Ɛpsilon

To J. H. Gilbert   15 March 1881

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

Mar 15 1881

Dear Dr Gilbert,

I have sent off the two books which you were so kind as to lend me by rail this afternoon, and I hope they will arrive safely. I can plainly see that I had better say nothing about the acidity of common mould. I have read the greater part of How Crops Feed with the greatest interest.1

Again thanking you, I remain | Yours very faithfully | Charles Darwin

P.S. | I have not been able to pay the carriage of the parcel excepting to London as our line cannot do so.2

LS

1
See letter from J. H. Gilbert, 7 March 1881 and n. 1. How crops feed (S. W. Johnson [1870]) was a study of the chemical and physical properties of the atmosphere and soil in relation to plant nutrition. The second book was vols. 13 and 14 of the German journal Die landwirtschaftlichen Versuchs-Stationen (Agricultural research stations).
2
The South Eastern Railway line operated the service from Orpington (the nearest railway station to Down) to London. Since Gilbert lived in St Albans, the package sent by CD would have been transferred to the Midland Railway in London, and carriage calculated on delivery.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-13087,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-13087