I8/I.] 



MR. WALLACE S REVIEW. 



137 



find that I have expressed my high admiration of your labours 

 with sufficient clearness ; I am sure that I have not expressed 

 it too strongly."] 



C. Darwin to A. R. Wallace. 



Down, March 16, 187 1. 



My DEAR WALLACE, — I have just read your grand review.* 

 It is in every way as kindly expressed towards myself as it is 

 excellent in matter. The Lyells have been here, and Sir C. 

 remarked that no one wrote such good scientific reviews as 

 you, and as Miss Buckley added, you delight in picking out 

 all that is good, though very far from blind to the bad. In 

 all this I most entirely agree. I shall always consider your 

 review as a great honour ; and however much my book may 

 hereafter be abused, as no doubt it will be, your review will 

 console me, notwithstanding that we differ so greatly. I will 

 keep your objections to my views in my mind, but I fear that 

 the latter are almost stereotyped in my mind. I thought for 

 long weeks about the inheritance and selection difficulty, and 

 covered quires of paper with notes in trying to get out of it, 

 but could not, though clearly seeing that it would be a great 

 relief if I could. I will confine myself to two or three 

 remarks. I have been much impressed with what you urge 

 against colour,! in the case of insects, having been acquired 



tiirliche Schopfungs - geschichte,' 

 in which he fully discusses the 

 genealogy of man. If this work 

 had appeared before my essay 

 had been written, I should pro- 

 bably never have completed it. 

 Almost all the conclusions at 

 which I have arrived, I find con- 

 firmed by this naturalist, whose 

 knowledge on many points is much 

 fuller than mine." 



* Academy, March 15, 1871. 



f Mr. Wallace says that the pair- 

 ing of butterflies is probably deter- 

 mined by the fact that one male is 

 stronger-winged, or more pertina- 

 cious than the rest, rather than by 

 the choice of the females. He 

 quotes the case of caterpillars which 

 are brightly coloured and yet sex- 

 less. Mr. Wallace also makes the 

 good criticism, that the 'Descent of 

 Man' consists of two books mixed 

 together. 



