1 30 LIFE OF PROFESSOR HUXLEY CHAP. VII 



On Monday at Section D again. Forbes brought 

 forward the subject of my application to Government 

 in committee, and it was unanimously agreed to forward 

 a resolution on the subject to the Committee of Recom- 

 mendations. I made a speechification of some length in 

 the Section about a new animal. 



On Thursday morning I attended a meeting of the Ray 

 Society, and to my infinite astonishment, the secretary, 

 Dr. Lankester, gave me the second motion to make. The 

 Prince of Canino moved the first, so I was in good 

 company. The great absurdity of it was that not being a 

 member of the Society I had properly no right to speak 

 at all. However, it was only a vote of thanks, and I got 

 up and did the " neat and appropriate " in style. 



After this a party of us went out dredging in the 

 Orwell in a small boat. We were away all day, and 

 it rained hard coming back, so that I got wet through, 

 and had to pull five miles to keep off my enemy, the 

 rheumatics. 



Then came the President's dinner, to which I did not 

 go, as T preferred making myself comfortable with a few 

 friends elsewhere. And after that, the final evening 

 meeting, when all the final determinations are announced. 



Among them I had the satisfaction to hear that it 

 was resolved that the President and Council of the 

 British Association should co-operate with the Royal 

 Society in representing the value and importance, etc., 

 of Mr. T. H. Huxley's zoological researches to Her 

 Majesty's Government for the purpose of obtaining a 

 grant towards their publication. Subsequently I was 

 introduced to Colonel Sabine, the President of the 

 Association in 1852, and a man of very high standing 

 and considerable influence. He had previously been 

 civil enough to sign my certificate at the Royal Society, 

 unsolicited, and therefore knew me by reputation I 

 only mean that as a very small word. He was very 

 civil and promised me every assistance in his power. 



