358 LIFE OF BENJAMIN SILLIMAN. 



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 delight 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. Dutton'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 



