Ɛpsilon

To J. W. Judd   [after 1 February 1877]1

As a writer ought to consider himself as an [unimpassioned] judge bound to give a true verdict, I suppose that it is very improper in me to thank you for the article wh. I have just read in Nature.2 But it has pleased & surprised me so greatly, that whether right or wrong I must thank you heartily.—

Believe me | Yours sincerely | C. D.

J. W. Judd Esq

ADraftS

1
The date is established by the reference to Judd’s article in Nature (see n. 2, below).
2
Judd’s review of Geological observations 2d ed. appeared in Nature, 1 February 1877, pp. 289–90. It praised CD’s ‘scientific candour’, especially his habit of raising objections and addressing possible defects in his arguments, as a model of ‘how to reason in geology’ (ibid., p. 290).

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

1.2 true] del & stetted below added & del ‘honest’
1.3 & surprised] interl
1.3 so] interl
1.3 that] after del ‘&’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-10828,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-10828