198 ANIMAL PEDIGREES 



which naturalists are confronted, and which they 

 are attacking on every side and by all means in 

 their power. 



We recognise that Diagram A represents cor- 

 rectly the relation between man and man: and we 

 admit that it is equally true when applied to horses, 

 to cows, to dogs, or to canaries. In other words, 

 we acknowledge that the principle on which the 

 diagram is constructed is true in all cases in 

 which historical or documentary evidence is forth- 

 coming. 



Can we not go further than this ? Is this 

 written testimony essential ? Would the facts be 

 in any way altered if no documentary evidence 

 were forthcoming ? Do we not agree that all 

 animals have had pedigrees of this kind ; and is it 

 not worth enquiring whether we cannot reconstruct, 

 unravel these pedigrees, even in cases where of 

 necessity documentary evidence cannot be ob- 

 tained ? 



Again, to return for a moment to the human 

 argument. So far our horizontal lines have been 

 used to indicate successive generations, and the 

 relation, admitted by all, has been that each gene- 

 ration has sprung from the preceding generation, 

 and has in its turn given birth to the next succeed- 

 ing one. 



Supposing now that we widen our boundaries, 

 and agree that the intervals between successive 

 horizontal lines shall indicate, not generations but 

 longer intervals, say centuries, the relations will 

 remain unaltered. 





