CHARLES DARWIN ARRANGES TO RECEIVE A DEERHOUND PUPPY WHILE "SO KNOCKED UP WITH CORRECTING PROOFS" OF DESCENT OF MAN FROM A BREEDER ENAMORED WITH ORIGIN OF SPECIES—EXCELLENT 1870 AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED BY DARWIN, BEAUTIFULLY FRAMED

DARWIN, Charles. Autograph letter signed. Down, Beckenham, Kent: Oct 5, [1870]. One leaf of cream letterhead, measuring 5 by 8 inches, penned on recto for one page. WITH: original envelope, addressed in Darwin's hand, postmarked from Down on verso; floated, matted and framed with an early photographic card; entire piece measures 19 by 18 inches. $22,500.

Interesting 1870 autograph signed letter written by Charles Darwin to his friend, long-time correspondent, author and dog breeder George Cupples, regarding a puppy Cupples had promised to send Darwin, in which Darwin references working on the proofs of Descent of Man—an amazing letter with strong association to Charles Darwin's greatest works, beautifully framed.

The letter, written entirely in Darwin's hand on his personal stationery and dated "Oct 5 [1870]," reads, in full: "My dear Mr. Cupples, I am so knocked up with correcting proofs, that I have (with all my family who are at home) resolved to leave home for 7 or 8 days & shall start early (before post time) on Wednesday the 12th—It wd be so dreadful if the dog was to be sent off & no one to walk him in London, this I write to tell you our plans. In haste, Yrs vy sincerely, Ch. Darwin." Accompanied by the original envelope, penned in Darwin's hand, postmarked from Down on verso.

George Cupples (1822-91) was a Scottish journalist and amateur breeder of Scotch Deerhounds. He read Darwin's Origin of Species and became particularly fascinated with the chapters on selective breeding, hypothesizing that he could simulate the phenomenon with his own dogs. Cupples in turn wrote to Darwin following the publication of Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication in 1868, feeling that their correspondence would be mutually beneficial, given his own expertise in canine behaviors and breeding and Darwin's knowledge of selective breeding and species evolution. This marked the beginning of a ten-year correspondence, culminating in part with Cupples sending Darwin a Scottish Deerhound puppy from his kennels in November 1870, just a month after this letter was written. In his own book entitled Scotch Deer-Hounds and Their Masters (1893), Cupples quoted from Darwin's Origin of Species and Variation of Animals and Plants, in regards to selective breeding and its connection to animal domesticity.

While this letter suggests some delay in Darwin receiving the Deerhound puppy, which he later named "Bran," the dog finally arrived at King's Cross Station on November 8, 1870. Surviving correspondence between Darwin and Cupples shows Bran adjusting well to life at Down and finding a playmate in the Darwin's beloved terrier, Polly. Indeed, dogs would play a significant role in Darwin's life, both as companions and objects of study. In Descent of Man—the proofs of which he notes himself to be correcting at the writing of the present letter—Darwin writes of a domestic dog's sociability: "It is curious to speculate on the feelings of a dog who will rest peacefully for hours in a room with his master or any of the family, without the least notice being taken of him; but if left for a short time by himself, barks or howls dismally" (Part 1, page 74). While Bran was seldom mentioned again after his arrival at Down, the puppy can be seen as a physical manifestation of Darwin's influence on Cupples' own ideas of selective breeding and, as a result, a symbol of their friendship.

Faint marginal toning to letter; minor evidence of prior mounting along right edge on verso. Signature bold and clear.