328 LIFE OF PROFESSOR HUXLEY chap, xxii 



her best wishes and congratulations on your fatherhood) will 

 do the bits of Goethe's poetry, and I will look after the prose 

 citations. 



Next as to the text itself. The council were a little alarmed 

 at the bulk of the book, and it is of the utmost importance that 

 it should be condensed to the uttermost. 



Furthermore, English propriety had taken fright at rumours 

 touching the aggressive heterodoxy of some passages. (We do 

 not much mind heterodoxy here, if it does not openly proclaim 

 itself as such.) 



And on both these points I had not only to give very dis- 

 tinct assurances, such as I thought your letters had entitled me 

 to give ; but in a certain sense to become myself responsible for 

 your behaving yourself like a good boy ! 



If I had not known you and understood your nature and dis- 

 position as I fancy I do, I should not have allowed myself to be 

 put in this position; but I have implicit faith in your doing 

 what is wise and right, and so making it tenable. 



There is not the slightest desire to make you mutilate your 

 book or leave out anything which you conceive to be absolutely 

 essential ; and I on my part should certainly not think of asking 

 you to make any alteration which would not in my judgment 

 improve the book quite irrespectively of the tastes of the British 

 public. 



[Alterations are suggested.] But I stop. By this time you 

 will be swearing at me for attacking all your favourite bits. 

 Let me know what you think about these matters. 



I congratulate you and Madame Haeckel heartily on the 

 birth of your boy. Children work a greater metamorphosis in 

 men than any other condition of life. They ripen one wonder- 

 fully and make life ten times better worth having than it was. 



26 Abbey Place. Nov. 15, 1868. 

 My dear Darwin — You are always the bienvenu, and we 

 shall be right glad to see you on Sunday morning. 



We breakfast at 8.30, and the decks are clear before nine. I 

 would offer you breakfast, but I know it does not suit you to 

 come out unfed ; and besides you would abuse the opportunity 

 to demoralise Harry.* — Ever yours faithfully, 



T. H. Huxley. 



* This small boy of nearly four was a great favourite of Darwin's. 

 When we children were all staying at Down about this time, Darwin 



