万物简史 第571期:达尔文的非凡见解(20)

 Finally, the Bishop¹ of Oxford², Samuel Wilberforce, rose to speak. 最后，牛津教区主教塞缪尔·威尔伯福斯站起来发言。

Wilberforce had been briefed (or so it is generally assumed) by the ardent³ anti-Darwinian Richard Owen, who had been a guest in his home the night before. 此前一天晚上，理查德·欧文曾到威尔伯福斯家做客。理查德·欧文是一位狂热的反达尔文主义者，他和威尔伯福斯通了个气（反正大家是这么认为的）。

As nearly always with events that end in uproar⁴, accounts vary widely on what exactly transpired⁵. 正像许多引起轰动的事件一样，人们对这件事的经过众说不一，莫衷一是。

In the most popular version, Wilberforce, when properly in flow, turned to Huxley with a dry smile 不过最为流行的版本是，衣冠楚楚、仪态威严的威尔伯福斯转向赫胥黎，

and demanded of him whether he claimed attachment⁶ to the apes by way of his grandmother or grandfather. 冷笑着问他是否敢于宣称他是通过他的祖母或祖父的任何一方由猿进化而来的。

The remark was doubtless intended as a quip, but it came across as an icy challenge. 威尔伯福斯本来想说一句俏皮话，可是却被曲解为咄咄逼人的挑衅。

According to his own account, Huxley turned to his neighbor and whispered, 根据赫胥黎自己说，他转向他的邻座悄声说：

"The Lord hath delivered him into my hands," then rose with a certain relish⁷. “我从上帝那里接生了他。”然后意味深长地立起身来。

Others, however, recalled a Huxley trembling with fury and indignation. 然而，其他人回忆说，赫胥黎气得浑身发抖。

At all events, Huxley declared that he would rather claim kinship to an ape 他称无论如何，他都宁愿与猿猴沾亲，

than to someone who used his eminence⁸ to propound⁹ uninformed twaddle in what was supposed to be a serious scientific forum¹⁰. 而不愿与一个在严肃的科学殿堂利用其名声发表娓娓动听但离题甚远的废话的人带故。

Such a riposte was a scandalous impertinence, as well as an insult to Wilberforce's office, and the proceedings¹¹ instantly collapsed¹² in tumult¹³. 这样一句尖锐的反驳中带有强烈火药味的回答，不仅极大地刺伤了威尔伯福斯，并且使全场一片哗然。

A Lady Brewster fainted. 一位名叫布瑞斯特的太太当场昏厥过去；

Robert FitzRoy, Darwin's companion on the Beagle twenty-five years before, wandered through the hall with a Bible held aloft, shouting, "The Book, the Book." 罗伯特·菲茨罗伊——25年前达尔文在“贝格尔”号船上的同伴在大厅里四处徘徊，手里高举着一本圣经，大声喊道：“圣经，圣经！”

(He was at the conference to present a paper on storms in his capacity as head of the newly created Meteorological Department.) （他是刚刚成立的气象局局长，准备提交一篇有关暴风雨的论文。）

Interestingly, each side afterward¹⁴ claimed to have routed the other. 有趣的是，双方事后都声称彻底击垮了对方。

 

1 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

2 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

3 ardent   

adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的

参考例句：

• He's an ardent supporter of the local football team.他是本地足球队的热情支持者。
• Ardent expectations were held by his parents for his college career.他父母对他的大学学习抱着殷切的期望。

4 uproar   

n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸

参考例句：

• She could hear the uproar in the room.她能听见房间里的吵闹声。
• His remarks threw the audience into an uproar.他的讲话使听众沸腾起来。

5 transpired   

（事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的过去式和过去分词 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生

参考例句：

• It transpired that the gang had had a contact inside the bank. 据报这伙歹徒在银行里有内应。
• It later transpired that he hadn't been telling the truth. 他当时没说真话，这在后来显露出来了。

6 attachment   

n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附

参考例句：

• She has a great attachment to her sister.她十分依恋她的姐姐。
• She's on attachment to the Ministry of Defense.她现在隶属于国防部。

7 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

8 eminence   

n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家

参考例句：

• He is a statesman of great eminence.他是个声名显赫的政治家。
• Many of the pilots were to achieve eminence in the aeronautical world.这些飞行员中很多人将会在航空界声名显赫。

9 propound   

v.提出

参考例句：

• Zoologist Eugene Morton has propounded a general theory of the vocal sounds that animals make.动物学家尤金·莫顿提出了一个有关动物发声的概括性理论。
• we propound the proposal for building up the financial safety area.我们提出了创建金融安全区的构想。

10 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

11 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

12 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

13 tumult   

n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹

参考例句：

• The tumult in the streets awakened everyone in the house.街上的喧哗吵醒了屋子里的每一个人。
• His voice disappeared under growing tumult.他的声音消失在越来越响的喧哗声中。

14 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。