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



and yourself. In my opinion it is grand. I thank you cor- 

 dially for taking the trouble of writing a review for the 

 ' National.' God knows I shall have few enough in any 

 degree favourable.* 



C. Darwin to C. Lyell. 



Saturday [December 5th, 1859]. 

 ... I have had a letter from Carpenter this morning. He 

 reviews me in the ' National.' He is a convert, but does not 

 go quite so far as I, but quite far enough, for he admits that 

 all birds are from one progenitor, and probably all fishes and 

 reptiles from another parent. But the last mouthful chokes 

 him. He can hardly admit all vertebrates from one parent. 

 He will surely come to this from Homology and Embryology. 

 I look at it as grand having brought round a great physio- 

 logist, for great I think he certainly is in that line. How 

 curious I shall be to know what line Owen will take: dead 

 against us, I fear ; but he wrote me a most liberal note on the 

 reception of my book, and said he was quite prepared to 

 consider fairly and without prejudice my line of argument. 



C. Darwin to C. Lyell. 



Down, Saturday"[December 12th, 1859]. 



... I had very long interviews with , which perhaps 



you would like to hear about. ... I infer from several 

 expressions that, at bottom, he goes an immense way with 

 us 



He said to the effect that my explanation was the best 

 ever published of the manner of formation of species. I said 

 I was very glad to hear it. He took me up short : " You must 

 not at all suppose that I agree with you in all respects." I 

 said I thought it no more likely that I should be right in 



* See a letter to Dr. Carpenter, Vol. II. p. 262. 



