WCP1947

Letter (WCP1947.1837)

[1]

Down,

Beckenham, Kent.

July 12 [1871]1

My dear Wallace

Very many thanks. As soon as I read your letter I determined not to print the paper,2 notwithstanding my eldest daughter3, who is a very good critic, thought it so interesting as to be worth reprinting. Then my wife4 came in, & said "I do not much care much about these things & shall therefore be a good judge whether it is very dull". So I will leave my decision open for a [2] day or two. Your letter has been, & will be, of use to me in other ways: thus I had quite forgotten that you had taken up case of Giraffe in your first memoir,5 & I must look to this.— I feel very doubtful how far I shall succeed in answering Mivart6,— it is so difficult to answer objections to doubtful points & [3] make the discussion readable— I shall make only a selection. The worst of it is, that I cannot possibly hunt through all my references for isolated points,— it would take me 3 weeks of intolerably hard work.— I wish I had your power of arguing clearly. At present I feel sick of everything, & if I could occupy my time & forget my daily discomforts or rather miseries, I w[oul]d. never publish another [4] word.— But I shall cheer up I daresay soon, having only just got over a bad attack. Farewell God knows why I bother you about myself.—

I can say nothing more about missing links than what I have said. I sh[oul]d. rely much on pre-Silurian times; but then comes Sir W. Thompson7 like an odious spectre.

Farewell.— yours most sincerely | Ch. Darwin [signature]

I was grieved to see in Daily News that the madman8 about the flat earth, has been threatening your life.9— What an odious trouble this must have been to you.—10

[5] P.S. There is a most cutting Review of me in the Quarterly11: I have only read a few pages. The skill & style make me think of Mivart. I shall soon be viewed as the most despicable of men.

This Q[uarterly]. Review tempts me to republish Ch[auncey]. Wright12, even if not read by anyone, just to show that some one will say a word against Mivart, & that his (ie Mivarts remarks) ought not to be swallowed without some reflection.13—

P.S I have now finished the Review: there can be no doubt it is by Mivart & wonderfully clever.14—

[6] I quite agree with what you say that Mivart fully intends to be honourable; but he seems to me to have the mind of a most able lawyer retained to plead against us & especially against me.— God knows whether my strength & spirit will last out to write a chapter versus Mivart & others15; I do so hate controversy & feel I shall do it so badly.—

1
A pencil annotation adds '[18]71/ (Postmark)'. The Darwin Correspondence have established the year of 1871 as the correct date for this letter. See DCP-LETT-7858.
2
Darwin refers to publishing an expanded version of Wright's article for The North American Review. See Wright, C. 1871. Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection by Alfred Russel Wallace; On the Genesis of Species by St. George Mivart; The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex by Charles Darwin; On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life by Charles Darwin. The North American Review. Vol. 113. No. 232. (July 1871). 63-103.
3
Litchfield (née Darwin), Henrietta Emma ("Etty") (1843-1927). Daughter of Charles Robert Darwin and his wife Emma.
4
Darwin, Emma (née Wedgwood) (1808-1896). Wife and first cousin of Charles Robert Darwin.
5
See Wallace, A. R. 1870. Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection. London, UK: Macmillan & Co. p.42.
6
Mivart, St. George Jackson (1827-1900). British physician, zoologist and Roman Catholic polemicist.
7
Thomson, William (1824-1907), First Baron Kelvin. British mathematician and physicist.
8
Hampden, John (1819-1891). British promoter of the Flat Earth theory.
9
In 1870 ARW accepted John Hampden's challenge to scientific men to prove the convexity of the surface of any inland water with £500 at stake to any opponent who could demonstrate 'a convex railway, river, canal or lake.' The umpire, J.H. Walsh accepted ARW's proof publishing his diagrams in The Field (26 March 1870) but Hampden vigorously denied the results. Two lawsuits followed and Wallace prosecuted Hampden on several occasions for libel. (Raby. P. Raby, P. 2002. Alfred Russel Wallace: A Life, London, UK: Pimlico. p.206-207). Darwin refers to the report in the Daily News that John Hampden was charged before the Stratford magistrates with writing a threatening letter to ARW "menacing his life". Hampden was unable to pay the required sureties and therefore he was imprisoned for a week. (Anon. 1871. A Geographical Dispute. Daily News. 13 July 1871. p.2). The libellous letter threatening ARW's life was addressed to his wife, Annie Wallace (née Mitten) in 1871. See WCP5560.9319.
10
ARW adds a vertical scored red crayon line in the left-hand margin of page 4 from the text 'I can' to 'to you'.
11
[Mivart, St. G. J.] 1871. The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex. Quarterly Review 131 (July): 47-90.
12
Wright, Chauncey (1830-1875). American philosopher and mathematician; defender of Charles Darwin’s works.
13
Dawin adds 'over' in the bottom right-hand corner of page 5.
14
The text 'P.S. to 'wonderfully clever' is written vertically in the left-hand margin of page 5.
15
See Darwin's additions in the seventh chapter of the Origin 6th ed. (Darwin, C. R. 1872. The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. 6th Ed. London: John Murray.)

