The following letter is chiefly of interest as showing the amount and kind of work required for Darwin's conclusions on "large genera varying," which occupy no more than two or three pages in the "Origin" (Edition I., page 55).

Some correspondence on the subject is given in the "Life and Letters," II., pages 102-5.) Down, August 22nd [1857].
Your handwriting always rejoices the cockles of my heart; though you have no reason to be "overwhelmed with shame," as I did not expect to hear.
I write now chiefly to know whether you can tell me how to write to Hermann Schlagenheit (is this spelt right ?) (53/2.

Schlagintweit.), for I believe he is returned to England, and he has poultry skins for me from W.Elliot of Madras.
I am very glad to hear that you have been tabulating some Floras about varieties.

Will you just tell me roughly the result?
Do you not find it takes much time?
I am employing a laboriously careful schoolmaster, who does the tabulating and dividing into two great cohorts, more carefully than I can.

This being so, I should be very glad some time to have Koch, Webb's Canaries, and Ledebour, and Grisebach, but I do not know even where Rumelia is.