1 ORIGIN OF SPECIES.' 8/ 



The success of the * Origin ' may, I think, be 

 attributed in large part to my having long before 

 written two condensed sketches, and to my having 

 finally abstracted a much larger manuscript, which was 

 itself an abstract. By this means I was enabled to 

 select the more striking facts and conclusions. I had, 

 also, during many years followed a golden rule, 

 namely, that whenever a published fact, a new obser- 

 vation or thought came across me, which was opposed 

 to my general results, to make a memorandum of it 

 without fail and at once ; for I had found by ex- ; 

 perience that such facts and thoughts were far more ! 

 apt to escape from the memory than favourable ones. 

 Owing to this habit, very few objections were raised / 

 against my views which I had not at least noticed and 

 attempted to answer. 



It has sometimes been said that the success of the 

 * Origin ' proved " that the subject was in the air," or 

 " that men's minds were prepared for it." Ldp not 

 think that this is strictly true, for I occasionally 

 sounded not a few naturalists, and never happened to 

 come across a single one who seemed to doubt about 

 the permanence of species. Even Lyell and Hooker, 

 though they would listen with interest to me, never 

 seemed to agree. I tried once or twice to explain to 

 able men what I meant by Natural Selection, but 

 signally failed. What I believe was strictly true is 

 that innumerable well-observed facts were stored in the ! 

 minds of naturalists ready to take their proper places 

 as soon as any theory which would receive them was 

 sufficiently explained. Another element in the success 



