204 WRITING OF THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES. [Ch. XL 



now staggered to any moderate extent, you will come more 

 and more round, the longer you keep the subjeci at all before 

 your mind. I remember well how many long years it was 

 before I could look into the face of some of the difficulties 

 and not feel quite abashed. I fairly struck my colours before 

 the case of neuter insects.* 



I suppose that I am a very slow thinker, for you would be 

 surprised at the number of years it took me to see clearly what 

 some of the problems were which had to be solved, such as 

 the necessity of the principle of divergence of character, the 

 extinction of intermediate varieties, on a continuous area, with 

 graduated conditions ; the double problem of sterile first 

 crosses and sterile hybrids, &c. &c. 



Looking back, I think it was more difficult to see what the 

 problems were than to solve them, so far as I have succeeded 

 in doing, and this seems to me rather curious. Well, good or 

 bad, my work, thank God, is over ; and hard work, I can 

 assure you, I have had, and much work which has never borne 

 fruit. You can see, by the way I am scribbling, that I have 

 an idle and rainy afternoon. I was not able to start for Ilkley 

 yesterday as I was too unwell; but I hope to get there on 

 Tuesday or Wednesday. Do, I beg you, when you have 

 finished my book and thought a little over it, let me hear from 

 you. Never mind and pitch into me, if you think it requisite ; 

 some future day, in London possibly, you may give me a few 

 criticisms in detail, that is, if you have scribbled any remarks 

 on the margin, for the chance of a second edition. 



Murray has printed 1250 copies, which seems to me rather 

 too large an edition, but I hope he will not lose. 



I maKe as much fuss about my book as if it were my first. 

 Forgive me, and believe me, my dear Lyell, 



Yours most sincerely. 



The book was at last finished and printed, and he wrote to 

 Mr. Murray : — 



Ilkley, Yorkshire [1859]. 



My dear Sir, — I have received your kind note and the 

 copy ; I am infinitely pleased and proud at the appearance of 

 my child. 



* Origin of Species, 6th edition, vol. ii. p. 357. "But with the 

 working ant we have an insect differing greatly from its parents, yet 

 absolutely sterile, so that it could never have transmitted successively 

 acquired modifications of structure or instinct to its progeny. It may 

 well be asked how is it possible to reconcile this case with the theory of 

 natural selection ? " 



