234 PUBLICATION OF THE 'ORIGIN OF SPECIES.' [1859. 



varieties. I happened to speak of the eye before he had read 

 that part, and it took away his breath utterly impossible 

 structure function, &c, &c, &c, but when he had read it he 

 hummed and hawed, and perhaps it was partly conceivable, 

 and then he fell back on the bones of the ear, which were 

 beyond all probability or conceivability. He mentioned a 

 slight blot, which I also observed, that in speaking of the 

 slave-ants carrying one another, you change the species 

 without giving notice first, and it makes one turn back. . . . 



. . . For myself I really think it is the most interesting 

 book I ever read, and can only compare it to the first know- 

 ledge of chemistry, getting into a new world or rather behind 

 the scenes. To me the geographical distribution, I mean the 

 relation of islands to continents is the most convincing of the 

 proofs, and the relation of the oldest forms to the existing 

 species. I dare say I don't feel enough the absence of 

 varieties, but then I don't in the least know if everything 

 now living were fossilized whether the palaeontologists could 

 distinguish them. In fact the a priori reasoning is so entirely 

 satisfactory to me that if the facts won't fit in, why so much 

 the worse for the facts is my' feeling. My ague has left me 

 in such a state of torpidity that I wish I had gone through 

 the process of natural selection. 



Yours affectionately, 



E. A. D. 



C. Darwin to C. Lyell. 



Ilkley, November [24th, 1859]. 



My DEAR Lyell, Again I have to thank you for a most 

 valuable lot of criticisms in a letter dated 22nd. 



This morning I heard also from Murray that he sold the 

 whole edition * the first day to the trade. He wants a new 

 -edition instantly, and this utterly confounds me. Now, under 



* First edition, 1250 copies. 



