SI 



Barbour, I si of RoosweU vs. Thayer, 



I Vlllv 



l.lun. 



stances hv an animal's crouching or Ij ing down, Inn the most 

 importanl of all seems to be the fact thai it tlo<>s not seem ;is 

 effective for an animal seen From end view as it is in one seen From 

 the side, and yet, of course, the animal is in as great danger From 

 enemies which may come head on, or from behind, as from those 

 approaching From the side. Mr. Thayer has perhaps never thought 

 of this: Mr. Roosevelt probablv lias. 



Mr. Allen is evidently blessed with that type of mind which 

 w ants to see things definitely settled one w aj or another once and 

 Tor all. From his writings we presume that he believes that a de- 

 finite theory is, 1\\ the Fact oi its being definite, worth more than 

 a vague theory. The truism '1 don't know' eertainb does not 

 appeal to Mr. Thayer, and apparently it does not to Mr. Allen. 

 Both want to swallow the theory of natural selection reduced to its 

 lowest terms, hook, bait, and sinker, and bring US to believe that 

 (his is an universal law, all powerful in its results or effects. No 

 scientific man, or at any rate very, very Few, will follow theirridicu- 

 louslv cocksure attitude in regard to this belief. Mr. Thayer's 

 declaration for ' natural selection, pure, simple, and omnipotent ' is a 

 dogmatic statement more jarring to scientists in our present incom- 

 plete state of knowledge than Mr. Roosevelt's assertions are irri- 

 tating to Mr. Thayer. Sexual selection is an entirely different 

 problem. It has been observed in actual operation, and if Mr. 

 Thav er eares to studv the habits oi many birds and animals, he ean 

 see it working for himself, if he is open minded. We believe that 

 coloration is found to be a negligible Factor in the life economy oi 

 an immense number of species, oi which the crow i^ an excellent 



example. Keen wits, in this ease, make other protection un- 

 necessary. If we mistake not. Darwin has said that sea birds 



need no protection, hence their conspicuous coloration; and when 



we are advised to distribute a number oi skins oi "'forest birds and 

 sea birds impartially in the tree tops in some thick wood and see 

 whether there actually is any difference in their conspicuousness 

 Or not." we onb sa> that birds of the field or marsh, if put 

 in the forest in some such way as this, would be equally well pro- 

 tected with t Ik- forest birds so far as their coloration goes, and that 

 the conspicuous color oi the sea bird is well matched by species oi 

 the family Cotingidte which live in the green vvtiods of South 

 America. 



