358 LIFE OF BENJAMIN SILLIMAN. 



t 



interest in my labors. On the present occasion Mr. Law- 

 rence brought on a free, frank, and confidential conversa- 

 tion respecting the lectures. With warmth, he said that 

 no man before me had ever drawn together in Boston such 

 audiences, both for numbers and character ; and that he 

 had heard animated expressions of delignt and of surprise 

 at the wonderful developments of geology, quite novel in 

 Boston. He added, "You must come again next winter, 

 and give us a course of chemistry." I replied that there 

 would be difficulties'. 



These difficulties Mr. Lawrence labored to re- 

 move, and strenuously urged Mr. Silliman to return 

 to Boston. 



April 10. I took tea at Mr. Button's, who expressed 

 great satisfaction in the lectures. He was a college contem- 

 porary, and always a friend. My last call was at Professor 

 Ticknor's. I have already mentioned that at the conclud- 

 ing lecture I discussed the question of time, and the coin- 

 cidence of the Mosaic History, and I concluded with a 

 moral and religious application to the young men. There 

 was a crowded audience who showed the most fixed atten- 

 tion and, I thought, satisfaction, but I may have erred. 

 Dr. Channing heard the same subject, Geology and the 

 Scriptures, discussed in the day-course ; but as he can- 

 didly told me, he was not well satisfied ; he did not explain 

 in what particulars, but he added, " We do not trouble 

 ourselves much about the Old Testament." I presume he 

 may have referred to its relation to questions of science, 

 for example, Astronomy, between which and the literal 

 reading there is an entire disagreement. 



April 10. I had received many manifestations of ap- 

 probation of my labors during the whole progress of the 

 course, which had occupied six weeks. The narrative 

 which I have given proves, also, that proffers of hospitality 



