e book will
keep up and increase your high reputation and be immensely successful,
as it deserves to be, believe me, dear Darwin, yours very faithfully,

ALFRED R. WALLACE.

* * * * *

_Down, Beckenham, Kent, S.E. January 30, 1871._

My dear Wallace,--Your note has given me very great pleasure, chiefly
because I was so anxious not to treat you with the least disrespect, and
it is so difficult to speak fairly when differing from anyone. If I had
offended you, it would have grieved me more than you will readily
believe. Secondly, I am greatly pleased to hear that Vol. I. interests
you; I have got so sick of the whole subject that I felt in utter doubt
about the value of any part. I intended when speaking of the female not
having been specially modified for protection to include the prevention
of characters acquired by the [male symbol] being transmitted to the
[female symbol]; but I now see it would have been better to have said
"specially acted on," or some such term. Possibly my intention may be
clearer in Vol. II. Let me say that my conclusions are chiefly founded
on a consideration of all animals taken in a body, bearing in mind how
common the rules of sexual differences appear to be in all classes. The
first copy of the chapter on Lepidoptera agreed pretty closely with you.
I then worked on, came back to Lepidoptera, and thought myself compelled
to alter it, finished sexual selection, and for the last time went over
Lepidoptera, and again I felt forced to alter it.

I hope to God there will be nothing disagreeable to you in Vol. II., and
that I have spoken fairly of your views. I feel the more fearful on this
head, because I have just read (but not with sufficient care) Mivart's
book,[83] and I feel _absolutely certain_ that he meant to be fair (but
he was stimulated by theological fervour); yet I do not think he has
been quite fair: he gives in one place only half of one of my sentences,
ignores in many places all that I have said on effects of use, speaks of
my dogmatic assertion, "of false belief," whereas the end of paragraph
seems to me to render the sentence by no means dogmatic or arrogant;
etc. etc. I have since its publication received some quite charming
letters from him.

What an ardent (and most justly) admirer he is of you. His work, I do
not doubt, will have a most potent influence versus Natural Selection.
The pendulum will now swing against us. The part which, I th