1870 LETTER TO DARWIN 6 



The three addresses which he gave in the autumn, 

 and his election to the School Board will be spoken 

 of later; in the first part of the year he read two 

 papers at the Ethnological Society, of which he was 

 President, on " The Geographical Distribution of the 

 Chief Modifications of Mankind," March 9 and on 

 "The Ethnology of Britain," May 10 the substance 

 of which appeared in the Contemporary Review for 

 July under the title of " Some Fixed Points in British 

 Ethnology " (Coll. Ess. vii. 253). As President also 

 of the Geological Society and of the British Associa- 

 tion, he had two important addresses to deliver. In 

 addition to this, he delivered an address before the 

 Y.M.C.A. at Cambridge on "Descartes' Discourse." 



How busy he was may be gathered from his 

 refusal of an invitation to Down : 



26 ABBEY PLACE, Jan. 21, 1870. 



Mr DEAR DARWIN It is hard to resist an invitation 

 of yours- but I dine out on Saturday ; and next week 

 three evenings are abolished by Societies of one kind or 

 another. And there is that horrid Geological address 

 looming in the future ! 



I am afraid I must deny myself at present. 



I am glad you liked the sermon. Did you see the 

 " Devonshire man's " attack in the Pall Mall ? 



I have been wasting my time in polishing that worthy 

 off. I would not have troubled myself about him, if it 

 were not for the political bearing of the Celt question 

 just now. 



My wife sends her love to all you. Ever yours, 



T. H. HUXLEY. 



