Gray.] 122 [October 7, 



bent, responding to an invitation to visit Boston, which he 

 had never seen, and to consider if he would be a candidate, 

 then first heard of Wyman's name and of his friends' ex- 

 pectations or hopes; whereupon he dismissed the subject 

 from his mind. Probably he felt more surprise than did Dr. 

 Wyman when notified, a few months afterwards, of the choice 

 of the Corporation. The exigencies of the Botanic Garden 

 probably overbore other considerations. I doubt if Dr. Wy- 

 man ever had an envious feeling. Certain it is that no one 

 welcomed the new professor with truer cordiality, or proved 

 himself a more constant friend. 



In these days it is sure to be asked how an anatomist, 

 physiologist, and morphologist like Prof. Wyman regarded 

 the most remarkable scientific movement of his time, the 

 revival and apparent prevalence of doctrines of evolution. 

 As might be expected, he was neither an advocate nor an 

 opponent. He was not one of those persons who quickly 

 make up their minds, and announce their opinions, with a 

 confidence inversely proportionate to their knowledge. He 

 could consider long, and hold his judgment in suspense. 

 How well he could do this appears from an early, and so far 

 as I know, his only published presentation of the topic, in a 

 short review of Owen's "Monograph of the Aye-Aye" (in 

 Am. Journ. Science, Sept., 1863) — the paper in which Prof. 

 Owen's acceptance of evolution, but not of natural selec- 

 tion, was promulgated. Dr. Wyman compares Owen's view 

 with that of Darwin (to whom he had already communicated 

 interesting and novel illustrations of the play of natural 

 selection) ; and he adds some acute remarks upon a rather 

 earlier speculation by Mr. Agassiz, in which the latter sug- 

 gests that the species of animals might have been created as 



