GEOLOGICAL SECTION. 23 
nN THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12th, Mr. Hichens gave a 
lecture on “ Darwinism.” The interest of the 
subject and the popularity of the lecturer combined 
to produce a crowded room. The lecture was 
most interesting, the subject being handled in 
a very masterly manner. The following isa fairly accurate account 
of what was said. 
From time immemorial up to the end of last century, it was 
the opinion of all that every species of animal and plant owed its 
present form and its original existence to a distinct act of special 
creation. The Creator, it was held, had formed each kind after a 
particular pattern, had endowed it with special organs, and had 
bestowed upon it the power of reproducing its like in its own image 
for all generations. This is the doctrine of the “ fixity of species.” 
On the other hand it is now believed that all animals and plants 
were not originally created as we find them, but that, instead, there 
were brought into existence a few simple forms endowed with the 
power of developing into higher and more complex ones, and that 
from these few forms all living things have descended. This is the 
doctrine of “ descent with modification ” or “‘ evolution,” and it is 
often popularly, though wrongly, known as “ Darwinism,”—the two 
things, “doctrine of descent” and “ Darwinism” being distinct. 
The doctrine of descent is the theory that all living organisms are 
related to one another by blood ties—that they are all descended 
from common ancestors—changes in their structure, etc. having 
appeared as generation succeeded generation, whereas “ Darwinism” 
is merely an explanation of the way in which these changes in struc- 
ture, and ultimately of one species into another, were brought about. 
Mr. Hichens having given a brief sketch of the theory of 
Natural Selection, pointed out that there are many lines of evidence 
in favour of both Organic Evolution and Darwinism, for example— 
the possibility of a classification of animals and plants,—the 
similarity in structure of members of the same class no matter what 
their habits may be,—the existence of rudimentary organs,—the 
existence of fossil forms intermediate between distinct living ones,— 
certain facts in the Geographical distribution of animals, Embry- 
ology, etc. Mr. Hichens, by reason of the shortness of time, dealt 
with only one of these arguments—that from Palaeontology. 
A. The testimony of the rocks shews that from the beginning 
of Geological time up to the present there has been a gradual 
advance from low forms of life up to higher, and that the higher the 
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