WCP4037

[1]

The Dell, Grays, Essex

Feb^y. 20th 1875

Dear Newton¹

If you can wait till May, I can let you have all the MSS. you want at once for 2-3 weeks, as I believe I shall be occupied all that time with S. Kensington Ex.ⁿ papers.² From the contents of 1st volume ^{of Encyc. Britt,} I sh^d think Birds w^d not come till 3rd. & then will be plenty of time. They kept my proofs a year before they came out.

As to the order of the Regions; I find put Nearctic first, & Neot last, in order that it might come near Austⁿ, & have worked all [2] through in that plan; but I now see it must be altered, as the connection of Aust & Neot & superficial ^{& accidental,} compared with that of Aust & Or. on one side & Neot. & Nearct. on other. This has come not during the work, & I am ^now convinced Huxley’s³ decision (Arctogoea & Notogoea) is not the fundamental one. The relation that does exist between them depends on two causes,— 1st. the preservation & survival in these two ^{remote & isolated} areas of certain ancient types once universal, but which in the other regions have been supplanted by higher forms;- this accounts for Marsupials, & Cracidae, Megapodiida. 2nd. The [3] transmission of certain forms during warm periods through the Antarctic lands ^{and islands} & recently through floating ice. No approach to a land connection has ever occurred between them.

Much more may be said on this subject.- but I am not quite clear on it.

As to giving more prominence to extinct forms, I think a chapter of good length devoted to it, will be ample- After all, the extinct families & genera of Tertiary vertebrates are not one length of the living forms,- & they are local instead of universal.

Again it is not an essential part of the subject, to be gone into in great detail,- & it would [4]⁴ require special anatomical knowledge to do so. I can only take the general results of [illeg.] ^various Paleontologists yet again. I must consult the commercial aspect of the matter.

I have devoted nearly 3 years to the work, & must if possible get something out of it. Any increase of size beyond what I have already arranged for, will probably take all chance of profits.

Yet again, so much new matter both in Classification, new species & paleontology comes up annually, that the book will be obsolete in a few years, & a new, & much better work will have to be done, with the experience of criticism &c of this.

Tabulating the genera, quite impossible. Look at families of 20-50 — & 100 genera! I think it more important to show at a glance whether a family just enters a region or extends all over it nearly so. I will show peculiar genera in the list of each region by italics or capitals.⁵

Yours very truly | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]