THE ORIGIN OF LIFE: A CHEMIST'S FANTASY 321 



But it will be said—" Granted even that simple substances 

 can be formed in such ways, surely it is impossible to account 

 for the production of protoplasm." No doubt, this is difficult, 

 ^Decially as the thing we are asked to account for cannot be 

 defined. 1 am tompted here again to quote Epictetus : 



"Whence then shall we make a beginning? If you will 

 consider this with me, I shall say first that you must attend 

 to the sense of words." 



" So I do not now understand them ?" 



" You do not." 



" How then do I use them ?" 



"As the unlettered use written words or as cattle use 

 appearances ; for the use is one thing and understanding 

 another. But if you think you understand, then take my 

 word you will and let us try ourselves whether we under- 

 stand it." 



The word protoplasm means so little to most people, so 

 much to a few. It is the convenient cloak of an appalling 

 amount of ignorance — perhaps the scientific equivalent of the 

 11 Don't fidget, child," addressed to the too inquiring youngster or 

 the biological paraphrase of the older chemist's xataly tic action. 



Is protoplasm one or many things ? A medium or a sub- 

 stance. In saying that "Living substance or protoplasm takes 

 the form of a colloidal solution. In this solution the colloids 

 are associated with crystalloids which are either free in the 

 solution or attached to the molecules of the colloids," Prof. 

 Schafer scarcely helps us to a definition. Nor are his later 

 suggestions much more helpful. Speaking of the differential 

 septum by which living substance is usually surrounded, he 

 says: "This film serves the purpose of an osmotic membrane, 

 permitting of exchanges by diffusion between the colloid solu- 

 tion constituting the protoplasm and the circumambient medium 

 in which it lives. Other similar films or membranes occur in 

 the interior of protoplasm." 



One thing only is certain — that protoplasm cannot be a 

 solution or anything approaching to a solution in character: 

 diverse structure it must have, structure of infinite delicacy and 

 complexity. 



Judging from his reference to the simplicity of nuclear 

 material, it would seem that Prof. Schafer is prepared to 

 regard protoplasm as by no means very complex. But it is 

 inconceivable that the germ plasm, carrying within itself as 



