WCP1849

Letter (WCP1849.1739)

[1]

Down.

Bromley.

Kent. S.E.

24th1

My dear Mr Wallace

I write one line to thank you for your note & to say that the B[ishop]. of Oxford2 wrote the Quarterly R[eview]3 (paid £60), aided by Owen.4 In the Edinburgh Owen no doubt praised himself.5 Mr. Maw’s Review in Zoologist6 is one of the best; & staggered me in part, for I did not see the sophistry of parts — I could lend you any which you might wish to see; but you would [2] soon be tired. Hopkins in Fraser7 & Pictet8 are two of the best.—

I am glad you approve of my little Orchid Book9; but it has not been worth, I fear, the 10 months it has cost me: it was a hobby horse & so beguiled me.—

I am sorry to hear that you are suffering from Boils; I have often had fearful crops: I hope that the Doctors are right in saying [3] that they are serviceable.—

How puzzled you must be to know what to begin at. You will do grand work, I do not doubt. — My health is, & always will be, very poor: I am that miserable animal a regular valetudinarian.—

Yours very sincerely | C. Darwin [signature]

1
"[24 May 1862]" is written in pencil in another hand in the top right hand corner of the page.
2
Wilberforce, Samuel (1805-1873). Bishop of the Church of England, best known for his opposition to the theory of evolution in the 1860 Oxford evolution debate.
3
[Wilberforce, S.]. 1860. [Review of] On the origin of species, by means of natural selection by Charles Darwin. Quarterly Review, 108. London, UK: John Murray. pp.225-264.
4
Owen, Richard (1804-1892). British biologist, comparative anatomist and palaeontologist.
5
[Owen, R.]. 1860. 'Review: On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection other works.' Edinburgh Review, 111. London: Adam and Charles Black. pp.487-532.
6
Maw, G. 1861. Zoologist, 19. London, UK: John van Voorst. pp.7577-7611.
7
Hopkins, W. 1860. Physical Theories of the Phenomena of Life. Fraser's Magazine, 61 (June). London, UK: John W. Parker and Son. pp.739-775.
8
Pictet, F. J. 1860. Sur l'origine de l'espèce par Charles Darwin. Archives des Sciences, Bibliotheque Universelle (Ser. 2) 7 (March). pp.233-255.
9
Darwin, C. 1862. On the various contrivances by which British and foreign orchids are fertilised by insects, and on the good effects of intercrossing. London, UK: John Murray.

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Letter (WCP1849.1739)]

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

Revision history

Transcribed by Darwin Correspondence Project [2012-06-29] Transcription checked by Catchpole, Caroline [2013-01-15] Transcription checked by Beros, Matt [2019-03-01]

Published letter (WCP1849.5932)

[1] [p. 144]

Down, Bromley, Kent, S.E. May 24, 1862.

My dear Mr. Wallace,— I write one line to thank you for your note and to say that the Bishop of Oxford1 wrote [in] the Quarterly Review (paid £60), aided by Owen. In the Edinburgh Owen no doubt praised himself. Mr. Maw's Review in the Zoologist is one of the best, and staggered me in parts, for I did not see the sophistry of parts. I could lend you any which you might wish to see; but you would soon be tired. Hopkins and Pictet in France are two of the best. I am glad you approve of my little Orchid book; but it has not been worth, I fear, the ten months it has cost me: it was a hobby-horse, and so beguiled me.

I am sorry to hear that you are suffering from boils; I [2] [p. 144] have often had fearful crops: I hope that the doctors are right in saying that they are serviceable. How puzzled you must be to know what to begin at. You Will do grand work, I do not doubt.

My health is, and always will be, very poor: I am that miserable animal a regular valetudinarian. —

Yours very sincerely | C. DARWIN.

1
A footnote here reads: "Dr. Samuel Wilberforce."

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Published letter (WCP1849.5932)]

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 “WCP1849,” in Beccaloni, G. W. (ed.), Ɛpsilon: The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection accessed on 28 March 2023, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/wallace/letters/WCP1849