FOREWORD 3 



function, together with its past personal and 

 ancestral history. 



What has been said indicates sufficiently what 

 is meant by the " natural origin of Life," as 

 opposed to its origin by some supernatural or 

 miraculous agency. 



The question then clearly arises whether such 

 a life-giving process (which I term Archebiosis) 

 occurred only once, or at all events only in the 

 very early days of the Earth's history, or whether 

 it is one that has ever been taking place since the 

 period when it first began. 



The majority of scientific men seem to favour 

 the former point of view. They appear to think 

 that conditions may have existed in those com- 

 paratively early days of the Earth's history more 

 favourable to this life-evolving process than those 

 which have since obtained ; although, of course, their 

 notions as to the actual nature of these primeval 

 conditions must be almost as dim and theoretical 

 as any conceptions to which they may incline 

 concerning the actual conditions needful for the 

 occurrence of Archebiosis. 



Starting points, however, having once been given 

 by means of these early evolutionary processes, all 

 the forms of life that have ever appeared on our 



