Men are beings of a certain constitution, who, under certain conditions, will as surely tend to act in certain ways as stones will tend to fall if you leave them unsupported.  The laws of their nature are as invariable as the laws of gravitation, only the applications to particular cases offer worse problems than the case of the three bodies.

The Political Economists have gone the right way to work—­the way that the physical philosopher follows in all complex affairs—­by tracing out the effects of one great cause of human action, the desire of wealth, supposing it to be unchecked.

If they, or other people, have forgotten that there are other potent causes of action which may interfere with this, it is no fault of scientific method but only their own stupidity.

Hydrostatics is not a “dismal science,” because water does not always seek the lowest level—­e.g. from a bottle turned upside down, if there is a cork in the neck!

There is much need that somebody should do for what is vaguely called “Ethics” just what the Political Economists have done.  Settle the question of what will be done under the unchecked action of certain motives, and leave the problem of “ought” for subsequent consideration.

For, whatever they ought to do, it is quite certain the majority of men will act as if the attainment of certain positive and negative pleasures were the end of action.

We want a science of “Eubiotics” to tell us exactly what will happen if human beings are exclusively actuated by the desire of well-being in the ordinary sense.  Of course the utilitarians have laid the foundations of such a science, with the result that the nicknamer of genius called this branch of science “pig philosophy,” making just the same blunder as when he called political economy “dismal science.”

“Moderate well-being” may be no more the worthiest end of life than wealth.  But if it is the best to be had in this queer world—­it may be worth trying for.

But you will begin to wish the train had been punctual!

Draw comfort from the fact that if error is always with us, it is, at any rate, remediable.  I am more hopeful than when I was young.  Perhaps life (like matrimony, as some say) should begin with a little aversion!

Ever yours very faithfully,

T.H.  Huxley.

[Some years before this, a fund for a “Darwin Medal” had been established in memory of the great naturalist, the medal to be awarded biennially for researches in biology.  With singular appropriateness, the first award was made to Dr. A.R.  Wallace, the joint propounder of the theory of Natural Selection, whose paper, entrusted to Darwin’s literary sponsorship, caused the speedy publication of Darwin’s own long-continued researches and speculations.  The second, with equal appropriateness, was to Sir J.D.  Hooker, both as a leader in science and a helper and adviser of Darwin.