Method and results : essays / by Thomas H. Huxley.

  • Thomas Henry Huxley
Date:
1893
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Method and results : essays / by Thomas H. Huxley. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    20/450 page 6
    bullying was the least of the ill practices current among us. Almost the only cheerful reminis-^ cence in connection with the place which arises in my mind is that of a battle I had with one of my classmates, who had bulHed me until I could stand it no longer. I was a very slight lad, but there was a wild-cat element in me which, when roused, made up for lack of weight, and I licked my adversary effectually. However, one of my first experiences of the extremely rough-and-ready nature of justice, as exhibited by the course of things in general, arose out of the fact that I—the victor—had a black eye, while he—the vanquished —had none, so that I got into disgrace and he did not. We made it up, and thereafter I was un- molested. One of the greatest shocks I ever received in my life was to be told a dozen years afterwards by the groom who brought me my horse in a stable-yard in Sydney that he was my quondam antagonist. He had a long story of family misfortune to account for his position, but at that time it was necessary to deal very cau- tiously with mysterious strangers in New South Wales, and on inquiry I found that the unfortu- nate young man had not only been sent out, but had undergone more than one colonial conviction. As I grew older, my great desire was to be a mechanical engineer, but the fates were against this and, while very young, I commenced the study of medicine under a medical brother-in-law. But,
    digitised image 1
    digitised image 2
    digitised image 3