From E. A. Greaves to Francis Darwin   31 December 1877

14 Pittville Parade | Cheltenham

Decr. 31st. 1877

Dear Sir,

I feel extremely obliged to your father, for his very handsome offer for the portrait,1 and if on inspection he thinks £50 too much I shall be willing to reduce it; at the same time I believe it to be valuable not only on account of the work, but being the likeness of a great man, one who lived before his time; and also with its relationship   were I rich, it would have given me great pleasure to have sent it for yr. Father’s acceptance as a New-Year’s Gift. Be so good as to ask Mr. Myers to see it packed wh. can be done here, as I shall like to see it snugly packed—2 I fancy that it will require varnishing, and then it will look quite new— I think the canvass is in good order.

With many thanks I am, dear Sir, | Your’s very truly | Elizth. A: Greaves

1
The portrait was of CD’s grandfather Erasmus Darwin (see letter from E. A. Greaves, 14 December 1877 and n. 3).
2
Mr Myers may be Frederic William Henry Myers or his brother Arthur Thomas Myers; both were acquaintances of George Howard Darwin through Trinity College, Cambridge, and their family home was in Cheltenham (Correspondence vol. 21, letter from G. H. Darwin to Emma Darwin, [before 24 November 1873], ODNB). The portrait was sent to CD in 1878 (see Correspondence vol. 26, letter from E. A. Greaves, 3 January 1878, and letter from E. A. Greaves to Francis Darwin, 26 June 1878). There is a painting of Erasmus Darwin at Down House; however, its provenance is uncertain (see M. Keynes 1994).

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-11299,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-11299