THE CAUSE OF MIMETIC UE8EMBLANCE ETC. 561 



animals are learning what to eat with impunity and what to 

 reject. The paper was traaslated by Frof. R. Meldo'a and pub- 

 lished in this country ahiiOst immediately alter its appearance 

 (Proc. Ent. Soc. Loud. 1879, p. xx). 



The facts which the Miillerian theory sought to explain con- 

 cerned the fauna of tropical America j the naturalist who ex- 

 plained them was a resident iu the same part of the world. A 

 few years later, however, E. Moore (Proc. Zool. Soc. 1883, p. 201) 

 t^howed that there is the same resemblance between the dominant 

 butterdiea of the tropical East ; and last year I pointed out that 

 tlie same facts hold iu Africa (Keport of the British Association 

 at Toronto, 1897, pp. G88-(j9i). See also Eoland Trimen's 

 Presidential Addiess to the Eutouiological Society, Jan. 19th, 

 1898 (Proceedings, 1897, p. Ixvij. In the ' Proceedings ' of 

 the Eutomological Society (1897, p. xsix), as well as in the 

 former paper (p. 691), I argued tliat such resemblance is not true 

 Mimicry at all, but rather an example of Common AV^arning 

 Colour, aud with the assistauce of Mr. Arthur Sidgwick I sug- 

 gested the term St/naposematic as descriptive of it ; the term 

 Aposemalic having been previously suggested for ordinary 

 Warniug Colours (Poultou, Colours of Auiiuals, luternat. Sci. 

 Ser., London, 1890, p. 3;i7). 



I have now given a brief account of the leading phases in 

 the history of Mimicry. Even before the appearance of Eritz 

 Miiller's paper a great effect had been produced. This immediate 

 stimulus to the investigation of new examples aud fresh aspects 

 of Mimicry which followed Bates's memoir, must be ascribed to 

 the fact that then for the first time was offered a good working 

 hypothesis — a hypothesis wliich seemed to afford au adequate ex- 

 plauation of one class of known facts, which challenged its critics 

 to find insuperable difficulties among facts as yet unknown. In 

 the thirty-six years which have elapsed since the appearance of 

 this great memoir an immeiise number of facts bearing upon the 

 subject have been discovered, and many naturalists consider that 

 Bates's theory of Mimicry as due to natural selection (sup- 

 plemented and completed by the kindred theory which we owe 

 to Erilz Miiller) has stood the test with complete success and is 

 in a far stronger position than in 1862. This opinion is more 

 generally held among the students of other groups of the animal 

 kingdom than among those who are specially devoted to entomo- 

 logy, but a considerable proportion of ilie latter also hold it firmly. 



