Ɛpsilon

To W. E. Darwin   24 [July 1874]1

Down, | Beckenham, Kent.

24 th

My dear W

We hope to start tomorrow for Abinger & shall be with you on Thursday.2 James3 shall start on Wednesday, so as to get established in his lodgings before we arrive,

Yours affect | C. Darwin

Poor mamma has had bad head all day from the marriage.4

1
The month and year are established by the reference to Francis Darwin’s marriage and Emma Darwin’s subsequent headache (see n. 4, below).
2
The Darwins visited Thomas Henry and Katherine Euphemia Farrer at Abinger, Surrey, from 25 to 29 July 1874. They visited William in Southampton from Thursday 30 July until 24 August 1874 (see ‘Journal’ (Appendix II)).
3
James may have been CD’s footman. Both James Tester was employed as footman at Down until 1876.
4
Francis Darwin married Amy Ruck on 23 July 1874. Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242) records the wedding, and her headache on 24 July 1874.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-9560F,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-9560F