Ɛpsilon

To Karl von Scherzer?1   4 January 1878

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

Jan 4. 1878

My dear Sir,

I shall be in London on the 16th, 17th or 18th, & shall stay there for a week.2 If would suit His Royal Highness, I would wait upon him after the above date at any day & hour he might please to appoint through you; but the morning is the best time for my health.3 This plan I presume would be much the most convenient for the Prince, But if he should prefer to come here I would suggest his honouring me by coming to luncheon. I am ashamed to say that I can speak no language except english, & unless the Prince can speak English I earnestly hope that you will avoid making any appointment.

Believe me my dear Sir | Yours sincerely | Ch. Darwin

LS

1
The correspondent is conjectured from the subject matter; see n. 3, below.
2
CD stayed at 6 Queen Anne Street, London, the home of his brother, Erasmus Alvey Darwin, from 17 to 23 January 1878 (CD’s ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)).
3
Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria was staying in London in early January 1878 (The Times, 11 January 1878, p. 10). Scherzer, the Austrian consul in London, and a member of the prince’s retinue, was a correspondent of CD’s. There is no record, however, of a meeting between CD and the prince.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-11311F,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-11311F