﻿Origin 
  of 
  Peloric 
  Toadflax 
  461 
  

  

  

  

  the 
  whole 
  period 
  of 
  its 
  existence 
  it 
  remains 
  the 
  

   same, 
  at 
  the 
  end 
  as 
  sharply 
  defined 
  from 
  its 
  

   nearest 
  allies 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  beginning. 
  Should 
  

   some 
  of 
  the 
  units 
  die 
  out, 
  the 
  gaps 
  between 
  the 
  

   neighboring 
  ones 
  will 
  become 
  wider, 
  as 
  must 
  

   often 
  have 
  been 
  the 
  case. 
  Such 
  segregations, 
  

   however 
  important 
  and 
  useful 
  for 
  systematic 
  

   distinctions, 
  are 
  evidently 
  only 
  of 
  secondary 
  

   value, 
  when 
  considering 
  the 
  real 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  

   units 
  themselves. 
  

  

  We 
  may 
  now 
  take 
  up 
  the 
  other 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  

   problem. 
  The 
  question 
  arises 
  as 
  to 
  how 
  species 
  

   and 
  varieties 
  have 
  originated. 
  According 
  to 
  

   the 
  Darwinian 
  theory 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  produced 
  

   from 
  one 
  another, 
  the 
  more 
  highly 
  differenti- 
  

   ated 
  ones 
  from 
  the 
  simpler, 
  in 
  a 
  graduated 
  

   series 
  from 
  the 
  most 
  simple 
  forms 
  to 
  the 
  most 
  

   complicated 
  and 
  most 
  highly 
  organized 
  exist- 
  

   ing 
  types. 
  This 
  evolution 
  of 
  course 
  must 
  have 
  

   been 
  regular 
  and 
  continuous, 
  diverging 
  from 
  

   time 
  to 
  time 
  into 
  new 
  directions, 
  and 
  linking 
  

   all 
  organisms 
  together 
  into 
  one 
  common 
  pedi- 
  

   gree. 
  All 
  lacunae 
  in 
  our 
  present 
  system 
  are 
  ex- 
  

   plained 
  by 
  Darwin 
  as 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  extinction 
  of 
  

   the 
  forms, 
  which 
  previously 
  filled 
  them. 
  

  

  Since 
  Lamarck 
  first 
  propounded 
  the 
  concep- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  a 
  common 
  origin 
  for 
  all 
  living 
  beings, 
  

   much 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  to 
  clear 
  up 
  our 
  ideas 
  as 
  to 
  

   the 
  real 
  nature 
  of 
  this 
  process. 
  The 
  broader 
  

  

  