370 STUDIES, SCIENTIFIC AND SOCIAL chap. 



ations, from the first moment of their appearance, cannot 

 possibly escape from the action of natural selection. As, 

 roughly speakly, only about one per cent, of each generation 

 survives to breed, this new form, however stable in itself, 

 cannot become part of that one per cent, unless the 

 particular variation which characterises it is either bene- 

 ficial or entirely harmless. But in the latter case it is 

 difficult to see what constitutes its superiority over the 

 rest of the species which, year by year, by means of this 

 intensely severe process of elimination, is kept in harmony 

 with the environment. If the stability consists in greater 

 health, vigour, reproductive power, or intelligence, all 

 these qualities have already been developed to the fullest 

 needful extent, and these superior individuals will be 

 selected in the usual way. But if — as a second alter- 

 native — these alleged stable variations are supposed to 

 have some kind of inherent stability independent of the 

 environment, then, stability notwithstanding, they would 

 inevitably soon succumb under the terrible eliminating 

 power which year by year leaves only about one per cent, 

 of the most fit to survive. There is really no escape from 

 this dilemma : If your new variety is among the one or 

 two per cent, of the most fit, then it does not need this 

 purely imaginary quality of " organic stability " in order 

 to survive ; if it is not among this small body of the most 

 fit — that is, of the best adapted to the whole conditions of 

 existence of the species or race — then, any other quality 

 notwithstanding, it will certainly not survive. The term 

 " organic stability " has really no meaning except that of 

 harmonious adaptation to the environment as tested and 

 maintained by natural selection. To talk about new races 

 or species being produced " without any help whatever 

 from natural selection " can, under the actual conditions of 

 the terrestrial universe, only mean that there is an 

 inherent developmental power which modifies organisms 

 in definite ways, and in more perfect harmony with the 

 environment than has been, or can be, brought about by 

 natural selection, thus keeping these modified organisms 

 always ahead of the rest. They may thus be said to be 

 independent of survival of the fittest, because they and 



