obvious simplicity of the doctrine; but now when the sub- 

 ject begins to be tedious and the discussion lags, the in- 

 terest consequently abates and the Zeitgeist suddenly grasps 

 the old objections, presented in a new garb, and what was 

 hitherto truth, clear and irrefutable, now sinks into the 

 dreary, gray mists of myth. Sic transit gloria mundi! 



This has been the history of Darwinism, and especially 

 of Darwin's theory of sexual selection. What Grottewitz 

 urges against it, was advanced decades ago by other and 

 more eminent men; then people would not listen, to-day 

 they are inclined to listen. Of very special interest is the- 

 further admission, that "the principle of gradual develop- 

 ment" has been "considerably shaken" and is "certainly 

 untenable." Grottewitz points out that it has been demon- 

 strated that the progeny of the same parents are often en- 

 tirely dissimilar, and that new organs very suddenly spring 

 up in individuals even when they had had no previous ex- 

 istence. "A slight variation from the parent form is of no 

 utility to the progeny; they must acquire at once a com- 

 pletely developed, new character, if it is to be of any 

 use to them." Quite right! but this one admission is de- 

 structive of the entire doctrine of natural selection. If one 

 accepts saltatory evolution, as for instance, Heer, Koelli- 

 ker, and Wigand did long ago, then, as Grottewitz now dis- 

 covers, the difficulty arising for Darwinism from the ab- 

 sence of the numerous intermediary forms which it postu- 

 lates, naturally disappears. 



Grt-ottewitz attributes sudden variation to the influence 

 of environment, just as Geoffroy St. Hilaire had already 



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