CHAPTER XIII 



THE DOCTRINE OF DESCENT BASED ON MORPHOLOGICAL 

 GROUNDS. GEGENBAUR AND HIS SCHOOL 



Leading position of Germany in biological research 



IN HIS Geschichte der btologischen Theorten Radl declares that Darwinism was 

 born in England, but found a home in Germany. The statement is cer- 

 tainly justified in so far as, during the decades immediately succeeding 

 the first appearance of the descent theory, Germany came to take a leadmg 

 position in the sphere of biological research; here England and America 

 rapidly came under German influence, as also did Italy, while France which 

 kept itself isolated, nevertheless could not entirely avoid being influenced. 

 There were undoubtedly many reasons for this: on the one hand, the great 

 economic and technical development that resulted from the founding of the 

 German Empire, which in many ways proved beneficial to research, and, 

 on the other hand, the splendid manner in which the work at the German 

 universities was organized, which became a pattern for other countries, es- 

 pecially as a result of the careful and methodical guidance given by the 

 teachers to their pupils' theoretical studies, practical work, and scientific 

 production. And especially as far as biology in Germany is concerned, this 

 organization had reached a very high standard - chiefly in the sphere of 

 comparative anatomy - even before the appearance of Dar^vln. Originally, 

 of course, comparative anatomy had been based on idealistic morphology, 

 on the assumption that ideas formed the existing basis for the various forms 

 of life but we have already seen how this form of romantic natural philos- 

 ophy was gradually supplanted by a more realistic manner of viewing lite. 

 What Dai-winism gave to this realistic morphology was, as we know, a 

 hitherto lacking connexion in existence; common descent took the place ot 

 the common ideal types. The fact that it was the representatives of compara- 

 tive morphology in Germany who hailed the new doctrine with such deep 

 enthusiasm is explained by the insistent demand that they had of old f e t 

 for a uniform conception of nature, a heritage from the, at one time all- 

 prevailing, romantic philosophy. But it is just this never entirely eradicated 

 romantic element that gives to German Darwinism, with its application of 

 the descent theory to comparative anatomy, a character of its own. Again, 

 the general cultural situation in Germany at the time of the launching ot the 

 new doctrine must of course have had a considerable influence on the form 



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