The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1874-04-07
CHARLES DARWIN.
The Kind Of Letters he Gets and the
Ktnd Of Man he Is.
. London Correspondents Cincinnati CONNER.
call

rIal
LONDON, March 0.
The letters which Charles Darwin gets
from various parts Of the world are some.
times instructive, but more often anus.
ing People In Australia, India, New
Zealand. America, and elsewhere pour upon
him information concerning their cats and
dogs, their birds and monkeys, and give
him accounts Of how they or their friends
have points to their ears like the tabled
tauns, and can move their ears forward
and backward like horses. The nara
tlves are sometimes masked by simplicity,
as when man writes that he has dog
which always knows, when his master
takes his hat and cane, that he (the mas:
teri means 10 take walk But for the
most part the letters are severe in their
animsdveTsion upon the great naturalist
for the impiety OF his discoveries. America
particularly sends him the evidence that
his conversion" is being ardently prayed
for bya number Of saints. One OF the last
letters he received was from Jealous
Ohristianin Kentucky who in his religious
ardor, begins lis letter with, "You
God id scoundrell" / have received
advicCs from Ohio that some lecturer or
preacher has been going about In that State
who, being unable otherwise to answer
Darwin's scientific facts, resorts TO the
plan OF bellttlIng him personally. This
lecturer Is reported as saying that Darwin
Is personallyof such mean and degraded
presence that he has been often called 1.-THE
missing link" Probably that idea has
come through the comic pictorial newspa.
pers Of this country which, since the "De.
scent Of Man" was written, have once or
twice represented the authors face at
tached 10 aalmial body. Itmay be as well
TO say to those who have made, or heard,
such representations, that Mr.. Darwin Is
a man Of the most impressive appearance,
Large and noble In figure, he has a head
and Taco much more likely TO remind one
who sees him Of Michael Angeles mag
efficient bust Of Moses, in Rome, than Of
any Inferior being. Mr.. Darwin has not,
indeed, any soft Ipink.white beauty, but
his massive forehead, his dome like head,
his blonde complexion, his long flowing
beard, are such as physiognomists would
pick out among thousand as belonging
10 man Of mark. When colonel T. w.
Higginson was here, he went to see Oar.
win, and told me alterWard that his APP
pearance was best represented by the
word majesty" &c DARWIN belongs
to one OF the Oldest families in England,
to family which has always possessed
the means Of attaining the highest culture,
and the great naturallst's home repre-
sentG the atmosphere Of refinement which
can be obtained only by generations Of
improvement Ho Is what the English
mean when they use the word gentle
man."
But, to those who arc really Interested
20 lind the "missing link" the following,
taken from the last paper which has
reached this country from Siam, may be
worthy Of attention. On the Island of
Borneo, says this paper-the Siam WeeElv
AdreTttSET-hRs been found certain race
Of wild creatures, Of which kindred yarie.
ties have been discovered In the phillIp-
pine Islands, In TerrG del Fuego, and in
South America. They walk unusually,
almost erect, on two legs, and in that
attitude measure about four leet in height.
They construct no hRbitations, form no
families, scarcely associate together,
sleep In caves and trees, feed on snakes
and Vermin, on anita eggs, and. on each
other. They can not be tanned or forced
TO any labor, and are hunted and shot
among the trees like the great gorilla, oil
which they are a stunted copy. When
captured alive, one finds with surprise
that their uncouth jabbering sounds are
like articulate Language. They turn up d
human face to gaze at their captors, and
the females show instincts OF modesty.
10 fne, these wretched beings arc men
and women. 8ss1