Ɛpsilon

To G. H. Ford    [before 4 April 1874]1

The delay has not signified at all, as my work has turned out ten times as long as I expected. I like the general appearance of the cut, but it is so far from doing justice to your original & quite accurate drawing, that it is of no use to me, & I cannot publish it, unless it can be corrected. My object is to show an intermediate step in the formation of a perfect ocellus.2 Now pray compare the middle one, on the cut, with this on the feather clearly marked by an ink cross.— You will see the black ring consists of 4 separate & defined portions: in the cut, there is only one break in the ring & the whole upper part very continuous & ill-defined or hazy. So it is but in a less bad degree with a drawing of the ocelli above & below; the black rings in the upper part, being in each case continuous & with hazy margin. I am very anxious to be able to give your drawing; will you therefore be so kind as to see Mr Pearson3 & consult with him whether the cut can be rectified; & after you yourself have compared a corrected proof with the feather, & are satisfied please let me see it with the feather.— If it wd make the correction more easy, 2 of the ocelli would be sufficient; & these might be cut cleanly I can publish only what is correct. I am heartily sorry to trouble you thus, as your drawing was perfect: but the trouble is caused solely by the engraver. Wd it not be well for the engraver to have the feather?—

When you write again pray tell me how your health is, for I had a bad account of you from Dr G. some time ago.—4 Do not take time to reply to

Draft

1
The date is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to John Murray, 4 April 1874.
2
Ford had produced illustrations of the feathers of the argus pheasant for Descent (see Descent 2: 143 fig. 56; 144 fig. 57; 146 fig. 58, and 149 fig. 59; see also Correspondence vol. 18, letter to Albert Günther, 13 January [1870]). For the second edition, CD wanted an additional illustration showing a further stage of gradation in the shape and shading of the ocelli (see Descent 2d ed., p. 439 fig. 60).
3
George Pearson was an engraver who specialised in works of natural history and travel.
4
Ford was a friend of Albert Günther.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

1.1 not] interl
1.1 ten] after del ‘many’
1.4 publish] after del ‘use’
1.4 an] above del ‘this as an’
1.5 a perfect] ‘a’ after del illeg
1.6 clearly] interl
1.7 in the ring 1.8] interl
1.8 very] above del ‘of the ring is’
1.9 less] after del ‘bad’
1.9 drawing of the] interl
1.9 black] interl
1.9 in the] ‘in’ after caret
1.10 continuous] above del illeg, before del ‘&’
1.10 hazy margin] above del ‘defined edges’
1.10 very] interl
1.11 to be able] interl
1.11 will] after del ‘&’
1.11 therefore] interl
1.12 with him] added
1.13 corrected] interl
1.13 with] after del ‘or corrected cut’
1.13 & are satisfied] interl after del ‘then’
1.13 please] added
1.13 with the feather 1.14] interl
1.14 more] after del ‘more’
1.14 2] after del ‘it wd suffice for’
1.14 would be sufficient] interl
1.15 & … cleanly] interl above del ‘but’
1.16 as your drawing] interl
1.16 was perfect] interl after interl and del ‘was quite correct’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-9220,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-9220