72 HUXLEY 



was not forthcoming for another seven years. As for 

 Huxley's position in the matter, he says, in the chap- 

 ter " On the Reception of the Origin of Species," 

 which he contributed to Darwin's Life and Letters, 

 that he was " not brought into serious contact with 

 the 'species' question until after 1850." He had 

 " long done with the Pentateuchal cosmogony," and 

 he rejected all theories of " archetypal ideas," " per- 

 fecting principles," and the like ; but the frequent 

 discussions which he had with Mr. Spencer from 

 1852 onwards failed to drive him from his "agnostic 

 position." His difficulties were twofold : — 



Firstly, that up to that time the evidence in favour 

 of transmutation was wholly insufficient ; and sec- 

 ondly, that no suggestion respecting the causes of 

 transmutation assumed, which had been made, was in 

 any way adequate to explain the phenomena. Look- 

 ing back at the state of knowledge at that time, I 

 really do not see that any other conclusion was 

 justifiable. 1 



He sums up his attitude in two words, as that of 

 u critical expectancy." 



" Wandering between two worlds : one dead, 

 The other powerless to be born." 



At his first interview with Darwin he expressed, 



" with all the confidence of youth and imperfect 



knowledge," his belief in the sharpness of the lines 



1 Darwin's Life and Letters, ii. p. 188. 



