32 THE EVOLUTION OF NATURAL SPECIES. 



(2) External nature furnishes the means and occasions, but not the 

 cause. 



But to return to our question, can anything be surer than that 

 through the activities of the organism changes in its relation to the 

 environment are often produced ; and that through these changes the 

 character of its success is changed, and so the character of its selection.* 

 As we have already observed, it is by virtue of its power to strive for 

 the continuation of its life that an organism is an organism ; and selec- 

 tion is the direct result of varying degrees of survival in the exercise of 

 this power. We see, therefore, that the doctrine, common among a 

 certain class of evolutionists, that the environment makes the organ- 

 ism, rests on a false assumption, the introduction and perpetuation of 

 which has been favored by the ambiguities covered by the phrases in 

 use. External nature can never furnish more than the means, occasions, 

 or opportunities for vital phenomena. The power to use these means 

 in maintaining life lies wholly with the organism, and the degrees of 

 success which it achieves are produced by this power, and not by the 

 environment. So far as the environment consists of organisms, each 

 species of this organic environment is working for its own survival, 

 and not for the survival of any other species to which it stands in the 

 relation of environment. The bees take honey from the flowers for the 

 preservation of themselves and their kindred ; and the flowers make 

 the bees distribute their pollen, thus securing more vigorous seed 

 than could be gained by self-fertilization; each species working for 

 its own preservation and perpetuation. 



Another cause of confusion has been the habit of speaking of the 

 transforming power of selection as if it were a special power, or form 

 of power quite distinct from the power of variation; whereas, it is 

 only one of the laws expressing the relations that exist between the 

 different results of organic activity. Selection is the superior propa- 

 gation of adapted forms, through the dependence of the degrees of 

 propagation on the degrees of adaptation produced by variation. 

 Every variation of the organism may be regarded as more or less 

 adapted, and the survival of each, according to its degree of adapta- 

 tion to the natural environment surrounding the group, is natural 

 selection ; but this diversity of survival is the direct result of the 

 varying adaptation of the organism. The transforming power of 

 natural selection is, therefore, not a different power from variation, 

 but it is rather a direct result of variation. 



* See the description of active or endonomic selection given in Appendix II, 

 and of other forms of autonomic selection in Chapters V-VIII. 



