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LETTER 93. TO T.H. HUXLEY. Down, [February] 2nd [1860].
I have had this morning a letter from old Bronn (93/1. See "Life and
Letters, II., page 277.) (who, to my astonishment, seems slightly
staggered by Natural Selection), and he says a publisher in Stuttgart is
willing to publish a translation, and that he, Bronn, will to a certain
extent superintend. Have you written to Kolliker? if not, perhaps I had
better close with this proposal--what do you think? If you have written,
I must wait, and in this case will you kindly let me hear as soon as you
hear from Kolliker?
My poor dear friend, you will curse the day when you took up the
"general agency" line; but really after this I will not give you any
more trouble.
Do not forget the three tickets for us for your lecture, and the ticket
for Baily, the poulterer.
Old Bronn has published in the "Year-book for Mineralogy" a notice of
the "Origin" (93/2. "Neues Jahrb. fur Min." 1860, page 112.); and says
he has himself published elsewhere a foreboding of the theory!
LETTER 94. TO J.D. HOOKER. Down, February 14th [1860].
I succeeded in persuading myself for twenty-four hours that Huxley's
lecture was a success. (94/1. At the Royal Institution. See "Life and
Letters," II., page 282.) Parts were eloquent and good, and all very
bold; and I heard strangers say, "What a good lecture!" I told Huxley
so; but I demurred much to the time wasted in introductory remarks,
especially to his making it appear that sterility was a clear and
manifest distinction of species, and to his not having even alluded to
the more important parts of the subject. He said that he had much more
written out, but time failed. After conversation with others and more
reflection, I must confess that as an exposition of the doctrine the
lecture seems to me an entire failure. I thank God I did not think so
when I saw Huxley; for he spoke so kindly and magnificently of me, that
I could hardly have endured to say what I now think. He gave no just
idea of Natural Selection. I have always looked at the doctrine of
Natural Selection as an hypothesis, which, if it explained several
large classes of facts, would deserve to be ranked as a theory deserving
acceptance; and this, of course, is my own opinion. But, as Huxley
has never alluded to my explanation of classification, morphology,
embryology, etc., I thought he was thoroughly dissatisfied with all this
part of my book. But to my joy I find it is not so, and that he agrees
with my manner of looking at the subject; only that he rates higher than
I do the necessity of Natural Selection being shown to be a vera
causa always in action. He tells me he is writing a long review in the
"Westminster." It was really provoking how he wasted time over the idea
of a species as exemplified in the horse, and over Sir J. Hall's old
experiment on marble. Murchison was very civil to me over my book after
the lecture, in which he was disappointed. I have quite made up my mind
to a savage onslaught; but with Lyell, you, and Huxley, I feel confident
we are right, and in the long run shall prevail. I do not think Asa Gray
has quite done you justice in the beginning of the review of me. (94/2.
"Review of Darwin's Theory on the Origin of Species by means of Natural
Selection," by "A.G." ("Amer. Jour. Sci." Volume XXIX., page 153, 1860).
In a letter to Asa Gray on February 18th, 1860, Darwin writes: "Your
review seems to me admirable; by far the best which I have read." ("Life
and Letters," II., 1887, page 286.) The review seemed to me very good,
but I read it very hastily.
LETTER 95. TO C. LYELL. Down, [February] 18th [1860].
I send by this post Asa Gray, which seems to me very good, with the
stamp of originality on it. Also Bronn's "Jahrbuch fur Mineralogie."
(95/1. See Letter 93.)
The united intellect of my family has vainly tried to make it out. I
never tried such confoundedly hard german; nor does it seem worth the
labour. He sticks to Priestley's Green Matter, and seems to think that
till it can be shown how life arises it is no good showing how the forms
of life arise. This seems to me about as logical (comparing very great
things with little) as to say it was no use in Newton showing the laws
of attraction of gravity and the consequent movement of the planets,
because he could not show what the attraction of gravity is.
The expression "Wahl der Lebens-Weise" (95/2. "Die fruchtbarste und
allgemeinste Ursache der Varietaten-Bildung ist jedoch die Wahl
der Lebens-Weise" (loc. cit., page 112).) makes me doubt whether B.
understands what I mean by Natural Selection, as I have told him. He
says (if I understand him) that you ought to be on the same side with
me.
P.S. Sunday afternoon.--I have kept back this to thank you for your
letter, with much news, received this morning. My conscience is uneasy
at the time you waste in amusing and interesting me. I was very
curious to hear about Phillips. The review in the "Annals" is, as I was
convinced, by Wollaston, for I have had a very cordial letter from him
this morning. (95/3. A bibliographical Notice "On the Origin of Species
by means of Natural Selection; or the Preservation of Favoured Races
in the Struggle for Life." ("Annals and Mag." Volume V., pages 132-43,
1860). The notice is not signed. Referring to the article, in a
letter to Lyell, February 15th, 1860, Darwin writes: "I am perfectly
convinced...that the review in the "Annals" is by Wollaston; no one else
in the world would have used so many parentheses" ("Life and Letters,"
II., page 284).)
I send by this post an attack in the "Gardeners' Chronicle" by Harvey
(a first-rate botanist, as you probably know). (95/4. In the "Gardeners'
Chronicle" of February 18th, 1860, W.H. Harvey described a case of
monstrosity in Begonia frigida, which he argued was hostile to the
theory of Natural Selection. The passage about Harvey's attack was
published in the "Life and Letters," II., page 275.) It seems to me
rather strange; he assumes the permanence of monsters, whereas monsters
are generally sterile, and not often inheritable. But grant his case,
it comes [to this], that I have been too cautious in not admitting great
and sudden variations. Here again comes in the mischief of my abstract.
In fuller MS. I have discussed the parallel case of a normal fish like a
monstrous gold-fish.
I end my discussion by doubting, because all cases of monstrosities
which resemble normal structures which I could find were not in allied
groups. Trees like Aspicarpa (95/5. Aspicarpa, an American genus of
Malpighiaceae, is quoted in the "Origin" (Edition VI., page 367) as an
illustration of Linnaeus' aphorism that the characters do not give
the genus, but the genus gives the characters. During several years'
cultivation in France Aspicarpa produced only degraded flowers, which
differed in many of the most important points of structure from the
proper type of the order; but it was recognised by M. Richard that the
genus should be retained amo |