THE SCIENTIFIC MOOD 21 



tedious by its unrelatedness to real problems, but 

 those who are inclined to be impatient with it 

 should remember that it is congruent with and 

 contributory to "that enthusiasm for truth, 

 that fanaticism of veracity, which is a greater 

 possession than much learning; a nobler gift 

 than the power of increasing knowledge." 



These are Huxley's words, whose passion for 

 facts marked all he said and did. They suggest 

 a famous sentence in his autobiography, in which 

 he expressed his aims in life. "If I may speak 

 of the objects I have had in view since I began 

 the ascent of my hillock, they are briefly these: 

 To promote the increase of natural knowledge 

 and to forward the application of scientific meth- 

 ods of investigation to all the problems of life 

 to the best of my ability, in the conviction which 

 has grown with my growth and strengthened 

 with my strength, that there is no alleviation 

 for the sufferings of mankind except veracity of 

 thought and of action, and the resolute facing of 

 the world as it is, when the garment of make- 

 believe by which pious hands have hidden its 

 uglier features is stripped off." 



We have used the strong phrase "a passion 

 for facts" because of the intensity which all the 

 great masters in science have shown in their 

 reverence for truth and in their contempt for 

 mere opinions. "Opinions," Glanville says, "are 



