Ɛpsilon

To Herbert Spencer   21 August [1873]1

Down, | Beckenham, Kent.

Aug 21st

My dear Spencer

I am very much obliged to you for having so kindly sent me your Descriptive Sociology.2 I saw some time ago some specimen sheets, & was astonished at the amount of labour bestowed on the subject. How you find time passes my comprehension.

Yours sincerely obliged | Ch. Darwin

1
The year is established by the reference to Spencer 1873a (see n. 2, below).
2
CD evidently received a pre-publication copy of Descriptive sociology (Spencer 1873a); the book was published in September (Publishers’ Circular, 2 October 1873, p. 669). CD’s copy is in the Darwin Library–Down.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-9019,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-9019