ii6 Thomas Henry Huxley 



of the new views, to l)eing a bitter opponent of them. 

 In scientific societies and in London generall3^ naturally 

 enough he constantly came across the younger scientific 

 men, such as Huxley and Hooker, who had declared for 

 Darwin, and he made the irretrievable mistake of for a 

 time attempting to disguise his opposition while he was 

 writing the most bitter of all the articles against Dar- 

 winism. That appeared in the Edinburgh Review in 

 April, i860, and the range of knowledge it displayed, 

 and the form of arguments employed, naturally enough 

 betrayed the secret of its authorship, although Owen 

 for very long attempted to conceal his connection with 

 it. Darwin, who had the most unusual generosity to- 

 wards his opponents, found this review too much for 

 him. Writing to Lyell soon after its publication, he 

 said : 



"I have just read the Edinburgh, which, without doubt is 



by . It is extremely maliguaut, clever, and, I fear, will be 



very damaging. He is atrociously severe on Huxley's lecture, 

 and very bitter against Hooker. So we three enjoyed it to- 

 gether. Not that I really enjoyed it, for it made me uncom- 

 fortable for one night ; but I have quite got over it to-day. It 

 requires much study to appreciate all the bitter spite of many 

 of the remarks against me ; indeed I did not discover all myself. 

 It scandalously misrepresents many parts. He misquotes some 

 passages, altering words within inverted commas. ... It 



is painful to be hated in the intense degree with which 



hates me." 



As Owen was still alive when this letter was published 

 in Darzi'iu' s Life, the authorship of the review w^as not 

 actually mentioned; but it is necessary to mention it, as 

 it justifies the sternness with which Huxley exposed 

 Owen on an occasion shortly to be described. The 

 review in the Quarterly was written by Wilberforce, the 

 Bishop of Oxford, in July, i860, and almost at once 



