Mentions Mastodon remains that he has seen.

Praises CD and his work.

Wishes to know veracity of a report of CD’s reactions on seeing certain slides of supposedly organic material from meteorites.

Thanks for writing. Had disbelieved the story. He has seen Dr Hahn’s slides and it is clear that Hahn cannot distinguish between mineral and organic structures.

Sends CD an abstract of his 1871 paper on the earthworm, and requests information on the phenomenon of luminosity.

Describes formation of student nature study club at the University of Jena. Sends birthday greetings from the club.

Arrived in Brazil three months ago. Studying insects and plants, but work suffers from lack of scientific literature.

Fritz Müller has written to him to observe relations between ants and plants.

Writing popular articles about evolution for German newspaper in Brazil.

Sends paper from Kosmos.

Expects to spend several years in Brazil.

Thanks for gift of Movement in plants.

Plans botanical research in Brazil.

Hermann von Jhering is conducting experiments on snakes.

WB obliged to work as newspaper correspondent.

Plans breeding experiments on dimorphic plants.

Describes his collections and research on Brazilian insects, especially Orthoptera. Comments on insect phylogeny.

Has just read CD’s book on worms and is finding tower-like worm-casts, as CD described, in Alpes-Maritimes. Relates case of garden worms and moles.

Writes on behalf of the Archbishop of Canterbury to invite CD to a private conference organised in an attempt to reconcile science and religion. [Enclosed is a printed two-page memorial calling for such a conference.]

Regrets CD is unable to attend proposed conference [see 12918]. Would like his opinion on why it is not desirable.

Announces the resolution passed by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s conference of 7 Jan 1881.

Announces intention to hold a private conference with the Archbishop of Canterbury with the aim of encouraging men of science to reaffirm their religious beliefs and also to publish a series of articles in the Contemporary Review on the state of the various sciences.

Sends proofs of lectures he intends to reprint as a book [The Bible and science (1881)]; asks CD if he would check one for errors.

Forwards the preface to his book [see 12999] and comments on the effect of the Bible on science.

Thanks CD for a copy of Earthworms.

Thanks CD for his offer of assistance to David Ferrier.

Discusses CD’s earthworm book.

Tonsils in man as rudimentary organs.

Writes regarding subscription to set up the Science Defence and Advancement Fund to protect investigators from anti-vivisectionists and to promote knowledge of the purpose and importance of vivisection.

Writes regarding the form which the proposed Science Defence Association should take and encloses a draft of proposed resolutions.

On the effects of a mother’s imagination on a new-born child. Reports that a hen, startled by an alarm clock, laid eggs with clock faces on them.