From Bartholomew James Sulivan   27 September [1862]1

Board of Trade. S.W.

Septr. 27—

My dear Darwin

It is long since I have heard any thing of you or yours. I hope “no news” is “good news”—

Our old shipmate Wickham will be with me for some days after the sixth: when I last saw him he expressed a wish to see you again;2 would there be any chance of your coming to Town about that time? if so we could easily arrange a meeting—and if you could manage to come to us for one night it would give us great pleasure— & I could get Mellersh—who is in Town—to come down also.3 I know you do not like being away from home, but if you have to come to Town at all about then and could stay for a night it might not interfere much with your arrangements. I see a mid named ‘Darwin’ just appointed to a ship4   have you a boy in the Navy? I think not.

I hope Mrs. Darwin is well and that your daughter’s health has gone on improving.5 | with very kind remembrances | Believe me dear Darwin— | Yours very sincerely | B. J. Sulivan

1
The year is established by reference to the visit to Down House of Sulivan, John Clements Wickham, and Arthur Mellersh, on 21 October 1862 (see nn. 2 and 3, below).
2
John Clements Wickham was second in command on board HMS Beagle during the surveying voyage of 1831–6; he emigrated to Australia in 1842, but moved to southern France in 1862 (Aust. dict. biog.). Sulivan was a lieutenant on board the Beagle during the same voyage; in 1856, he was appointed as one of the naval officers in the marine department at the Board of Trade (DNB, Post Office London directory 1861).
3
Arthur Mellersh was midshipman and then mate on board HMS Beagle between 1825 and 1836; in 1862, after serving on various vessels, he returned to Britain to take command of HMS Forte, for a posting to South America (Modern English biography; The Times, 28 September 1894, p. 4).
4
Sacheverel Charles Darwin, who was CD’s first cousin, once removed, was appointed midshipman to HMS Phœbe in the autumn of 1862 (Colburn’s United Service Magazine (1862), pt 3: 447).
5
Sulivan refers to Henrietta Emma Darwin, who had been seriously ill in 1860 and 1861 (see Correspondence vols. 8 and 9).

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-3741,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-3741