To Bartholomäus von Carneri   17 April [1871]1

Beckenham, Kent | S.E.

Ap. 17th

Dear Sir,

I am greatly obliged for your kind present (Sittlichk. u. Darw.) and courteous letter, dated Dec. 24 1870, but received owing to some delay, early today.2

You inform me that you have been induced to publish your work in consequence of what I have written and this I consider as a great and unusual honour.

In my last work on the Descent of Man I have been led to discuss this same subject of morality, but exclusively from a natural history point of view.3

With my best thanks I have the honour to remain dear Sir | yours very faithfully | Charles Darwin.

Copy

1
The year is established by the reference to a letter dated 24 December 1870.
2
The letter from Carneri has not been found. CD refers to Sittlichkeit und Darwinismus (‘Morality and Darwinism’: Carneri 1871); there is a copy in the Darwin Library–Down.
3
CD refers to Descent 1: 70–106 and 158–84.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-7695F,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-7695F