PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. 



WHEN, two years ago, I published the first edition of the 

 " History of the Evolution of Man," and this was followed, 

 a few months later, by an unaltered second edition, I was 

 fully conscious of the hazard involved in so doing, and 

 was prepared to meet with numerous attacks. These were 

 not slow to come ; and if I were now obliged to answer all 

 my opponents, this third edition might easily be doubled in 

 size. I think, however, that I may satisfy myself with but 

 a few remarks. 



The great majority of my opponents are determined 

 enemies of the Doctrine of Descent, who altogether deny 

 a natural evolution of organic nature, and who can 

 only explain both the origin of man and that of animal 

 and plant species with the help of miracles, by super- 

 natural creative acts. These adherents of the Creation 

 Theory I need not answer; for Anthropogeny, as the 

 special application of the Theory of Descent to Man, 

 naturally starts from the recognition of this latter theory : 

 ten years ago, in my GenereUe Morphologic, and again in 

 the " Natural History of Creation," I explained my own 

 conception of this in sufficient detail. 



