Howeverthismaybe，noone，unlessheisgrosslyignorantofwhatsciencehasdoneformankind，canentertainanydoubtoftheincalculablebenefitswhichwillhereafterbederivedfromphysiology，notonlybyman，butbytheloweranimals。LookforinstanceatPasteur’sresultsinmodifyingthegermsofthemostmalignantdiseases，fromwhich，asitsohappens，animalswillinthefirstplacereceivemorereliefthanman。LetitberememberedhowmanylivesandwhatafearfulamountofsufferinghavebeensavedbytheknowledgegainedofparasiticwormsthroughtheexperimentsofVirchowandothersonlivinganimals。Inthefutureeveryonewillbeastonishedattheingratitudeshown，atleastinEngland，tothesebenefactorsofmankind。Asformyself，permitmetoassureyouthatIhonour，andshallalwayshonour，everyonewhoadvancesthenoblescienceofphysiology。
DearSir，yoursfaithfully，CHARLESDARWIN。
[Inthe"Times"ofthefollowingdayappearedaletterheaded"Mr。DarwinandVivisection，"signedbyMissFrancesPowerCobbe。Tothismyfatherrepliedinthe"Times"ofApril22，1881。OnthesamedayhewrotetoMr。
Romanes:——
"AsIhaveafairopportunity，Isentalettertothe"Times"onVivisection，whichisprintedto—day。Ithoughtitfairtobearmyshareoftheabusepouredinsoatrociousamanneronallphysiologists。]
CHARLESDARWINTOTHEEDITOROFTHETIMES。
Sir，IdonotwishtodiscusstheviewsexpressedbyMissCobbeintheletterwhichappearedinthe"Times"ofthe19thinst。;butassheassertsthatI
have"misinformed"mycorrespondentinSwedeninsayingthat"theinvestigationofthematterbyaRoyalCommissionprovedthattheaccusationsmadeagainstourEnglishphysiologistswerefalse，"IwillmerelyaskleavetorefertosomeothersentencesfromtheReportoftheCommission。
1。Thesentence——"Itisnottobedoubtedthatinhumanitymaybefoundinpersonsofveryhighpositionasphysiologists，"whichMissCobbequotesfrompage17ofthereport，andwhich，inheropinion，"cannecessarilyconcernEnglishphysiologistsaloneandnotforeigners，"isimmediatelyfollowedbythewords"WehaveseenthatitwassoinMagendie。"MagendiewasaFrenchphysiologistwhobecamenotorioussomehalfcenturyagoforhiscruelexperimentsonlivinganimals。
2。TheCommissioners，afterspeakingofthe"generalsentimentofhumanity"prevailinginthiscountry，say（page10）:——
"Thisprincipleisacceptedgenerallybytheveryhighlyeducatedmenwhoselivesaredevotedeithertoscientificinvestigationandeducationortothemitigationortheremovalofthesufferingsoftheirfellow—creatures;
thoughdifferencesofdegreeinregardtoitspracticalapplicationwillbeeasilydiscerniblebythosewhostudytheevidenceasithasbeenlaidbeforeus。"
Again，accordingtotheCommissioners（page10）:——
"ThesecretaryoftheRoyalSocietyforthePreventionofCrueltytoAnimals，whenaskedwhetherthegeneraltendencyofthescientificworldinthiscountryisatvariancewithhumanity，sayshebelievesittobeverydifferent，indeed，fromthatofforeignphysiologists;andwhilegivingitastheopinionofthesocietythatexperimentsareperformedwhichareintheirnaturebeyondanylegitimateprovinceofscience，andthatthepainwhichtheyinflictispainwhichitisnotjustifiabletoinflictevenforthescientificobjectinview，hereadilyacknowledgesthathedoesnotknowasinglecaseofwantoncruelty，andthatingeneraltheEnglishphysiologistshaveusedanaestheticswheretheythinktheycandosowithsafetytotheexperiment。"
Iam，Sir，yourobedientservant，CHARLESDARWIN。
April21。
[Inthe"Times"ofSaturday，April23，1881，appearedaletterfromMissCobbeinreply:]
CHARLESDARWINTOG。J。ROMANES。
Down，April25，1881。
MydearRomanes，Iwasverygladtoreadyourlastnotewithmuchnewsinterestingtome。
