INTRODUCTORY. 



analogy that our intellectual nature should require the 

 exercise of merely animal faculties as a condition pre- 

 cedent to manifestations of intellect. We so consider 

 because, in the first place, we find that the world of 

 plants, in order that they should live, require to possess, 

 as they do possess, the physical and chemical powers of 

 inorganic nature ; secondly, because we find that 

 animals need and possess, not only the physical and 

 chemical powers of inorganic nature, but also the vital 

 activities of plants, as well as their own specially animal 

 powers. We might then expect to find, as we do find, 

 that we men possess at one and the same time the 

 powers of the inorganic, vegetal, and animal worlds, 

 as well as the special faculties of human nature. 



Having thus made profession of the biological and 

 psychological faith that is in us, we may proceed to 

 address ourselves to our task — an examination of 

 recent hypotheses, and especially a careful consideration 

 of Mr. Romanes's arguments. He relies mainly on the 

 phenomena said to be presented by infants and savages 

 to justify his assertion that such a gradual series of 

 transitions in psychical power exists between man and 

 brute, as suffices to make plain the fact that the differ- 

 ence between them is not one of " kind " — not a funda- 

 mental, essential difference — but merely one of "degree." 



He starts by urging that there are four a priori 

 reasons in favour of his contention. Putting aside for 

 the moment the question as regards man, he tells us* 

 that "the process of organic and of mental evolution 

 has been continuous throughout the whole region of life." 



* p. 4- 



