The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online

RECORD: Spencer, Herbert. [1882.04.24]. Letter to George Howard Darwin. CUL-DAR215.7p. Edited by John van Wyhe (Darwin Online, http://darwin-online.org.uk/)

REVISION HISTORY: Transcribed by Christine Chua and edited by John van Wyhe 11.2021. Corrections by Anne Secord 4.2022. RN2

NOTE: See record in the Darwin Online manuscript catalogue, enter its Identifier here. Reproduced with permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library and William Huxley Darwin.

"Spencer, Herbert, 1820-1903. First child of William George S and Harriet Homes, eight other children all died in infancy. Philosopher, biologist, anthropologist and writer. Unmarried. Biography: Duncan, 1908; Medawar, 1964, Encounter, 21: pp. 35- 43. 1859 CD sent 1st edn Origin. 1860 CD to Lyell, CD had read S's essay on population, Westminster Rev., 57: pp. 468-501, "such dreadful hypothetical rubbish on the nature of reproduction". CCD8. 1865 CD to Lyell upon reading The principles of biology, "somehow I never feel any wiser after reading him, but often feel mistified [sic.]". CCD13. 1866 CD to Hooker, "If he had trained himself to observe more, even if at the expence, by the law of balancement, of some loss of thinking power, he wd. have been a wonderful man." CCD14:418. 1870 CD to Lankester, "I suspect that hereafter he will be looked at as by far the greatest living philosopher in England". CCD18. 1873 CD to S, on receiving S's The study of sociology, 1873, "Those were splendid hits about the P. of Wales & Gladstone. I never before read a good defence of Toryism." CCD21:475. 1874 CD to Romanes, "I have so poor a metaphysical head that Mr. Spencer's terms of equilibration &c always bother me and make everything less clear". CCD22:392. 1874 CD to Fiske, "with the exception of special points I did not even understand H. Spencer's general doctrine; for his style is too hard for me". CCD22:560. 1882 S was on "Personal Friends invited" list for CD's funeral. Works: 1862 First principles. 1864-67 The principles of biology. 1862-93 The whole body of his work in The synthetic philosophy, 9 vols. Autobiography: 1889 Privately printed. 1904 Published." (Paul van Helvert & John van Wyhe, Darwin: A Companion, 2021)

[7p]

[To GHD]

Monday

Dear Mr. Darwin

Three or four hours since I wrote to you from Bayswater a note which will probably reach you along with this

I write this to say that the ticket admitting to a seat

[7pv]

among personal friends, which you refer to as having been sent, has not reached me. I should prefer being thus grouped to being among the representatives of the learned societies

Sincerely yours

Herbert Spencer

P. S. May I give the other ticket to Prof Bain who wishes to be present?

Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)