JDH discusses the health of Brian Houghton Hodgson's wife. His own wife, Frances, has had a tooth out but otherwise the Hooker family are all well, he particularly mentions his son Brian Harvey Hodgson Hooker "growing a pace in stature & wisdom". He mentions a rocking horse much loved by his children. Thomas Thomson & his wife spent some time at Kew & have now gone to Hastings. [Sir James William] Colvile's house is shut up. Mentions chatting with [Sir Lawrence] Peel & a coin expert named Mr. Thomas at the Athenaeum Club. [Charles] Lyell is still working on his 'age of man', JDH comments that he will struggle to reconcile his old geology with recent discoveries, including Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. [Thomas Henry] Huxley is working on a publication about the relation of men to lower animals, JDH is very impressed with it. Summarises & critiques [Richard] Owen's paper, read at the Royal Society, on the dinosaur Gryphosaurus & its relation to birds vs. reptiles. JDH notes that the paper actually backs up [Charles] Darwin's: "much disputed dogma" regarding the geological record. JDH mentions some of Darwin's work and praises him as 'the first naturalist in Europe...as great as any that ever lived'. Discusses the reception, by the press and clergy, of Bishop [John William] Colenso's writings on the interpretation of the Bible. Mentions the Schlagintweit's book.
On Asa Gray’s letter; has written why he avoids alluding to the war.
Has read Max Müller [see 3752] – last part unphilosophical.
On CD’s pigeon example, long-beaked and short-beaked pigeons must be either sterile or not inter se. There is "no such thing as Equality – hence no such thing as chance and Nat. Sel. is the sword of Damocles hanging over your head if you make a slip in your premisses."
Has read note on Lythrum sent several weeks ago. Its consequences are of most prolific order to CD’s doctrine.
Kew has no wild gooseberries.
JDH praises the Saturday Review reply [14 (1862): 589] to the Duke of Argyll’s bitter review of Orchids ["The supernatural", Edinburgh Rev. 116 (1862): 378–97].
"Throttled off" Welwitschia paper at Linnean Society [Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. 24 (1863): 1–48].
Has read Tocqueville’s Democracy in America [1835–40] – disagrees with it. Tocqueville says democracy in America is a success. Democracy has persisted because there has been no cause for its overthrow (i.e., no struggle for existence, too much mobility).
Sends J. W. Dawson’s unsatisfactory letter.
No summary available.
Hostile to Spencer’s application of natural selection to society.
JDH on J. E. Gray’s views on collecting.
JDH collecting Wedgwood ware.
Comments on items in the Saturday Review and the Edinburgh Review.
JDH’s impression on meeting [J. A.] Froud[e].
CD’s projected three volume work.
Complains at poor state of some [unspecified] plant collection.
