WCP1699

[1] [p. 1]¹

Lyell to Wallace June 21. 1869.

I stated on Saturday that it had been suggested that a student's edition² might consist of such an abridgement of the 6^th Ed: of the "Elements"³ as might not interfere with the appearance perhaps 2 years hence of a 7^th Ed. of the "Elements"⁴ in w[hic]^h the great questions now controverted might be fully discussed & all others treated as amply as before. It was urged that the publication of such an abridgement would not enable those who wished to be informed of the latest conclusions arrived at in geology. To this it was answered "the suggestion is excellent but all depends on the relative size of the large & small work." The smaller one must have a different name such as "Student's Manual of Geology" & this it might be plainly stated in the title page that it was an abridgement of the 6^th Ed of the "Element's with corrections".

It had been said no holder of a garden [2] [p. 2] or ornamental grounds could be trusted with the task of pruning for which some other person ought to be employed — so it was with Authors & their own books — it would be better that a competent person was engaged, as the Author should not see the abridgement until it was printed, for it would not do for the purchasers of the "Student's Manual"⁵ to think they have got so much for 7/6[?] that they might dispense with the purchase of the 18/- or 20/- volume.

As to the amount of reduction it would be desirable that it should be brought down to the size of the "Student's English language["]⁶ which consists of only 500 pages instead of nearly 800 in the Student's Hume⁷. But the vol. might if necessary somewhat exceed 500 such pages. I remarked that to me the great bribe of issuing which would induce me to issue the smaller book would be that it would ^{enable me a year sooner to} show the public [3] [p. 3] that on certain questions I am no longer where I was in 1865. This might be done by omissions & slight additions which would make the Manual a new & original work. It w[oul]^d in fact not be an abridgement of the 6th Edⁿ but of the ^imperfect 7th ^{Ed n} which I hope to come out with 2 years hence. It w^d be ^{might be called} a version of the old ^Edn corrected ^{but as whole}[?] ^{I have} by much reading & thinking since that time read & thought ^{& travelled} much in the four last years I could not allow the old a new "Elements" to appear even in an abbreviated form without its evincing some sign of progress.

In order to reduce the proposed treatise to the required dimensions the best preliminary would probably be the reading over the Edⁿ 6^th Edition by two persons independently[,] marks being made of the passages proposed to be omitted so that the general scale of 530 pages instead of 800 of the old type being kept in view. But if it were found desirable as may be very probable to strike out only 200 instead of 250 pages, a very slight difference in the [4] [p. 4] thickness of the paper would prevent the volume from being thicker than Marsh's⁸ English language[.]

It would be desirable that the subjects, chapters & pages to be left out & the illustrations should be decided upon before any time & labour is given to such composition as would be necessary in order to make the sentences before & after the gaps thus ^thus created to follow each other naturally.

In some cases certain subjects without being omitted may be abbreviated & when this is resolved upon a conjectural estimate would have to be made of the number of lines by which the text could be shortened by such abridgement.

I have told Murray⁹ that I was resolved not to be hurried in making this abridgement if persevered in any more than in bringing the new or 7^th edition. But of course the shorter the smaller work is decided to be the sooner it might be ready seeing the impossibility of indulging in much new matter. I will send you Marsh's Student's English Language [5] [p. 5] because it is the size which Murray would like but which I expect to exceed not in bulk but in number of pages by 100 pages so as to allow of the reduction of the 794 pages of Elements to 530 of the same[.]

I told you that chapters V, VI & VII will be so recast by me that it would not be worth your while to go over them until you saw my MS. but now that the necessity of reducing on a somewhat greater scale is resolved upon I think it would be better that you should read & consider those three chapters like the others that I may see what strikes you as the best way of dealing with them before you see my proposed changes[.]