ButIwritenowtosayhowI，andindeedallofusinthehousehaveadmiredyourletterinthe"Times"。（April25，1881。——Mr。RomanesdefendedDr。SandersonagainsttheaccusationsmadebyMissCobbe。）Itwassosimpleanddirect。IwasparticularlygladaboutBurtonSanderson，ofwhomIhavebeenforseveralyearsagreatadmirer。Iwasalsoespeciallygladtoreadthelastsentences。Ihavebeenbotheredwithseveralletters，butnoneabusive。UnderaSELFISHpointofviewIamverygladofthepublicationofyourletter，asIwasatfirstinclinedtothinkthatIhaddonemischiefbystirringupthemud。NowIfeelsurethatIhavedonegood。Mr。Jessehaswrittentomeverypolitely，hesayshisSocietyhashadnothingtodowithplacardsanddiagramsagainstphysiology，andI
suppose，therefore，thatthesealloriginatewithMissCobbe……Mr。Jessecomplainsbitterlythatthe"Times"will"burke"allhisletterstothisnewspaper，noramIsurprised，judgingfromthelaughabletiradesadvertisedin"Nature"。
Everyours，verysincerely，CH。DARWIN。
[Thenextletterreferstoaprojectedconjointarticleonvivisection，towhichMr。Romaneswishedmyfathertocontribute:]
CHARLESDARWINTOG。J。ROMANES。
Down，September2，1881。
MydearRomanes，Yourletterhasperplexedmebeyondallmeasure。Ifullyrecognisethedutyofeveryonewhoseopinionisworthanything，expressinghisopinionpubliclyonvivisection;andthismademesendmylettertothe"Times"。I
havebeenthinkingatintervalsallmorningwhatIcouldsay，anditisthesimpletruththatIhavenothingworthsaying。Youandmenlikeyou，whoseideasflowfreely，andwhocanexpressthemeasily，cannotunderstandthestateofmentalparalysisinwhichIfindmyself。Whatismostwantedisacarefulandaccurateattempttoshowwhatphysiologyhasalreadydoneforman，andevenstillmorestronglywhatthereiseveryreasontobelieveitwillhereafterdo。NowIamabsolutelyincapableofdoingthis，orofdiscussingtheotherpointssuggestedbyyou。
Ifyouwishformyname（andIshouldbegladthatitshouldappearwiththatofothersinthesamecause），couldyounotquotesomesentencefrommyletterinthe"Times"whichIenclose，butpleasereturnit。Ifyouthoughtfityoumightsayyouquoteditwithmyapproval，andthatafterstillfurtherreflectionIstillabidemoststronglyinmyexpressedconviction。
ForHeaven’ssake，dothinkofthis。Idonotgrudgethelabourandthought;butIcouldwritenothingworthanyonereading。
Allowmetodemurtoyourcallingyourconjointarticlea"symposium"
strictlya"drinkingparty。"Thisseemstomeverybadtaste，andIdohopeeveryoneofyouwillavoidanysemblanceofajokeonthesubject。I
KNOWthatwords，likeajoke，onthissubjecthavequitedisgustedsomepersonsnotatallinimicaltophysiology。OnepersonlamentedtomethatMr。Simon，inhistrulyadmirableAddressattheMedicalCongress（byfarthebestthingwhichIhaveread），spokeofthefantasticSENSUALITY
（’TransactionsoftheInternationalMedicalCongress，’1881，volumeiv。
page413。Theexpression"lackadaisical"（notfantastic），and"feeblesensuality，"areusedwithregardtothefeelingsoftheanti—
vivisectionists。）（orsomesuchterm）ofthemanymistaken，buthonestmenandwomenwhoarehalfmadonthesubject……
[ToDr。LauderBruntonmyfatherwroteinFebruary1882:——
"HaveyoureadMr。[Edmund]Gurney’sarticlesinthe’Fortnightly’（"A
chapterintheEthicsofPain，"’FortnightlyReview，’1881，volumexxx。
page778。）and’Cornhill？’（"AnEpilogueonVivisection，"’CornhillMagazine，’1882，volumexlv。page191。）Theyseemtomeveryclever，thoughobscurelywritten，andIagreewithalmosteverythinghesays，exceptwithsomepassageswhichappeartoimplythatnoexperimentsshouldbetriedunlesssomeimmediategoodcanbepredicted，andthisisagiganticmistakecontradictedbythewholehistoryofscience。"]
CHAPTER2。IX。
MISCELLANEA（continued）——AREVIVALOFGEOLOGICALWORK——THEBOOKON
