| At last, Huxley's essays have been rescued from an undeserved obscurity. He is still well known to this day as (in his own words) Darwin's Bulldog. His robust defense of Evolution in the 19th century contributed greatly to its acceptance by scientists and the lay public. But though he is remembered, obtaining a comprehensive collection of his writings has hitherto been a task for a historian. His essays were scattered over many publications, and the gathering together of these is not a trivial task. Reading these will give you some flavour of his times, and of an intellect that still shines through the dry pages. All the more so since he died in 1895. So his essays span over half the century and gives the sweep of biology in those crucial years. |