EVIDENCES OF EVOLUTION 17 



(1837) I opened my first notebook for facts in 

 relation to the Origin of Species, about which 

 I had long reflected, and never ceased working 

 for the next twenty years. . . . Had been 

 greatly struck from about the month of pre- 

 vious March on character of South American 

 fossils, and species on Galapagos Archipelago. 

 These facts (especially latter) origin of all my 

 views." 



This interesting biographic fact, that what 

 Darwin saw on the Galapagos Islands and 

 elsewhere on his journeyings was (or at least 

 seemed to him) the origin of all his views, 

 justifies us in giving precedence to the " evi- 

 dences " of evolution that have come from 

 his and other explorations. 



THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS. Let us take the 

 case of these islands (some six hundred miles 

 west of the coast of South America), which 

 impressed Darwin so much when he visited 

 them in 1835. What exactly was it that im- 

 pressed him ? He found that each island 



had its own distinctive animal population, 

 -~~^ "^ 7 _ 



especially of reptiles and birds. And yet the 

 species in one island were the counterparts of 

 those in another, and almost all had their 

 counterparts in the adjoining parts of the 

 continent. What a riddle indeed unless it 

 meant that the corresponding species on the 



