THE PRINCIPLES OF SYSTEMATICS 247 



important characteristics. There has been a real weighing 

 of all the possible reasons of division, and that has led to a 

 result which seems to be to some extent final. 



But, nevertheless, we do not understand the raison 

 d'etre of the system of organisms ; we are not at all able 

 to say that there must be these classes or orders or 

 families and no others, and that they must be such as 

 they are. 



Shall we ever be able to understand that ? Or will 

 organic systematics always remain empirical classification ? 

 We cannot answer this question. If we could, indeed, we 

 should have what we desire ! As simple relations of space 

 are certainly not the central point of any problematic 

 rational organic systematics even of the future, the question 

 arises, whether there could be found any principle of 

 another type in the realm of synthetic a priori judgments 

 which could allow an inherent sort of evolution of latent 

 diversities, as do all judgments about spatial symmetry. At 

 the end of the second course of these lectures, which is to be 

 delivered next summer, we shall be able to say a few more 

 words about this important point. 



The concept of what is called " a type," due almost 

 wholly to Cuvier and Goethe, is the most important of 

 all that classification has given to us. Hardly second in 

 importance is the discovery of the " correlation of parts," as 

 a sort of connection which has the character of necessity 

 without being immediately based upon causality. Kadi 

 seems to be the only modern author who has laid some 

 stress on this topic. The harmony which we have dis- 

 covered in development is also part of this correlation. 

 When, later on, we come to discuss analytically our well 



