4OO Darwin, and after ^Darwin. 



with natural selection in producing the observed results. 

 And, as regards the particular case now before us, I 

 think I have shown, as far as space will permit, that 

 in the phenomena of decorative colouring (as distin- 

 guished from merely brilliant colouring), of melodious 

 song (as distinguished from merely tuneless cries), of 

 enormous arborescent antlers (as distinguished from 

 merely offensive weapons), and so forth I say that in 

 all these phenomena we have phenomena which can- 

 not possibly be explained by the theory of natural 

 selection ; and, further, that if they are to be explained 

 at all, this can only be done, so far as we can at 

 present see, by Mr. Darwin's supplementary theory of 

 sexual selection. 



I have now briefly answered all Mr. Wallace's 

 objections to this supplementary theory, and, as pre- 

 viously remarked, I feel pretty confident that, at all 

 events in the main, the answer is such as Mr. Darwin 

 would himself have supplied, had there been a third 

 edition of his work upon the subject. At all events, 

 be this as it may, we are happily in possession of un- 

 questionable evidence that he believed all Mr. Wallace's 

 objections to admit of fully satisfactory answers. For 

 his very last words to science read only a few hours 

 before his death at a meeting of the Zoological 

 Society were : 



I may perhaps be here permitted to say that, after having 

 carefully weighed, to the best of my ability, the various argu- 

 ments which have been advanced against the principle of sexual 

 selection, I remain firmly convinced of its truth *. 



1 Since the above exposition of the theory of sexual selection was 

 written, Mr. Poulton has published his work on the Colours of Animals. 

 He there reproduces some of the illustrations which occur in Mr. and 



