From T. W. Wood   24 April 1871

221 Stanhope Street, | Hampstead Road N.W.

April 24th. 1871.

Dear Sir,

I write to inform you that I have had an interview with Mr. Murray & he has commissioned me to re-draw two of the birds, as he said—to begin with—viz. the Cock of the rock & the Prairie Grouse.1 Would you like one of the latter in the background with his plumes down? I hope to give such satisfaction with these two as to be allowed to re-draw all the birds which were from Brehm.2

It would be a great assistance to me if I could have a copy of your book while doing the drawings as I should wish to know what characters were particularly pointed out in the text, & Mr. Bates said, last evening, he had no doubt you would kindly furnish me with a copy.3 In glancing over it I see that Dr. Gunther thinks Chameleons do not fight; in this he is mistaken as I once saw two of C. pumilus fight rather violently when they met on a branch; they flung their heads about & also tried to bite each other, & it was very amusing to see them rest in the middle of their quarrel in fantastic attitudes & then continue it: pumilus is not an armed species.4

An early reply will be esteemed a favour by | Dear Sir, | Yours very truly, | T. W. Wood.

P.S. I sent you the “Field” of Saturday fortnight.5

C. Darwin Esq. F.R.S.

CD annotations

1.1 I write … Grouse 1.3] crossed blue crayon
1.3 Would … drawings as 2.2] crossed pencil
2.2 I should … copy. 2.4] crossed blue crayon
1
John Murray was CD’s publisher. Wood re-drew several woodcuts for Descent 2d ed., including Rupicola crocea, the cock-of-the-rock (now Rupicola rupicola), and Tetrao cupido, the prairie grouse (see Descent 2d ed., pp. 372, 385, 395, and 397).
3
Wood refers to Descent and to Henry Walter Bates.
4
Wood refers to Descent 2: 35–6 and to Albert Günther. Chamaeleon pumilus is now Bradypodion pumilum, Smith’s dwarf chameleon. CD added Wood’s observation to Descent 2d ed., p. 357.
5
A clipping from the Field, 8 April 1871, containing a woodcut by Wood of some feathers of the Argus pheasant, is in DAR 88: 189.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-7711,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-7711