To Japetus Steenstrup   9 September [1851]

Down Farnborough Kent

Sept. 9th.

My dear Sir

I am in truth ashamed at the delay in returning you & Prof. Forchhammer your most valuable specimens;1 but the fault has not been mine; till three days ago I was not able to get all my copies of my Memoir;2 I have now packed up all the specimens carefully, together with 4 copies of my Memoir,—one for yourself, for Prof. Forchhammer, for M. Loven (if at any time you could send him it) & the fourth copy either for the library or M. Angelin, as you may think best.—3

The Box (Carriage Paid) will go by the Steamer on the 17th of this month.—4

The specimens are all named on the back, or in an accompanying list. Should you feel inclined to present any specimens to the British Museum, they would be appreciated, & I should feel grateful.— I am now correcting the proofs of my volume on the Recent Pedunculated cirripedes, (which I hope will be somewhat better than that on the Fossil species), & when published I will send you acopy.—5

I shall ever feel most deeply grateful for your kind assistance. Pray give my sincere thanks & kind remembrances to Prof. Forchhammer. I hope & think that the specimens will reach you safely: I before explained the reason why I took some off the cards.—6

Pray believe me | Dear Sir | With entire respect | Yours truly obliged | Charles Darwin

2
Fossil Cirripedia (1851). For the reason for the delay, see letter to J. S. Bowerbank, 25 June [1851], n. 4.
3
Johan Georg Forchhammer, Sven Lovén, and Nils Peter Angelin had provided CD with specimens of fossil pedunculated Cirripedia (Fossil Cirripedia (1851): v–vi).
4
On 12 September 1851, CD recorded in his Account book (Down House MS): ‘Box Copenhagen 10s’.
5
CD later learned that Steenstrup was a member of the Ray Society and would therefore automatically receive a copy of Living Cirripedia (1851). Steenstrup’s name was deleted from his list of presentation copies (MS attached to CD’s copy of Living Cirripedia (1854), Cambridge University Library).

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

2.1 Box] before omitted point

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-1454,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-1454