6 EVOLUTION AND GENETICS 



had no precedent and no foundation in recorded science. This 

 very lack was probably in part responsible for the accuracy of the 

 generahzations which pay such high tribute to their mental powers. 

 "The spirit of the Greeks was vigorous and hopeful. Not pausing 

 to test theories by research, they did not suffer the disappoint- 

 ments and delays which come from our own efforts to wrest truths 

 from Nature. Combined with great freedom and wide range of 

 ideas, independence of thought, and tendencies to rapid generaliza- 

 tion, they had genuine gifts of scientific deduction, which enabled 

 them to reach truths, as it were, by inspiration" (Osborn). 



Anaximander is conspicuous among these philosophers for his 

 idea of an actual transformation of living organisms from one 

 state into another, particularly from aquatic to terrestrial. He 

 even included man in this theory. Although vague in detail, his 

 work foreshadows our modern idea of the adaptation of or- 

 ganisms. 



Empedocles has been called the father of the evolution idea be- 

 cause he first expressed theories to account for the gradual develop- 

 ment of different kinds of organisms. These theories were founded 

 on some erroneous and fantastic ideas, but they embody the germ 

 of the evolution conception. 



Empedocles believed in the spontaneous origin of living creatures 

 from inorganic matter, but when we consider that this belief was 

 commonly accepted for many centuries thereafter, and was not 

 completely overthrown until late in the nineteenth century, 

 Empedocles' acceptance of it seems less remarkable. His belief 

 that independent parts of organisms arose spontaneously and later 

 became associated to form entire animals seems little short of 

 ridiculous. The thought of heads, bodies and legs wandering about 

 and finally combining at random is contradictory to the simplest 

 biological knowledge of today, but here again, when we remember 

 the centaurs and satyrs of Greek mythology, we realize that there 

 was reason for Empedocles' belief. He had been taught that such 

 anomalous creatures actually existed and it was no more than 

 natural for him to attempt to account for their occurrence along 

 with that of normal animals. He added to this fantastic portion 

 of his theories the belief that some of the random combinations 

 were unable to maintain themselves and so were replaced by more 

 perfect individuals which were able to live and to perpetuate their 

 kind. This view is very close to the idea of competition in nature 



