To J. D. Hooker   12 July [1860]

My dear Hooker

Many thanks for newspaper. I have had a little, but very interesting, note from Falconer;¹ he tells me how capitally things went on at Oxford.

Poor Etty, I find, very little better; but what shade of difference there is, is certainly on the right side. It is most disheartening to us.—

I did so thoroughily & greatly enjoy my little visit to you.—² I want two questions answered; I know how busy you are. Do you think M^r Oliver would think me unreasonable, if I asked him to answer them?³ If he would, pray tell him, I sh^d. be very much obliged.

Firstly name of enclosed Saxifrage    it is often kept in pot in Houses⁴    on account of slightly curved pistil towards nectar-secreting surface.—& impregnation by Diptera

Secondly the name of that wonderful hot-house flower, with rectangularly-bent pistil, which has been falsely said to turn round. This flower⁵ has stuck in my throat ever since: I was a fool not to have accepted your offer of taking it home to examine.—⁶ I want to know whether a sort of fold at base of each petal secretes nectar: a closely similar fold at base of 2 upper petals in an orange-coloured Alstrœmeria does secrete nectar. I care for this case because it is strongest apparent exception to my rule of bent pistil & gangway into nectary.

Is not this position of parts? Instead of the pistil revolving, would not large insect successively visiting the supposed nectaries, brush over anthers & stigma; so that the pistil is bent into the circular gangway to the nectaries?

(N.B I find common Martagon Lily with curved pistil so like in all respects that I can make out above points.)⁷

I have been examining Orchis pyramidalis, & it almost equals, perhaps even beats, your Listera case:⁸ the sticky glands are congenitally united into saddle-shaped organ, which has great power of movement & seizes hold of bristle (or proboscis) in admirable manner, & then another movement takes place in pollen-masses, by which they are beautifully adapted to leave pollen on the two lateral stigmatic surface.—   I never saw anything so beautiful.—

Ask your scientific gardener to have another try at fertilising Leschenaultia & mark the flowers;⁹ for the ovaria of two flowers of which I stirred up the pollen in indusium before going to Sudbrook have swollen to twice diameter of any other ovaria: hence I feel pretty sure that I am on the right road.—

I have been thinking a bit about your Book & the more I think of it the more awfully difficult it seems, & therefore the more worthy of your attempting.¹⁰ One of the first points seems naturally to occur viz difference between plant & animal! And then, as I suppose you will allude to unicellular plants, what makes an individual!! And thirdly the difference between propagation by gemmation & sexual generation! Nice simple little subjects to discuss!—

Yours ever affectionately | C. Darwin

Do not you answer; if you do not like to ask M^r. Oliver, let this note sleep, for everything will keep.