My dear Hooker

Yours is a splendid letter, & I was very curious to hear something about the Liverpool meeting, which I much wished to be successful for Huxley’s sake. I am surprised that you think his Address w^d. not have been clear to the public: it seemed to me as clear as water. The general line of his argument might have been answered by the case of spontaneous combustion; tens of thousands of cases of things having been seen to be set on fire w^d be no true argument against any one who maintained that flames sometimes spontaneously burst forth.—² I am delighted at the apotheosis of Sir Roderick: I can fancy what neat & appropriate speeches he would make to each nobleman as he entered the gates of Heaven.³ You ask what I think about Tyndall’s Lecture: it seemed to me grand & very interesting, though I could not from ignorance quite follow some parts, & I longed to tell him how immensely it w^d. have been improved, if all the first part had been made very much less egotistical.⁴ George⁵ independently arrived at the same conclusion & liked all the latter part extremely. He thought first part not only egotistical, but rather clap-trap. How well Tyndall puts the “as if” manner of philosophising & shows that it is justifiable; some of those confounded Frenchmen have lately been pitching in me for using this form of proof or argument.—⁶

I have just read Rollestons address in Nature: his style is quite unparalleled!⁷ I see he quotes you about seed, so yesterday I went & observed more carefully the case given in enclosed paper which you might perhaps like to read & burn.—⁸ How true & good what you say about Lyell:⁹ he is always the same: Dohrn was here yesterday, & was remarking that no one stood higher in the public estimation of Germany than Lyell.¹⁰

I am truly & profoundly glad that you are thinking of some general work on Geograph. Distrib. or so forth:¹¹ I hope to God that your incessant occupations may not interrupt this intention.— As for my book,¹² I shall not have done the accursed proofs till end of November: good Lord what a muddled head I have got on my wretched old shoulders.

My Boys are very much obliged for your invitation for a Sunday; but they cannot accept it at present.—¹³

I wish I could boast of my calligraphy as you do with justice of yours.—

Ever dear old Friend | Yours affec^y. | C. Darwin