CHARLES DARWIN TO J.D. HOOKER. Down, March 5th [1859].
My dear Hooker,
Many thanks about the seed...it is curious. Petrels at St. Kilda apparently being fed by seeds raised in the West Indies. It should be noted whether it is a nut ever imported into England. I am VERY glad you will read my Geographical MS.; it is now copying, and it will (I presume) take ten days or so in being finished; it shall be sent as soon as done...
I shall be very glad to see your embryological ideas on plants; by the sentence which I sent you, you will see that I only want one sentence; if facts are at all, as I suppose, and I shall see this from your note, for sending which very many thanks.
I have been so poorly, the last three days, that I sometimes doubt whether I shall ever get my little volume done, though so nearly completed...
CHARLES DARWIN TO J.D. HOOKER. Down, March 15th [1859].
My dear Hooker,
I am PLEASED at what you say of my chapter. You have not attacked it nearly so much as I feared you would. You do not seem to have detected MANY errors. It was nearly all written from memory, and hence I was particularly fearful; it would have been better if the whole had first been carefully written out, and abstracted afterwards. I look at it as morally certain that it must include much error in some of its general views. I will just run over a few points in your note, but do not trouble yourself to reply without you have something important to say...
...I should like to know whether the case of Endemic bats in islands struck you; it has me especially; perhaps too strongly.
With hearty thanks, ever yours, C. DARWIN.