Did Wallace's Ternate essay and letter on natural selection come as a reply to Darwin's letter of 22 December 1857? A brief review

摘要

Charles Darwin's possible misappropriation of content from Alfred Russel Wallace's Ternate essay' of 1858 remains a topic of discussion, despite a lack of solid evidence proving misadventure. In this note new observations help clarify one critical element of the story: whether Wallace's materials represented in part a reply to the Darwin letter dated 22 December 1857. The conclusion is that they very likely did not, and in turn probably were sent in March, not April, 1858.