’s use of the law of distribution about a mean.
Discusses his health following a visit to Dr C[lark?]. Has made an appointment for CD.
Sends CD a draft of a letter to Nature [see 9087], which he thinks expresses CD’s meaning.
CD thinks GHD’s letter is an excellent clarification [of CD’s conjectural view on the elimination of useless parts in species], but does not want to publish it as his [CD’s] own. Asks GHD to think carefully before he publishes it.
Has decided to send the letter ["Variation of organs", Nature 8 (1873): 505].
Writes of his poor health and problems of settling in at Trinity.
Asks GHD whether he can tell him what inclination a polished or waxy leaf ought to hold to the horizon in order to let vertical rain rebound off as much as possible.
Sends table showing relative force of impact of weight dropped on a plane inclined at different angles.
On bodies of varying elasticity bouncing off inclined planes [see 9096].
CD gives his criticisms of GHD’s essay on religion and the moral sense. Urges him to delay publishing for some months and then to consider whether it is new and important enough to counterbalance the effects of its publication. J. S. Mill would never have influenced the age as he has done had he not refrained from expressing his religious convictions. Cites John Morley’s Life of Voltaire [1872]: direct attacks produce little effect; real good comes from slow and silent side attacks. "My advice is to pause, pause, pause."
"It is a fearfully difficult moral problem about speaking out on religion, & I have never been able to make up my mind."
An Irishman, a "grand breeder" of short-horns, declared at lunch that CD’s books had been "a great help to [him] in breeding!"
CD writes about organising a subscription for Dohrn’s Zoological Station at Naples. Has drawn up a draft circular for naturalists to sign to show their support for the Station.
Sorry to hear of GHD’s poor health – he could have pleasant society at Cambridge if he were stronger.
Contributes £75 [to a fund for Naples Zoological Station] "if the affair goes on after we hear from Dohrn".
CD is looking for editorial assistance in preparing a new edition of Descent, and inquires whether GHD might be interested in taking on such a tedious job.
Pleased that GHD will help with second edition of Descent. Cautions him not to alter strength of CD’s expression or improve the style too much.
Returns and sends comments on Clarke Hawkshaw’s essay ‘The persistence of forms of life in the depths of the sea’.
Has finished the index [for Descent, 2d ed.].
Finds statistical evidence that cousin marriages are at least three times as frequent in "our rank" as in the lower.
Sends queries [on proofs of Descent, 2d ed.]. Will be finished, except for the index, in two days.
Is now less satisfied than formerly with his statistics on cousin marriage.
[Enclosure is a copy by GHD of J. S. Mill’s statement about Origin (Logic 2: 18 n.).]
Is sorry to hear the news about the cousin question – a real misfortune.
Congratulates GHD on being nearly finished with work on Descent.
Sends Descent material. Is staggered by CD’s power of marshalling facts and his conciseness and clearness of thought. The only fault he finds is some slight want of conciseness of diction.
He feels CD’s power more now "that I quail before the thought of arranging the few paltry facts I’ve got about those d––d cousins".