Editorial information

Status: Edited (but not proofed) transcription [Letter (WCP1947.1837)]

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

Revision history

Transcribed by Darwin Correspondence Project [2012-11-20] Transcription checked by Beros, Matt [2019-12-20]

Envelope (WCP1947.5068)

Envelope addressed to "A. R. Wallace. Esq, Holly House, Barking, London", postmarked "BECKENHAM | C | JY 14 | 71". Pencil note on back of envelope in ARW's hand: "About Mivart's article in Quartely | July 12 - 1871 | Ref. at end to Hampden's threats"; three postmarks on back. [Envelope (WCP1947.5068)]

Published letter (WCP1947.6031)

[1] [p. 268]

Down, Beckenham, Kent. July 12, 1871.

My dear Wallace, — Very many thanks. As soon as I read your letter I determined not to print the paper, notwithstanding my eldest daughter, who is a very good critic, thought it so interesting as to be worth reprinting. Then my wife came in, and said, "I do not much care about these things and shall therefore be a good judge whether it is very dull." So I will leave my decision open for a day or two. Your letter has been, and will be, of use to me in other ways: thus I had quite forgotten that you had taken up the case of the giraffe in your first memoir, and I must look to this. I feel very doubtful how far I shall succeed in answering Mivart;1 it is so difficult to answer objections to doubtful points and make the discussion readable. I shall make only a selection. The worst of it is that I cannot possibly hunt through all my references for isolated points; it would take me three weeks of intolerably hard work. I wish I had your power of arguing clearly. At present I feel sick of everything, and if I could occupy my time and forget my daily discomforts or little miseries, I would never publish another word. But I shall cheer up, I daresay, soon, being only just got over a bad attack. Farewell. God knows why I bother you about myself.

I can say nothing more about missing links than what I have said. I should rely much on pre-Silurian times; but then comes Sir W. Thomson2 like an odious spectre. Farewell. — Your most sincerely, | Ch. Darwin

I was grieved to see in the Daily News that the madman about the flat earth has been threatening your life. What an odious trouble this must have been to you.

[2] P.S. — There is a most cutting review of me in the Quarterly. I have only read a few pages. The skill and style make me think of Mivart. I shall soon be viewed as the most despicable of men. This Quarterly review tempts me to republish Ch. Wright,3 even if not read by anyone, just to show that someone will say a word against Mivart, and that his (i.e. Mivart's) remarks ought not to be swallowed without some reflection.

I quite agree with what you say that Mivart fully intends to be honourable; but he seems to me to have the mind of a most able lawyer retained to plead against us, and especially against me. God knows whether my strength and spirit will last out to write a chapter versus Mivart and others; I do hate controversy, and feel I should do it so badly.

P.S. — I have now finished the review: There can be no doubt it is by Mivart, and wonderfully clever.

1
Mivart, St. George Jackson (1827-1900). British physician, zoologist and Roman Catholic polemicist.
2
Thomson, Sir Charles Wyville (1830-1882). British natural historian and marine zoologist. Chief scientist on the Challenger expedition.
3
Wright, Chauncey (1830-1875). American philosopher and mathematician; defender of Charles Darwin’s works.

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Published letter (WCP1947.6031)]

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

Revision history

Transcribed by Siewert, Betsy [2019-12-17]

Published letter (WCP1947.6932)

[1] [p. 231]

Again, on July 12, he writes: "I feel very doubtful how far I shall succeed in answering Mivart.1 It is so difficult to answer objections to doubtful points and make the discussion readable. The worst of it is, that I cannot possibly hunt through all my references for isolated points — it would take me three weeks of intolerably hard work. I wish I had your power of arguing clearly. At present I feel sick of everything, and if I could occupy my time and forget my daily discomforts, or rather miseries, I would never publish another word. But I shall cheer up, I dare say, soon, having only just got over a bad attack. Farewell. God knows why I bother you about myself.

"I can say nothing more about missing links than I have said. I should rely much on pre-Silurian times; but then comes Sir W. Thomson2 like an odious spectre. Farewell"

1
Mivart, St. George Jackson (1827-1900). British physician, zoologist and Roman Catholic polemicist.
2
Thomson, Sir Charles Wyville (1830-1882). British natural historian and marine zoologist. Chief scientist on the Challenger expedition.

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Published letter (WCP1947.6932)]

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

Revision history

Transcribed by Siewert, Betsy [2019-12-17]

Please cite as “WCP1947,” in Beccaloni, G. W. (ed.), Ɛpsilon: The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection accessed on 25 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/wallace/letters/WCP1947