Ɛpsilon

To Hugo de Vries   [10 or 11 August 1878]1

Leith Hill Place | Dorking

My dear Sir,

I am much pleased that you should think it worth while to see me.2 We leave this place early on Monday morning, but go to the house of another relation which is near a station & therefore more convenient to you. From being out of health, my drive will tire me on Monday; but Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, or even Friday will suit me, & I shall be extremely glad to make your personal acquaintance.3 Your best plan will be to leave Charing Cross at 11 am & you will reach Gomshall Station (the next one beyond Dorking) at 12.pm41, & a walk (or you can take a cab) will bring you to Abinger Hall in 20 minutes. You can return by the train that leaves Gomshall at 4.35. Will you kindly send me line at

T. H. Farrer Esq Abinger Hall Dorking

telling me the day, so that I may be at home on your arrival.

My dear Sir | Yours sincerely | Charles Darwin

LS

1
The date range is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to Hugo de Vries, 8 August [1878], and by the date of CD’s departure from Leith Hill Place, 12 August 1878 (Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242)).
2
De Vries evidently replied to CD’s letter of 8 August [1878] in a now missing letter.
3
The Darwins left Down on 7 August 1878 and visited Leith Hill Place, Surrey, the home of CD’s sister, Caroline Sarah Wedgwood, and her family. From 12 to 15 August, they stayed at Abinger Hall, Abinger, Surrey, the home of Thomas Henry and Katherine Euphemia Farrer, who was Emma Darwin’s niece. De Vries visited CD on Wednesday 14 August 1878 (Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242)).

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-11643,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-11643