Chapter 40

THE lectures at the Royal Institution were of some help tome. I attended courses by Owen, Tyndall, Huxley, and Bain.

　　Of these, Huxley was FACILE PRINCEPS, though both Owen andTyndall were second to no other. Bain was disappointing. Iwas a careful student of his books, and always admired thelogical lucidity² of his writing. But to the mixed audiencehe had to lecture to - fashionable young ladies in theirteens, and drowsy³ matrons in charge of them, he discreetlykept clear of transcendentals. In illustration perhaps ofsome theory of the relation of the senses to the intellect,he would tell an amusing anecdote⁴ of a dog that had had aninjured leg dressed at a certain house, after which therecovered dog brought a canine⁵ friend to the same house tohave his leg - or tail - repaired. Out would come all thetablets and pretty pencil cases, and every young lady wouldbe busy for the rest of the lecture in recording⁶ themarvellous history. If the dog's name had been 'Spot' or'Bob,' the important psychological fact would have beenfaithfully registered. As to the theme of the discourse,that had nothing to do with - millinery. And Mr. Baindoubtless did not overlook the fact.

　　Owen was an accomplished⁷ lecturer; but one's attention to himdepended on two things - a primary interest in the subject,and some elementary acquaintance with it. If, for example,his subject were the comparative anatomy⁸ of the cycloid andganoid fishes, the difference in their scales was scarcely ofvital importance to one's general culture. But if he werelecturing on fish, he would stick to fish; it would beessentially a JOUR MAIGRE.

　　With Huxley, the suggestion was worth more than the thingsaid. One thought of it afterwards, and wondered whether hiswords implied all they seemed to imply. One knew that thescientist was also a philosopher; and one longed to get athim, at the man himself, and listen to the lessons which hiswork had taught him. At one of these lectures I had thehonour of being introduced to him by a great friend of mine,John Marshall, then President of the College of Surgeons. Inlater years I used to meet him constantly at the Athenaeum.

　　Looking back to the days of one's plasticity, two men arepre-eminent among my Dii Majores. To John Stuart Mill and toThomas Huxley I owe more, educationally, than to any otherteachers. Mill's logic¹ was simply a revelation to me. Forwhat Kant calls 'discipline,' I still know no book, unless itbe the 'Critique' itself, equal to it. But perhaps it is themen themselves, their earnestness, their splendid courage,their noble simplicity¹⁰, that most inspired one withreverence. It was Huxley's aim to enlighten the many, and heenlightened them. It was Mill's lot to help thinkers, and hehelped them. SAPERE AUDE was the motto of both. How fewthere are who dare to adopt it! To love truth is valiantlyprofessed by all; but to pursue it at all costs, to 'dare tobe wise' needs daring of the highest order.

　　Mill had the enormous advantage, to start with, of aneducation unbiassed by any theological creed¹¹; and he broughtexceptional powers of abstract reasoning to bear upon mattersof permanent and supreme¹² importance to all men. Yet, inspite of his ruthless impartiality¹³, I should not hesitate tocall him a religious man. This very tendency which noimaginative mind, no man or woman with any strain of poeticalfeeling, can be without, invests Mill's character with aclash of humanity which entitles him to a place in ouraffections. It is in this respect that he so widely differsfrom Mr. Herbert Spencer. Courageous¹⁴ Mr. Spencer was, buthis courage seems to have been due almost as much to absenceof sympathy or kinship with his fellow-creatures, and to hiscontempt of their opinions, as from his dispassionate love oftruth, or his sometimes passionate¹⁵ defence of his own tenets.

　　My friend Napier told me an amusing little story about JohnMill when he was in the East India Company's administration.

　　Mr. Macvey Napier, my friend's elder brother, was the seniorclerk. On John Mill's retirement¹⁶, his co-officialssubscribed to present him with a silver standish. Such wasthe general sense of Mill's modest estimate of his owndeserts, and of his aversion to all acknowledgment of them,that Mr. Napier, though it fell to his lot, begged others tojoin in the ceremony of presentation. All declined; theinkstand was left upon Mill's table when he himself was outof the room.

