XII.] THEOLOGY AND EVOLUTION. 297 



refinement of the internal ear " a perfection only fully ex- 

 ercised in the enjoyment and appreciation of the most ex- 

 quisite musical performances. Here, surely, we have an in- 

 stance of an organ preformed, ready beforehand for such 



FIBRES OF COETI. 



action as could never by itself have been the cause of its 

 development the action having only been subsequent, not 

 anterior. The author is not aware what may be the mi- 

 nute structure of the internal ear in the highest apes, but if 

 (as from analogy is probable) it is much as in man, then a 

 fortiori we have an instance of anticipatory development 

 of a most marked and unmistakable kind. And this is not 

 all. There is no reason to suppose that any animal besides 

 man appreciates musical harmony. It is certain that no 

 other one produces it. 



Mr. Wallace also urges objections drawn from the origin 

 of some of man's mental faculties, such as " the capacity to 

 form ideal conceptions of space and time, of eternity and 

 infinity the capacity for intense artistic feelings of pleas- 

 ure, in form, color, and composition and for those abstract 

 notions of form and number which render geometry and. 



57 It may be objected, perhaps, that excessive delicacy of the ear 

 might have been produced by having to guard against the approach of 

 enemies, some savages being remarkable for their keenness of hearing at 

 great distances. But the perceptions of intensity and quality of sound 

 are very different. Some persons who have an extremely acute ear for 

 delicate sounds, and who are fond of music, have yet an incapacity for 

 detecting whether an instrument is slightly out of tune. 



