34 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY 



during the second year I was left to my own resources ; and 

 this was an advantage, for I became well acquainted with 

 several young men fond of natural science. One of these 

 was Ainsworth, who afterwards published his travels in As- 

 syria ; he was a Wernerian geologist, and knew a little about 

 many subjects. Dr. Coldstream was a very different young 

 man, prim, formal, highly religious, and most kind-hearted ; 

 he afterwards published some good zoological articles. A 

 third young man was Hardie, who would, I think, have made 

 a good botanist, but died early in India. Lastly, Dr. Grant, 

 my senior by several years, but how I became acquainted 

 with him I cannot remember; he published some first-rate 

 zoological papers, but after coming to London as Professor 

 in University College, he did nothing more in science, a fact 

 which has always been inexplicable to me. I knew him well ; 

 he was dry and formal in manner, with much enthusiasm 

 beneath this outer crust. He one day, when we were walk- 

 ing together, burst forth in high admiration of Lamarck and 

 his views on evolution. I listened in silent astonishment, and 

 as far as I can judge without any effect on my mind. I had 

 previously read the ■ Zoonomia ' of my grandfather, in which 

 similar views are maintained, but without producing any effect 

 on me. Nevertheless it is probable that the hearing rather 

 early in life such views maintained and praised may have 

 favoured my upholding them under a different form in my 

 ' Origin of Species.' At this time I admired greatly the 

 ' Zoonomia ; ' but on reading it a second time after an inter- 

 val of ten or fifteen years, I was much disappointed ; the 

 proportion of speculation being so large to the facts given. 



Drs. Grant and Coldstream attended much to marine 

 Zoology, and I often accompanied the former to collect ani- 

 mals in the tidal pools, which I dissected as well as I could. 

 I also became friends with some of the Newhaven fishermen, 

 and sometimes accompanied them when they trawled for 

 oysters, and thus got many specimens. But from not having 

 had any regular practice in dissection, and from possessing 

 only a wretched microscope, my attempts were very poor. 



