234 THOMAS HENRY HUXLEY 



1893. 



The Romanes Lecture on " Evolution and Ethics," 

 delivered by Huxley at Oxford on May 18, was the chief 

 event for 1893. Unfortunately, as a sequel to influenza, 

 his voice was far from strong, and a good deal was 

 inaudible to many of the large audience assembled in the 

 Sheldonian theatre. As all reference to politics or religion 

 was forbidden, the difficulties of dealing with such a 

 subject was greatly increased. 



In this address the "evolution of ethics" is followed 

 step by step, and stress is laid upon the essential 

 antagonism between the processes involved in ordinary 

 evolutionary progress on the one hand, and social progress, 

 with its altruistic obligations, on the other : — 



" Men in society are undoubtedly subject to the cosmic pro- 

 cess. As among other animals, multiplication goes on without 

 cessation, and involves severe competition for the means of sup- 

 port. The struggle for existence tends to eliminate those less 

 fitted to adapt themselves to the circumstances 01 their existence. 

 The strongest, the most self-assertive, tend to tread down the 

 weaker. But the influence of the cosmic process on the evolu- 

 tion of society is the greater the more rudimentary its civilization. 

 Social progress means a checking of the cosmic process at every 

 step, and the substitution for it of another, which may be called 

 the ethical process ; the end of which is not the survival of those 

 who may happen to be the fittest, in respect of the whole of the 

 conditions which may obtain, but of those who are ethically the 

 best." 



This lecture which, printed as a pamphlet, had a very 

 wide circulation, gave rise to an extraordinary amount of 

 misapprehension, and many seemed to think that Huxley 

 had entirely altered his views as regards evolution, ethics, 

 and even theology. In order to show the groundless 

 nature of such ideas, and also to supplement utterances 

 made under somewhat cramping limitations, a " Pro- 



