o his son Francis. (Ibid.
Vol. I. pages 304-317.) Whoever wishes really to understand the lofty
character of this great man should read these immortal lines in which he
unfolds to us in simple and straightforward words the development of his
conception of the universe. He describes how, though he was still quite
orthodox during his voyage round the world on board the "Beagle", he
came gradually to see, shortly afterwards (1836-1839) that the Old
Testament was no more to be trusted than the Sacred Books of the
Hindoos; the miracles by which Christianity is supported, the
discrepancies between the accounts in the different Gospels, gradually
led him to disbelieve in Christianity as a divine revelation. "Thus," he
writes ("Life and Letters", Vol. 1. page 309.), "disbelief crept over me
at a very slow rate, but was at last complete. The rate was so slow that
I felt no distress." But Darwin was too modest to presume to go beyond
the limits laid down by science. He wanted nothing more than to be able
to go, freely and unhampered by belief in authority or in the Bible, as
far as human knowledge could lead him. We learn this from the concluding
words of his chapter on religion: "The mystery of the beginning of all
things is insoluble by us; and I for one must be content to remain an
Agnostic." (Loc. cit. page 313.)

Darwin was always very unwilling to give publicity to his views in
regard to religion. In a letter to Asa Gray on May 22, 1860 (Ibid. Vol.
II. page 310.), he declares that it is always painful to him to have
to enter into discussion of religious problems. He had, he said, no
intention of writing atheistically.

Finally, let us cite one characteristic sentence from a letter from
Darwin to C. Ridley (Ibid. Vol. III. page. 236. ("C. Ridley," Mr Francis
Darwin points out to me, should be H.N. Ridley. A.C.S.)) (Nov. 28,
1878.) A clergyman, Dr Pusey, had asserted that Darwin had written
the "Origin of Species" with some relation to theology. Darwin writes
emphatically, "Many years ago, when I was collecting facts for the
'Origin', my belief in what is called a personal God was as firm as that
of Dr Pusey himself, and as to the eternity of matter I never troubled
myself about such insoluble questions." The expression "many years ago"
refers to the time of his voyage round the world, as has already been
pointed out. Darwin means by this utterance that the views which had
gradually developed in his mind in regard to the ori