I sincerely hope that you keep your health: I suppose that you will be thinking of returning soon with your magnificent collection and still grander mental materials. You will be puzzled how to publish. The Royal Society Fund will be worth your consideration.--With every good wish, pray believe me yours very sincerely, CHARLES DARWIN. I think that I told you before that Hooker is a complete convert. If I can convert Huxley I shall be content. * * * * * LETTER VII C. DARWIN TO A.R. WALLACE _Down, Bromley, Kent, S.E. March 7, 1860._ My dear Wallace,--The addresses which you have sent me are capital, especially that to the Rajah; and I have dispatched two sets of queries. I now enclose a copy to you, and should be very glad of any answers; you must not suppose the P.S. about memory has lately been inserted; please return these queries, as it is my standard copy. The subject is a curious one; I fancy I shall make a rather interesting appendix to my Essay on Man. I fully admit the probability of "protective adaptation" having come into play with female butterflies as well as with female birds. I have a good many facts which make me believe in sexual selection as applied to man, but whether I shall convince anyone else is very doubtful.--Dear Wallace, yours very sincerely, CH. DARWIN. * * * * * LETTER VIII C. DARWIN TO A.R. WALLACE _Down, Bromley, Kent. May 18, 1860._ My dear Mr. Wallace,--I received this morning your letter from Amboyna dated Feb. 16th, containing some remarks and your too high approbation of my book. Your letter has pleased me very much, and I most completely agree with you on the parts which are strongest and which are weakest. The imperfection of the geological record is, as you say, the weakest of all; but yet I am pleased to find that there are almost more geological converts than of pursuers of other branches of natural science. I may mention Lyell, Ramsay, Jukes, Rogers, Keyerling, all good men and true. Pictet of Geneva is not a convert, but is evidently staggered (as I think is Bronn of Heidelberg), and he has written a perfectly fair review in the _Bib. Universelle_ of Geneva. Old Bronn has translated my book, well done also into German, and his well-known name will give it circulation. I think geologists are more converted than simple naturalists because more accustomed to reasoning.