FIFTY YEARS OF DARWINISM 15 



would point out the parallelism, so far as it ex- 

 isted, to his illustrious patient, hoping that some 

 light might be thrown on the source of the in- 

 spiration. Nor was I disappointed. " Stay," 

 said the aged poet when Dr. Grove had spoken, 

 "In Memoriam was published long before the 

 Origin of Species" " Oh! Then you are the 

 man," replied the doctor. " Yes, I am the man." 

 There was silence for a time and then Tennyson 

 said: " I don't want you to go away with a wrong 

 impression. The fact is that long before Dar- 

 win's work appeared these ideas were known and 

 talked about." From this deeply interesting 

 conversation I think it is probable that, through 

 mutual friends, some echo of Darwin's researches 

 and thoughts had reached the great author of 

 In Memoriam. 



The light which has been recently thrown ^ upon 

 Philip Gosse's remarkable book, Omphalos^ indi- 

 cates that its appearance in 1858 was connected 

 with the thoughts that were to arouse the world 

 in the following year. The author of Omphalos 

 was a keen and enthusiastic naturaUst held fast 

 in the grip of the narrowest of religious creeds. 

 We learn with great interest that he and others 

 were by Lyell's advice prepared beforehand for 

 the central thoughts of the Origin. To the new 

 teaching all the naturalist side of his nature re- 

 sponded, but from it the religious side recoiled. 

 Religion conquered in the strife, but the natural- 



• In Father and Son, London, 1907. 