　　Years after the time of which I am writing, when Mill stoodfor Westminster, I had the good fortune to be on the platformat St. James's Hall, next but one to him, when he made hisfirst speech to the electors. He was completely unknown tothe public, and, though I worshipped the man, I had neverseen him, nor had an idea what he looked like. To satisfy mycuriosity I tried to get a portrait of him at thephotographic shop in Regent Street.

　　'I want a photograph of Mr. Mill.'

　　'Mill? Mill?' repeated the shopman, 'Oh yes, sir, I know - agreat sporting gent,' and he produced the portrait of asportsman in top boots and a hunting cap.

　　Very different from this was the figure I then saw. The halland the platform were crowded. Where was the principalpersonage? Presently, quite alone, up the side steps, andunobserved, came a thin but tallish man in black, with a tailcoat, and, almost unrecognised, took the vacant front seat.

　　He might have been, so far as dress went, a clerk in acounting-house, or an undertaker. But the face was noordinary one. The wide brow, the sharp nose of the Burketype, the compressed lips and strong chin, were suggestive ofintellect and of suppressed emotion. There was no applause,for nothing was known to the crowd, even of his opinions,beyond the fact that he was the Liberal candidate forWestminster. He spoke¹⁷ with perfect ease to himself, neverfaltering for the right word, which seemed to be always athis command. If interrupted by questions, as he constantlywas, his answers could not have been amended¹⁸ had he writtenthem. His voice was not strong, and there were frequentcalls from the far end to 'speak up, speak up; we can't hearyou.' He did not raise his pitch a note. They might as wellhave tried to bully¹⁹ an automaton²⁰. He was doing his best, andhe could do no more. Then, when, instead of the usualadulations, instead of declamatory appeals to the passions ofa large and a mixed assembly, he gave them to understand, invery plain language, that even socialists²¹ are not infallible,- that extreme and violent opinions, begotten²² of ignorance,do not constitute the highest political wisdom; then therewere murmurs²³ of dissent²⁴ and disapproval²⁵. But if the ignorantand the violent could have stoned him, his calm manner wouldstill have said, 'Strike, but hear me.'

　　Mr. Robert Grosvenor - the present Lord Ebury - then theother Liberal member for Westminster, wrote to ask me to takethe chair at Mill's first introduction to the Pimlicoelectors. Such, however, was my admiration²⁶ of Mill, I didnot feel sure that I might not say too much in his favour;and mindful of the standish incident, I knew, that if I didso, it would embarrass and annoy him.

　　Under these circumstances I declined the honour.

　　When Owen was delivering a course of lectures at Norwich, mybrother invited him to Holkham. I was there, and we tookseveral long walks together. Nothing seemed to escape hisobservation. My brother had just completed the recovery ofmany hundred acres of tidal marsh⁹ by embankments. Owen, whowas greatly interested, explained what would be the effectupon the sandiest portion of this, in years to come; what thechemical action of the rain would be, how the sand wouldeventually become soil, how vegetation would cover it, andhow manure²⁷ render it cultivable. The splendid crops nowgrown there bear testimony²⁸ to his foresight²⁹. He had alwayssomething instructive to impart, stopping to contemplatetrifles which only a Zadig would have noticed.

　　'I observe,' said he one day, 'that your prevailing³⁰ wind hereis north-west.'

　　'How do you know?' I asked.

　　'Look at the roots of all these trees; the large roots areinvariably on the north-west side. This means that thestrain comes on this side. The roots which have to bear itloosen the soil, and the loosened soil favours the extensionand the growth of the roots. Nature is beautifullyscientific.'

