44 ARE THE EFFECTS OF USE INHERITED ? 



great fact of atavism. But the great law of the 

 inheritance of that which is a development of 

 the transmissible type does not necessarily imply 

 the inheritance of modifications acquired by the 

 individual. Because English children may inherit 

 blue eyes and flaxen hair from their Anglo- 

 Saxon ancestors, it by no means follows that 

 an Englishman must inherit his father's sunburnt 

 complexion or smooth-shaven face. Of course 

 atavism ultimately adopts many instances of 

 revolt against its sway. But to assume that these 

 changes of type follow the personal change rather 

 than cause it,,, is to assume the whole question at 

 issue. That like begets like is true as a broad 

 principle, but it has many exceptions, and the 

 non-heredity of acquired characters may be one 

 of them. 



