RECORD: Darwin, C. R. [1-2.1860]. Draft folio of the Historical sketch for Origin of species 3d ed. CUL-DAR64.2.13v. Edited by John van Wyhe (Darwin Online, http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
REVISION HISTORY: Transcribed by John van Wyhe and Christine Chua, edited by John van Wyhe 6-11.2022. RN3
NOTE: Reproduced with permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library and William Huxley Darwin.
Introduction by John van Wyhe
This is a previously unrecognised draft fragment of Darwin's "An historical sketch of the recent progress of opinion on the origin of species" added to the 3rd and subsequent editions of Origin. It was written in January-February 1860 and survives on the back of some notes on earthworms ("Castings from the Terrace") for Darwin's last book, Earthworms, published in 1881. Darwin announced his decision to write a sketch in a letter to J. D. Hooker on 31 January 1860: "I have resolved to publish a little sketch of the progress of opinion on the change of species". (Correspondence vol. 8, p. 60.) The text of the draft fragment here reveals major revisions and differs substantially from that eventually published so is probably an early draft.
The citation at the bottom of the leaf is to an article by the Baltic-German palaeontologist and botanist Alexandr Andreevich Keyserling (1815-1891) which appeared in Darwin's writings only in the historical sketch for Origin. Keyserling's 'Note on the succession of organized beings' argued that the unique chemical makeup of each species could be modified by "foreign molecules", such as those which caused diseases. Furthermore, this process of new species formation would not leave intermediate forms and so could explain the punctuated nature of the fossil record. Darwin had sent Keyserling a presentation copy of the first edition of Origin and received a note in reply. (See Darwin to Charles Lyell, 4 [January 1860], Correspondence vol. 8, p. 15.) Keyserling was somewhat supportive in general.
The quotation cited here is: "In 1853, a celebrated geologist, Count Keyserling (Bulletin de la Soc. Geolog., 2d ser., tom. x., p. 357) suggested that as new diseases, supposed to have been caused by some miasma, have arisen and spread over the world, so at certain periods the germs of existing species may have been chemically affected by circumambient molecules of a particular nature, and thus have given rise to new forms." (p. ix)
The text of the Historical sketch was first published as "Preface. Contributed by the author to this American edition" in the fourth American printing of Origin in 1860 and was dated "Feb. 1860." (F380, p. vff) The preface next appeared in the first German translation by H. G. Bronn in 1860 (F672 PDF) and then, again modified, in subsequent editions of Origin.
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(Some authors, & recently especially of late lately W. Herbert, the Dean of Manchester for instance W. Herbert, Dean of Manchester, have supported the view, that a few forms alone were aboriginally created, & that these by intercrossing have given rise to what are the numerous forms called species: but there seems to me such are many overpowering objections to this view, namely, forming the very general sterility of hybrids, from the instability of new intermediate forms — requiring a plan in the economy of nature, from giving their [illeg] strong their strong tendency to cross with either parent form (both of which must have existed in the neighbourhood, & the consequent reversion to either parent form.—
so be brought back to one side,─ & from the
the frequent presence of the most closely allied or representative species at distant points of earth's surface exactly intermediate between the places filled
— the confined nature of the theory excluding all forms excepting those within the same genera —
[illeg] & from segment
[slip of paper pasted on obscuring one line of text:], (a),—these & several other reasons had show make me conclude that this view does not deserve much discussion. But at w[text excised]
perhaps, be rash to assent that all intermediate forms had never thus arisen: but the cases must I think have been extraordinary exceptions.)
*a. Bulletin de la Soc. Geolog. 2 ser. Tom X. p. 357.
[The full reference is: [A. A.] Keyserling. 1853. Note sur la succession des êtres organisés. Bulletin de la Société géologique de France, ser. 2,10: 53-8. See also Johnson 2007.]
Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
File last updated 17 October, 2023