150 CAMBRIDGE. JET AT. 19-22. [1829 



gone by can give. How we would talk, walk, and entomolo- 

 gise ! Sappho should be the best of bitches, and Dash, of 

 dogs : then should be ' peace on earth, good will to men,' 

 which, by the way, I always think the most perfect descrip- 

 tion of happiness that words can give."] 



C. Darwin to W. D. Fox. 



Cambridge, Thursday [February 26, 1829]. 



MY DEAR Fox, 



When I arrived here on Tuesday I found to my great 

 grief and surprise, a letter on my table which I had written to 

 you about a fortnight ago, the stupid porter never took the 

 trouble of getting the letter forwarded. I suppose you have 

 been abusing me for a most ungrateful wretch ; but I am sure 

 you will pity me now, as nothing is so vexatious as having 

 written a letter in vain. 



Last Thursday I left Shrewsbury for London, and stayed 

 there till Tuesday, on which I came down here by the * Times.' 

 The first two days I spent entirely with Mr. Hope,* and did 

 little else but talk about and look at insects ; his collection is 

 most magnificent, and he himself is the most generous of 

 entomologists ; he has given me about 160 new species, and 

 actually often wanted to give me the rarest insects of which 

 he had only two specimens. He made many civil speeches, 

 and hoped you will call on him some time with me, whenever 

 we should happen to be in London. He greatly compliments 

 our exertions in Entomology, and says we have taken a won- 

 derfully great number of good insects. On Sunday I spent 

 the day with Holland, who lent me a horse to ride in the Park 

 with. 



On Monday evening I drank tea with Stephens ; f his 



* Founder of the Chair of Zoology at Oxford. 



f J. F. Stephens, author of ' A Manual of British Coleoptera,' 1839, 

 and other works. 



