238 PUBLICATION OF THE 'ORIGIN OF SPECIES.' [1859. 



and was supported in so doing by his perfect confidence in 

 his knowledge, perseverance, and " high-minded love of 

 truth." My father was evidently deeply pleased by Mr. 

 Huxley's words, and wrote : 



" I must thank you for your extremely kind notice of my 

 book in ' Macmillan.' No one could receive a more delightful 

 and honourable compliment. I had not heard of your 

 Lecture, owing to my retired life. You attribute much too 

 much to me from our mutual friendship. You have explained 

 my leading idea with admirable clearness. What a gift you 

 have of writing (or more properly thinking) clearly."] 



C. Darwin to W. B. Carpenter. 



Ilkley, Yorkshire, 



December 3rd [1859]. 



MY DEAR CARPENTER, I am perfectly delighted at your 

 letter. It is a great thing to have got a great physiologist on 

 our side. I say " our " for we are now a good and compact 

 body of really good men, and mostly not old men. In the 

 long-run we shall conquer. I do not like being abused, but I 

 feel that I can now bear it ; and, as I told Lyell, I am well 

 convinced that it is the first offender who reaps the rich 

 harvest of abuse. You have done an essential kindness in 

 checking the odium theologicum in the E. R.* It much 

 pains all one's female relations and injures the cause. 



I look at it as immaterial whether we go quite the same 

 lengths ; and I suspect, judging from myself, that you will go 

 further, by thinking of a population of forms like Ornitho- 

 rhynchus, and by thinking of the common homological and 

 embryological structure of the several vertebrate orders. But 

 this is immaterial. I quite agree that the principle is every- 



* The reference is to the ' Edin- ter had urged on the Editor of the 

 burgh Review.' I learn from Mr. J. ' Edinburgh Review ' a purely scien- 

 Estlin Carpenter that Dr. Carpen- tific treatment of the ' Origin.' 



