THE LIFE AND WORK OF DARWIN 205 



he gained the practical knowledge which he was so 

 soon to put to the test. It was Henslow who 

 advised him to read Lyell's " Principles of Geology," 

 which had just been published in 1830, advising him, 

 however, on no account to adopt Lyell's general 

 views ; a piece of advice which he promptly 

 neglected, for, as we have seen, it was by the 

 unflinching application of Lyell's ideas and methods 

 to Biology that Darwin was led to his greatest 

 results. Finally, it was Henslow who obtained for 

 him the permission to accompany the Beagle on 

 her memorable voyage. This, he says, was "the 

 turning-point of my life." 



The Voyage of the Beagle occupied from 1831 

 to 1836, Darwin being then twenty-two years 

 of age. In the autumn of 1831 it was decided 

 by the Government to send a ten-gun brig of 

 242 tons burden, under Captain Fitzroy, to 

 complete the unfinished survey of Patagonia and 

 Tierra del Fuego, to map out the shores of Chili 

 and Peru, to visit several of the Pacific archi- 

 pelagoes, and to carry a chain of chronometrical 

 measurements round the world. This was essen- 

 tially a scientific expedition, the captain, afterwards 

 Admiral Fitzroy, being himself an accomplished and 

 highly-trained officer, and famous as a meteorologist. 

 Anxious to be accompanied by a competent naturalist, 

 to collect animals and plants, he generously offered 

 to give up part of his own cabin accommodation. 

 On Henslow's recommendation this was offered to 

 Darwin, who was eager to accept it. His father, 

 however, objected strongly, adding : " If you can 



