Life and Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 1Darwin, Charles
History
Life and Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 1
Darwin, Charles
Darwin, Charles, 1809-1882; Naturalists -- Great Britain -- Biography; Naturalists -- Great Britain -- Correspondence
He paid many visits to Moor Park, Dr. Lane's water-cure establishment in
Surrey, not far from Aldershot. These visits were pleasant ones, and
he always looked back to them with pleasure. Dr. Lane has given his
recollections of my father in Dr. Richardson's 'Lecture on Charles
Darwin,' October 22, 1882, from which I quote:--
"In a public institution like mine, he was surrounded, of course, by
multifarious types of character, by persons of both sexes, mostly very
different from himself--commonplace people, in short, as the majority
are everywhere, but like to him at least in this, that they were
fellow-creatures and fellow-patients. And never was any one more genial,
more considerate, more friendly, more altogether charming than he
universally was."...He "never aimed, as too often happens with good
talkers, at monopolising the conversation. It was his pleasure rather
to give and take, and he was as good a listener as a speaker. He never
preached nor prosed, but his talk, whether grave or gay (and it was each
by turns), was full of life and salt--racy, bright, and animated."
Some idea of his relation to his family and his friends may be gathered
from what has gone before; it would be impossible to attempt a complete
account of these relationships, but a slightly fuller outline may not be
out of place. Of his married life I cannot speak, save in the
briefest manner. In his relationship towards my mother, his tender
and sympathetic nature was shown in its most beautiful aspect. In her
presence he found his happiness, and through her, his life,--which
might have been overshadowed by gloom,--became one of content and quiet
gladness.
The 'Expression of the Emotions' shows how closely he watched his
children; it was characteristic of him that (as I have heard him tell),
although he was so anxious to observe accurately the expression of a
crying child, his sympathy with the grief spoiled his observation. His
note-book, in which are recorded sayings of his young children, shows
his pleasure in them. He seemed to retain a sort of regretful memory
of the childhoods which had faded away, and thus he wrote in his
'Recollections':--"When you were very young it was my delight to play
with you all, and I think with a sigh that such days can never return."
I may quote, as showing the tenderness of his nature, some sentences
from an account of his little daughter Annie, written a few days after
her death:--
"Our poor child, Annie, was born in Gower Street, on March 2, 1841, and
expired at Malvern at mid-day on the 23rd of April, 1851.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account