New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-09
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TWO MEN OF LETTERS.
Germany.


Sir Charles Lyelrs biography is practically the
history of a book and Of the methods that were
taken. the Journeys that we're made to bring it
to perfection. His boysh victories were literary
NOT scientific. He only gradually became inter
esed In geology. In the journal OF HIS youthiui
travels science only occupies a part Of his at
tention. He was not less interested In archi-
lecture and painting and cities than in rocks
and fossils He had fortune sufficient to OBJ
vjate all need Of haste in the choice Of his career
He began practice lawyer. with geology as
the most attractive of his diversions. Possibly
he might have continued this mode OF life to the
end But Lamarck came to wake him up. At first
he felt antagonism toward theories which If
accepted would prove that men may have come
from the ourang-outang" Later the notions Of
Lamarck became attractive. little later still
he publicly defended the opinion of the French
scientist that the world must be vastly older
than had been supposed. Then he came TO the
conclusion that the changes recorded by geology
were due to causes still at work and not to sud
den catastrophes In this way, by slow APP
proaches he can be traced as he gets nearer and
nearer to the point where he takes up his pen to
write the principles Of Geology"
Contrasted with the examples Of Maxwell the
Herschels and Liebig. Lyelrs Is plainly Of
literary evolution. He Is distinctivey the type
Of literary man who has applied himself 70
science his theme. The thing to he observed
Is. how much longer he was in developing and
how little there was of chance in the process
that brought him face to face with his task.
He wrote many other books in the course Of his
life but the "Prnciples" was almost contnu-
ally in hand. For each new edition he rewrote
and added much. The changes in it, we'll as
the other books he wrote not only mark mOdf-
ca tons in his views. but in the views of the
! scientific world. There an advantage in
the fact that he chose his theme instead OF being
chosen by II. In spite Of the controversies in
which he engaged. he preserved to an unusual
degree the judicial air of a who has not
been mastered by his task. The elaboration
with which he meditated over Darwns theories
is well known He seems to have done the like
with all the suggestions that came to him. His
attitude that Of the critic rather than the
discoverer. But his advocacy was often worth
more than the original thought.
From the lawyer and man of letters who de-
voted himself to science the transition is not
very great to the roet and man of letters who
turned to action, rather than thought Mr.. Hare
frankly reveals his disappointment at not hay
ing been chosen the biographer Of Dean STAN
ley. The short narrative which he has given
is as interesting however. az a longer one would
have been 1t suggests the character Of "A man
who grew up to the place he to fiji without
any strenuous votion on his own part. He was
in his time the most influential Clergyman in
England. Jowett observed this. and wondered
why Stanley troubled himself with controversies
in his later years. In view of the fact that 1t
was as a clergyman that he was powerful. it Is
curious how small share Church doctrines had
in his life except, perhaps. to embitter it, What
knew when he was aive--nO one has been able
10 make out since. That it highly map
propriate TO the Dean of Westminster Is the
only fact that is quite certain" He devoutly
believed. as may be inferred from his own words
that a single Article would have been better
than the whole Thirty-nine. and that there could
be no schism where there was charity. The
longer one meditates on the evolution Of the
boy poet of the Episcopal palace at Norwich INTO
the courageous defender Of heretics. il not of
heresy at Westminster. the less one can account
for IT, The shy. delicate boy for whom boys
had little sympathy. became man Of the widest
sympathies. He courtier. essayist, travel
Ter. everything but theoogian. and yet theology
was 10 have been his main interest. Perhaps
he can best he accounted for as a product Of the
national life a man whose environment was all
England and not any locality nor any single
ecclesiastical organism. Contrast him with
Dean Afford. typical scholar and Clergyman. as
described by Mr.. Hare and the deeply interest
ing problems Of Stanley's character and career
become manifest at once