CHAPTER VII 

 1875-1876 



HUXLEY only delivered one address outside his 

 regular work in 1875, on "Some Results of the 

 ' Challenger ' Expedition," given at the Royal Institu- 

 tion on January 29. For all through the summer he 

 was away from London, engaged upon the summer 

 course of lectures on Natural History at Edinburgh. 

 This was due to the fact that Professor (afterwards 

 Sir) Wyville Thomson was still absent on the 

 Challenger expedition, and Professor Victor Carus, 

 who had acted as his substitute before, was no longer 

 available. Under these circumstances the Treasury 

 granted Huxley leave of absence from South Ken- 

 sington. His course began on May 3, and ended on 

 July 23, and he thought it a considerable feat to deal 

 with the whole Animal Kingdom in 54 lectures. No 

 doubt both he and his students worked at high 

 pressure, especially when the latter came scantily 

 prepared for the task, like the late Joseph Thomson, 

 afterwards distinguished as an African traveller, who 

 has left an account of his experience in this class. 

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