II. THE SWALLOW. 63 



splendidly, so manifest]}^, so eternally distinct ; 

 and that the vile industries and vicious curi- 

 os; Lies of riodern ' science, while they have 

 robbed the fields of England of a thousand 

 living creatures, have not created in them one. 



61. But even in the paltry knowledge we 

 have obtained, what jinanimity have we ? — 

 what security ? Suppose any man of ordinary 

 sense, knowing the value of time, and the 

 relative importance of subjects of thought, and 

 that the whole scientific world was agog con- 

 cerning the origin of species, desired to know 

 first of all — what was meant by a species. 



He would naturally look for the definition of 

 species first among the higher animals, and 

 expect it to be best defined in those which 

 were best known. And being referred for 

 satisfaction to the 226th page of the first 

 volume of Mr. Darwin's " Descent of Man," 

 he would find this passage : — 



" Man has been studied more carefully than 

 any other organic being, and yet there is the 

 greatest possible diversity among capable 

 judges, whether he should be classed as 

 a single species or race, or as two (Virey), 

 as three (Jacquinot), as four (Kant), five 



