I cannot tell you how rejoiced I am that your book is at last out; for whether it sells largely or not, I am certain it will produce a great effect on all capable judges, though these are few in number.
P.S.--I have just received your letter of January 12th. I am greatly interested by what you say on Eschscholtzia; I wish your plants had succeeded better. It seems pretty clear that the species is much more self-sterile under the climate of Brazil than here, and this seems to me an important result. (679/4. See Letter 677.) I have no spare seeds at present, but will send for some from the nurseryman, which, though not so good for our purpose, will be worth trying. I can send some of my own in the autumn. You could simply cover up separately two or three single plants, and see if they will seed without aid,--mine did abundantly. Very many thanks for seeds of Oxalis: how I wish I had more strength and time to carry on these experiments, but when I write in the morning, I have hardly heart to do anything in the afternoon. Your grass is most wonderful. You ought to send account to the "Bot. Zeitung." Could you not ascertain whether the barbs are sensitive, and how soon they become spiral in the bud? Your bird is, I have no doubt, the Molothrus mentioned in my "Journal of Travels," page 52, as representing a North American species, both with cuckoo-like habits. I know that seeds from same spike transmitted to a certain extent their proper qualities; but as far as I know, no one has hitherto shown how far this holds good, and the fact is very interesting. The experiment would be well worth trying with flowers bearing different numbers of petals. Your explanation agrees beautifully with the hypothesis of pangenesis, and delights me. If you try other cases, do draw up a paper on the subject of inheritance of separate flowers for the "Bot. Zeitung" or some journal. Most men, as far as my experience goes, are too ready to publish, but you seem to enjoy making most interesting observations and discoveries, and are sadly too slow in publishing.
LETTER 680. TO F. MULLER. Barmouth, July 18th, 1869.
I received your last letter shortly before leaving home for this place. Owing to this cause and to having been more unwell than usual I have been very dilatory in writing to you. When I last heard, about six or eight weeks ago, from Mr. Murray, one hundred copies of your book had been sold, and I daresay five hundred may now be sold. (680/1. "Facts and Arguments for Darwin," 1869: see Volume I., Letter 227.) This will quite repay me, if not all the money; for I am sure that your book will have got into the hands of a good many men capable of understanding it: indeed, I know that it has. But it is too deep for the general public. I sent you two or three reviews--one of which, in the "Athenaeum," was unfavourable; but this journal has abused me, and all who think with me, for many years. (680/2. "Athenaeum," 1869, page 431.) I enclose two more notices, not that they are worth sending: some other brief notices have appeared. The case of the Abitulon sterile with some individuals is remarkable (680/3. "Bestaubungsversuche an Abutilon-Arten." "Jenaische Zeitschr." VII., 1873, page 22.): I believe that I had one plant of Reseda odorata which was fertile with own pollen, but all that I have tried since were sterile except with pollen from some other individual. I planted the seeds of the Abitulon, but I fear that they were crushed in the letter. Your Eschscholtzia plants were growing well when I left home, to which place we shall return by the end of this month, and I will observe whether they are self-sterile. I sent your curious account of the monstrous Begonia to the Linnean Society, and I suppose it will be published in the "Journal." (680/4. "On the Modification of the Stamens in a Species of Begonia." "Journ. Linn. Soc." XI., 1871, page 472.) I sent the extract about grafted orange trees to the "Gardeners' Chronicle," where it appeared. I have lately drawn up some notes for a French translation of my Orchis book: I took out your letters to make an abstract of your numerous discussions, but I found I had not strength or time to do so, and this caused me great regret.