246 JOHN TYNDALL 
essays or lectures. The most famous of these was the 
Belfast Address, delivered in 1874, which created so 
much commotion fora short time. The cry of “mate- 
rialism,” which then resounded so loudly, would now, 
I imagine, disturb very few people. So effective was 
it then in some quarters that in one of Tyndall’s letters 
I find that Cardinal Cullen appointed a three days’ fast, 
in order to keep infidelity out of Ireland. 
My ew acquaintance with Tyndall began in 1872, 
when he was giving a course of lectures at the Lowell 
Institute in Boston. I had never been in England, 
but I had been in friendly correspondence with Her- 
bert Spencer for several years, so that I found the 
acquaintance with Tyndall was virtually made already, 
and we at once became warm friends. 
His success as a lecturer was complete. At first he 
was a little in danger from feeling in doubt as to the 
intellectual level of his audiences,—a doubt which 
has played the mischief with some British lecturers in 
America. The late Mr. Freeman, for example, thought 
it necessary to instruct his audiences in Boston and 
St. Louis in the rudiments of English history, and 
was voted a bore for his pains, when there was so 
much he might have said to which people would have 
listened with breathless interest. Tyndall received 
early warning to talk exactly as he would at the Royal 
Institution. His illustrative experiments were beauti- 
fully done, his speech was easy and eloquent, and his 
manner, so frank and earnest and kindly, was extremely 
winning. It was a rare treat to hear him lecture. 
Tyndall, though far from wealthy, was always in 
easy circumstances and was remarkably generous. I 
have read scores of his business letters to Youmans and 