EARTHWORMS——LIFEOFERASMUSDARWIN——MISCELLANEOUSLETTERS。
1876—1882。
[Wehavenowtoconsiderthework（otherthanbotanical）whichoccupiedtheconcludingsixyearsofmyfather’slife。AlettertohisoldfriendRev。
L。Blomefield（Jenyns），writteninMarch，1877，showswhatwasmyfather’sestimateofhisownpowersofworkatthistime:——
"MydearJenyns（IseeIhaveforgottenyourpropernames）。——Yourextremelykindletterhasgivenmewarmpleasure。Asonegetsold，one’sthoughtsturnbacktothepastratherthantothefuture，andIoftenthinkofthepleasant，andtomevaluable，hourswhichIspentwithyouonthebordersoftheFens。
"Youaskaboutmyfuturework;IdoubtwhetherIshallbeabletodomuchmorethatisnew，andIalwayskeepbeforemymindtheexampleofpoorold——，whoinhisoldagehadacacoethesforwriting。ButIcannotenduredoingnothing，soIsupposethatIshallgoonaslongasIcanwithoutobviouslymakingafoolofmyself。Ihaveagreatmassofmatterwithrespecttovariationundernature;butsomuchhasbeenpublishedsincetheappearanceofthe’OriginofSpecies，’thatIverymuchdoubtwhetherI
retainpowerofmindandstrengthtoreducethemassintoadigestedwhole。
IhavesometimesthoughtthatIwouldtry，butdreadtheattempt……"
HisprophecyprovedtobeatrueonewithregardtoanycontinuationofanygeneralworkinthedirectionofEvolution，buthisestimateofpowerswhichcouldafterwardsprovecapableofgrapplingwiththe’PowerofMovementinPlants，’andwiththeworkon’Earthworms，’wascertainlyalowone。
Theyear1876，withwhichthepresentchapterbegins，broughtwithitarevivalofgeologicalwork。Hehadbeenastonished，asIhearfromProfessorJudd，andasappearsinhisletters，tolearnthathisbookson’VolcanicIslands，’1844，andon’SouthAmerica，’1846，werestillconsultedbygeologists，anditwasasurprisetohimthatneweditionsshouldberequired。BoththeseworkswereoriginallypublishedbyMessrs。
SmithandElder，andtheneweditionof1876wasalsobroughtoutbythem。
Thisappearedinonevolumewiththetitle’GeologicalObservationsontheVolcanicIslands，andPartsofSouthAmericavisitedduringtheVoyageofH。M。S。"Beagle"。’Hehasexplainedintheprefacehisreasonsforleavinguntouchedthetextoftheoriginaleditions:"Theyrelatetopartsoftheworldwhichhavebeensorarelyvisitedbymenofscience，thatIamnotawarethatmuchcouldbecorrectedoraddedfromobservationssubsequentlymade。OwingtothegreatprogresswhichGeologyhasmadewithinrecenttimes，myviewsonsomefewpointsmaybesomewhatantiquated;butIhavethoughtitbesttoleavethemastheyoriginallyappeared。"
Itmayhavebeentherevivalofgeologicalspeculation，duetotherevisionofhisearlybooks，thatledtohisrecordingtheobservationsofwhichsomeaccountisgiveninthefollowingletter。PartofithasbeenpublishedinProfessorJamesGeikie’s’PrehistoricEurope，’chaptersvii。
andix。（Myfather’ssuggestionisalsonoticedinProf。Geikie’saddressonthe’IceAgeinEuropeandNorthAmerica，’givenatEdinburgh，November20，1884。），afewverbalalterationshavingbeenmadeatmyfather’srequestinthepassagesquoted。Mr。Geikielatelywrotetome:"Theviewssuggestedinhisletterastotheoriginoftheangulargravels，etc。，intheSouthofEnglandwill，Ibelieve，cometobeacceptedasthetruth。
Thisquestionhasamuchwiderbearingthanmightatfirstappear。InpointoffactitsolvesoneofthemostdifficultproblemsinQuaternaryGeology——andhasalreadyattractedtheattentionofGermangeologists。"]
CHARLESDARWINTOJAMESGEIKIE。
Down，November16，1876。
MydearSir，Ihopethatyouwillforgivemefortroublingyouwithaverylongletter。
ButfirstallowmetotellyouwithwhatextremepleasureandadmirationI
