LINN&US AS AN EVOLUTIONIST 89 



botanists, but rather, for the most part at 

 least, perfectly distinct and genuine species. 

 But what I have herein, I think, clearly shown 

 is not only that LinnaBus accepted and admitted 

 to his books, as species, forms he thought of 

 as developed from other species, not by any 

 crossing, but through mere environment 

 natural environment in some instances, arti- 

 ficial in others. And this bent of his mind 

 was so strong that he could scarcely admit 

 two members of a genus to be specifically dis- 

 tinct if found to occur always under the same 

 physical conditions. Again: while it is gener- 

 ous to allow to the great nature student the 

 eleven years between 1751 and 1762 in which 

 to have changed his views a little as to the 

 fixity of all species, the simple fact is that 

 nowhere were the views set forth in the 

 Philosophia Botanica of 1751 more squarely 

 contradicted than in the Species Plantarum 

 of 1753. There were two years intervening 

 between the dates on the respective titles; 

 but most likely he was engaged in writing the 

 works, at least in part, simultaneously. But 

 the great man was writing and publishing as 

 other men of genius had done before him, 

 under environment. 



In a letter written by LinnaBus as early as 



