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A few words on the origin of species, as very generally accepted in 

 the scientific world, may not be without interest. I can only give a 

 meagre outline of the general principles : — 



t ,y "A few great naturalists, previous to the time of Darwin, struck by 

 the very slight differences between many species of animals, and the 

 numerous links existing between the different forms, and also observing 

 that a great many species do vary considerably in their form, color and 

 habits, conceived the idea that they all might be produced one from the 

 other. The most distinguished of these writers was the great French 

 naturalist Lamarck, who published an elaborate work, " Philosophie 

 Zoologique," in which he endeavored to prove that all animals what- 

 ever are descended from other species of animals. He attributed the 

 change of species chiefly to the effect of changes in the condition of life, 

 such a3 climate, food, etc., and especially to the desires and efforts of the 

 animals themselves to impiove their condition, leading to a modification 

 of form or size in certain parts, owing to the well-known physiological 

 law that all organs are strengthened by constant use, while they are 

 weakened or completely lost by disuse. The arguments of Lamarck 

 did not, however, satisfy naturalists, although a few adopted the view 

 that closely allied sp.?cies had descended from each other. The general 

 belief of the educated public was that each species was a " special 

 creation" quite independent of all others, while the great body of 

 naturalists equally held that the change from une species to another, by 

 every known law or cause, was impossible, and that the " oi*igin of 

 species" was an unsolved and probably an insoluble problem. 



The only other important work dealing with the question was the 

 celebrated " Yestiges of Creation," written by the late R. Chambers, of 

 the great publishing firm of W. & R. Chambers, of Edinburgh. In this 

 work the action of general laws was traced throughout the universe as 

 a system of growth and development, and it was argued that the various 

 species of plants and animals had been produced in orderly succession 

 from each other by the action of unknown laws of development aided 

 by the action of external conditions. But no great change of opinion 

 was effected among naturalists until after the publication of the 

 ''Origin of Species" in 1858 by Charles Darwin. There was then 

 no question of the origin of families, orders and classes, because the 



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