38 HUXLEY 



creed and dogma; over the unproven — nay, as the 

 well-informed among clergy and laity know, the dis- 

 proved — that the precious time of youthhood is 

 wasted, and the battle for capture of the schools is 

 waged. " By their fruits ye shall know them." And 

 if the moral tone of the generation which has been 

 brought up on the creeds and the catechism satisfies 

 the teachers as to the practical influence of these on 

 the lives of the taught, it is clear that a low standard 

 contents them. 



Knowing Huxley's antagonistic attitude towards 

 orthodox beliefs, both cleric and secularist were be- 

 wildered when the " great Agnostic," as the Spectator 

 called him, pronounced himself in favour of the use 

 of the Bible in Board Schools. That his decision was 

 ruled by the highest motives va sans dire, but, as he 

 came to see, it was none the less deplorable. On 

 the eve of the election he explained his position as 

 follows : — 



When the great mass of the English people declare 

 that they want to have the children in the elementary 

 schools taught the Bible, and when it was plain from 

 the terms of the Act that it was intended that such 

 Bible-reading should be permitted, unless good cause 

 for prohibiting it could be shown, I do not see what 

 reason there is for opposing that wish. Certainly, I, 

 individually, could with no shadow of consistency 

 oppose the teaching of the children of other people 

 that which my own children are taught to do. And 



