March 21 1953
Dear Dr. Pauling
We intended to write to you about our DNA structure before this, but one of us (J.W.)
has been away in Paris and we have also been delayed because Professor Bragg has been
down with flu. We enclose a draft of a letter to Nature which gives the essential
features of our structure. We have a model of it and have derived co-ordinates; all
of the Van der Waals distances are acceptable.
We felt we could hardly omit any mention of your structure nor did we feel it reasonable
to supress our doubts about it. Without your permission we could not mention that
you have modified it. However we can always qualify our remarks in proof.
It is planned that the Kings College workers will publish some of their experimental
data at the same time as our letter. Wilkins tells us that he intends to send you
a copy of their communication in advance of publication as soon as it is in final
draft.
We are looking forward very much to your visit and the opportunity for a full discussion
about DNA. Would you mind treating this as confidential for a few days as Professor
Bragg has still not been able to hear about it.
Yours Sincerely
Jim Watson
Francis Crick