havejustfinishedreadingyour’GreatIceAge。’Itseemstomeadmirablydone，andmostclear。Interestingasmanychaptersareinthehistoryoftheworld，Idonotthinkthatanyonecomes[up]nearlytotheglacialperiodorperiods。ThoughIhavesteadilyreadmuchonthesubject，yourbookmakesthewholeappearalmostnewtome。
Iamnowgoingtomentionasmallobservation，madebymetwoorthreeyearsago，nearSouthampton，butnotfollowedout，asIhavenostrengthforexcursions。Ineedsaynothingaboutthecharacterofthedriftthere（whichincludespalaeolithiccelts），foryouhavedescribeditsessentialfeaturesinafewwordsatpage506。Itcoversthewholecountry[inan]
evenplain—likesurface，almostirrespectiveofthepresentoutlineoftheland。
Thecoarsestratificationhassometimesbeendisturbed。Ifindthatyouallude"tothelargerstonesoftenstandingonend;"andthisisthepointwhichstruckmesomuch。Notonlymoderatelysizedangularstones，butsmallovalpebblesoftenstandverticallyup，inamannerwhichIhaveneverseeninordinarygravelbeds。Thisfactremindedmeofwhatoccursnearmyhome，inthestiffredclay，fullofunwornflintsoverthechalk，whichisnodoubttheresidueleftundissolvedbyrainwater。Inthisclay，flintsaslongandthinasmyarmoftenstandperpendicularlyup;andIhavebeentoldbythetank—diggersthatitistheir"naturalposition！"
Ipresumethatthispositionmaysafelybeattributedtothedifferentialmovementofpartsoftheredclayasitsubsidedveryslowlyfromthedissolutionoftheunderlyingchalk;sothattheflintsarrangethemselvesinthelinesofleastresistance。ThesimilarbutlessstronglymarkedarrangementofthestonesinthedriftnearSouthamptonmakesmesuspectthatitalsomusthaveslowlysubsided;andthenotionhascrossedmymindthatduringthecommencementandheightoftheglacialperiodgreatbedsoffrozensnowaccumulatedoverthesouthofEngland，andthat，duringthesummer，gravelandstoneswerewashedfromthehigherlandoveritssurface，andinsuperficialchannels。Thelargerstreamsmayhavecutrightthroughthefrozensnow，anddepositedgravelinlinesatthebottom。
Butoneachsucceedingautumn，whentherunningwaterfailed，Iimaginethatthelinesofdrainagewouldhavebeenfilledupbyblownsnowafterwardscongealed，andthat，owingtogreatsurfaceaccumulationsofsnow，itwouldbeamerechancewhetherthedrainage，togetherwithgravelandsand，wouldfollowthesamelinesduringthenextsummer。Thus，asI
apprehend，alternatelayersoffrozensnowanddrift，insheetsandlines，wouldultimatelyhavecoveredthecountrytoagreatthickness，withlinesofdriftprobablydepositedinvariousdirectionsatthebottombythelargerstreams。Astheclimatebecamewarmer，thelowerbedsoffrozensnowwouldhavemeltedwithextremeslowness，andthemanyirregularbedsofinterstratifieddriftwouldhavesunkdownwithequalslowness;andduringthismovementtheelongatedpebbleswouldhavearrangedthemselvesmoreorlessvertically。Thedriftwouldalsohavebeendepositedalmostirrespectiveoftheoutlineoftheunderlyingland。WhenIviewedthecountryIcouldnotpersuademyselfthatanyflood，howevergreat，couldhavedepositedsuchcoarsegraveloverthealmostlevelplatformsbetweenthevalleys。MyviewdiffersfromthatofHolst，page415[’GreatIceAge’]，ofwhichIhadneverheard，ashisrelatestochannelscutthroughglaciers，andminetobedsofdriftinterstratifiedwithfrozensnowwherenoglaciersexisted。Theupshotofthislongletteristoaskyoutokeepmynotioninyourhead，andlookoutforuprightpebblesinanylowlandcountrywhichyoumayexamine，whereglaciershavenotexisted。Orifyouthinkthenotiondeservesanyfurtherthought，butnototherwise，totellanyoneofit，forinstanceMr。Skertchly，whoisexaminingsuchdistricts。
Prayforgivemeforwritingsolongaletter，andagainthankingyouforthegreatpleasurederivedfromyourbook，Iremainyoursveryfaithfully，CH。DARWIN。
