1 70 THE WRITING OF THE 'ORIGIN OF SPECIES.' [1859. 



I request you, after you have finished, just to re-run over the 

 heads in the recapitulation -part of last chapter. I shall be 

 deeply anxious to hear what you decide (if you are able to 

 decide) on the balance of the pros and contras given in my 

 volume, and of such other pros and contras as may occur 

 to you. I hope that you will think that I have given the 

 difficulties fairly. I feel an entire conviction that if you 

 are now staggered to any moderate extent, you will come 

 more and more round, the longer you keep the subject 

 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 suc- 

 ceeded 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. 



