3o8 IN THE GUIANA FOREST. 



selves ? The parents have inherited the experiences 

 of all their progenitors and added to these a 

 number of their own. They have also naturally 

 settled down as it were and are little affected 

 externally by change of circumstances. But it 

 does not follow because we hide our feelings that, 

 therefore, they do not affect us ; on the contrary, 

 is it not true that our passions may be stirred to 

 their lowest depths until they dominate us entirely, 

 when perhaps no sign is visible in the face ? The 

 sexual passion is undoubtedly the most intense 

 throughout both the animal and vegetable king- 

 doms, and will therefore have more influence than 

 any other. Even flowers are extremely sensitive 

 at the time of fertilisation and some have been 

 proved to generate heat during the process. This 

 being the case it is not difficult to understand 

 that the plastic germ of the future individual will 

 become subject to impressions which would not 

 affect either the leaf or trunk of its parents, and 

 we believe these impressions go to make up that 

 character which distinguishes the individual. 



We may suppose a case where the flower has 

 done its best to keep away noxious insects by 

 means of certain secretions, and only partially 

 succeeded. Some of the nectar has been ravished 

 without any good result. The parent experiences 



