Apropos to his remark about the Comtists, one of the company pointed out that in later life Comte recognised a science of “the individual,” equivalent to what Huxley meant by psychology.] “That,” [he replied], “was due to the influence of Clotilde de Vaux.  You see,” [he added, with a kind of Sir Charles Grandison bow to my wife], “what power your sex may have.” [As Huxley was going out of the house, I said to him that Father A.B. (the priest who had been present) had not expected to find himself in his company.] “No!  I trust he had plenty of holy water with him,” [was the reply.

...After he had gone, we were all agreed as to the extraordinary vigour and brilliancy he had shown.  Some one said, “He is like a man who is what the Scotch call ‘fey.’” We laughed at the idea, but we naturally recalled the remark later on.

The story of how the article was written is told in the following letters.  It was suggested by Mr. Knowles, and undertaken after perusal of the review of the book in the “Times”.  Huxley intended to have the article ready for the March number of the “Nineteenth Century”, but it grew longer than he had meant it to be, and partly for this reason, partly for fear lest the influenza, then raging at Eastbourne, might prevent him from revising the whole thing at once, he divided it into two instalments.  He writes to one daughter on March 1:—­]

I suppose my time will come; so I am “making hay while the sun shines” (in point of fact it is raining and blowing a gale outside) and finishing my counterblast to Balfour before it does come.

Love to all you poor past snivellers from an expectant sniveller.

[And to another:—­]

I think the cavalry charge in this month’s “Nineteenth” will amuse you.  The heavy artillery and the bayonets will be brought into play next month.

Dean Stanley told me he thought being made a bishop destroyed a man’s moral courage.  I am inclined to think that the practice of the methods of political leaders destroys their intellect for all serious purposes.

No sooner was the first part safely sent off than the contingency he had feared came to pass; only, instead of the influenza meaning incapacity for a fortnight, an unlucky chill brought on bronchitis and severe lung trouble. (As he wrote on February 28 to Sir M. Foster]:  “If I could compound for a few hours’ neuralgia, I would not mind; but those long weeks of debility make me very shy of the influenza demon.  Here we are practically isolated...I once asked Gordon why he didn’t have the African fever.  ‘Well,’ he said, you see, fellows think they shall have it, and they do.  I didn’t think so, and didn’t get it.’  Exercise your thinking faculty to that extent.”) The second part of the article was never fully revised for press.]

Hodeslea, Eastbourne, February 8, 1895.

My dear Knowles,

Your telegram came before I had looked at to-day’s “Times” and the article on Balfour’s book, so I answered with hesitation.