Ɛpsilon

To Chauncey Wright   23 September [1871]1

Down, Beckenham Kent

Sept 23d

My dear Sir:—

The enclosed, I daresay, relates to your pamphlet. I sent a copy to Kingsley.—2 I have despatched about 220 copies to all persons, whom I cd think of & to the Societies— Copies have also been sent to all Reviews. I have had 2 or 3 letters from persons, who guessed I had sent them copies, expressing much interest in your article.—3 I heard yesterday that Huxley has already sent M.S. review of Mivart to the Contemporary & he attacks Mivarts Divinity & Metaphysics.—4

In Haste | yours very sincerely | C. Darwin

I am convinced that your paper will do our cause real good service.— Mivart is even affecting the opinions of Naturalists in Italy.5

1
The year is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to Chauncey Wright, 11 October 1871 (Correspondence vol. 19).
2
CD arranged for Wright’s review of St George Jackson Mivart’s On the genesis of species (C. Wright 1871a; Mivart 1871a) to be published by John Murray at CD’s expense (C. Wright 1871b); see Correspondence vol. 19, letter to Chauncey Wright, 13 and 14 July [1871] and n. 5. The enclosure was a letter from Charles Kingsley to Wright that had evidently been sent first to Murray (see Correspondence vol. 19, letter to John Murray, 23 September [1871]).
4
See Correspondence vol. 19, letter from T. H. Huxley and H. A. Huxley, 20 September 1871. Thomas Henry Huxley published an article in the Contemporary Review titled ‘Mr Darwin’s critics’ (T. H. Huxley 1871).
5
See Correspondence vol. 19, letter from Michele Lessona, 5 August 1871 and n. 3. Michele Lessona had defended CD’s statement concerning the malar bone (cheekbone) against Mivart’s criticism in his unsigned review of Descent ([Mivart] 1871b, p. 64).

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

1.5 already] interl
3.2 Naturalists] above del ‘persons’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-7964F,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-7964F