Cu. Xffl.] REVIEWS AND CRITICISMS, 1860. 225 



study which take place at that season, and has not yet been 

 discovered. I should be very sorry to lose it, for there were 

 in it some botanical mems. which I had not secured. . . 



The principal part of your letter was high laudation of 

 Darwin's book. 



Well, the book has reached mo, and I finished its careful 

 perusal four days ago ; and I freely say that your laudation is 

 not out of place. 



It is done in a masterly manner. It might well have taken 

 twenty years to produce it. It is crammed full of most 

 interesting matter — thoroughly digested — well expressed — 

 close, cogent, and taken as a system it makes out a better case 

 than I had supposed possible. . . . 



Agassiz, when I saw him last, had read but a part of it. 

 He says it is poor — very poor 1 I (entre nous). The fact [is] 

 he is very much annoyed by it, ... . and I do not wonder at 

 it. To bring all ideal systems within the domain of science, 

 and give good physical or natural explanations of all his 

 capital points, is as bad as to have Forbes take the glacier 

 materials . . . and give scientific explanation of all the 

 phenomena. 



Tell Darwin all this. I will write to him when I get a 

 chance. As I have promised, he and you shall have fair-play 

 here. ... I must myself write a review* of Darwin's book for 

 Sillimaris Journal (the more so that I suspect Agassiz means 

 to come out upon it) for the next (March) number, and I am 

 now setting about it (when I ought to be every moment work- 

 ing the Exploring] Expedition Composit®, which I know far 

 more about). And really it is no easy job as you may well 

 imagine. 



I doubt if I shall please you altogether. I know I shall 

 not please Agassiz at all. I hear another reprint is in the 

 Press, and the book will excite much attention here, and some 

 controversy. . . . 



0. D. to Asa Gray. Down, January 28th [I860]. 



My dear Gbat, — Hooker has forwarded to me your letter to 

 him ; and I cannot express how deeply it has gratified me. To 



* On Jan. 23 Gray wrote to Darwin : " It naturally happens that my 

 review of your book does not exhibit anything like the full force of the 

 impression the book haa made upon me. . Under the circumstances I 

 suppose I do your theory more good here, by bespeaking for it a fair and 

 favourable consideration, and by standing non-oommitted as to its full 



Q 



