HUXLEY 37 



strength, made known the conclusions to which 

 the author, working wholly within the bounds of 

 natural knowledge, had been led while he during 

 long years patiently gathered observations and as 

 patiently meditated during long years on what 

 those observations meant. Every line in the 

 book dealt with natural knowledge and with 

 natural knowledge alone ; the whole of it appealed 

 to natural knowledge as the only judge of the 

 validity of its conclusions. By the light of 

 natural knowledge Huxley himself tried the 

 book, and, though aware of what was missing in 

 this part or that, accepted the main contention as 

 proved, and in accepting it threw aside views to 

 which at an earlier period he had been led. 

 Others, trying the book also by the light of natural 

 knowledge, found it in their opinion wanting. 

 With these Huxley could not agree; but, though 

 their arguments seemed to him lacking in force, 

 he could not otherwise find fault with their atti- 

 tude. 



With those voices of the Church of which I 

 have spoken, it was different. These, so it 

 seemed to Huxley, rejected the conclusions of the 

 book, not because they were not according to 

 natural knowledge, but because they were, or 

 appeared to be, in contradiction to what was, or 

 what appeared to be, the teaching of the Church. 

 This, he thought, was the real reason of the 

 opposition which so many of the Church offered 

 to Charles Darwin's views ; such opponents might 



