Dear Sir:

Your letter saying that the hairs on the human ears are new to you gives me great pleasure, & if you think fit to publish any notice of it I hope you will do so & either mention or withhold my name as you prefer: Only I want to make quite sure of the facts so as not to bring ridicule on the cause of Evolution.¹

The growth is not universal on infants—my sister’s son when born shewed nothing remarkable, but the nephew of a naturalist to whom I spoke of my idea, has, he assures me hairs directed in the way I noticed on my own little son. I missed a good chance in not attending a Baby show held here last month, but must examine all the infants I can catch.²

I find the growth not uncommon on adult men of hairy habit but usually better shewn on the top of the ear—perhaps because there protected by the hair— on the lower half it is usually weak & broken & sometimes absent altogether—yet two of my friends shew it well. It’s an awkward subject to work up as people object to have their ears examined I find;

I don’t know if the following little facts are new to you, but venture to send them since Professor Newton who is re-editing Yarrell’s Birds thought them interesting: the young Night Jar when in the down, runs well & has a knack when surprised of darting off perhaps twenty yards—not fluttering—running.³ Yet the adult bird is as bad and slow a walker as almost any— I’ve seen one shuffle very slowly along the top of a wall— This seems to me a somewhat pregnant fact & has the same drift as the following which any one knows who keeps Dorking or Hambro’ fowls, i.e. that the chickens in the second moult are better flyers than the old fowls:—one of my friends has seen a brood fly up & perch in the top of a tree & I’ve seen young Spangled Hambro’s rise all together almost like pigeons—this was when about the size of partridges.

I’m told, but don’t vouch for it, that young Landrails fly better (perhaps only more readily) than old birds.⁴

If I am able to get any considerable number of observations as to ears I may be allowed, I hope, to send them to you later in the year & as I hope to get to the Zoological Gardens soon I will look at the monkeys.⁵

I remain Dear Sir | Your obedient servant | H M. Wallis

D^r. Darwin. | Beckenham

My friend Hawkins has I think sent you a note about mice in their relation to cats & hawks. I daresay he is right in the main, but cats will kill & play with the red field mouse tho’ I think they won’t eat it.⁶