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From John Harmer   12 September 1881

Wick, near Arundel,

Sept 12th. ’81.

Chas Darwin Esq. F.R.S.

Dear Sir,

In passing through Arundel park a few days ago I observed the accompanying beetle hauling off a large worm about 6 inches in length & not having noticed any thing of the kind before I carried him home to satisfy myself whether such was his food or whether his appetite would be affected by captivity.1 He has since disposed of the fluids of two more which he cuts up in a very business like manner.

Thinking it just possible there might be an element of interest in the circumstance I have ventured to transmit it and the animal to you & hope, if there be not, that you will excuse the liberty

of Sir, | Your obedt servt | John Harmer

1
Harmer was a photographer in Leominster (Lyminster), Sussex, and had previously worked in Lewisham, Kent; Arundel Park is an old deer park in the South Downs, West Sussex, and is about a mile and a half from Lyminster. Several species of larger ground beetles and rove beetles are predators of earthworms.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-13332,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-13332