Essays" 8 page 229), he discussed the rival theories of spontaneous
generation and the universal derivation of life from precedent life,
and professed his belief, as an act of philosophic faith, that at some
remote period, life had arisen out of inanimate matter, though there
was no evidence that anything of the sort had occurred recently, the
germ theory explaining many supposed cases of spontaneous generation.
The history of the subject, indeed, showed] "the great tragedy of
Science--the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact--which
is so constantly being enacted under the eyes of philosophers," and
recalled the warning "that it is one thing to refute a proposition,
and another to prove the truth of a doctrine which, implicitly or
explicitly, contradicts that proposition."

[Two letters to Dr. Dohrn refer to this address and to the meeting of
the Association.]

Jermyn Street, April 30, 1870.

My dear Whirlwind,

I have received your two letters; and I was just revolving in my mind
how best to meet your wishes in regard to the very important project
mentioned in the first, when the second arrived and put me at rest.

I hope I need not say how heartily I enter into all your views, and
how glad I shall be to see your plan for "Stations" carried into
effect. [Dr. Dohrn succeeded in establishing such a zoological
"station" at Naples.] Nothing could have a greater influence upon the
progress of zoology.