472 



LIFE OF PROFESSOR HUXLEY chap, xxix 



I am very busy with my lectures, and am nearly half 

 through. I shall not be sorry when they are over, as I have been 

 grinding away now since last October. — With kindest regards 

 to Mrs. Darwin, ever yours very faithfully, 



T. H. Huxley. 



He was duly asked to serve on the Commission. Though 

 his lectures in Edinburgh prevented him from attending 

 till the end of July no difficulty was made over this, as the 

 first meetings of the Commission, which began on June 30, 

 were to be devoted to taking the less controversial evidence. 

 In accepting his nomination he wrote to Mr. Cross (after- 

 wards Lord Cross), at that time Home Secretary : — 



If I can be of any service I shall be very glad to act on the 

 Commission, sympathising as I do on the one hand with those 

 who abhor cruelty to animals, and, on the other, with those who 

 abhor the still greater cruelty to man which is involved in any 

 attempt to arrest the progress of physiology and of rational 

 medicine. 



The other members of the Commission were Lords 

 Cardwell and Winmarleigh, Mr. W. E. Forster, Sir J. B. 

 Karslake, Professor Erichssen, and Mr. R. H. Hutton. 



The evidence given before the Commission bore out the 

 view that English physiologists inflicted no more pain upon 

 animals than could be avoided; but one witness, not an 

 Englishman, and not having at that time a perfect command 

 of the English language, made statements which appeared 

 to the Commission at least to indicate that the witness was 

 indifferent to animal suffering. Of this incident Huxley 

 writes to Mr. Darwin at the same time as he forwarded a 

 formal invitation for him to appear as a witness before the 

 Commission : — 



4 Marlborough Place, Oct. 30, 1875. 



My dear Darwin — The inclosed tells its own story. I have 

 done my best to prevent your being bothered, but for various 

 reasons which will occur to you I did not like to appear too 

 obstructive, and I was asked to write to you. The strong feeling 

 of my colleagues (and my own I must say also) is that we ought 

 to have your opinions in our minutes. At the same time there is a 

 no less strong desire to trouble you as little as possible, and under 

 no circumstances to cause you any risk of injury to health. 



