"Withrespecttoimmortality，nothingshowsme[soclearly]howstrongandalmostinstinctiveabeliefitis，astheconsiderationoftheviewnowheldbymostphysicists，namely，thatthesunwithalltheplanetswillintimegrowtoocoldforlife，unlessindeedsomegreatbodydashesintothesun，andthusgivesitfreshlife。BelievingasIdothatmaninthedistantfuturewillbeafarmoreperfectcreaturethanhenowis，itisanintolerablethoughtthatheandallothersentientbeingsaredoomedtocompleteannihilationaftersuchlong—continuedslowprogress。Tothosewhofullyadmittheimmortalityofthehumansoul，thedestructionofourworldwillnotappearsodreadful。
"AnothersourceofconvictionintheexistenceofGod，connectedwiththereason，andnotwiththefeelings，impressesmeashavingmuchmoreweight。
Thisfollowsfromtheextremedifficultyorratherimpossibilityofconceivingthisimmenseandwonderfuluniverse，includingmanwithhiscapacityoflookingfarbackwardsandfarintofuturity，astheresultofblindchanceornecessity。WhenthusreflectingIfeelcompelledtolooktoaFirstCausehavinganintelligentmindinsomedegreeanalogoustothatofman;andIdeservetobecalledaTheist。Thisconclusionwasstronginmymindaboutthetime，asfarasIcanremember，whenIwrotethe’OriginofSpecies;’anditissincethattimethatithasverygradually，withmanyfluctuations，becomeweaker。Butthenarisesthedoubt，canthemindofman，whichhas，asIfullybelieve，beendevelopedfromamindaslowasthatpossessedbythelowestanimals，betrustedwhenitdrawssuchgrandconclusions？
"Icannotpretendtothrowtheleastlightonsuchabstruseproblems。Themysteryofthebeginningofallthingsisinsolublebyus;andIforonemustbecontenttoremainanAgnostic。"
ThefollowinglettersrepeattosomeextentwhathasbeengivenfromtheAutobiography。Thefirstonerefersto’TheBoundariesofScience，aDialogue，’publishedin’Macmillan’sMagazine，’forJuly1861。]
CHARLESDARWINTOMISSJULIAWEDGWOOD。
July11[1861]。
Someonehassentus’Macmillan’;andImusttellyouhowmuchIadmireyourArticle;thoughatthesametimeImustconfessthatIcouldnotclearlyfollowyouinsomeparts，whichprobablyisinmainpartduetomynotbeingatallaccustomedtometaphysicaltrainsofthought。Ithinkthatyouunderstandmybook（The’OriginofSpecies。’）perfectly，andthatIfindaveryrareeventwithmycritics。Theideasinthelastpagehaveseveraltimesvaguelycrossedmymind。OwingtoseveralcorrespondentsI
havebeenledlatelytothink，orrathertotrytothinkoversomeofthechiefpointsdiscussedbyyou。Buttheresulthasbeenwithmeamaze——
somethinglikethinkingontheoriginofevil，towhichyouallude。Themindrefusestolookatthisuniverse，beingwhatitis，withouthavingbeendesigned;yet，whereonewouldmostexpectdesign，viz。inthestructureofasentientbeing，themoreIthinkonthesubject，thelessI
canseeproofofdesign。AsaGrayandsomeotherslookateachvariation，oratleastateachbeneficialvariation（whichA。Graywouldcomparewiththeraindrops（Dr。Gray’srain—dropmetaphoroccursintheEssay’DarwinandhisReviewers’（’Darwiniana，’page157）:"Thewholeanimatelifeofacountrydependsabsolutelyuponthevegetation，thevegetationupontherain。Themoistureisfurnishedbytheocean，israisedbythesun’sheatfromtheocean’ssurface，andiswaftedinlandbythewinds。Butwhatmultitudesofrain—dropsfallbackintotheocean——areasmuchwithoutafinalcauseastheincipientvarietieswhichcometonothing！Doesitthereforefollowthattherainswhicharebestoweduponthesoilwithsuchruleandaverageregularitywerenotdesignedtosupportvegetableandanimallife？"）whichdonotfallonthesea，butontothelandtofertilizeit）ashavingbeenprovidentiallydesigned。YetwhenIaskhimwhetherhelooksateachvariationintherock—pigeon，bywhichmanhasmadebyaccumulationapouterorfantailpigeon，asprovidentiallydesignedforman’samusement，hedoesnotknowwhattoanswer;andifhe，oranyone，admits[that]thesevariationsareaccidental，asfaraspurposeisconcerned（ofcoursenotaccidentalastotheircauseororigin）;thenI
canseenoreasonwhyheshouldranktheaccumulatedvariationsbywhichthebeautifullyadaptedwoodpeckerhasbeenformed，asprovidentiallydesigned。Foritwouldbeeasytoimaginetheenlargedcropofthepouter，ortailofthefantail，asofsomeusetobirds，inastateofnature，havingpeculiarhabitsoflife。Thesearetheconsiderationswhichperplexmeaboutdesign;butwhetheryouwillcaretohearthem，Iknownot……
