Teleology and Adaptation 273 



natural history had been excited in the University by Dr Paley's very 

 interesting work on Natural Theology, and the very popular lectures 

 of Dr Kidd on Comparative Anatomy, and Dr Buckland on Geology." 

 In the arrangement of the contents of the Museum the illustration of 

 Paley's work was given the foremost place by J. S. Duncan : " The 

 first division proposes to familiarize the eye to those relations of all 

 natural objects which form the basis of argument in Dr Paley's 

 Natural Theology ; to induce a mental habit of associating the view 

 of natural phenomena with the conviction that they are the media of 

 Divine manifestation ; and by such association to give proper dignity 

 to every branch of natural science 1 ." 



The great naturalist, W. J. Burchell, in his classical work shows 

 the same recognition of adaptation in nature at a still earlier date. 

 Upon the subject of collections he wrote 2 : " It must not be supposed 

 that these charms [the pleasures of Nature] are produced by the mere 

 discovery of new objects : it is the harmony with which they have 

 been adapted by the Creator to each other, and to the situations in 

 which they are found, which delights the observer in countries where 

 Art has not yet introduced her discords." The remainder of the 

 passage is so admirable that I venture to quote it : " To him who is 

 satisfied with amassing collections of curious objects, simply for the 

 pleasure of possessing them, such objects can afford, at best, but a 

 childish gratification, faint and fleeting ; while he who extends his 

 view beyond the narrow field of nomenclature, beholds a boundless 

 expanse, the exploring of which is worthy of the philosopher, and of 

 the best talents of a reasonable being." 



On September 14, 1811, Burchell was at Zand Valley (Vlei), or 

 Sand Pool, a few miles south-west of the site of Prieska, on the Orange 

 River. Here he found a Mesembryanthemum (M. turbiniforme, now 

 M. tnmcatum) and also a "Gi-y litis" (Acridian), closely resembling the 

 pebbles with which their locality was strewn. He says of both of 

 these, "The intention of Nature, in these instances, seems to have 

 been the same as when she gave to the Chameleon the power of 

 accommodating its color, in a certain degree, to that of the object 

 nearest to it, in order to compensate for the deficiency of its 

 locomotive powers. By their form and color, this insect may pass 

 unobserved by those birds, which otherwise would soon extirpate a 

 species so little able to elude its pursuers, and this juicy little 

 Mesembryanthemum may generally escape the notice of cattle and 



1 From History and Arrangement of the Ashmolean Museum, by P. B. Duncan : see 

 pp. vi, vii of A Catalogue of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1836. 



2 Travels in the Interior of Southern Africa, London, Vol. I. 1822, p. 505. The 

 references to Burchell's observations in the present essay are adapted from the author's 

 article in Report of the British and South African Associations, 1905, Vol. in. pp. 57 — 110. 



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