Ɛpsilon

From Francis Galton   22 September 1875

42 Rutland Gate

Sept 22/75

My dear Darwin

In “Domestication” II. 253. you quote as a striking instance of variation a case communicated by Dr. Ogle of 2 girl twins who had a crooked finger, no relative having the same.1 It happened, in my twin enquiries, that a case was sent me which is possibly, or probably the same as your’s—but which is a case of reversion. I send the particulars of this over leaf.2 You might think it worth while in the view of your 2nd. edition, to ask Dr. Ogle if his case was that of the Misses Macrae.3

I am not acquainted myself either with the Misses Macrae or with Dr. Murchison—Dr. Gilchrist of the Crichton Institution Dumfries, sent me Dr Murchisons communication.4

We are only lately back in England and are not even yet settled in town.5

Will Frank kindly send me a line about the sweet peas?6

With united kind remembrances to you all | Ever sincerely | Francis Galton

I have been delighting in your Insectivorous plants7

Extract from a private letter to me, written by Dr Finlay Murchison. (No address on this letter but it is from Scotland, & was enclosed by Dr. Gilchrist of Dumfries.)

The Misses Macrae (twins. æt 16 in 1875)

“There is a congenital flexion at the second phalangeal joint of the little finger in each case, but the flexion is not so marked as to cause unsightliness or discomfort. I have ascertained that they inherited this peculiarity from their grandmother on the mother’s side.8 The parents had no trace of it, nor any one of four brothers and three sisters.”

1
See Variation 2: 253. The case was given by William Ogle.
2
Galton discussed his twin studies in Fraser’s Magazine (Galton 1875a) and with revisions and additions in the Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (Galton 1876a); he aimed to use them to show the relative influence of nature and nurture.
3
CD was working on a second edition of Variation (see CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)). The Misses McRae were Alexandrina Cornfute McRae and Elizabeth Anne McRae of Harris, in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. CD mentioned the McRae twins (but not by name) in Variation 2d ed. 2: 240.
4
Finlay Murchison was medical officer on North Harris in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, in 1874 and 1875, but in 1876 or earlier became assistant physician at the Crichton Royal Institution, Dumfries, where James Gilchrist was medical superintendent (Medical directory).
5
Galton and his wife, Louisa Jane, had been in France (Pearson 1914–30, 2: 180; see also letter from Francis Galton, 2 June 1875).
6
For Galton’s sweetpea experiments, see the letters from Francis Galton, 14 April 1875 and 2 June 1875. He published on the experiments in Galton 1877a, 1877b, and 1889, pp. 79–82 and 225–6. Frank: Francis Darwin was CD’s secretary.
7
Insectivorous plants was published in July 1875 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)).

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-10163,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-10163