[Onthesubjectofdesign，hewrote（July1860）toDr。Gray:
"Onewordmoreon’designedlaws’and’undesignedresults。’IseeabirdwhichIwantforfood，takemygunandkillit，IdothisDESIGNEDLY。Aninnocentandgoodmanstandsunderatreeandiskilledbyaflashoflightning。Doyoubelieve（andIreallyshouldliketohear）thatGodDESIGNEDLYkilledthisman？Manyormostpersonsdobelievethis;Ican’tanddon’t。Ifyoubelieveso，doyoubelievethatwhenaswallowsnapsupagnatthatGoddesignedthatthatparticularswallowshouldsnapupthatparticulargnatatthatparticularinstant？Ibelievethatthemanandthegnatareinthesamepredicament。Ifthedeathofneithermannorgnataredesigned，IseenogoodreasontobelievethattheirFIRSTbirthorproductionshouldbenecessarilydesigned。"]
CHARLESDARWINTOW。GRAHAM。
Down，July3rd，1881。
DearSir，IhopethatyouwillnotthinkitintrusiveonmyparttothankyouheartilyforthepleasurewhichIhavederivedfromreadingyouradmirablywritten’CreedofScience，’thoughIhavenotyetquitefinishedit，asnowthatIamoldIreadveryslowly。Itisaverylongtimesinceanyotherbookhasinterestedmesomuch。Theworkmusthavecostyouseveralyearsandmuchhardlabourwithfullleisureforwork。Youwouldnotprobablyexpectanyonefullytoagreewithyouonsomanyabstrusesubjects;andtherearesomepointsinyourbookwhichIcannotdigest。Thechiefoneisthattheexistenceofso—callednaturallawsimpliespurpose。Icannotseethis。Nottomentionthatmanyexpectthattheseveralgreatlawswillsomedaybefoundtofollowinevitablyfromsomeonesinglelaw，yettakingthelawsaswenowknowthem，andlookatthemoon，wherethelawofgravitation——andnodoubtoftheconservationofenergy——oftheatomictheory，etc。etc。，holdgood，andIcannotseethatthereisthennecessarilyanypurpose。Wouldtherebepurposeifthelowestorganismsalone，destituteofconsciousnessexistedinthemoon？ButIhavehadnopracticeinabstractreasoning，andImaybeallastray。Neverthelessyouhaveexpressedmyinwardconviction，thoughfarmorevividlyandclearlythanIcouldhavedone，thattheUniverseisnottheresultofchance。
（TheDukeofArgyll（’GoodWords，’Ap。1885，page244）hasrecordedafewwordsonthissubject，spokenbymyfatherinthelastyearofhislife。
"……inthecourseofthatconversationIsaidtoMr。Darwin，withreferencetosomeofhisownremarkableworksonthe’FertilizationofOrchids，’andupon’TheEarthworms，’andvariousotherobservationshemadeofthewonderfulcontrivancesforcertainpurposesinnature——Isaiditwasimpossibletolookatthesewithoutseeingthattheyweretheeffectandtheexpressionofmind。IshallneverforgetMr。Darwin’sanswer。Helookedatmeveryhardandsaid，’Well，thatoftencomesovermewithoverwhelmingforce;butatothertimes，’andheshookhisheadvaguely，adding，’itseemstogoaway。’"）Butthenwithmethehorriddoubtalwaysariseswhethertheconvictionsofman’smind，whichhasbeendevelopedfromthemindoftheloweranimals，areofanyvalueoratalltrustworthy。
Wouldanyonetrustintheconvictionsofamonkey’smind，ifthereareanyconvictionsinsuchamind？Secondly，IthinkthatIcouldmakesomewhatofacaseagainsttheenormousimportancewhichyouattributetoourgreatestmen;Ihavebeenaccustomedtothink，second，third，andfourthratemenofveryhighimportance，atleastinthecaseofScience。Lastly，Icouldshowfightonnaturalselectionhavingdoneanddoingmorefortheprogressofcivilizationthanyouseeminclinedtoadmit。RememberwhatriskthenationsofEuroperan，notsomanycenturiesagoofbeingoverwhelmedbytheTurks，andhowridiculoussuchanideanowis！Themorecivilisedso—calledCaucasianraceshavebeatentheTurkishhollowinthestruggleforexistence。Lookingtotheworldatnoverydistantdate，whatanendlessnumberofthelowerraceswillhavebeeneliminatedbythehighercivilizedracesthroughouttheworld。ButIwillwritenomore，andnotevenmentionthemanypointsinyourworkwhichhavemuchinterestedme。Ihaveindeedcausetoapologisefortroublingyouwithmyimpressions，andmysoleexcuseistheexcitementinmymindwhichyourbookhasaroused。
Ibegleavetoremain，DearSir，Yoursfaithfullyandobliged，CHARLESDARWIN。