　　Some years after this, I published a book called 'Creeds³¹ ofthe Day.' My purpose was to show, in a popular form, thebearings of science and speculative³² thought upon thereligious creeds of the time. I sent Owen a copy of thework. He wrote me one of the most interesting letters I everreceived. He had bought the book, and had read it. But theimportant content of the letter was the confession³³ of his ownfaith. I have purposely excluded all correspondence fromthese Memoirs³⁴, but had it not been that a forgotten collectorof autographs had captured it, I should have been tempted³⁵ tomake an exception in its favour. The tone was agnostic; buttimidly agnostic. He had never freed himself from theshackles of early prepossessions. He had not the necessarydaring to clear up his doubts. Sometimes I fancy that it wasthis difference in the two men that lay at the bottom of theunfortunate antagonism³⁶ between Owen and Huxley. There is inOwen's writing, where he is not purely³⁷ scientific, a touch ofthe apologist. He cannot quite make up his mind to followevolution to its logical conclusions. Where he is forced todo so, it is to him like signing the death warrant of hisdearest friend. It must not be forgotten that Owen was bornmore than twenty years before Huxley; and great as was theoffence of free-thinking in Huxley's youth, it was nothingshort of anathema³⁸ in Owen's. When I met him at Holkham, the'Origin of Species' had not been published; and Napier and Idid all we could to get Owen to express some opinion onLamarck's theory, for he and I used to talk confidentially³⁹ onthis fearful heresy⁴⁰ even then. But Owen was ever on hisguard. He evaded⁴¹ our questions and changed the subject.

　　Whenever I pass near the South Kensington Museum I step asideto look at the noble statues of the two illustrious men. Amere glance at them, and we appreciate at once theirrespective characters. In the one we see passive wisdom, inthe other militant⁴² force.

1 logic   

n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性

参考例句：

• What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑？
• I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。

2 lucidity   

n.明朗，清晰，透明

参考例句：

• His writings were marked by an extraordinary lucidity and elegance of style.他的作品简洁明晰，文风典雅。
• The pain had lessened in the night, but so had his lucidity.夜里他的痛苦是减轻了，但人也不那么清醒了。

3 drowsy   

adj.昏昏欲睡的，令人发困的

参考例句：

• Exhaust fumes made him drowsy and brought on a headache.废气把他熏得昏昏沉沉，还引起了头疼。
• I feel drowsy after lunch every day.每天午饭后我就想睡觉。

4 anecdote   

n.轶事，趣闻，短故事

参考例句：

• He departed from the text to tell an anecdote.他偏离课文讲起了一则轶事。
• It had never been more than a family anecdote.那不过是个家庭趣谈罢了。

5 canine   

adj.犬的，犬科的

参考例句：

• The fox is a canine animal.狐狸是犬科动物。
• Herbivorous animals have very small canine teeth,or none.食草动物的犬牙很小或者没有。

6 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

7 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

8 anatomy   

n.解剖学，解剖；功能，结构，组织

参考例句：

• He found out a great deal about the anatomy of animals.在动物解剖学方面，他有过许多发现。
• The hurricane's anatomy was powerful and complex.对飓风的剖析是一项庞大而复杂的工作。

9 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

10 simplicity   

n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯

参考例句：

• She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
• The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

11 creed   

n.信条；信念，纲领

参考例句：

• They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
• Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。

12 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

13 impartiality   

n. 公平, 无私, 不偏

参考例句：

• He shows impartiality and detachment. 他表现得不偏不倚，超然事外。
• Impartiality is essential to a judge. 公平是当法官所必需的。

14 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

15 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

16 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

17 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

18 Amended   

adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He asked to see the amended version. 他要求看修订本。
• He amended his speech by making some additions and deletions. 他对讲稿作了些增删修改。

19 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

20 automaton   

n.自动机器，机器人

参考例句：

• This is a fully functional automaton.这是一个有全自动功能的机器人。
• I get sick of being thought of as a political automaton.我讨厌被看作政治机器。