P。S……IamgladthatyouhavereadBlytt（AxelBlytt。——’EssayontheImmigrationoftheNorwegianFloraduringalternaterainyanddrySeasons。’
Christiania，1876。）;hispaperseemedtomeamostimportantcontributiontoBotanicalGeography。HowcuriousthatthesameconclusionsshouldhavebeenarrivedatbyMr。Skertchly，whoseemstobeafirst—rateobserver;
andthisimplies，asIalwaysthink，asoundtheoriser。
Ihavetoldmypublishertosendyouintwoorthreedaysacopy（secondedition）ofmygeologicalworkduringthevoyageofthe"Beagle"。Thesolepointwhichwouldperhapsinterestyouisaboutthesteppe—likeplainsofPatagonia。
FormanyyearspastIhavehadfearfulmisgivingsthatitmusthavebeenthelevelofthesea，andnotthatofthelandwhichhaschanged。
Ireadafewmonthsagoyour[brother’s]veryinterestinglifeofMurchison。（ByMr。ArchibaldGeikie。）ThoughIhavealwaysthoughtthatherankednexttoW。Smithintheclassificationofformations，andthoughIknewhowkind—hearted[hewas]，yetthebookhasraisedhimgreatlyinmyrespect，notwithstandinghisfoiblesandwantofbroadphilosophicalviews。
[Theonlyothergeologicalworkofhislateryearswasembodiedinhisbookonearthworms（1881），whichmaythereforebeconvenientlyconsideredinthisplace。Thissubjectwasonewhichhadinterestedhimmanyyearsbeforethisdate，andin1838apaperontheformationofmouldwaspublishedintheProceedingsoftheGeologicalSociety（seevolumei。）。
Hereheshowedthat"fragmentsofburntmarl，cinders，etc。，whichhadbeenthicklystrewedoverthesurfaceofseveralmeadowswerefoundafterafewyearslyingatadepthofsomeinchesbeneaththeturf，butstillformingalayer。"Fortheexplanationofthisfact，whichformsthecentralideaofthegeologicalpartofthebook，hewasindebtedtohisuncleJosiahWedgwood，whosuggestedthatworms，bybringingearthtothesurfaceintheircastings，mustundermineanyobjectslyingonthesurfaceandcauseanapparentsinking。
Inthebookof1881heextendedhisobservationsonthisburyingaction，anddevisedanumberofdifferentwaysofcheckinghisestimatesastotheamountofworkdone。（HereceivedmuchvaluablehelpfromDr。King，oftheBotanicalGardens，Calcutta。ThefollowingpassageisfromalettertoDr。
King，datedJanuary18，1873:——
"Ireallydonotknowhowtothankyouenoughfortheimmensetroublewhichyouhavetaken。YouhaveattendedEXACTLYandFULLYtothepointsaboutwhichIwasmostanxious。IfIhadbeeneacheveningbyyourside，Icouldnothavesuggestedanythingelse。"）Healsoaddedamassofobservationsonthehabits，naturalhistoryandintelligenceofworms，apartoftheworkwhichaddedgreatlytoitspopularity。
In1877SirThomasFarrerhaddiscoveredclosetohisgardentheremainsofabuildingofRoman—Britishtimes，andthusgavemyfathertheopportunityofseeingforhimselftheeffectsproducedbyearthworms’workontheoldconcrete—floors，walls，etc。OnhisreturnhewrotetoSirThomasFarrer:
"Icannotrememberamoredelightfulweekthanthelast。IknowverywellthatE。willnotbelieveme，butthewormswerebynomeansthesolecharm。"
Intheautumnof1880，whenthe’PowerofMovementinPlants’wasnearlyfinished，hebeganoncemoreonthesubject。HewrotetoProfessorCarus（September21）:——
"Intheintervalsofcorrectingthepress，Iamwritingaverylittlebook，andhavedonenearlyhalfofit。Itstitlewillbe（asatpresentdesigned）’TheFormationofVegetableMouldthroughtheActionofWorms。’
（Thefulltitleis’TheFormationofVegetableMouldthroughtheActionofWormswithObservationsontheirHabits，’1881。）AsfarasIcanjudgeitwillbeacuriouslittlebook。"
ThemanuscriptwassenttotheprintersinApril，1881，andwhentheproof—
sheetswerecominginhewrotetoProfessorCarus:"Thesubjecthasbeentomeahobby—horse，andIhaveperhapstreateditinfoolishdetail。"