[Myfatherspokelittleonthesesubjects，andIcancontributenothingfrommyownrecollectionofhisconversationwhichcanaddtotheimpressionheregivenofhisattitudetowardsReligion。Somefurtherideaofhisviewsmay，however，begatheredfromoccasionalremarksinhisletters。]（Dr。Avelinghaspublishedanaccountofaconversationwithmyfather。Ithinkthatthereadersofthispamphlet（’TheReligiousViewsofCharlesDarwin，’FreeThoughtPublishingCompany，1883）maybemisledintoseeingmoreresemblancethanreallyexistedbetweenthepositionsofmyfatherandDr。Aveling:andIsaythisinspiteofmyconvictionthatDr。
Avelinggivesquitefairlyhisimpressionsofmyfather’sviews。Dr。
Avelingtriedtoshowthattheterms"Agnostic"and"Atheist"werepracticallyequivalent——thatanatheistisonewho，withoutdenyingtheexistenceofGod，iswithoutGod，inasmuchasheisunconvincedoftheexistenceofaDeity。Myfather’srepliesimpliedhispreferencefortheunaggressiveattitudeofanAgnostic。Dr。Avelingseems（page5）toregardtheabsenceofaggressivenessinmyfather’sviewsasdistinguishingtheminanunessentialmannerfromhisown。But，inmyjudgment，itispreciselydifferencesofthiskindwhichdistinguishhimsocompletelyfromtheclassofthinkerstowhichDr。Avelingbelongs。）
CHAPTER1。IX。
LIFEATDOWN。
1842—1854。
"Mylifegoesonlikeclockwork，andIamfixedonthespotwhereIshallendit。"
LettertoCaptainFitz—Roy，October，1846。
[Withtheviewofgivinginthefollowingchaptersaconnectedaccountofthegrowthofthe’OriginofSpecies，’Ihavetakenthemoreimportantlettersbearingonthatsubjectoutoftheirproperchronologicalpositionhere，andplacedthemwiththerestofthecorrespondencebearingonthesamesubject;sothatinthepresentgroupoflettersweonlygetoccasionalhintsofthegrowthofmyfather’sviews，andwemaysupposeourselvestobelookingathislife，asitmighthavebeenlookedatbythosewhohadnoknowledgeofthequietdevelopmentofhistheoryofevolutionduringthisperiod。
OnSeptember14，1842，myfatherleftLondonwithhisfamilyandsettledatDown。（Imustnotomittomentionamemberofthehouseholdwhoaccompaniedhim。Thiswashisbutler，JosephParslow，whoremainedinthefamily，avaluedfriendandservant，forfortyyears，andbecameasSirJosephHookeronceremarkedtome，"anintegralpartofthefamily，andfelttobesuchbyallvisitorsatthehouse。"）IntheAutobiographicalchapter，hismotivesfortakingthisstepinthecountryarebrieflygiven。
Hespeaksoftheattendanceatscientificsocieties，andordinarysocialduties，assuitinghishealthso"badlythatweresolvedtoliveinthecountry，whichwebothpreferredandhaveneverrepentedof。"HisintentionofkeepingupwithscientificlifeinLondonisexpressedinalettertoFox（December，1842）:——
"Ihopebygoinguptotownforanighteveryfortnightorthreeweeks，tokeepupmycommunicationwithscientificmenandmyownzeal，andsonottoturnintoacompleteKentishhog。"
VisitstoLondonofthiskindwerekeptupforsomeyearsatthecostofmuchexertiononhispart。IhaveoftenheardhimspeakofthewearisomedrivesoftenmilestoorfromCroydonorSydenham——theneareststations——
withanoldgardeneractingascoachman，whodrovewithgreatcautionandslownessupanddownthemanyhills。Inlateryears，allregularscientificintercoursewithLondonbecame，asbeforementioned，animpossibility。
ThechoiceofDownwasrathertheresultofdespairthanofactualpreference;myfatherandmotherwerewearyofhouse—hunting，andtheattractivepointsabouttheplacethusseemedtothemtocounterbalanceitssomewhatmoreobviousfaults。Ithadatleastonedesideratum，namelyquietness。IndeeditwouldhavebeendifficulttofindamoreretiredplacesoneartoLondon。In1842acoachdriveofsometwentymileswastheonlymeansofaccesstoDown;andevennowthatrailwayshavecreptclosertoit，itissingularlyoutoftheworld，withnothingtosuggesttheneighbourhoodofLondon，unlessitbethedullhazeofsmokethatsometimescloudsthesky。Thevillagestandsinananglebetweentwoofthelargerhigh—roadsofthecountry，oneleadingtoTunbridgeandtheothertoWesterhamandEdenbridge。ItiscutofffromtheWealdbyalineofsteepchalkhillsonthesouth，andanabrupthill，nowsmootheddownbyacuttingandembankment，mustformerlyhavebeensomethingofabarrieragainstencroachmentsfromthesideofLondon。Insuchasituation，avillage，communicatingwiththemainlinesoftraffic，onlybystonytortuouslanes，maywellhavebeenenabledtopreserveitsretiredcharacter。Norisithardtobelieveinthesmugglersandtheirstringsofpack—horsesmakingtheirwayupfromthelawlessoldvillagesoftheWeald，ofwhichthememorystillexistedwhenmyfathersettledinDown。Thevillagestandsonsolitaryuplandcountry，500to600feetabovethesea，——
