542 



THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE. 



importance of the processes themselves cannot be ade- 

 quately realized unless we have arrived at clear con- 

 ceptions as to the respective notions which should be 

 attached to the words *^ individual^ and ^species/ 



It mighty and doubtless will^ be thought by many 

 that whatever conflicting opinions may be entertained 

 of the precise meaning of the latter term, no similar 

 doubts could prevail concerning the signijficance of 

 the word ^individual/ Such, however, is not the 

 case. Attempts, based upon much good and legitimate 



reasoning, have been made 



Prof. Huxley 2 to 



distinguish 



Dr. Carpenter^ and 

 between the ordinary 



meaning 



of this word and the special 



meamng m 



which it is thought desirable that it should be under- 

 stood by biologists. So many subsequent writers have. 



moreover, accepted the views and phraseology which 

 they proposed, that the words ^ phytoid ' and ^zooid' are 

 now frequently to be met with in the pages of botanical 

 and zoological writers. Hence it is all the more in- 

 cumbent that we should enquire into the propriety of 

 continuing to maintain the distinctions which these 

 words were intended to suggest — that we should en- 

 deavour, in fact, to ascertain whether such distinctions 

 are still required, or whether they are even compatible 

 with our present state of knowledge. 



1 i 



Brit, and For. Med. Chir. Rev.' vol i. (1848) p. 183, and vol iv 



(1849) p. 436. 



^ 'Philos. Trans.' 1851, pp. 

 2nd ser., vol. ix. p. 505. 



576-579; and *Ann. of Nat. Hist.,] 



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