To Henry Holland   [20 October 1871]1

My dear Sir H.

I beg you to grant me the favour to read over the enclosed long letter from Dr Hooker, the best & oldest friend I have in the world.2

I heard months ago how shamefully Mr Ayrton had been treating him, & now it seems that things have come to such a pass that Hooker will resign his place rather than remain under his command.3 This, considering what H. has done for science, wd be almost a disgrace to the country.

Your name & position must have great influence in the Deputation;4 so I beg you to consider this application, as favourably as your judgment will permit; & [because], I think [perfectly clear] that a gt scientific establishment ought not to be under the control of one man who may know nothing whatever of any branch of science—

I hope under all the circumstances that you will excuse me for drawing your attention to this subject,— as I can see that Dr H. is most anxious for your support.—

ADraft

1
The date is established by the relationship between this letter, the letter from J. D. Hooker, 20 October 1871, and the letter to J. D. Hooker, 20 [October 1871].
2
Joseph Dalton Hooker’s letter has not been found; see letter from J. D. Hooker, 20 October 1871 and n. 1.
4
Holland was president of the Royal Institution of Great Britain and a relative of the Wedgwoods.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

1.1 beg] after caret
2.1 & now] after added & del ‘[even]’
2.2 rather] over del illeg
2.4 almost] interl
3.2 & … science—] over del ‘beyond this of course I cannot presume to say anything— & I feel that I have [illeg] the [application] to you for t’
4.1 drawing] after del ‘troubling’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-8025,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-8025