acountrywithlittlenaturalbeauty，butpossessingacertaincharmintheshaws，orstragglingstripsofwood，cappingthechalkybanksandlookingdownuponthequietploughedlandsofthevalleys。Thevillage，ofthreeorfourhundredinhabitants，consistsofthreesmallstreetsofcottagesmeetinginfrontofthelittleflint—builtchurch。Itisaplacewherenew—comersareseldomseen，andthenamesoccurringfarbackintheoldchurchregistersarestillwell—knowninthevillage。Thesmock—frockisnotyetquiteextinct，thoughchieflyusedasaceremonialdressbythe"bearers"atfunerals:butasaboyIrememberthepurpleorgreensmocksofthemenatchurch。
Thehousestandsaquarterofamilefromthevillage，andisbuilt，likesomanyhousesofthelastcentury，asnearaspossibletotheroad——anarrowlanewindingawaytotheWesterhamhigh—road。In1842，itwasdullandunattractiveenough:asquarebrickbuildingofthreestoreys，coveredwithshabbywhitewashandhangingtiles。Thegardenhadnoneoftheshrubberiesorwallsthatnowgiveshelter;itwasoverlookedfromthelane，andwasopen，bleak，anddesolate。Oneofmyfather’sfirstundertakingswastolowerthelanebyabouttwofeet，andtobuildaflintwallalongthatpartofitwhichborderedthegarden。Theearththusexcavatedwasusedinmakingbanksandmoundsroundthelawn:thesewereplantedwithevergreens，whichnowgivetothegardenitsretiredandshelteredcharacter。
Thehousewasmadetolookneaterbybeingcoveredwithstucco，butthechiefimprovementeffectedwasthebuildingofalargebowextendingupthroughthreestoreys。Thisbowbecamecoveredwithatangleofcreepers，andpleasantlyvariedthesouthsideofthehouse。Thedrawing—room，withitsverandahopeningintothegarden，aswellasthestudyinwhichmyfatherworkedduringthelateryearsofhislife，wereaddedatsubsequentdates。
Eighteenacresoflandweresoldwiththehouse，ofwhichtwelveacresonthesouthsideofthehouseformedapleasantfield，scatteredwithfair—
sizedoaksandashes。Fromthisfieldastripwascutoffandconvertedintoakitchengarden，inwhichtheexperimentalplotofgroundwassituated，andwherethegreenhouseswereultimatelyputup。
ThefollowinglettertoMr。Fox（March28th，1843）givesamongotherthingsmyfather’searlyimpressionsofDown:——
"IwilltellyouallthetriflingparticularsaboutmyselfthatIcanthinkof。Wearenowexceedinglybusywiththefirstbricklaiddownyesterdaytoanadditiontoourhouse;withthis，withalmostmakinganewkitchengardenandsundryotherprojectedschemes，mydaysareveryfull。Ifindallthisverybadforgeology，butIamveryslowlyprogressingwithavolume，orratherpamphlet，onthevolcanicislandswhichwevisited:I
manageonlyacoupleofhoursperdayandthatnotveryregularly。Itisuphillworkwritingbooks，whichcostmoneyinpublishing，andwhicharenotreadevenbygeologists。IforgetwhetherIeverdescribedthisplace:
itisagood，veryuglyhousewith18acres，situatedonachalkflat，560
feetabovesea。Therearepeepsoffardistantcountryandthesceneryismoderatelypretty:itschiefmeritisitsextremerurality。IthinkIwasneverinamoreperfectlyquietcountry。ThreemilessouthofusthegreatchalkescarpmentquitecutsusofffromthelowcountryofKent，andbetweenusandtheescarpmentthereisnotavillageorgentleman’shouse，butonlygreatwoodsandarablefields（thelatterinsadlypreponderantnumbers）sothatweareabsolutelyattheextremevergeoftheworld。Thewholecountryisintersectedbyfoot—paths;butthesurfaceoverthechalkisclayeyandsticky，whichistheworstfeatureinourpurchase。ThedinglesandbanksoftenremindmeofCambridgeshireandwalkswithyoutoCherryHinton，andotherplaces，thoughthegeneralaspectofthecountryisverydifferent。Iwaslookingovermyarrangedcabinet（theonlyremnantIhavepreservedofallmyEnglishinsects），andwasadmiringPanagaeusCrux—major:itiscuriousthevividmannerinwhichthisinsectcallsupinmymindyourappearance，withlittleFantrottingafter，whenI
