Ɛpsilon

To ?   8 December [1861–8]1

Down. | Bromley. | Kent. S.E.

Decr 8th

Dear Sir

I am very much obliged to you for your great kindness in writing to me.— I cannot consider any facts bearing on the inheritance of mental peculiarities in animals as trifling, & I thank you for communicating to me your experience in regard to Cats.—2

Dear Sir | Your faithfully & obliged | Ch. Darwin

1
The year range is established by the printed notepaper, which is of a sort that CD used between May 1861 and April 1869.
2
CD had discussed the instinctive behaviours and mental powers of animals, including the domestic cat, in Descent1: 34–106.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-13770J,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-13770J