Bateson, William to Francis Galton

Letters from Bateson to Galton, regarding the Evolution Committee and the proposed experimental farm for breeding.

Bateson observes that the difficulties in conducting successful breeding experiments lie in the problem of continuous observation. He questions the approach to divide up animal and botanical experiments, and proposes experimenting with insects, housing them in greenhouses alongside plants.

Bateson proposes to study the effect of close-breeding on the transmission of parental characters, and discusses the breeding of thorough-bred animals, and experiments with Goldfinches and Canary-Finches.

Later letters concern meetings of the Evolution Committee, and draft communications.

Dec 1896-Oct 1897

8 letters

The papers are available at UCL Special Collections and Archives subject to the usual conditions of access to Archives and Manuscripts material, after the completion of a Reader's Undertaking.

A digitised copy is held by the Wellcome Library as part of Codebreakers: Makers of Modern Genetics.

The original material is held at UCL Special Collections. This catalogue is held by the Wellcome Library as part of Codebreakers: Makers of Modern Genetics.