wasfirstintroducedtoyou。Thoseentomologicaldayswereverypleasantones。IamVERYmuchstrongercorporeally，butamlittlebetterinbeingabletostandmentalfatigue，orratherexcitement，sothatIcannotdineoutorreceivevisitors，exceptrelationswithwhomIcanpasssometimeafterdinnerinsilence。"
Icouldhavewishedtogiveheresomeideaofthepositionwhich，atthisperiodofhislife，myfatheroccupiedamongscientificmenandthereadingpublicgenerally。Butcontemporarynoticesarefewandofnoparticularvalueformypurpose，——whichthereforemust，inspiteofagooddealofpains，remainunfulfilled。
His’JournalofResearches’wasthentheonlyoneofhisbookswhichhadanychanceofbeingcommonlyknown。Butthefactthatitwaspublishedwiththe’Voyages’ofCaptainsKingandFitz—Royprobablyinterferedwithitsgeneralpopularity。ThusLyellwrotetohimin1838（’Lyell’sLife，’
ii。page43），"Iassureyoumyfatherisquiteenthusiasticaboutyourjournal……andheagreeswithmethatitwouldhavealargesaleifpublishedseparately。Hewasdisappointedathearingthatitwastobefetteredbytheothervolumes，for，althoughheshouldequallybuyit，hefearedsomanyofthepublicwouldbecheckedfromdoingso。"Inanoticeofthethreevoyagesinthe’EdinburghReview’（July，1839），thereisnothingleadingareadertobelievethathewouldfinditmoreattractivethanitsfellow—volumes。And，asafact，itdidnotbecomewidelyknownuntilitwasseparatelypublishedin1845。Itmaybenoted，however，thatthe’QuarterlyReview’（December，1839）calledtheattentionofitsreaderstothemeritsofthe’Journal’asabookoftravels。Thereviewerspeaksofthe"charmarisingfromthefreshnessofheartwhichisthrownoverthesevirginpagesofastrongintellectualmanandanacuteanddeepobserver。"
TheGermantranslation（1844）ofthe’Journal’receivedafavourablenoticeinNo。12ofthe’HeidelbergerJahrbucherderLiteratur，’1847——wheretheReviewerspeaksoftheauthor’s"variedcanvas，onwhichhesketchesinlivelycoloursthestrangecustomsofthosedistantregionswiththeirremarkablefauna，floraandgeologicalpeculiarities。"Alludingtothetranslation，myfatherwrites——"Dr。Dieffenbach……hastranslatedmy’Journal’intoGerman，andImust，withunpardonablevanity，boastthatitwasattheinstigationofLiebigandHumboldt。"
ThegeologicalworkofwhichhespeaksintheabovelettertoMr。Foxoccupiedhimforthewholeof1843，andwaspublishedinthespringofthefollowingyear。Itwasentitled’GeologicalObservationsontheVolcanicIslands，visitedduringthevoyageofH。M。S。"Beagle"，togetherwithsomebriefnoticesonthegeologyofAustraliaandtheCapeofGoodHope’:itformedthesecondpartofthe’GeologyoftheVoyageofthe"Beagle"，’
published"withtheApprovaloftheLordsCommissionersofHerMajesty’sTreasury。"Thevolumeon’CoralReefs’formsPartI。oftheseries，andwaspublished，aswehaveseen，in1842。Forthesakeofthenon—
geologicalreader，ImayherequoteProfessorGeikie’swords（CharlesDarwin，’Nature’Series，1882。）onthesetwovolumes——whichwereuptothistimemyfather’schiefgeologicalworks。Speakingofthe’CoralReefs，’hesays:——page17，"Thiswell—knowntreatise，themostoriginalofallitsauthor’sgeologicalmemoirs，hasbecomeoneoftheclassicsofgeologicalliterature。Theoriginofthoseremarkableringsofcoral—rockinmid—
oceanhasgivenrisetomuchspeculation，butnosatisfactorysolutionoftheproblemhasbeenproposed。Aftervisitingmanyofthem，andexaminingalsocoralreefsthatfringeislandsandcontinents，heofferedatheorywhichforsimplicityandgrandeurstrikeseveryreaderwithastonishment。
Itispleasant，afterthelapseofmanyyears，torecallthedelightwithwhichonefirstreadthe’CoralReefs’;howonewatchedthefactsbeingmarshalledintotheirplaces，nothingbeingignoredorpassedlightlyover;
andhow，stepbystep，onewasledtothegrandconclusionofwideoceanicsubsidence。Nomoreadmirableexampleofscientificmethodwasevergiventotheworld，andevenifhehadwrittennothingelse，thetreatisealonewouldhaveplacedDarwinintheveryfrontofinvestigatorsofnature。"
ItisinterestingtoseeinthefollowingextractfromoneofLyell’sletters（ToSirJohnHerschel，May24，1837。’LifeofSirCharlesLyell，’
vol。ii。page12。）howwarmlyandreadilyheembracedthetheory。Theextractalsogivesincidentallysomeideaofthetheoryitself。
