ON Till-: VITALISTIC VIEW oF NATURE. 



373 



ination, insomuch as the diHeieiit behaviour of different 

 parts of the cellular b(jdy towards organic staining 

 solutions reveals to the observer dilTerences of structure 

 otherwise indistinguishable. Yet Professor Pfeffer/ wIid 

 has studied the absorbing powers of cellular substances 

 with much care, states that these cannot in the least 

 be foretfjM, but can only be determined empirically; 

 nor is the fact that cells require some substances 

 fur their life, while others are harmful, sufficient to 

 enable us to predict that either will l)e absorbed or 

 rejected. Again, hybridisation has Ijeen much studied 

 by gardeners and breeders, and also, since the time 

 of Darwin, by naturalists ; nevertheless, the result of 

 cross-fertilisation of individuals l^elonging " to different 

 families or species, or even only to different varieties," 

 cannot be theoretically foretold, but " can only be dis- 

 covered by means of experiment." "' 



This ignorance in which we are still placed as to the 

 forms as well as functions of living matter, has been a 

 subject of much comment by biologists all through the 



1 See W. Pfeffer, ' Ueber Auf- 

 nahiue von Anilinfarbeii in lebende 

 Zellen.' Unterriuchungon aus dem 

 botaiiisclien Institul zu Tiibingen. 

 (juuted by Hertwig, 'The Cell,' p. 

 136. 



- Hertwig, 'The Cell.' p. 310. 

 Annther point, .strongly urged by 

 Claude Hernard, is, that a knowledge 

 of structure in living beings — i.e., 

 anatomical kno\vle<lge — in no wise 

 sutfices to explain the functions, does 

 not lead to phj'siological knowledge. 

 See ' La Science Expuriinentale,' p. 

 10.5, " L'impuissiince de I'anatoinie a 

 nous apprendre les fonctions organ- 

 iques devient surtout cvidente <lans 

 les ca.s particuliers ou elle est 



roduite a elle - nieme. Pour le>: 

 organes sur les usage-s desquels 

 la physiologic exporinientale n'a 

 encore rien dit, I'anatomie reste 

 absolument uiuette. Cest ce qui 

 a lieu par exeniple jiour la rate, 

 les capsules surrenales, le corps 

 thyroide, &c., tous organes dont 

 nous connaissons parfuitement, la 

 te.xture anatomique, uiais dont 

 nous ignorons conipletement les 

 fonctions. De mcnie, quaud sur 

 un animal on dccouvre un tissu 

 nouveiiu et sans analogue dans 

 d'auti'es organismes, I'anatomie est 

 incapable d'en devoiler les pro- 

 prictcs vitales." 



