“Aug. 13th [1873].
“Down.
“Dear Sir—I am much obliged for your present which no doubt I shall find at Down on my return home....
“I am sorry to say that I cannot answer your question; nor do I believe that you could find it anywhere even approximately answered. It is very difficult or impossible to define what is meant by a larger variation. Such graduate into monstrosities or generally injurious variations. I do not myself believe that these are often or ever taken advantage of under nature. It is a common occurrence that abrupt and considerable variations are transmitted in an unaltered state, or not at all transmitted, to the offspring or to some of them. So it is with tailless or hornless animals, and with sudden and great changes of colour in flowers.—I wish I could have given you any answer.
“Dear Sir, yours very faithfully,
“Ch. Darwin.”
The succeeding three letters show Darwin’s scrupulous care as regards the publication, although with every acknowledgment, of the results obtained by others. They refer to a letter from Fritz Müller which he had forwarded to Meldola. The latter had written to ask Darwin’s permission and advice as to the inclusion of some of F. Müller’s observations in his most interesting paper, “Entomological Notes bearing on Evolution” (Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 1878, 5th series, Vol. I. p. 155), which he was then preparing:—
“Sept. 14, 1877.
“Down.
“Dear Sir—I have some doubts whether Fritz Müller would like extracts from his letters being published after so long an interval,—that is if the letter relates to the origin of mimicry; for he published about a year ago an excellent paper on this subject. I believe it was in the Jenaische Zeitschrift, but the paper is out of its proper place in my library and I cannot find it. If you thought it worth while to send me your copy I could then judge about the publication of extracts.
“I fear it is not likely that I shall have anything to communicate to the Entomological Soc. I quite agree with you that it is a great pity that our Entomologists should confine themselves to describing species.