"IamveryfullofDarwin’snewtheoryofCoralIslands，andhaveurgedWhewelltomakehimreaditatournextmeeting。Imustgiveupmyvolcaniccratertheoryforever，thoughitcostmeapangatfirst，foritaccountedforsomuch，theannularform，thecentrallagoon，thesuddenrisingofanisolatedmountaininadeepsea;allwentsowellwiththenotionofsubmerged，crateriform，andconicalvolcanoes，……andthenthefactthatintheSouthPacificwehadscarcelyanyrocksintheregionsofcoralislands，savetwokinds，corallimestoneandvolcanic！Yetspiteofallthis，thewholetheoryisknockedonthehead，andtheannularshapeandcentrallagoonhavenothingtodowithvolcanoes，norevenwithacrateriformbottom。PerhapsDarwintoldyouwhenattheCapewhatheconsidersthetruecause？Letanymountainbesubmergedgradually，andcoralgrowintheseainwhichitissinking，andtherewillbearingofcoral，andfinallyonlyalagooninthecentre。Why？Forthesamereasonthatabarrierreefofcoralgrowsalongcertaincoasts:Australia，etc。
Coralislandsarethelasteffortsofdrowningcontinentstolifttheirheadsabovewater。Regionsofelevationandsubsidenceintheoceanmaybetracedbythestateofthecoralreefs。"Thereislittletobesaidastopublishedcontemporarycriticism。Thebookwasnotreviewedinthe’QuarterlyReview’till1847，whenafavourablenoticewasgiven。Thereviewerspeaksofthe"boldandstartling"characterofthework，butseemstorecognizethefactthattheviewsaregenerallyacceptedbygeologists。Bythattimethemindsofmenwerebecomingmorereadytoreceivegeologyofthistype。Eventenyearsbefore，in1837，Lyell（’LifeofSirCharlesLyell，’vol。ii。page6。）says，"peoplearenowmuchbetterpreparedtobelieveDarwinwhenheadvancesproofsoftheslowriseoftheAndes，thantheywerein1830，whenIfirststartledthemwiththatdoctrine。"Thissentencereferstothetheoryelaboratedinmyfather’sgeologicalobservationsonSouthAmerica（1846），butthegradualchangeinreceptivityofthegeologicalmindmusthavebeenfavourabletoallhisgeologicalwork。Nevertheless，LyellseemsatfirstnottohaveexpectedanyreadyacceptanceoftheCoraltheory;thushewrotetomyfatherin1837:——"Icouldthinkofnothingfordaysafteryourlessononcoralreefs，butofthetopsofsubmergedcontinents。Itisalltrue，butdonotflatteryourselfthatyouwillbebelievedtillyouaregrowingbaldlikeme，withhardworkandvexationattheincredulityoftheworld。"
Thesecondpartofthe’GeologyoftheVoyageofthe"Beagle"，’i。e。thevolumeonVolcanicIslands，whichspeciallyconcernsusnow，cannotbebetterdescribedthanbyagainquotingfromProfessorGeikie（page18）:——
"Fullofdetailedobservations，thisworkstillremainsthebestauthorityonthegeneralgeologicalstructureofmostoftheregionsitdescribes。
Atthetimeitwaswrittenthe’craterofelevationtheory，’thoughopposedbyConstantPrevost，Scrope，andLyell，wasgenerallyaccepted，atleastontheContinent。Darwin，however，couldnotreceiveitasavalidexplanationofthefacts;andthoughhedidnotsharetheviewofitschiefopponents，butventuredtoproposeahypothesisofhisown，theobservationsimpartiallymadeanddescribedbyhiminthisvolumemustberegardedashavingcontributedtowardsthefinalsolutionofthedifficulty。"ProfessorGeikiecontinues（page21）:"Heisoneoftheearliestwriterstorecognizethemagnitudeofthedenudationtowhichevenrecentgeologicalaccumulationshavebeensubjected。Oneofthemostimpressivelessonstobelearntfromhisaccountof’VolcanicIslands’istheprodigiousextenttowhichtheyhavebeendenuded……Hewasdisposedtoattributemoreofthisworktotheseathanmostgeologistswouldnowadmit;buthelivedhimselftomodifyhisoriginalviews，andonthissubjecthislatestutterancesarequiteabreastofthetime。"
Anextractfromaletterofmyfather’stoLyellshowshisestimateofhisownwork。"Youhavepleasedmemuchbysayingthatyouintendlookingthroughmy’VolcanicIslands’:itcostmeeighteenmonths！！！andIhaveheardofveryfewwhohavereadit。NowIshallfeel，whateverlittle（andlittleitis）thereisconfirmatoryofoldwork，ornew，willworkitseffectandnotbelost。"
Thethirdofhisgeologicalbooks，’GeologicalObservationsonSouthAmerica，’maybementionedhere，althoughitwasnotpublisheduntil1846。
