90 



ACALEPIIS IN GENERAL. 



Part I. 



ancients are still in existence, exliijjiting to this day the characters they exhil:)ited 

 of old. Tlie geological record, even Avith all its imjierfections exagferated to 

 distortion, tells now, what it has told from the beginning, that the supposed 

 intermediate forms Ijctween the species of different geological periods are imaginary 

 beings, called up merely in support of a fanciful theory. The origin of all the 

 diversity among living beings remains a mystery, as totally unexplained as if the 

 book of Darwin had never Iteen written ; for no theory, unsupported by flxct, 

 however plausible it may appear, can be admitted in science.^ 



which may be observed aiuung them prove the 

 variability of species ? Tlie foct seems to me to be, 

 that, while species arc based upon definite relations 

 among individuals, which difler in various ways 

 among themselves, each individual, as a distinct 

 being, has a definite course to run from the time 

 of its first formation to the end of its existence, 

 during which it never loses its identity nor changes 

 its individuality, nor its relations to other individuals 

 belonging to the same species, but preserves all the 

 categories of relationship which constitute specific 

 or generic or family affinity, or any other kind or 

 degree of aliinity. To prove that species vary, it 

 should he proved that individuals, born from common 

 ancestors, c/ianc/e the different categories of relation- 

 ship ivliicli they bore primitively to one another ; 

 while all that has thus far been shown is, that 

 there exists a considerable difierenee among indi- 

 viduals of one and the same species. This may be 

 new to those who have looked upon every indi- 

 vidual picked up at random, as affording the means 

 of describing satisfactorily any species ; but no natu- 

 ralist who has studied carefully any of the species 

 now^ licst known, can have failed to perceive that 

 it requii'es extensive series of specimens accurately 

 to describe a species, and that the more complete 

 such series are, the more precise appear the limits 

 which separate species. Surely the aim of science 

 cannot be to furnish amateur zoologists or collectors 

 a recipe for a reaily identification of any chance 

 specimen that may fall into their hands. And the 

 difficulties with wliicli we may meet in attempting 

 to characterize species do not afford the first indi- 

 cation that species do not exist at all, as lung as 

 most of them can be distinguished, as such, almost 



at first sight. I foresee that some convert to the 

 transmutation creed will at once object, that the 

 facility with whicli siiecies may be distinguished is 

 no evidence that tliey were not derived from other 

 species. It may be so. But, as long as no fitct is 

 adduced to slmw that any one well-known species 

 among the many tli<iusands that are buried in the 

 whole series of fossiliferous rocks is actually the 

 parent of any one of the species now living, such 

 arguments am have no weight ; and thus far the 

 supporters of the transmutation theory have tailed 

 to produce any such facts. Instead of facts, we 

 are treated with marvellous bear, cuckoo, and other 

 stories. Credat Juihvus Apella ! 



' It seems generally admitted, that the work of 

 Darwin is |iarticularly remarkable for the fairness 

 with which he presents the facts adverse to his views. 

 It may be so ; but I confess that it has made a 

 very different impression upon me. I have been 

 more forcibly struck with his inabilitj' to perceive 

 when the facts ai'c fatal to his argument, than with 

 any thing else in the whole woik. His cliapter on 

 the Geological Record, in jiarticular, appears to me 

 to lie, from beginning to end, a series of illogical de- 

 ductions and misrepresentations of the modern results 

 of Geology and Pakeontology. I do not intend to 

 argue here, one by one, the questions he has dis- 

 cussed. Such arguments end ti.io often in special 

 pleading ; and any one familiar with the subject may 

 readily perceive where the truth lies, by confronting 

 his assertions with the geological record itself. But, 

 since the (piestion at issue is chiefiy to lie settled 

 by jiahvontologieal evidence, and I have devoted the 

 greater part of my life to the special study of the 

 fossils, I wish to record my protest against his mode 



