To R. B. Litchfield   [24 April 1875]1

My dear L.

Many thanks.— I will wait for clean copies for Lyon Playfair & Ld. Cardwell;2 & I return one of yours & keep the other, for I find I have not one.—

Burdon Sanderson wishes the petition to be presented, so I shall write this evening to Sir John, to ask whether he will do so.3

Huxley has seen L. Playfair M.P who is anxious to get up subject.—

Your affect | C.D.—

1
The date is established by the relationship between this letter, the letter from J. S. Burdon Sanderson, 23 April [1875], and the letter to R. B. Litchfield, 24 April [1875].
2
Litchfield was working with CD to prepare a vivisection bill (see letter to J. S. Burdon Sanderson, [11 April 1875]). CD had learned from Thomas Henry Huxley that Lyon Playfair and Edward Cardwell were interested in the bill (see letter from T. H. Huxley, 21 April 1875 and n. 1). A second draft of the vivisection bill, dated 24 April 1875, is in DAR 139.17: 32.
3
Burdon Sanderson advised that, in addition to the vivisection bill, a petition should also be presented to Parliament (see letter from J. S. Burdon Sanderson, 23 April [1875] and n. 5). John Lubbock was MP for Maidstone.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

2.1 wishes] above del ‘wishes’
3.3 M.P] interl

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-9924,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-9924