ORGANIC EVOLUTION OF MAN 185 



Biology affirms that man began millions and 

 millions of years ago as a microscopic particle of 

 protoplasm ; and that through variations in this 

 and in its descendants, and through a selection of 

 these variations by environment, etc., man was 

 produced. 



That is, according to biology, man's general 

 organic pedigree, but we naturally wish to know 

 something more about our family tree. 



According to Haeckel, man's family tree is as 

 follows : firstly a bit of green protoplasm ; then 

 an amoeba (a bit of protoplasm with power to 

 move about) ; then, by a process of gradual 

 development, a worm of sorts ; then a fish with- 

 out skull, jaws, or limbs ; then an ordinary fish ; 

 and so on, through mammals, marsupials, lemurs, 

 Western apes. Eastern apes, speechless ape-men — 



'' The gibbering shape obscene 

 That was and was not man " — 



to man himself. Thus we have rather a mixed 

 and fishy ancestry, and include among our ancestors 

 worms and kangaroos — or at least opossums. 



"It is certain," says Haeckel, "that man has 

 descended from some extinct mammal ; and we 

 should just as certainly class this in the order of 

 apes if we had it before us. It is equally certain 

 that this primitive ape descended in turn from 



