126 DARWINIANA. 



perfect in some of tlie lowest forms of life, becomes 

 evanescent in others ; and even the most absolute law 

 we know in the physiology of genuine reproduction — 

 that of sexual cooperation — ^has its exceptions in both 

 kingdoms in parthenogenesis, to which in the vege- 

 table kingdom a most curious and intimate series of 

 gradations leads. In plants, likewise, a long and fine- 

 ly-graduated series of traiisitions leads from bisexual 

 to unisexual blossoms ; and so in various other respects. 

 Everywhere we may perceive that Nature secures her 

 ends, and makes her distinctions on the whole mani- 

 fest and real, but everywhere without abrupt breaks. 

 "We need not wonder, therefore, that gradations be- 

 tween species and varieties should occur ; the more so, 

 since genera, tribes, and other groups into which the 

 naturalist collocates species, are far from being always 

 absolutely limited in Nature, though they are neces- 

 sarily represented to be so in systems. From the ne- 

 cessity of the case, the classifications of the naturalist 

 abruptly define where Nature more or less blends. 

 Our systems are nothing, if not definite. They ex- 

 press differences, and some of the coarser gradations. 

 But this evinces not their perfection, but their im- 

 perfection. Even the best of them are to the system 

 of Nature what consecutive patches of the seven col- 

 ors are to the rainbow. 



Now the principle of gradation throughout organic 

 Nature may, of course, be interpreted upon other as- 

 sumptions than those of Darwin's hypothesis^cer- 

 tainly upon quite other than those of a materialistic 

 philosophy, with which we ourselves have no sym- 

 pathy. Still we conceive it not only possible, but 