21 socialists   

社会主义者( socialist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The socialists saw themselves as true heirs of the Enlightenment. 社会主义者认为自己是启蒙运动的真正继承者。
• The Socialists junked dogma when they came to office in 1982. 社会党人1982年上台执政后，就把其政治信条弃之不顾。

22 begotten   

v.为…之生父( beget的过去分词 )；产生，引起

参考例句：

• The fact that he had begotten a child made him vain. 想起自己也生过孩子，他得意了。 来自辞典例句
• In due course she bore the son begotten on her by Thyestes. 过了一定的时候，她生下了堤厄斯式斯使她怀上的儿子。 来自辞典例句

23 murmurs   

n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕

参考例句：

• They spoke in low murmurs. 他们低声说着话。 来自辞典例句
• They are more superficial, more distinctly heard than murmurs. 它们听起来比心脏杂音更为浅表而清楚。 来自辞典例句

24 dissent   

n./v.不同意，持异议

参考例句：

• It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
• He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。

25 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

26 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

27 manure   

n.粪，肥，肥粒；vt.施肥

参考例句：

• The farmers were distributing manure over the field.农民们正在田间施肥。
• The farmers used manure to keep up the fertility of their land.农夫们用粪保持其土质的肥沃。

28 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

29 foresight   

n.先见之明，深谋远虑

参考例句：

• The failure is the result of our lack of foresight.这次失败是由于我们缺乏远虑而造成的。
• It required a statesman's foresight and sagacity to make the decision.作出这个决定需要政治家的远见卓识。

30 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

31 creeds   

（尤指宗教）信条，教条( creed的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• people of all races, colours and creeds 各种种族、肤色和宗教信仰的人
• Catholics are agnostic to the Protestant creeds. 天主教徒对于新教教义来说，是不可知论者。

32 speculative   

adj.思索性的，暝想性的，推理的

参考例句：

• Much of our information is speculative.我们的许多信息是带推测性的。
• The report is highly speculative and should be ignored.那个报道推测的成分很大，不应理会。

33 confession   

n.自白，供认，承认

参考例句：

• Her confession was simply tantamount to a casual explanation.她的自白简直等于一篇即席说明。
• The police used torture to extort a confession from him.警察对他用刑逼供。

34 memoirs   

n.回忆录；回忆录传( mem,自oir的名词复数)

参考例句：

• Her memoirs were ghostwritten. 她的回忆录是由别人代写的。
• I watched a trailer for the screenplay of his memoirs. 我看过以他的回忆录改编成电影的预告片。 来自《简明英汉词典》

35 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

36 antagonism   

n.对抗，敌对，对立

参考例句：

• People did not feel a strong antagonism for established policy.人们没有对既定方针产生强烈反应。
• There is still much antagonism between trades unions and the oil companies.工会和石油公司之间仍然存在着相当大的敌意。

37 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

38 anathema   

n.诅咒；被诅咒的人(物)，十分讨厌的人(物)

参考例句：

• Independence for the Kurds is anathema to Turkey and Iran.库尔德人的独立对土耳其和伊朗来说将是一场梦魇。
• Her views are ( an ) anathema to me.她的观点真叫我讨厌。

39 confidentially   

ad.秘密地，悄悄地

参考例句：

• She was leaning confidentially across the table. 她神神秘秘地从桌子上靠过来。
• Kao Sung-nien and Wang Ch'u-hou talked confidentially in low tones. 高松年汪处厚两人低声密谈。

40 heresy   

n.异端邪说；异教

参考例句：

• We should denounce a heresy.我们应该公开指责异端邪说。
• It might be considered heresy to suggest such a notion.提出这样一个观点可能会被视为异端邪说。

41 evaded   

逃避( evade的过去式和过去分词 )； 避开； 回避； 想不出

参考例句：

• For two weeks they evaded the press. 他们有两周一直避而不见记者。
• The lion evaded the hunter. 那狮子躲开了猎人。

42 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。