CHAPTER II 



BIOGRAPHICAL — Continued (1854-1870) 



It was thus 1854 before Huxley's career could be 

 said to offer him aw independence, and at this time 

 two things occurred which marked a turning-point 

 in his long road of disa^ppointments. The first was 

 Miss Heathorn's return to England, and the second 

 was the occurrence of the vacancy in the Government 

 School of Mines in Jermyn Street, consequent upon 

 the appointment of Professor Forbes to Edinburgh. 

 On July 30, 1854, he was appointed to a post of £200 

 a year, taking over one of the lectureships formerly 

 held by Forbes. On August 11 he was ranked as 

 Naturalist at the Survey, with an additional salary 

 of £200. Then he was offered a lectureship on 

 Comparative Anatomy at St. Thomas' Hospital for 

 the following May and Jime, and was also requested 

 to lecture for the Science and Art Department 

 at Marlborough House. Consequent upon all this 

 rapid success and promotion Huxley proposed to 

 get married upon the arrival of the Heathorns from 

 Australia. The only blot of that wonderful year 

 in Huxley's life was the death of Forbes, who had 

 been to Huxley a real friend. He refused to stand 

 for the vacancy in Edinburgh, owing to the London 

 authorities' favourable attitude, and, in spite of the 

 fact that in the following spring he was again 



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