Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction
- THE LIFE OF ERASMUS DARWIN BY CHARLES DARWIN
- Synopsis
- Map of the Midland counties
- Preface
- The Life of Erasmus Darwin
- Charles Darwin's References
- Notes on the text, by the editor
- Appendix A Chronology of Erasmus Darwin's life
- Appendix B Selective family tree
- Appendix C Selected books and papers
- Appendix D Outline of Ernst Krause's essay
- Appendix E Linking page numbers in the 1879 book with those in the proofs
- Acknowledgements
- Index
Preface
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 August 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction
- THE LIFE OF ERASMUS DARWIN BY CHARLES DARWIN
- Synopsis
- Map of the Midland counties
- Preface
- The Life of Erasmus Darwin
- Charles Darwin's References
- Notes on the text, by the editor
- Appendix A Chronology of Erasmus Darwin's life
- Appendix B Selective family tree
- Appendix C Selected books and papers
- Appendix D Outline of Ernst Krause's essay
- Appendix E Linking page numbers in the 1879 book with those in the proofs
- Acknowledgements
- Index
Summary
In the February number, 1879, of a well-known German scientific journal, ‘Kosmos’, Dr. Ernst Krause published a sketch of the life of Erasmus Darwin, the author of the ‘Zoonomia’, ‘Botanic Garden’, and other works. This article bears the title of a ‘Contribution to the history of the Descent-Theory’; and Dr. Krause has kindly permitted my brother and myself to have a translation made of it and published. {Mr. Dallas has undertaken the translation, and his scientific reputation, together with his knowledge of German, is a guarantee for its accuracy.}
As I have private materials for adding to the knowledge of Erasmus Darwin's character, I have written a preliminary notice. These materials consist of a large collection of letters written by him; of his common-place book in folio, in the possession of his grandson Reginald Darwin; of some notes made by my father shortly after the death of his father, together with what little I can clearly remember that my father said about him; also some statements by his daughter, Violetta Darwin, written down at the time by her daughters, the Miss Galtons, and various published notices. To them must be added the ‘Memoirs of the Life of Dr. Darwin’, by Miss Seward, which appeared in 1804, and a lecture by Dr. Dowson on ‘Erasmus Darwin, Philosopher, Poet, and Physician’, published in 1861, which contains many useful references and remarks.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Charles Darwin's 'The Life of Erasmus Darwin' , pp. 5 - 6Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2002