New-York tribune., 1885-07-07
TIE DARWIN MEMORIAL
Unveiled BY PROBES OR HUXLEY The
ppJNrE. AND THE ARCHBISHOP.

I.Ve
.s;s reonle in I Iondop have found tne to be ln-
torss,ad in one or two matters which have no re-
latisu To politics Chief among them was too
ceremonv Of unveIling the Darwin Meinoriai
Statuc last Tuesday The ceremony was si"pio
one There was no paccantry nor any OF tne ou'-
ward splender which attracts a smart company OF
. great multitude of sightseers- But few spectacies
have been more impressive The memorial Is the
comnlcment of tine honor paid to Darwin at his
burial in Westminster Abbey; itself scene Oh 'he
most singular attractiveness. That was three
wears ago. Immediately afterward, as PROFESSOR
Huxley reminded Us Oil Tuesday, public meeting
wa. held IN the rooms of the Royal Society, to con-
nj Ter what further steps should be taken TO honor
the memory Of the man who, without rear anu
without reproach, had successfully iousnt Ino
hardest in eectual battle of these Gays lho
meeting resolved to ask for subscriptions lor
statue and their appeal went out lover all 'ne
world There is hardly country, great OF SMALL
In Europe which did not respond; nor were tho
United States backward Mr.. Huxley tell us that
Sweden sent in more than two thousand subscrip-
tions. from all sorts of people, from the bishop to
the seamstross and III from $50 to four cents.
So the order was given for the statue the execution
of which was intrusted to Mr.. Boehm lhe
memorial committee proposed to the trustees OF
the British Museum to place this statue OF Darwin
in the great hall of the Natural History Museum at
South Kensington. The Trustees accepted this ohcr
The statue was put in its place and this meeting OF
Tuesday was convokcd to receive 1t with que
homage to the memory of thc illustrious dead.
Invitations were addressed to all the chief men OF
science in England and to many whose fame has
nothing to do with science. The foremost living
pupil of Darwin. Professor Huxley, was there on
Tuesday as chairman of the committee. perhaps
elso "a President of the Royal Society, TO hand
over the statue to the Trustees The Prnce OF
Wales, one of the Trustees was there 10 receive IL
in behalf of his colleagues Among the company
that clustered on the steps and platform were the
Lord Steward lord Sydney, Lord Cadssan. whom
rumor appoints to the Viceroyaty OF Ireland ;iLord
Sherbrooke Lord Houghtcn, Lord Acton, sir
Henry Rawliussa, of the greatest Orentalists
of his time; Mr. Browning. Mr.. Flower. the super
intendent of the Museum; Sir Richard Owen (who
can hardly have enjoy d all he arrangemcnts, three
sons of Darwin the Master of Chrlsts College, Cam
bridge. Darwins college. l break in upon the
enumeration of names to ask you to notice now
carefully they had been chosen, and with what
utta, disreoarl of mere rank or fashion this brill
liant ass.mblags had been made mp. The men OF
rank above named are all men who have an eifclai
connection with the Museum, or other claims to be
prescnt wholly irres spective of their rank Next
came Admiral Sir g. J. Sullivan and Vice-Admlra
Me,lersh two of the three surviving officers with
whom Darwin sailed in the memorable cruise OF
the Beagle: Sir Joseph Hooker ex-Presldent of the
ROYAL Society and suppose the first OF Engish
botansts; Lord Aberdare. Professor Newton. the
classical arcbaologlst; Nh Bond Principal Librarian
OF the British Museum; Sir William Gull, one OF the
most fashionable and, notwithstanding that. one
of the best physicians in London Sir Joseph Lls.er
the most original surgeon of the day and author
of the antissptc treatment of wounds, the dis
coyery which has revolutionized surgery; Sir
lanes Pagct. perhaps tho most gifted operating
surreoo in England: Mr. Lcehy, Mr.. Herbert
SoenceI (but not Mr.. Frederic HarrisOa). and many
others.
Besides all these, there were three men whose
presence is even more worthy of note. Archdeacon
Farrar was one whose Life of Christ" is said to
have surpassed Uncle Toms Cabin" itselfin circu-
latioa. Ihe second was the Dean OF Westminster
The third wa. the spiritual Head of the Church OF
England, the Archbishop of Canterbury. There he
sto II on the platform by the side OF the Prince and
mt the very feet of Darwin. He had an air of
aDos.olic humility which sat well on him. and
which suited well the circumstances in which he
appeared. Most n&n must have felt the signi'i-
ence OF his coming,.but not one word was publicly
said which could seem ungracious III the presence
of this act of homage from the Church to the
great man of science who has shaken to its founda-
tions the authority of the Church. If it be step
toward that reconciliation of which so much is said
between Science and Religion, it Is, so far as the
Church of England is concerned, act which
savors moro of submission than Of tocration 1t is
arecantation of the anathemas once pronounced
ON Darwin: il IS at least recognition Of his right
ful position in the inteo ctual world. 1t is,
am tempted to say, a conces iel to Darwin of CO.
ordinate authority in matters of faith, or which
were once of faith. This tim, it is the Church
winch has gone 10 Canossa Th, great hall of the
Natural History Museum is less nclemcnt than the
snow-coversd courtyard of the Castle where
Hildsbrand kept Henry three days waiting, and
30 much softer are the manners OF modern days
that the Archbishop stood something less than
half an hour before the marble eiigy of his victcrl-
ous foe But the fierce light which beat upon him
ha, made him visible figure for centuries to come.
The whole ceremony was indeed among the
shortest ON record. Punctually at noon the Prince
of Wales walked up the hall amid cheers, mounted
the steps, accompanied by Mr.. Huxley and others
who had gone to the front door to receive, shook
hands with others of the company, and signied his
readiness to begin. Mr. Huxley unfoIded his sheet
of printed proof, and read his brief address. The
veil fell from the statue The audience applaudcd
Mr. Huxley IN few closing sentences committed
the memorial to the care of tho Museum Trustees
The Prince OF Wales in sentences not less few, ac-
cepted IT, and the soemnty of the day was over
before tine clock hal struck the quarter.
Professor Huxiey's address is much too condensed
To he condensed again. / have already borrowed
from 1t some of its most striking facts and one of
its most eloquent passages He is one Of the not
too numerous men of science with definite sense
of literary form, and with power of expression
which places him, quite independently of his
scientific position, among the first writer's of his
generation. He has summed up the case for Darwin
in a sentence. Darwin one of those rare
ministers and interpreters of nature whose names
mark epochs in the advance Of natural knowledge.
~Whatcyer be tho ultimate verdict of posterty