DARWIN, Charles (1809-1882) and Alfred Russel WALLACE (1823-1913). "Three Papers on the Tendency of Species to form Varieties; and on the Perpetuation of Varieties and Species by Means of Selection." In: The Zoologist, Vol. 16. London: John van Voorst, 1858.

Rare "Zoologist" printing of the first exposition of the theory of evolution by natural selection. Second edition overall, reprinting the Linnean Society issues of four months before. Original wrappers preserved. Darwin's theory of evolution—drawn from his studies during the voyage of the Beagle and clarified by Malthus's concept of the self-regulation of population growth—crystallized in 1838. However, he did not publish or debate it at that time, and, after writing an unpublished essay on the subject between 1839 and 1844 which was shown to a limited circle of friends, he did little further work on it. In April 1856 he described the theory to Sir Charles Lyell (whose Principles of Geology had been a major influence on the geological studies that led Darwin to the question of evolution), who urged Darwin to publish his hypothesis. Darwin began to write a book on evolution and natural selection in the summer of 1858, but the work – which was to become On the Origin of Species—progressed slowly. In February 1858 Wallace had independently developed the same theory as Darwin, and on 18 June 1858, Darwin received a letter from Wallace "containing a perfect summary of the views which he had worked out in the preceding twenty years" (DSB III, p.573). Lyell and Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker suggested that Wallace publish his paper, prefaced by Darwin's essay of 1844 and a letter from Darwin to Asa Gray on natural selection dated 5 September 1857, which demonstrated that Darwin's theory had remained unaltered from 1839 to 1857. The "three papers" comprise Darwin's essay and letter, and Wallace's "On the Tendency of Varieties to depart indefinitely from the Original Type." They were first read to the Linnean Society in July 1858, printed in different variations from the same standing type in the Journal in August 1858, and here reprinted in The Zoologist in December 1858. Two other papers by Wallace appear in this volume in an earlier number. The Zoologist, a self-proclaimed "popular monthly magazine of natural history" is the only other 19th century journal issue of these seminal papers identified by Freeman. These papers prepared the way for the publication of On the Origin of Species on 24 November 1859. Freeman 349.

12 monthly parts bound in a single volume, octavo (220 x 145mm). Half-title. Untrimmed (a little toned). Later red cloth, spine gilt-lettered; original printed part wrappers bound in along with a publisher's slip. Provenance: Harry Forbes Witherby, 1873-1943, British ornithologist (bookplate).