ItwaspublishedonOctober10，and2000copiesweresoldatonce。HewrotetoSirJ。D。Hooker，"Iamgladthatyouapproveofthe’Worms。’WheninolddaysIusedtotellyouwhateverIwasdoing，ifyouwereatallinterested，Ialwaysfeltasmostmendowhentheirworkisfinallypublished。"
ToMr。MellardReadehewrote（November8）:"Ithasbeenacompletesurprisetomehowmanypersonshavecaredforthesubject。"AndtoMr。
Dyer（inNovember）:"Mybookhasbeenreceivedwithalmostlaughableenthusiasm，and3500copieshavebeensold！！！"Again，tohisfriendMr。
AnthonyRich，hewroteonFebruary4，1882，"Ihavebeenplaguedwithanendlessstreamoflettersonthesubject;mostofthemveryfoolishandenthusiastic;butsomecontaininggoodfactswhichIhaveusedincorrectingyesterdaythe’SixthThousand。’"Thepopularityofthebookmayberoughlyestimatedbythefactthat，inthethreeyearsfollowingitspublication，8500copiesweresold——asalerelativelygreaterthanthatofthe’OriginofSpecies。’
Itisnotdifficulttoaccountforitssuccesswiththenon—scientificpublic。Conclusionssowideandsonovel，andsoeasilyunderstood，drawnfromthestudyofcreaturessofamiliar，andtreatedwithunabatedvigourandfreshness，maywellhaveattractedmanyreaders。Areviewerremarks:
"Intheeyesofmostmen……theearthwormisamereblind，dumb，senseless，andunpleasantlyslimyannelid。Mr。Darwinundertakestorehabilitatehischaracter，andtheearthwormstepsforthatonceasanintelligentandbeneficentpersonage，aworkerofvastgeologicalchanges，aplanerdownofmountainsides……afriendofman……andanallyoftheSocietyforthepreservationofancientmonuments。"The"St。JamesGazette"，October17，1881，pointedoutthattheteachingofthecumulativeimportanceoftheinfinitelylittleisthepointofcontactbetweenthisbookandtheauthor’spreviouswork。
Onemorebookremainstobenoticed，the’LifeofErasmusDarwin。’
InFebruary1879anessaybyDr。ErnstKrause，onthescientificworkofErasmusDarwin，appearedintheevolutionaryjournal，’Kosmos。’Thenumberof’Kosmos’inquestionwasa"Gratulationsheft"（Thesamenumbercontainsagoodbiographicalsketchofmyfather，ofwhichthematerialwastoalargeextentsuppliedbyhimtothewriter，ProfessorPreyerofJena。Thearticlecontainsanexcellentlistofmyfather’spublications。），orspecialcongratulatoryissueinhonourofmyfather’sbirthday，sothatDr。
Krause’sessay，glorifyingtheolderevolutionist，wasquiteinitsplace。
HewrotetoDr。Krause，thankinghimcordiallyforthehonourpaidtoErasmus，andaskinghispermissiontopublish（Thewishtodosowassharedbyhisbrother，ErasmusDarwintheyounger，whocontinuedtobeassociatedwiththeproject。）anEnglishtranslationoftheEssay。
Hischiefreasonforwritinganoticeofhisgrandfather’slifewas"tocontradictflatlysomecalumniesbyMissSeward。"ThisappearsfromaletterofMarch27，1879，tohiscousinReginaldDarwin，inwhichheasksforanydocumentsandletterswhichmightthrowlightonthecharacterofErasmus。ThisledtoMr。ReginaldDarwinplacinginmyfather’shandsaquantityofvaluablematerial，includingacuriousfoliocommon—placebook，ofwhichhewrote:"Ihavebeendeeplyinterestedbythegreatbook，……readingandlookingatitislikehavingcommunionwiththedead……[it]hastaughtmeagooddealabouttheoccupationsandtastesofourgrandfather。"Asubsequentletter（April8）tothesamecorrespondentdescribesthesourceofafurthersupplyofmaterial:——
SincemylastletterIhavemadeastrangediscovery;foranoldboxfrommyfathermarked"OldDeeds，"andwhichconsequentlyIhadneveropened，I
foundfullofletters——hundredsfromDr。Erasmus——andothersfromoldmembersoftheFamily:somefewverycurious。AlsoadrawingofElstonbeforeitwasaltered，about1750，ofwhichIthinkIwillgiveacopy。"
