lli:^^ 



THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE, 



67 



could be 



W. 



reveal themselves in the form of heat. The pre-exist- 

 ing force is itself the cause of the change of constitution 

 which results in the new manifestations. 



And^ similarly, we have the most perfect right to 

 expect thatj when a physical force gives rise to any 

 one of the modes of vital force, what takes place is 

 not so much a direct conversion or transmutation of 



:omes arresW ^'^^ ^^^^^ itself, but rather that the physical force 



expends itself in bringing about new collocations of 



living 



tFused 



manneii 



)f which is se. 

 the baU 



three hundrd: 



and if it had t 



matter 



either in converting non-living into 



matter, or in altering the molecular constitution of 

 matter which is already alive. The properties of this 

 matter being what we call « vital ' properties, it may be 

 said that the physical force has been transmuted into 

 3asinofwate,. vital force. Only when understood in this sense, are 



nf the rebdi fV,^ ,ir^f^o c^r^r^T.ovc.;^^ ' ^v c^-^^^r, — ,^„^: ? „„:i„ui„ r 



the words ' conversion ' or ^ transmutation ' suitable for 



)n would have the expression of what really occurs. The almost ne- 

 n the prodoct cessary use of these terms has, we think, nevertheless 



] in the to'i tended to foster an erroneous impression, which has 



exercised its misleading influence by causing certain 

 of!' physiologists to suppose that a special ' vital force ' is 



at, 



recogniza. 



e 



motion 



t 



f mole"^''' "^^^^^^ to effect the transmutation of incident physical 



proportio'i 



t 



case 

 lolar 

 ;ion) 



fflif 



i 



alsoj 



to 



us 



as 



ifl' 



. the f^ 



bcxli^ 



s 



forces within the bodies of living organisms. In reality, 

 no special force is in the least needed to do the work 

 of conversion. Any pre-existing physical force, acting 

 upon an organism, expends itself in producing those 

 molecular re- arrangements which, with others, contri- 

 bute to enable the organism to carry on its so-called 

 ' vital ' processes. If the doctrine of the Correlation 



F a 



