66 THE PALEONTOLOGIC RECORD 



genetic stages in common are we justified in inferring that their 

 racial ancestor may have had such characters in the adult state. But 

 it should never be lost sight of that this inference is only a provi- 

 sional hypothesis which may or may not be verified when the paleonto- 

 logic record is more complete. It is no surprise that the efforts of 

 some earnest paleontologists have been discredited in some quarters, 

 especially among zoologists. Some of them have invoked recapitula- 

 tion as a sort of magic spell by which they can conjure up ancestral 

 forms from almost any embryonic series, forgetting the limitations of 

 this doctrine. As far as the attitude of vertebrate paleontologists is 

 concerned, their view has been aptly summarized by Professor Charles 

 Deperet in his book " Les Transformations du Monde Animal " and I 

 can do no better than close with a quotation from him : 



If we appeal to paleontology, it must be recognized that this hypothesis 

 [recapitulation] is by no means verified. There do exist here and there certain 

 fossil genera, which all their lives have retained certain youthful characteristics 

 apparent in their living descendants ; but when it comes to reconstructing whole 

 series chronologically continuous, grave contradictions are met with, and it is 

 only in the groups of the mammals and perhaps of the reptiles [and, we may 

 add, fishesl that it becomes possible to present a few examples sufficiently 

 demonstrative. 6 



6 "Les Transformations du Monde Animal," Paris, 1907, p. 117. 