Dr。Krause’scontributionformedthesecondpartofthe’LifeofErasmusDarwin，’myfathersupplyinga"preliminarynotice。"Thisexpressiononthetitle—pageissomewhatmisleading;myfather’scontributionismorethanhalfthebook，andshouldhavebeendescribedasabiography。Workofthiskindwasnewtohim，andhewrotedoubtfullytoMr。ThiseltonDyer，June18th:"GodonlyknowswhatIshallmakeofhislife，itissuchanewkindofworktome。"Thestronginteresthefeltabouthisforebearshelpedtogivezesttothework，whichbecameadecidedenjoymenttohim。
Withthegeneralpublicthebookwasnotmarkedlysuccessful，butmanyofhisfriendsrecogniseditsmerits。SirJ。D。Hookerwasoneofthese，andtohimmyfatherwrote，"YourpraiseoftheLifeofDr。D。haspleasedmeexceedingly，forIdespisedmywork，andthoughtmyselfaperfectfooltohaveundertakensuchajob。"
ToMr。Galton，too，hewrote，November14:——
"IamEXTREMELYgladthatyouapproveofthelittle’Life’ofourgrandfather，forIhavebeenrepentingthatIeverundertookit，astheworkwasquitebeyondmytether。"
Thepublicationofthe’LifeofErasmusDarwin’ledtoanattackbyMr。
SamuelButler，whichamountedtoachargeoffalsehoodagainstmyfather。
Afterconsultinghisfriends，hecametothedeterminationtoleavethechargeunanswered，asunworthyofhisnotice。（Hehad，inalettertoMr。
Butler，expressedhisregretattheoversightwhichcausedsomuchoffence。）Thosewhowishtoknowmoreofthematter，maygatherthefactsofthecasefromErnstKrause’s’CharlesDarwin，’andtheywillfindMr。
Butler’sstatementofhisgrievanceinthe"Athenaeum"，January31，1880，andinthe"St。James’sGazette"，December8，1880。Theaffairgavemyfathermuchpain，butthewarmsympathyofthosewhoseopinionherespectedsoonhelpedhimtoletitpassintoawell—meritedoblivion。
ThefollowingletterreferstoM。J。H。Fabre’s’SouvenirsEntomologiques。’
Itmayfindaplacehere，asitcontainsadefenceofErasmusDarwinonasmallpoint。Thepostscriptisinteresting，asanexampleofoneofmyfather’sboldideasbothastoexperimentandtheory:]
CHARLESDARWINTOJ。H。FABRE。
Down，January31，1880。
MydearSir，IhopethatyouwillpermitmetohavethesatisfactionofthankingyoucordiallyforthelivelypleasurewhichIhavederivedfromreadingyourbook。Neverhavethewonderfulhabitsofinsectsbeenmorevividlydescribed，anditisalmostasgoodtoreadaboutthemastoseethem。I
feelsurethatyouwouldnotbeunjusttoevenaninsect，muchlesstoaman。Now，youhavebeenmisledbysometranslator，formygrandfather，ErasmusDarwin，states（’Zoonomia，’volumei。page183，1794）thatitwasawasp（guepe）whichhesawcuttingoffthewingsofalargefly。Ihavenodoubtthatyouarerightinsayingthatthewingsaregenerallycutoffinstinctively;butinthecasedescribedbymygrandfather，thewasp，aftercuttingoffthetwoendsofthebody，roseintheair，andwasturnedroundbythewind;hethenalightedandcutoffthewings。Imustbelieve，withPierreHuber，thatinsectshave"unepetitedosederaison。"Inthenexteditionofyourbook，IhopethatyouwillalterPARTofwhatyousayaboutmygrandfather。
IamsorrythatyouaresostronglyopposedtotheDescenttheory;Ihavefoundthesearchingforthehistoryofeachstructureorinstinctanexcellentaidtoobservation;andwonderfulobserverasyouare，itwouldsuggestnewpointstoyou。IfIweretowriteontheevolutionofinstincts，Icouldmakegooduseofsomeofthefactswhichyougive。
Permitmetoadd，thatwhenIreadthelastsentenceinyourbook，I
sympathiseddeeplywithyou。（ThebookisintendedasamemorialoftheearlydeathofM。Fabre’sson，whohadbeenhisfather’sassistantinhisobservationsoninsectlife。）
Withthemostsincererespect，Iremain，dearSir，yoursfaithfully，CHARLESDARWIN。
