Ɛpsilon

To Robert Garner   22 February [1870–1]1

Down. | Beckenham | Kent. S.E.

Feb 22d

Dear Sir

I am much obliged to you for sending me the Hybrid, gathered from a place to which I am so much attached as Maer.—2

You speak of the fruit of this hybrid, but say nothing on the seed. If it be a real hybrid & not a strong variety, I shd think, at least if protected from the pollen of its pure parents, that it would be utterly sterile, or very nearly so.— Perhaps this point wd. be worth your attention.

With my thanks, I remain | Dear Sir | Yours faithfully | Ch. Darwin

LS

1
The year range is established by the form of the address on the printed notepaper (Down, with Bromley altered by hand to Beckenham). CD used this form from April 1869 until May 1871. A note on the back of the letter says that the letter was sent to Garner in 1864, but the notepaper used makes this unlikely. This letter was previously published in Correspondence vol. 18 from a dealer’s description.
2
Maer Hall in Staffordshire had been the home of Josiah Wedgwood II and Elizabeth Wedgwood, Emma Darwin’s parents.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

0.1 Beckenham] interl before del ‘Bromley.’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-7115F,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-7115F