WCP1847

Letter (WCP1847.4049)

[1]

5 Westbourne Grove Terrace. W

April 7th. 1862

My dear Mr. Darwin1

I was much pleased to receive your note2 this morning. I have not yet begun work but hope to be soon busy.3 As I am being doctored a little I do not think I shall be able to accept your kind invitation at present but trust to be able to do so during the summer.

I beg you to accept a wild honeycomb4 from the island of Timor,5 not quite perfect but the best I could get. It is of a small size but of characteristic form but & I think [2] will be interesting to you. I was quite unable to get the honey out of it, so fear you will find it somewhat in a mess but no doubt you will know how to clean it.

I have told Stevens6 to send it to you.

Hoping your health is now quite restored & with best wishes

I remain | My dear Mr Darwin | Yours very sincerely | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

C. Darwin Esq.

1
Darwin, Charles Robert (1809-1882). British naturalist, geologist and author, notably of On the Origin of Species (1859).
2
According to the Darwin Correspondence Project, Darwin’s letter to ARW has not been found (ARW to Charles Darwin, 7 April 1862, in Burkhardt, F., et al. (Eds). 1997. The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 16. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [p. 146]). The letter presumably contained an invitation for ARW to visit Down House.
3
ARW had recently returned to England from eight years exploring and collecting in the Malay Archipelago.
4
According to the Darwin Correspondence Project, ʺIn a drawer of the rent table in CD’s study at Down House is a pill box marked: 'Bees: Timor Wallace, of which I have comb.-'ʺ (ARW to Charles Darwin, 7 April 1862, in Burkhardt, F., et al. (Eds). 1997. The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 16. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [p. 146]).
5
An island in Indonesia.
6
Stevens, Samuel (1817-1899). British entomologist and dealer in natural history specimens; agent of ARW.

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Letter (WCP1847.4049)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Szentgyorgyi, Katherine [2012-06-13] Transcription checked by Catchpole, Caroline [2013-01-15] Transcription checked by Barton, Michael [2019-02-25]

Transcription (WCP1847.1737)

[[1]]

To C. Darwin.1) 5 Westbourne Grove Terrace. W. April 7th. 1862

My dear Mr Darwin

I was much pleased to receive your note2 this morning. I have not yet begun work but hope to be soon busy. As I am being doctored a little I do not think I shall be able to accept your kind invitation at present but trust to be able to do so during the summer.

I beg you to accept a wild honeycomb from the island of Timor,3 not quite perfect but the best I could get. It is of a small size but of characteristic form & I think will be interesting to you. I was quite unable to get the honey out of it, so fear you will find it somewhat in a mess but no doubt you will know how to clean it.

I have told Stevens4 to send it to you.

Hoping your health is now quite restored & with best wishes

I remain | My dear Mr Darwin | Yours very sincerely | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

1
Darwin, Charles Robert (1809-1882). British naturalist, geologist and author, notably of On the Origin of Species (1859).
2
According to the Darwin Correspondence Project, Darwin’s letter to ARW has not been found.
3
An island in Indonesia.
4
Stevens, Samuel (1817-1899). British entomologist and dealer in natural history specimens; agent of ARW.

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Transcription (WCP1847.1737)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Catchpole, Caroline [2012-10-11] Transcription checked by Catchpole, Caroline [2013-01-15] Transcription checked by Barton, Michael [2019-02-25]

Transcription (WCP1847.4534)

[1]

To C. Darwin.) 5 Westbourne Grove Terrace. W. April 7th. 1862

My dear Mr Darwin

I was much pleased to receive your note this morning. I have not yet begun work but hope to be soon busy. As I am being doctored a little I do not think I shall be able to accept your kind invitation at present but trust to be able to do so during the summer.

I beg you to accept a wild honeycomb from the island of Timor, not quite perfect but the best I could get. It is of a small size but of characteristic form & I think will be interesting to you. I was quite unable to get the honey out of it, so fear you will find it somewhat in a mess but no doubt you will know how to clean it.

I have told Ste1vens2 to send it to you.

Hoping your health is now quite restored & with best wishes

I remain | My dear Mr Darwin | Yours very sincerely | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

1
This "e" is typewritten over an original typewritten letter "a"
2
Samuel Stevens, Wallace’s London agent, lived 1817 — 1899

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Transcription (WCP1847.4534)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Wong, Jennifer [2012-08-17] Transcription checked by Catchpole, Caroline [2013-01-15] Transcription checked by Barton, Michael [2019-02-25]

Published letter (WCP1847.5930)

[1] [p. 143]

5 Westbourne Grove Terrace, W. April 7, 1862.

My dear Mr. Darwin,— I was much pleased to receive your note this morning. I have not yet begun work, but hope to be soon busy. As I am being doctored a little I do not think I shall be able to accept your kind invitation at present, but trust to be able to do so during the summer. I beg you to accept a wild honeycomb from the island of Timor, not quite perfect but the best I could get. It is of a small size, but of characteristic form, and I think will be interesting to you. I was quite unable to get the honey out of it, so fear you will find it somewhat in a mess; but no doubt you will know how to clean it. I have told Stevens to send it to you.

Hoping your health is now quite restored and with best wishes, I remain, my dear Mr. Darwin, yours very sincerely, ALFRED R. WALLACE.

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Published letter (WCP1847.5930)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Congerton, John [2019-12-17]

Please cite as “WCP1847,” in Beccaloni, G. W. (ed.), Ɛpsilon: The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection accessed on 26 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/wallace/letters/WCP1847