874?].

If you had called here after I had read the article you would have found
a much perplexed man. (777/1. Probably Sir W. Crookes' "Researches in
the Phenomena of Spiritualism" (reprinted from the "Quarterly Journal of
Science"), London, 1874. Other papers by Crookes are in the "Proceedings
of the Society for Psychical Research.") I cannot disbelieve Mr.
Crooke's statement, nor can I believe in his result. It has removed
some of my difficulty that the supposed power is not an anomaly, but is
common in a lesser degree to various persons. It is also a consolation
to reflect that gravity acts at any distance, in some wholly unknown
manner, and so may nerve-force. Nothing is so difficult to decide as
where to draw a just line between scepticism and credulity. It was
a very long time before scientific men would believe in the fall of
aerolites; and this was chiefly owing to so much bad evidence, as in the
present case, being mixed up with the good. All sorts of objects were
said to have been seen falling from the sky. I very much hope that a
number of men, such as Professor Stokes, will be induced to witness Mr.
Crooke's experiments.

(778/1. The two following extracts may be given in further illustration
of Darwin's guiding principle in weighing evidence. He wrote to Robert
Chambers, April 30th, 1861: "Thanks also for extract out of newspaper
about rooks and crows; I wish I dared trust it. I see in cutting the
pages [of Chambers' book, "Ice and Water"]...that you fulminate against
the scepticism of scientific men. You would not fulminate quite so much
if you had had so many wild-goose chases after facts stated by men
not trained to scientific accuracy. I often vow to myself that I will
utterly disregard every statement made by any one who has not shown the
world he can observe accurately." In a letter to Dr. Dohrn, of Naples,
January 4th, 1870, Darwin wrote: "Forgive me for suggesting one
caution; as Demosthenes said, 'Action, action, action,' was the soul of
eloquence, so is caution almost the soul of science.")

LETTER 778. TO J. BURDON SANDERSON. Down, July 16th, 1875.

Some little time ago Mr. Simon (778/1. Now Sir John Simon) sent me the
last Report, and your statements about contagion deeply interested me.
By the way, if you see Mr. Simon, and can remember it, will you thank
him for me; I was so busy at the time that I did not write. Having been
in correspondence with Paget lately on another subject, I men