1876 A BROAD CHURCH PROTEST 215 



biologist apparently trespassing in the region of 

 philosophy or politics; or meddling with human 

 education ; because, after all, that is a part of his 

 kingdom which he has only voluntarily forsaken " 

 how to learn biology, the use of Museums, and 

 above all, the utility of biology, as helping to give 

 right ideas in this world, which "is after all, 

 absolutely governed by ideas, and very often by the 

 wildest and most hypothetical ideas." 



This lecture on Biology was first published among 

 the American Addresses in 1877. 



It was about this time that an extremely Broad 

 Church divine was endeavouring to obtain the 

 signatures of men of science to a document he had 

 drawn up protesting against certain orthodox 

 doctrines. Huxley, however, refused to sign the 

 protest, and wrote the following letter of explanation, 

 a copy of which he sent to Mr. Darwin. 



Nw. 18, 1876. 



DEAR SIR I have read the "Protest," with a copy 

 of which you have favoured me, and as you wish that I 

 should do so, I will trouble you with a brief statement 

 of my reasons for my inability to sign it. 



I object to clause 2 on the ground long since taken 

 by Hume that the order of the universe such as we 

 observe it to be, furnishes us with the only data upon 

 which we can base any conclusion as to the character of 

 the originator thereof. 



As a matter of fact, men sin, and the consequences of 

 their sins affect endless generations of their progeny. 

 Men are tempted, men are punished for the sins of 



