WCP3893

[1]¹

22, Harmood St.

Haverstock Hill

N. W.

May 16 [1863]²

My dear D^r. Hooker

I am glad to say that the storm appears to have blown over, for D^r Gray³ in the kindest manner possible has confessed that the data on which he was about forming his judgement on my errors were not complete & I conclude he thinks I have not exaggerated. A little opposition & criticism is what I expect but I thank you for reminding me of the necessity of preserving equanimity, for unless one's resolution to do so is repeatedly strengthened by such reminders, it is apt to give way. With regard to the difficulty of climbing the scientific & social tree, all that you say does [2] not depress me; for I have a settled conviction that the⁴ reputation & friendships I have already acquired, are more than I had a right to expect. The hardships of foreign travel have the good effect of cooling the ardour of one's expectations & ambition; I do not know whether it is the same with other travellers as myself but these tough experiences seem to bring one under the truest of the beatitudes[,] namely "Blessed are those who expect little or nothing, for they shall not be disappointed".⁵

I am now trying to write a paper for Natural History review; on the "Geographical relations of species & their varieties".⁶ The main [3] To bring Entomological facts into comparison with Botanical I am again reading your wonderful treatises on New Zealand⁷, Australian⁸ & Arctic⁹ floras. Wallace, the other day told me [he] was reading your Arctic paper & it convinced him that plants alone offered satisfactory data for generalisations on distribution & recent geological changes &c. I think it is rash to say so at present, seeing that this branch of science is at present in its youngest infancy; am I not right in saying that you are the originator of it? —

But what I want to do now is to ask you a question or two relative to some of your published statements.

[4] You say in Flora of Australia that the best marked varieties of a species occur in the confines of the specific area, & that the mean form of the species [is] towards its centre; giving a species of Rhododendron as an example.¹⁰ No doubt this point has been thought on by you many times since you published therefore I should very much like to know whether you still consider it the rule in plants. I fancy it is not the rule in insects ^{sufficient to be called a law for application in Biological science}; it may be a pretty general that varieties occurring at the extreme points of the area of a species diverge most from the assumed type; but there are very numerous cases in which small areas within the larger area contain very divergent varieties or races, producing the impression that such areas exert a strong perverting influence on species; such are the islands Corsica & Sardinia in the Mediterranean fauna; the Sula islands in the Malayan &c. If this subject bores you just now, pray do not waste time in answering.

Yours sincerely | H W Bates [signature]