276 THE SPREAD OF EVOLUTION. [ch. xiv. 



writes to De Candolle that he is sure that my views will ulti- 

 mately prevail. But I did not intend to have written all 

 this. It satisfies me with the final results, but this result, I 

 begin to see, will take two or three life-times. The ento- 

 mologists are enough to keep the subject back for half a 

 century." 



The official attitude of French science was not very 

 hopeful. The Secretaire Ferpetuel of the Academie pub- 

 lished an Examen du livre de M. Darwin, on which my 

 father remarks : 



" A great gun, Flourens, has written a little dull book * 

 against me, which pleases me much, for it is plain that our 

 good work is spreading in France." 



Mr. Huxley, who reviewed the book, f quotes the follow- 

 ing passage from Flourens : 



" M. Darwin continue : Aucune distinction absolue n'a 

 ete et ne peut etre etablie entre les especes et les varietes ! 

 Je vous ai deja dit que vous vous trompiez ; une distinction 

 absolue separe les varietes d'avec les especes." Mr. Huxley 

 remarks on this, " Being devoid of the blessings of an 

 Academy in England, we are unaccustomed to see our 

 ablest men treated in this way even by a Perpetual Secre- 

 tary." After demonstrating M. Flourens' misapprehension 

 of Natural Selection, Mr. Huxley says, " How one knows it 

 all by heart, and with what relief one reads at p. 65, ' Je 

 laisse M. Darwin.' " 



The deterrent effect of the Academie on the spread of 

 Evolution in France has been most striking. Even at the 

 present day a member of the Institute does not feel quite 

 happy in owning to a belief in Darwinism. We may in- 

 deed be thankful that we are " devoid of such a blessing." 



Among the Germans, he was fast gaining supporters. 

 In 1865 he began a correspondence with the distinguished 

 Naturalist, Fritz Miiller, then, as now, resident in Brazil. 

 They never met, but the correspondence with Miiller, which 

 continued to the close of my father's life, was a source of 

 very great pleasure to him. My impression is that of all 

 his unseen friends Fritz Miiller was the one for whom he 

 had the strongest regard. Fritz Miiller is the brother of 

 another distinguished man, the late Hermann Miiller, the 



* Examen, du livre de M. Darwin sur Vorigine des especes. Par P. Flou- 

 rens. 8vo. Paris, 1864. 

 + Lay Sermons, p. 328. 