P。S。——Allowmetomakeasuggestioninrelationtoyourwonderfulaccountofinsectsfindingtheirwayhome。Iformerlywishedtotryitwithpigeons:namely，tocarrytheinsectsintheirpaper"cornets，"aboutahundredpacesintheoppositedirectiontothatwhichyouultimatelyintendedtocarrythem;butbeforeturningroundtoreturn，toputtheinsectinacircularbox，withanaxlewhichcouldbemadetorevolveveryrapidly，firstinonedirection，andtheninanother，soastodestroyforatimeallsenseofdirectionintheinsects。IhavesometimesIMAGINED
thatanimalsmayfeelinwhichdirectiontheywereatthefirststartcarried。（Thisideawasafavouriteonewithhim，andhehasdescribedin’Nature’（volumevii。1873，page360）thebehaviourofhiscobTommy，inwhomhefanciedhedetectedasenseofdirection。ThehorsehadbeentakenbyrailfromKenttotheIsleofWight;whenthereheexhibitedamarkeddesiretogoeastward，evenwhenhisstablelayintheoppositedirection。
Inthesamevolumeof’Nature，’page417，isaletteronthe’OriginofCertainInstincts，’whichcontainsashortdiscussiononthesenseofdirection。）Ifthisplanfailed，Ihadintendedplacingthepigeonswithinaninductioncoil，soastodisturbanymagneticordia—magneticsensibility，whichitseemsjustpossiblethattheymaypossess。
C。D。
[Duringthelatteryearsofmyfather’slifetherewasagrowingtendencyinthepublictodohimhonour。In1877hereceivedthehonorarydegreeofLL。D。fromtheUniversityofCambridge。ThedegreewasconferredonNovember17，andwiththecustomaryLatinspeechfromthePublicOrator，concludingwiththewords:"Tuvero，quilegesnaturaetamdocteillustraveris，legumdoctornobisesto。"
ThehonorarydegreeledtoamovementbeingsetonfootintheUniversitytoobtainsomepermanentmemorialofmyfather。Asumofabout400poundswassubscribed，andaftertherejectionoftheideathatabustwouldbethebestmemorial，apicturewasdeterminedon。InJune1879hesattoMr。
W。RichmondfortheportraitinthepossessionoftheUniversity，nowplacedintheLibraryofthephilosophicalSocietyatCambridge。HeisrepresentedseatedinhisDoctor’sgown，theheadturnedtowardsthespectator:thepicturehasmanyadmirers，but，accordingtomyownview，neithertheattitudenortheexpressionarecharacteristicofmyfather。
AsimilarwishonthepartoftheLinneanSociety——withwhichmyfatherwassocloselyassociated——ledtohissittinginAugust，1881，toMr。JohnCollier，fortheportraitnowinthepossessionoftheSociety。Oftheartist，hewrote，"Collierwasthemostconsiderate，kindandpleasantpainterasittercoulddesire。"Theportraitrepresentshimstandingfacingtheobserverintheloosecloaksofamiliartothosewhoknewhim，andwithhisslouchhatinhishand。Manyofthosewhoknewhisfacemostintimately，thinkthatMr。Collier’spictureisthebestoftheportraits，andinthisjudgmentthesitterhimselfwasinclinedtoagree。AccordingtomyfeelingitisnotsosimpleorstrongarepresentationofhimasthatgivenbyMr。Ouless。ThereisacertainexpressioninMr。Collier’sportraitwhichIaminclinedtoconsideranexaggerationofthealmostpainfulexpressionwhichProfessorCohnhasdescribedinmyfather’sface，andwhichhehadpreviouslynoticedinHumboldt。ProfessorCohn’sremarksoccurinapleasantlywrittenaccountofavisittoDownin1876，publishedinthe"BreslauerZeitung"，April23，1882。（Inthisconnectionmaybementionedavisit（1881）fromanotherdistinguishedGerman，HansRichter。Theoccurrenceisotherwiseworthyofmention，inasmuchasitledtothepublication，aftermyfather’sdeath，ofHerrRichter’srecollectionsofthevisit。Thesketchissimplyandsympatheticallywritten，andtheauthorhassucceededingivingatruepictureofmyfatherashelivedatDown。Itappearedinthe"NeueTagblatt"ofVienna，andwasrepublishedbyDr。O。Zachariasinhis’CharlesR。Darwin，’Berlin，1882。）