The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online

RECORD: Darwin, C. R. [1875-1880.] Draft leaf of Earthworms and Cross fertilisation. LINSOC-DWC.2.1 Edited by John van Wyhe (Darwin Online, http://darwin-online.org.uk/)

NOTE: Reproduced with the permission of the Linnean Society of London and William Huxley Darwin.

Autograph draft leaf '1' in blue ink of The formation of vegetable mould, through the action of worms, with observations on their habits (1881), pp. 25-6.
Verso: Draft leaf '386' of The effects of cross and self fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom (1876), pp. 200-201 in the hand of an amenuensis with corrections by Darwin in pencil and black ink.

[1]

Worms appear to be less sensitive to moderate radiant heat than to a bright light. … When placed on a table close to the keys of a piano, which was played as loudly as possible, they remained perfectly quiet.

[1v]

Table LXXXIII.

Petunia violacea (plants growing in the open ground).

Westerham-crossed Plants (from self- fertilised Plants of the Fourth Generation crossed by a fresh Stock).	Intercrossed Plants (Plants of one and the same Stock inter- crossed for Five Generations).	Self-fertilised Plants (Self-fertilised for Five Generations).
Inches.	Inches.	Inches.
34 2/8	38	27 3/8
36 2/8	36 2/8	23
35 2/8	39 5/8	25
32 4/8	37	24 1/8
37	36	22 4/8
36 4/8	41 3/8	23 3/8
40 7/8	37 2/8	21 5/8
37 2/8	40	23 4/8
38 2/8	41 2/8	21 3/8
38 5/8	36	21 2/8
366·75	388·75	233·13

The ten Westerham-crossed plants here average 36.67 inches in height; the ten intercrossed plants, 38.27 inches; and the ten self-fertilised, 23.31 inches. These three lots of plants were also weighed; the Westerham-crossed plants weighed 28 ounces; the intercrossed plants, 41 ounces; and the self-fertilised, 14.75 ounces. We thus get the following ratios:—

The Westerham-crossed plants in height to the self-fertilised as 100 to 63.

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