( 192 ) 



CHAPTER XIII. 



DARWm's CLAIM TO DESCENT WITH MODIFICATION. 



Me. Allen, in his " Charles Darwin," * says that " in 

 the public mind Mr. Darwin is commonly regarded 

 as the discoverer and founder of the evolution hypo- 

 thesis," and on p. 177 he says that to most men 

 Darwinism and evolution mean one and the same 

 thing. Mr. Allen declares misconception on this 

 matter to be " so extremely general " as to be " almost 

 universal;" this is more true than creditable to 

 Mr. Darwin. 



Mr. Allen sayst that though Mr. Darwin gained 

 " far wider general acceptance " for both the doctrine 

 of descent in general, and for that ©f the descent 

 of man from a simious or semi-simious ancestor 

 in particular, " he laid no sort of claim to originality 

 or proprietorship in either theory." This is not the 

 case. No one can claim a theory more frequently 

 and more effectually than Mr. Darwin claimed descent 

 with modification, nor, as I have already said, is it 

 likely that the misconception of which Mr. Allen com- 

 plains would be general, if he had not so claimed it. 

 The " Origin of Species " begins : — 



* Page 3. t Page 4. 



