To Charles Lyell   29 [November 1859]

My dear Lyell.—

I send Sedgwick’s letter: it is terribly muddled & really the first page seems almost childish.—¹ I am sadly overworked—so will not write to you— I have worked in a number of your invaluable corrections—indeed all as far as time permits.

I infer from letter from Huxley that Ramsay is a convert & I am extremely glad to get pure geologists, as they will be very few.² Many thanks for your very pleasant note. What pleasure you have given me. I believe I sh^d have been miserable had it not been for you & a few others—for I hear of threatening of attacks, which I dare say will be severe enough.— But I am sure I can now bear them.

Yours gratefully C. D.

About rattle-snake I meant to have added, suppose the bead at end of tail of Trigonocephalus not to be moulted at each exuviation & to grow bigger with each new skin.—³