Ɛpsilon

To John Lubbock   [before 13 February 1869]1

My dear L.

Some friends of Miss M. with Hooker amongst them, are getting up a petition to Government to put her name on the civil Pension list.2 I am going to sign & she has asked me to get a few other signatures.— As she has done nothing for science, you may, perhaps object to signing; but I shd be very much obliged for a line to say yes or no.— I hardly know when the Petition will be sent on, but if you do agree to sign, I will forward it to you in due time.— Miss M. wrote the life of my grandfather matern J. W. & it is really a magnificent work;3 she spent additional money on illustrations, & so I believe did not profit by the publication— Some of the Reviews speak of her history of the development of the art of Pottery, as valuable.4 She has supported herself by literary & [educational] work, but is now growing old & has lost an aunt, who aided in her support. She seems to me on the whole to have a very fair claim to be put on the list of pensioners.—

Forgive me troubling you & believe me   yours very sincerely | C. Darwin—

ADraftS

1
The date is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter from John Lubbock, 13 February [1869].
2
CD refers to Eliza Meteyard and Joseph Dalton Hooker. Meteyard was awarded a Civil List pension of £60 on 5 April 1869 (Meteyard 1970, 1: introduction [25]).
3
CD refers to his maternal grandfather, Josiah Wedgwood I, and to Meteyard 1865–6. CD had provided Meteyard with material for the book (see Correspondence vol. 13).
4
For more on the reception of Meteyard 1865–6, see Meteyard 1970, 1: introduction [20–3].

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

0.2 L.] after del ‘Sir’
1.5 agree] above del ‘not object’
1.6 my grandfather matern] interl
1.9 valuable.] altered from ‘valuable to’
1.11 support. She] altered from ‘support,—she’
1.11 on the whole] interl
1.12 list] after del ‘civil’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-6612,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-6612