J5T. 57.] PRESIDENT OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 213 



T. H. Huxley to J. Prestwich. JERMYN STREET, Dec. 16, 1869. 



MY DEAR PKESTWICH, Many thanks for your letter. Your 

 consent to become President for the next period will give as 

 unfeigned satisfaction to the whole body of the Society as it 

 does to me and your other personal friends. I have looked upon 

 the affair as settled since our last talk, and a very great relief it 

 has been to my mind. 



There is no doubt public dinner and speaking (and indeed all 

 public speaking) is nervous work. I funk horribly, though I 

 never get the credit for it. But it is like swimming the worst 

 of it is in the first plunge, and after you have taken your header 

 it is not so bad (just like matrimony, by the way, only don't be 

 so mean as to go and tell a certain lady I said so, because I want 

 to stand well in her books). 



Of course you may command me in all ways in which I can 

 possibly be of use. But as one of the chiefs of the Society, and 

 personally and scientifically popular with the whole body, you 

 start with an immense advantage over me, and will find no diffi- 

 culties before you. 



We will now consider this business generally settled, and I 

 shall speak of it officially. Ever yours very sincerely, 



T. H. HUXLEY. 



A few days before his marriage Mr Prestwich, on 

 the Anniversary Meeting of the Geological Society, 

 assumed the Presidency on his friend Professor Huxley 

 vacating the chair. The Anniversary dinner was en- 

 livened by a humorous speech from the retiring Presi- 

 dent, who twitted his successor in office on having 

 forsaken the geological exploration of the Holy Land 

 for the holy estate of matrimony. This allusion re- 

 ferred to the fact of Prestwich having assented to 

 the request of the Committee of the Palestine Ex- 

 ploration Fund to go out as geologist to the Holy 

 Land. Somehow public interest in the subject lagged, 



