To W. E. Darwin   28 October [1876]1

Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.

Oct. 28th

My dear W.

If you are quite certain, it won’t bother you, put the affair in your Lawyer’s hands.—2 But it will give me no trouble worth speaking of to put it in Hacon’s hand.3 Please observe this.—

I think it wd be better to keep accounts square if you wd. send cheque for deposit money, & let me know amount, & I will repay you by return of post.—4

We were very sorry to hear of your being baddish: do not dine out again soon.— Poor dear Frank is wonderfully composed when in public & works all day long, but I cannot help fearing that he will not be able to go on in this manner.—5

We had a most nice visit with you my dear old fellow.6 | C. Darwin

1
The year is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to W. E. Darwin, 29 September [1876].
2
CD was considering the purchase of land in Beesby, Lincolnshire (see letter to W. E. Darwin, 29 September [1876] and n. 2).
3
William Mackmurdo Hacon was CD’s solicitor.
4
On 5 November 1876, CD reimbursed William £53 for a deposit on property on the Beesby estate, consisting of four acres and a cottage (CD’s Investment book (Down House MS), p. 147a).
5
Francis Darwin was trying to keep busy with work after his wife, Amy, died on 11 September 1876 (see letter to Francis Darwin, 20 September [1876]). He had returned to Down on 24 October (letter from Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield, [24–5 October 1876] (DAR 219.9: 142)).
6
The Darwins stayed with William in Southampton from 7 to 20 October 1876 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)).

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

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Please cite as “DCP-LETT-10657,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-10657