304 MISCELLANEA. [ch. xv. 



was indeed one of the strongest feelings in his nature, and 

 was exemplified in matters small and great, in his sympathy 

 with the educational miseries of dancing dogs, or his horror 

 at the sufferings of slaves. 



The remembrance of screams, or other sounds heard in 

 Brazil, when he was powerless to interfere with what he 

 believed to be the torture of a slave, haunted him for years, 

 especially at night. In smaller matters, where he could 

 interfere, he did so vigorously. He returned one day from 

 his walk pale and faint from having seen a horse ill-used, 

 and from the agitation of violently remonstrating with the 

 man. On another occasion he saw a horse-breaker teaching 

 his son to ride ; the little boy was frightened and the man 

 was rough ; my father stopped, and jumping out of the 

 carriage reproved the man in no measured terms. 



One other little incident may be mentioned, showing 

 that his humanity to animals was well known in his own 

 neighbourhood. A visitor, driving from Orpington to Down, 

 told the cabma^L to go faster. " Why," said the man, " if I 

 had whipped the horse this much, driving Mr. Darwin, he 

 would have got out of the carriage and abused me well." 



With respect to the special point under consideration, 

 the sufferings of animals subjected to experiment, noth- 

 ing could show a stronger feeling than the following words 

 from a letter to Professor Ray Lankester (March 22, 

 1871) : 



" You ask about my opinion on vivisection. I quite 

 agree that it is justifiable for real investigations on physiol- 

 ogy ; but not for mere damnable and detestable curiosity. 

 It is a subject which makes me sick with horror, so I will 

 not say another word about it, else I shall not sleep to- 

 night." 



The Anti-Vivisection agitation, to which the following 

 letters refer, seems to have become specially active in 1874, 

 as may be seen, e.g. by the index to Nature for that year, in 

 which the word " Vivisection " suddenly comes into promi- 

 nence. But before that date the subject had received the 

 earnest attention of biologists. Thus at the Liverpool 

 Meeting of the British Association in 1870, a Committee 

 was appointed, whose report defined the circumstances and 

 conditions under which, in the opinion of the signatories, 

 experiments on living animals were justifiable. In the 

 espring of 1875, Lord Hartismere introduced a bill into 

 the Upper House to regulate the course of physiological 



