Ɛpsilon

To J. M. Herbert   18 November [1856]1

Down Bromley Kent

Nov 18

Dear Herbert,

It would be both a duty & a pleasure to me to give any suggestion to Lieut. Blakiston.2 But I am at present thus situated: my wife is out of health & expects her confinement in a few weeks, & I cannot possibly receive anyone here or leave home.—3

The middle of January I shall be in London4 and would have much pleasure in meeting Lieutenant Blakiston. Or if that be too late, I would write anything which might suggest itself to me; but to do this I shd wish to know to what branches of Nat. History, Lieut. Blakiston means to attend.

As far as general instructions are concerned, I could not improve those given by me in the “Admiralty Manual of Scientific Instruction.”—5

I was very glad to hear of old friend Watkins.6

Farewell, my dear old friend | Yours most sincerely | Ch. Darwin

If you think fit you could forward this to Lieut. Blakiston.—

1
The year is established by the reference to Emma Darwin’s pregnancy (see n. 3, below) and the allusion to Thomas Wright Blakiston’s expedition in 1857 (see n. 2, below).
2
Blakiston evidently sought an interview with CD in preparation for his part in the scientific expedition led by John Palliser to explore British North America between Ontario, Canada, and the Rocky Mountains in 1857 (DNB). No letter from Herbert containing this request has been found.
3
Charles Waring Darwin, the Darwins’ tenth and last child, was born on 6 December 1856 (Correspondence vol. 6, Appendix II).
4
CD was in London from 13 to 16 January 1857 (Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242)).
5
Herschel ed. 1849; there was a second edition in 1851. CD had contributed the section on geology. CD offered some additional ideas for the geologist on Palliser’s expedition in his letter to William Sharpey, 24 January [1857] (Correspondence vol. 6).
6
Frederick Watkins was a friend of CD’s from Shrewsbury School and a member of the Cambridge dining club dubbed the Glutton Club by Herbert (Shrewsbury School register, Correspondence vol. 1, letter from Frederick Watkins, [18 September 1831] and n. 1).
7
The letter has been reconstructed from three sale catalogue entries. The letter as transcribed is believed to be complete.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

2.4 attend.] before del ‘to.’
3.1 by me 3.2] interl

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-2020A,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-2020A