"InthisworktheauthorembodiedallthematerialscollectedbyhimfortheillustrationofSouthAmericanGeology，savesomewhichhavebeenpublishedelsewhere。OneofthemostimportantfeaturesofthebookwastheevidencewhichitbroughtforwardtoprovetheslowinterruptedelevationoftheSouthAmericanContinentduringarecentgeologicalperiod。"（Geikie，loc。cit。）
OfthisbookmyfatherwrotetoLyell:——"Myvolumewillbeabout240pages，dreadfullydull，yetmuchcondensed。Ithinkwheneveryouhavetimetolookthroughit，youwillthinkthecollectionoffactsontheelevationofthelandandontheformationofterracesprettygood。"
Ofhisspecialgeologicalworkasawhole，ProfessorGeikie，whilepointingoutthatitwasnot"ofthesameepoch—makingkindashisbiologicalresearches，"remarksthathe"gaveapowerfulimpulseto"thegeneralreceptionofLyell’steaching"bythewayinwhichhegatheredfromallpartsoftheworldfactsinitssupport。"
WORKOFTHEPERIOD1842TO1854。
Theworkoftheseyearsmayberoughlydividedintoaperiodofgeologyfrom1842to1846，andoneofzoologyfrom1846onwards。
Iextractfromhisdiarynoticesofthetimespentonhisgeologicalbooksandonhis’Journal。’
’VolcanicIslands。’Summerof1842toJanuary，1844。
’GeologyofSouthAmerica。’July，1844，toApril，1845。
SecondEditionof’TheJournal，’October，1845，toOctober，1846。
ThetimebetweenOctober，1846，andOctober，1854，waspracticallygivenuptoworkingattheCirripedia（Barnacles）;theresultswerepublishedintwovolumesbytheRaySocietyin1851and1854。HisvolumesontheFossilCirripedeswerepublishedbythePalaeontographicalSocietyin1851and1854。
Someaccountofthesevolumeswillbegivenlater。
Theminorworksmaybeplacedtogether，independentlyofsubjectmatter。
"ObservationsontheStructure，etc。，ofthegenusSagitta，"Ann。Nat。
Hist。xiii。，1844，pages1—6。
"BriefdescriptionsofseveralTerrestrialPlanariae，etc。，"Ann。Nat。
Hist。xiv。，1844，pages241—251。
"AnAccountoftheFineDust（Asentenceoccursinthispaperofinterest，asshowingthattheauthorwasalivetotheimportanceofallmeansofdistribution:——"Thefactthatparticlesofthissizehavebeenbroughtatleast330milesfromthelandisinterestingasbearingonthedistributionofCryptogamicplants。"）whichoftenFallsonVesselsintheAtlanticOcean，"Geol。Soc。Journ。ii。，1846，pages26—30。
"OntheGeologyoftheFalklandIslands，"Geol。Soc。Journ。ii。，1846，pages267—274。
"OntheTransportalofErraticBoulders，etc。，"Geol。Soc。Journ。iv。，1848，pages315—323。（AnextractfromalettertoLyell，1847，isofinterestinconnectionwiththisessay:——"Wouldyoubesogood（ifyouknowit）astoputMaclaren’saddressontheenclosedletterandpostit。ItischieflytoenquireinwhatpaperhehasdescribedtheBouldersonArthur’sSeat。Mr。D。MilneinthelastEdinburgh’NewPhil。Journal’[1847]，hasalongpaperonit。Hesays:’Someglacialistshaveventuredtoexplainthetransportationofboulderseveninthesituationofthosenowreferredto，byimaginingthattheyweretransportedonicefloes，’etc。Hetreatsthisview，andthescratchingofrocksbyicebergs，asalmostabsurd……hehasfinallystirredmeupso，that（withoutyouwouldanswerhim）IthinkI
willsendapaperinoppositiontothesameJournal。Icanthusintroducesomeoldremarksofmine，andsomenew，andwillinsistonyourcapitalobservationsinN。America。Itisaboretostopone’swork，buthehasmademequitewroth。"）
Thearticle"Geology，"intheAdmiraltyManualofScientificEnquiry（1849），pages156—195。Thiswaswritteninthespringof1848。
"OnBritishFossilLepadidae，"’Geol。Soc。Journ。’vi。，1850，pages439—
440。
"AnalogyofthestructureofsomeVolcanicRockswiththatofGlaciers，"
’Edin。Roy。Soc。Proc。’ii。，1851，pages17—18。
ProfessorGeikiehasbeensogoodastogiveme（inaletterdatedNovember1885）hisimpressionsofmyfather’sarticleinthe’AdmiraltyManual。’Hementionsthefollowingpointsascharacteristicofthework:——
"1。Greatbreadthofview。Noonewhohadnotpracticallystudiedandprofoundlyreflectedonthequestionsdiscussedcouldhavewrittenit。
"2。TheinsightsoremarkableinallthatMr。Darwineverdid。Thewayinwhichhepointsoutlinesofenquirythatwouldelucidategeologicalproblemsiseminentlytypicalofhim。Someoftheselineshaveneveryetbeenadequatelyfollowed;sowithregardtothemhewasinadvanceofhistime。
