38 GROWTH OF THE 'ORIGIN.' 



observations, it has already done good and ample service, and 

 may lay its bones in the earth in peace. I never heard any- 

 thing so strange as Falconer's neglect of your letters ; I am 

 extremely glad you are cordial with him again, though it 

 must have cost you an effort. Falconer is a man one must 

 love. . . . May you prosper in every way, my dear Hooker. 

 Your affectionate friend, 



C. DARWIN. 



C. Darwin to J. D. Hooker. 



Down, Wednesday, [September, n. d.] 



. . . Many thanks for your letter received yesterday, which, 

 as always, set me thinking : I laughed at your attack at my 

 stinginess in changes of level towards Forbes,* being so 

 liberal towards myself; but I must maintain, that I have 

 never let down or upheaved our mother-earth's surface, for 

 the sake of explaining any one phenomenon, and I trust I 

 have very seldom done so without some distinct evidence. 

 So I must still think it a bold step (perhaps a very true one) 

 to sink into the depths of ocean, within the period of existing 

 species, so large a tract of surface. But there is no amount 

 or extent of change of level, which I am not fully prepared 

 to admit, but I must say I should like better evidence, than 

 the identity of a few plants, which possibly (I do not say 

 probably) might have been otherwise transported. Particular 



* Edward Forbes, born in the Geology ; shortly before he died he 



Isle of Man 1815, died 1854. His was appointed Professor of Natural 



best known work was his Report History in the University of Edin- 



on the distribution of marine burgh. He seems to have ini- 



animals at different depths in the pressed his contemporaries as a 



Mediterranean. An important man of strikingly versatile and 



memoir of his is referred to in my vigorous mind. The above allu- 



father's 'Autobiography,' p. 88. He sion to changes of level refers to 



held successively the posts of Cura- Forbes's tendency to explain the 



tor to the Geological Society's facts of geographical distribution 



Museum, and Professor of Natural by means of an active geological 



History in the Museum of Practical imagination. 



