THE EVOLUTION OF MAN 



inferior. Now these individuals entered into 

 competition with one another for the means of 

 life and into a struggle against the conditions 

 surrounding them. In other words, they entered 

 into the "struggle for existence." The result of 

 this struggle was different for different in- 

 dividuals. The superior type, which were best 

 adapted or adaptable to their environment, suc- 

 ceeded best in propagating their kind and in sur- 

 viving in the greatest number, while the average 

 type and those inferior to it succumbed. In this 

 way, only the superior breed survived and propa- 

 gated its kind. The offspring of this superior 

 type were in their turn subjected to the struggle 

 for existence. A selection of the fittest operated 

 on them as it did on their predecessors. This 

 continued uninterruptedly. In the course of the 

 various generations, continuous improvement, an 

 up-breeding of the type, and a more and more 

 perfect adaptation as well as fitness to survive, 

 naturally resulted. Furthermore, there was an- 

 other possibility which must be considered. A 

 change took place in the external conditions, sud- 

 denly requiring of the living beings an entirely 

 new adaptation. In that case, it was not the 

 superior type developing along the line of the 

 improvement of the parent type which had the 



154 



