156 Darwin and his Teachings. [ April, 
Before the publication of his views, the large majority of natu- 
ralists believed that “species” were distinct creations, chiefly on 
the ground that, when crossed, they are unable to produce fertile 
offspring ; but that varieties which are fertile when crossed, are the 
modified descendants of species by generation. A considerable 
minority, who saw the difficulty of defining the limits of species 
and varieties, felt convinced that both are modified descendants of 
preceding species—in fact, that there has been a gradual progres- 
sion from lower to higher forms of life, and that the terms “ variety,” 
“species,” “genus,” “ family,” &c., however convenient for classi- 
ficatory purposes, are arbitrary designations invented by Man, and 
have no actual existence in Nature. 
But then the question arose—how were these modifications 
brought about? It is true that many species were found to be very 
closely allied in their external characters through imtermediate 
living varieties, or through fossil representatives ; but the existence 
of those did not suffice to account for the change from one species 
to another, for it was a well-established fact that whilst there seemed 
to be hardly any limit to the production of fertile varieties, as soon 
as it was attempted to cross two species, either they refused to 
breed or they produced an infertile offspring. Many and ingenious 
were the theories of progression or transmutation propounded by 
various authors, either openly or anonymously, as in the case of the 
‘ Vestiges of Creation ;’ but the doctrine which presented the most 
philosophical aspect was that of Lamarck, the celebrated French 
naturalist, who, about fifty or sixty years since, enunciated the 
theory that the different types of animals became modified during 
the ordinary succession of generations through the influence of 
their desires and wants, which compelled them to exercise certain 
organs and members in such a manner as to induce an extension, 
growth, or development of those organs in preponderance over 
others.* Lamarck also believed in an unknown law of progressive 
development. At first, his theory took naturalists by surprise, but 
it soon appeared to assume a somewhat Indicrous character, for it 
seemed absurd to suppose that by any such process of modification 
the neck of a deer-like animal should have been stretched to that 
of a giraffe, or the snout of a tapir into the trunk of an elephant; 
just as we find persons in the present day who laugh at Darwin’s 
theory, as they cannot conceive it possible that some lovely com- 
panion, or intellectual savant, to whom they are showing a stuffed 
gorilla, should be the descendant, however remote, of so hideous an 
animal as stands before them. It must be remembered, however 
that smce Lamarck published his views, many fossil types interme- 
* The best reference on this subject will be found in Darwin’s ‘ Historical 
Sketch of the Recent Progress of Opinion on the Origin of Species,’ p. 13, 
3rd. edit. 