"3。Interestingandsympathetictreatment。Theauthoratonceputshisreadersintoharmonywithhim。Hegivesthemenoughofinformationtoshowhowdelightfulthefieldistowhichheinvitesthem，andhowmuchtheymightaccomplishinit。Thereisabroadsketchofthesubjectwhicheverybodycanfollow，andthereisenoughofdetailtoinstructandguideabeginnerandstarthimontherighttrack。
"Ofcourse，geologyhasmadegreatstridessince1849，andthearticle，ifwrittennow，wouldneedtotakenoticeofotherbranchesofinquiry，andtomodifystatementswhicharenotnowquiteaccurate;butmostoftheadviceMr。Darwingivesisasneedfulandvaluablenowaswhenitwasgiven。Itiscurioustoseewithwhatunerringinstinctheseemstohavefastenedontheprinciplesthatwouldstandthetestoftime。"
InalettertoLyell（1853）myfatherwrote，"IwentupforapaperbytheArcticDr。Sutherland，oniceaction，readonlyinabstract，butIshouldthinkwithmuchgoodmatter。ItwasverypleasanttohearthatitwaswrittenowingtotheAdmiraltyManual。"
TogivesomeideaoftheretiredlifewhichnowbeganformyfatheratDown，Ihavenotedfromhisdiarytheshortperiodsduringwhichhewasawayfromhomebetweentheautumnof1842，whenhecametoDown，andtheendof1854。
1843July。——WeekatMaerandShrewsbury。
October。——TwelvedaysatShrewsbury。
1844April。——WeekatMaerandShrewsbury。
July。——TwelvedaysatShrewsbury。
1845September15。——Sixweeks，"Shrewsbury，Lincolnshire，York，theDeanofManchester，Waterton，Chatsworth。"
1846February。——ElevendaysatShrewsbury。
July。——TendaysatShrewsbury。
September。——TendaysatSouthampton，etc。，fortheBritishAssociation。
1847February。——TwelvedaysatShrewsbury。
June。——TendaysatOxford，etc。，fortheBritishAssociation。
October。——FortnightatShrewsbury。
1848May。——FortnightatShrewsbury。
July。——WeekatSwanage。
October。——FortnightatShrewsbury。
November。——ElevendaysatShrewsbury。
1849MarchtoJune。——SixteenweeksatMalvern。
September。——ElevendaysatBirminghamfortheBritishAssociation。
1850June。——WeekatMalvern。
August。——WeekatLeithHill，thehouseofarelative。
October。——Weekatthehouseofanotherrelative。
1851March。——WeekatMalvern。
April。——NinedaysatMalvern。
July。——TwelvedaysinLondon。
1852March。——WeekatRugbyandShrewsbury。
September。——Sixdaysatthehouseofarelative。
1853July。——ThreeweeksatEastbourne。
August。——FivedaysatthemilitaryCampatChobham。
1854March。——Fivedaysatthehouseofarelative。
July。——Threedaysatthehouseofarelative。
October。——Sixdaysatthehouseofarelative。
Itwillbeseenthathewasabsentfromhomesixtyweeksintwelveyears。
ButitmustberememberedthatmuchoftheremainingtimespentatDownwaslostthroughill—health。]
LETTERS。
CHARLESDARWINTOR。FITZ—ROY。
Down[March31st，1843]。
DearFitz—Roy，Ireadyesterdaywithsurpriseandthegreatestinterest，yourappointmentasGovernorofNewZealand。Idonotknowwhethertocongratulateyouonit，butIamsureImaytheColony，onpossessingyourzealandenergy。I
ammostanxioustoknowwhetherthereportistrue，forIcannotbearthethoughtsofyourleavingthecountrywithoutseeingyouonceagain;thepastisofteninmymemory，andIfeelthatIowetoyoumuchbygoneenjoyment，andthewholedestinyofmylife，which（hadmyhealthbeenstronger）wouldhavebeenonefullofsatisfactiontome。DuringthelastthreemonthsIhaveneveroncegoneuptoLondonwithoutintendingtocallinthehopesofseeingMrs。Fitz—Royandyourself;butIfind，mostunfortunatelyformyself，thatthelittleexcitementofbreakingoutofmymostquietroutinesogenerallyknocksmeup，thatIamabletodoscarcelyanythingwheninLondon，andIhavenotevenbeenabletoattendoneeveningmeetingoftheGeologicalSociety。Otherwise，Iamverywell，asare，thankGod，mywifeandtwochildren。Theextremeretirementofthisplacesuitsusallverywell，andweenjoyourcountrylifemuch。ButIamwritingtriflesaboutmyself，whenyourmindandtimemustbefullyoccupied。MyobjectinwritingistobegofyouorMrs。Fitz—Roytohavethekindnesstosendmeonelinetosaywhetheritistrue，andwhetheryousailsoon。Ishallcomeupnextweekforoneortwodays;couldyouseemeforevenfiveminutes，ifIcalledearlyonThursdaymorning，viz。atnineorteno’clock，oratwhateverhour（ifyoukeepearlyshiphours）youfinishyourbreakfast。PrayremembermeverykindlytoMrs。Fitz—Roy，whoItrustisabletolookatherlongvoyagewithboldness。
Believeme，dearFitz—Roy，Yourevertrulyobliged，CHARLESDARWIN。