308 
ADDRESS BY W. R. HUGHES 
Exposition of the Cause. 
The Cause Geologically Illustrated. 
The Cause Illustrated in Physical Geography. 
The Cause Illustrated in Chemistry. 
The Cause Illustrated in Embryology. 
The Cause Illustrated in Palaeontology. 
The Cause Illustrated in Social Evolution. 
The Cause Illustrated in Science. 
Concluding Reflections. 
Ladies and gentlemen, you know very well, and the 
thousands of readers of Mr. Herbert Spencer both here and 
in America know very well, that these are the cardinal truths 
of the “ Synthetic Philosophy” which Mr. Herbert Spencer 
has devoted his life-time to working out. One word more. 
You will have perceived that the date of Mr. Herbert 
Spencer’s Essay is 1857, whereas Darwin’s great work on the 
“Origin of Species” appeared in the year 1859, so that we 
are enabled with certainty to fix the date of the first pro¬ 
mulgation of the idea of a comprehensive theory of Evolution 
at twenty-eight years ago, and not at twenty-five years ago 
as stated by Mr. Lawson Tait. It should further be noted 
that in the “ Principles of Psychology,” published so far 
back as 1855, Mr. Herbert Spencer interpreted the pheno¬ 
mena of mind, alike in all lower creatures and in man, as 
consequent upon processes of Evolution. Credit must, how¬ 
ever, be given to many other workers in the same field, and 
the honoured names of Erasmus Darwin, Lamarck, Geoffroy 
St. Hilaire, Goethe, Wolff, Von Baer, Henri Milne Edwardes, 
Robert Chambers, Professors Huxley and Haeckel, Alfred 
Russel Wallace, and others, must not be omitted as 
having contributed largely to the Biological cause, and the 
distinguished French philosopher, Auguste Comte, to the 
Sociological cause. Nevertheless it must ever remain an 
incontrovertible fact that Mr. Herbert Spencer was the first 
exponent to broach the doctrine of Evolution ; and he is the 
only Englishman who has formulated a complete system of 
Synthetic philosophy showing its all-embracing scope. 
Far be it from me to cast the faintest breath against the 
merits of the illustrious Darwin, who himself constantly 
quoted Mr. Herbert Spencer in support of his views, and 
spoke of him as “ Our great philosopher.” I perfectly agree 
with Mr. Alfred Russel Wallace that Darwin cannot be 
over-rated, and I also perfectly agree with Mr. Wallace in 
thinking that “ If other principles should hereafter be 
discovered, or if it be proved that some of his subsidiary 
theories are wholly or partially erroneous, this very discovery 
