132 LIFE AND HABIT. 



of the creature's performance with which it is least 

 familiar, as having repeated it least often — that is to 

 say, in our own case, with the commencement of our 

 human life — at birth, or thereabouts ? 



It is certainly noteworthy that the embryo is never 

 at a loss, unless something happens to it which has not 

 usually happened to its forefathers, and which in the 

 nature of things it cannot remember. 



When events are happening to it which have 

 ordinarily happened to its forefathers, and which it 

 would therefore remember, if it was possessed of the 

 kind of memory which we are here attributing to it, 

 it acts precisely as it ivould act if it were possessed of 

 such memory. 



When, on the other hand, events are happening to it 

 which, if it has the kind of memory we are attributing 

 to it, would baffle that memory, or which have rarely 

 or never been included in the category of its recollec- 

 tions, it acts precisely as a creature acts when its recollec- 

 tion is disturbed, or when it is required to do something 

 which it has never done before. 



We cannot remember having been in the embryonic 

 stage, but we do not on that account deny that we 

 ever were in such a stage at all. On a little reflection 

 it will appear no more reasonable to maintain that, 

 when we were in the embryonic stage, we did not re- 

 member our past existences, than to say that we never 

 were embryos at all. We cannot remember what we 

 did or did not recollect in that state ; we cannot now 

 remember having grown the eyes which we un- 

 doubtedly did grow, much less can we remember 



