Ɛpsilon

From E. A. Darwin   13 December [1872]1

Dec 13

Dear Charles

I hope your visit wont break down altogether especially as I shall like to have a little talk which does better than writing.2 George told me I think that you had directed all your real estate to be sold so as to convert it into personalty and in that case I will do the same.3

This could then be added to the personalty which will be a good deal more than the realty & divided in some proportion among the children. Have you estimated what the proportion is in which you have left your own. I should be rather inclined to leave 56 to the boys & 16 to the girls & I think they i.e. girls will have as much as is good for them.

Yours E. D.

Review in the Times today 412 Columns. Have you got it?4

CD annotations

Verso of letter: ‘12,000 to each child’ pencil
1
The year is established by the reference to the review of Expression in The Times (see n. 4, below).
2
Illness prevented CD from travelling to London on 10 December as he had intended (see letter from E. A. Darwin to Emma Darwin, 9 December [1872]), but he did visit Erasmus from 17 to 22 or 23 December (see ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)).
3
George Howard Darwin, who had just completed his training in law, had been advising Erasmus on writing his will (see letter from E. A. Darwin, 11 December [1872] and n. 2).
4
The Times, 13 December 1872, p. 4, carried a review of Expression, a copy of which is in CD’s collection of reviews (DAR 226.2: 142–4).

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-8675,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-8675