A Discovery of Dragons

Lindsay Galvin

Contents ( 87)

For Bill, with love

The natural history of these islands is eminently curious, and well deserves attention.

—CHARLES DARWIN,
THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE

Title Page
Dedication
Epigraph
A Note About the History
Part One
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Part Two
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Part Three
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Part Four
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Part Five
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Chapter Fifty-Two
Chapter Fifty-Three
Chapter Fifty-Four
Part Six
Chapter Fifty-Five
Chapter Fifty-Six
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Part Seven
Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty-One
Chapter Sixty-Two
Chapter Sixty-Three
Chapter Sixty-Four
People and Places
An Interview with Lindsay Galvin
Timeline
Reading List
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Copyright

On December 27, 1831, Charles Darwin set off on his legendary voyage aboard HMS Beagle. After five years, he returned to England with new and revolutionary ideas about the wonderful creatures he had studied. These ideas formed the basis of one of the most famous scientific books ever written, On the Origin of Species.

A cabin boy and fiddler named Syms Covington became Mr. Darwin’s assistant during the voyage. This is a story of what could have happened during their exploration of the Galapagos Islands, and might explain why the earliest explorers named this place the Enchanted Isles …

Narborough Isld presents a more rough & horrid aspect than any other; the Lavas are generally naked as when first poured forth.

—CHARLES DARWIN,
THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE

September 1835
Albemarle Island, Galapagos

Mr. Darwin crouched in front of a giant tortoise, notebook in hand. His homemade magnifying eyeglass, which the sailors of the Beagle all made fun of, gave him the look of a studious buccaneer.

“See how the shell is completely domed, Covington,” he said. “It means they can’t raise their necks at all.”

“Reckon they don’t need to, sir,” I said, watching the tortoises chewing. “There’s a lot of grass growing here, so they’re always looking down at the ground anyhow.”

Mr. Darwin’s eyebrows shot up and he grinned. “An interesting observation. Could the shell design force this behavior, or could it be the other way around?”

I didn’t know the answer to that but felt my cheeks warm in the glow of his approval. When our voyage began four years ago, I was ship’s fiddler and cabin boy, but for the last two and a half years I’d been assisting Mr. Darwin, making use of my letters, like my da would have wanted. I liked to think I’d picked up some of his way of thinking too.