575. 305 



599.9 



Human Evolution. 



IV. — Mr. Archdall Reid States His Position. 



AT the outset I desire to thank Mr. Buckman for the obviously 

 friendly tone of his article in your March number. As to the 

 first part of his indictment I must plead guilty : the title of my book 

 does not cover its whole contents. But the first part which deals with 

 " Organic Evolution " was originally intended to be merely pre- 

 liminary to the second part, which deals especially with man's present 

 evolution. Without it the book would have been unintelligible to the 

 general reader, and full of mere dogma to the biologist. For example, 

 the theories of Retrogression and Variability, which were essential to 

 my argument, and which appear to have met very general acceptance, 

 have not to my knowledge been propounded elsewhere. 



But as to the second count of Mr. Buckman's indictment I must 

 demur. I think I may fairly claim that my book does indicate in all 

 essentials the whole of man's present evolution. Mr. Buckman is, 

 however, in excellent company. For example, Mr. Alfred R. Wallace 

 wrote in Nature (April i6th, 1896), " The latter portion of the book, 

 which gives the title to the work, though original, is somewhat dis- 

 appointing, as it is entirely limited to evolution against disease." 

 Professor Ray Lankester wrote in the Fortnightly Review (September, 

 i8g6), " I am by no means satisfied that the present and future 

 evolution of man is being determined exclusively or even mainly in the 

 simple way, and by the obvious factors which he has placed before 

 us." Other critics have expressed themselves in similar terms, the 

 implication always being that man's present evolution is exceedingly 

 complex, and that the evolution against disease and narcotics forms 

 but a small part of it. I think however that the contrary can be 

 proved. 



The whole matter, in my opinion, turns on the question so long 

 and so hotly debated, as to whether acquired traits are, or are not, 

 transmissible. If they are not transmissible, and evolution, therefore, 

 results solely from the selection of favourable congenital variations, 

 then the problem is simple, for, by taking note of the main lines of 

 elimination, we can easily ascertain all the directions of evolution. 

 Now men, at any rate civilised men, perish almost solely of disease 

 or of the effects of various narcotics such as alcohol and opium. 

 Man's present evolution is therefore almost solely against disease and 



