Prof. Carl Vogt on some Darwinistic Heresies. bl 



V. — On some Darioimstic Heresies. 

 By Prof. Gael Vogt *. 



M. Vogt would not like it to" be thought that he does not 

 fully accept the theories of descent, of transformism, and of 

 natural selection — in fact, all the fundamental points upon 

 which Darwinism is based ; he only desires to combat cer- 

 tain exaggerations, ill-founded applications, and hazardous 

 conclusions which have been derived from it, and of which it 

 has been attempted to make irrefutable dogmas. To com- 

 mence with the final thesis to the demonstration of which 

 the speaker desired to apply himself, he says : — " Our present 

 zoological classification cannot be, and is not, what is every- 

 where said, the expression of actual relationship existing 

 between the difterent members of a class, order, family, or 

 even genus — a relationsliip the demonstration of which would 

 be based upon phylogenetic and ontogenetic development, — 

 but, at any rate in many cases, the result of a combination of 

 similar characters which we find in creatures originating from 

 ditferent stocks." 



Let us establish, in the first place, some elementary 

 principles. 



We generalize far too much when we raise to the rank of a 

 general law conclusions drawn from observations made upon 

 special cases. 



Consciously or unconsciously we start from the idea that 

 Nature sets before her a purpose to be attained in accordance 

 with a plan formed in advance, as we do in the case of our 

 own actions, and that she arrives at this end by following the 

 most direct course. 



Now it is precisely the contrary that is true. Every natural 

 phenomenon is complex, and can be only the result of a multi- 

 tude of varied forces, often even opposed to each other. In 

 most cases, therefore. Nature arrives at a certain result or 

 phenomenon only by the most indirect ways. If this were 

 not the case we should no longer have to make experiments ; 

 for the art of experimentation consists in the elimination of 

 sources of error, that is to say of opposing influences, which 

 prevent our arriving at a simple result produced by an isolated 

 and circumscribed cause. 



To take an example : — Among the Mammalia there is not 

 apparently a more uniform group than the horses or Solipedes. 

 It is only upon diflferences of the coat, having no influence 



* Translated from the Abstract in the ' Bibliotheque Universelle : 

 Archives des Sciences physiques et naturelles/ October 15, 188G, tome 

 xvi. pp. 330-338. 



