REVIEWS 183 



Evolution and the War. By P. Chalmers Mitchell, M.A., D.Sc, LL.D., 

 F.R.S., F.L.S., F.Z.S. [Pp. xxv + 114] (London: John Murray, 1915. 

 Price 2s. 6d. net.) 

 Mr. Murray has recently published quite a number of books on the matter of 

 the war. Men of science will be especially interested in Dr. Chalmers Mitchell's 

 work, and it can be warmly recommended for their perusal. His style is an 

 admirable one ; always intelligible, simple and yet not bald ; well punctuated and 

 cleanly paragraphed ; and illuminated by the frequent use of the correct phrase 

 and the decisive metaphor. What will charm every one from the beginning is the 

 fact that the author has not scrupled to introduce some short biographical details, 

 such as his experiences in Germany and in other countries, his reading, and his 

 point of view. It is a pleasure to be able to record that in the opinion of the 

 writer of this short review, Dr. Chalmers Mitchell is a genuine man of science — 

 that is, one who not only uses science as an instrument, but also lives within the 

 clear atmosphere of the scientific spirit and discipline. In this book we find none 

 of the hypotheses converted into dogmas and fancies converted into facts which 

 disfigure the works, not only of the pseudo-philosophers, but even of those who 

 claim the rank of men of science. That is to say, the author is always unwilling to 

 advance his feet beyond the stepping-stones of the most probable truths, and 

 shows no desire to leap into the fog under the illusion that he can fly. 



But the book is a short one, and deals only with evolution and the present war, 

 without making any effort to deal completely with evolution and war in general — 

 a much larger and very important subject which has not yet received full analysis, 

 even by a Darwin and a Wallace, in fact, Dr. Chalmers Mitchell's book is 

 chiefly concerned with the refutation of the German proposition that their bur- 

 glarious attacks on surrounding populations are sanctioned by the scientific 

 theory of the struggle for existence. His first chapters are devoted to showing 

 (what is already evident) that Darwin's phrase, "struggle for existence," is merely 

 a metaphorical one— and he cites several interesting facts for the purpose of 

 rendering this position quite clear. His third chapter deals with Nationality and 

 Race, and gives us several interesting summaries of recent work on the study of 

 the Cephalic Index, and the distribution of stature and of coloration in the people 

 of Europe. According to him Europe is peopled by three principal races ; the 

 Nordic or tall, fair, long-headed race, chiefly of Scandinavia, the shores of the 

 Baltic, Holland, and Britain ; the short, dark, long-headed race of the Mediter- 

 ranean litoral ; and the round-headed, " stocky " people of the centre of Europe 

 and Russia. These, of course, are only averages ; but, according to the author, 

 the Germans are principally of the same race as the Austrians and Russians. 

 But the matter cannot be sufficiently argued in a short work of this nature. The 

 fourth and fifth chapters deal with the " Production of Nationality," and give 

 many wise statements on the matter, showing that nationality is not constructed 

 only from inherited traits. 



The subject of evolution has become not a little wearisome at the present day 

 owing to the immense diffuseness and often the rather misty outlook of writers. 

 The inheritance of acquired characters and the endless talk about Lamarckism, 

 Darwinism, Neo-Lamarckism and Neo-Darwinism have become, to write plainly, 

 not a little of a bore. But, fortunately, Dr. Chalmers Mitchell does not cover us 

 with much of this mud. Is he quite sound when he says that "The German 

 claim that ' the natural law to which all the laws of nature can be reduced is the 

 law of struggle' fails, first because, even if it were a scientific law, it does not 

 follow that a law derived from a consideration of animals and plants applies to 



