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CONCLUSION: THE PRACTICAL LESSON. 
In conclusion, I must crave your indulgence to be allowed 
still some little time, in order to answer Professor Huxley quite 
completely as to the issues of this great question, as he was 
pleased to put them before the clergy in Sion College. I 
have done the learned Professor the justice to say, that nothing 
could exceed the earnestness of his tone ; and I am sure that 
he did not in the least exaggerate the importance of the fact, 
that there are two adverse schools of thought, which exist 
among us, aud which do rather tend to diverge more and more 
from one another. Being a distinguished leader of opinion in 
one of those schools, I think he undertook a solemn duty, in en- 
deavouring to explain to the clergy the nature of the arguments 
from which he has arrived at his convictions. It was, how- 
ever, absurd to suppose that such a mighty question could 
have been put upon a satisfactory footing in a single unre- 
corded discussion. The only fair and almost rational course, I 
ventured to point out ; but Professor Huxley said he thought 
it would be inconsistent with his dignity to appear before what 
he called “the tribunal” of the Victoria Institute. In in- 
viting him to come here, no idea of any tribunal ever entered 
my mind, except that of the reading and intelligent public ; 
and were these polemical discussions at Sion College to be 
reported fully and printed, they might of course be as useful 
there as in any other place. 
But I venture further to say, that Professor Huxley made 
another and a serious mistake, which still more lessened the 
usefulness of his address, in so utterly underrating the mental 
capacity and knowledge, and seemingly the honesty, of those 
whom he addressed. Consequently, while he did but scant 
justice to his own side of the question, he utterly mis- 
apprehended, and so completely misrepresented, the other. 
The tone of his whole address became therefore (though as 
was very evident unintentionally) offensive. It seemed as if he 
thought, that only himself and those who think with him were 
honest and well instructed as to a few quite notorious geological 
facts ; and that the clergy were very ignorant, and not quite 
candid, nor willing to admit the force of evidence, or to give 
credit to scientific men for the honesty of their convictions. 
While he wasted great part of his time in raising imaginary 
difficulties which nobody felt, and in demonstrating simple 
points which no one would dispute, he said little or nothing 
to justify the larger issues involved, or to prove the necessity 
