I874-75-] 8 7 



he believes truth, Professor Tyndall has thrown down the gauntlet, 

 he cannot feel surprised or impute blame that others have taken it 

 up. The interests of Christianity are, perhaps, as dear, or even 

 dearer, to them than those of science to him. The pigmy may 

 have quite as acute sensibilities as even the giant, perhaps, indeed, 

 more acute, for all his more powerful opponent knows. I conclude 

 these remarks on this branch of my subject by observing, that the 

 entire blame of that most undesirable religious controversy which 

 has disturbed society since the delivery of his address, can be 

 fairly imputed to none but to Professor Tyndall himself. 



I now pass from what may be called the historical view of the 

 subject, and proceed to offer a few observations on the substance 

 of the address itself — and here let me say at once that, as I under- 

 stand it, I cannot view it in any other light than as being, in the 

 first instance, derogatory to Christianity, and in the next as, when 

 carefully considered, a most unphilosophical tractate. 



To this statement, however, I desire emphatically to add, that I 

 do not appear on the present occasion as the advocate of Chris- 

 tianity. Any such advocacy here would be as ill-timed as unneces- 

 sary. While our institution is wholly unsectarian, and numbers 

 among its members persons of all shades of religious opinion, none 

 of those are, I trust, prepared to surrender their title to the 

 common appellation of Christian. Were the case otherwise, how- 

 ever esteemed the honour conferred on me by being chosen to 

 occupy the position in our Club which your kindness has conferred 

 on me, I should have declined its acceptance. I think I may 

 further add that none among our number can notice without regret 

 any disparagement offered to our common faith in a document 

 possessed of such high pretensions as that at present under review. 

 Had Professor Tyndall argued out his positions on purely scientific 

 grounds, and without any reference whatever to Christianity, no 

 room had been afforded for the charge which I now feel autho- 

 rised in making. Such, you will recollect, was the line of argument 

 adopted in the recent valuable address to your fellow townsmen, 



