Ɛpsilon

To A. A. L. P. Cochrane   [after 7 June 1873]1

Leith Hill Place, Dorking

[regretfully declining his offer of making a voyage on the Admiral’s ship to pursue his study of Natural History,2 explaining that poor health prevents him from undertaking the expedition and that his days of travel are at an end (“ . . . The glorious enjoyment of new scenes for observation is for ever over for me, & I must rest contented with past memories …”) and expressing his warm thanks and appreciation for the offer

“Charles Darwin”]

incomplete3

1
The date is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter from A. A. L. P. Cochrane, 7 June 1873.
2
CD had been invited to join Cochrane on the ship Respulse for an expedition to South America and the north Pacific (see letter from A. A. L. P. Cochrane, 7 June 1873).
3
The original letter is complete and is described in the sale catalogue as being two pages long.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-8938A,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-8938A