104 VARIATIONS, DUE TO REVERSION. 



Reversion, might be multiplied indefinitely, for he 

 gives several chapters to the subject, and almost every 

 other page of his works, is filled with references to this 

 factor. With one more quotation we will close the 

 direct proofs of Reversion. 



On page 80, Vol. ii, Animals and Plants, &c, he 

 says: 



"On the doctrine of reversion, as given in this 

 chapter, the germ becomes a far more marvelous ob- 

 ject; for, besides the visible changes to which it is sub- 

 jected, we must believe that it is crowded with invisible 

 characters, proper to both sexes, to both the right and 

 left side of the body, and to a long line of male and 

 female ancestors, separated by hundreds, or even thou- 

 sands, of generations from the present time; and these 

 characters, like those written on paper with invisible 

 ink, all lie ready to be evolved, under certain known or 

 unknown conditions." 



Assume but a tithe of the degeneration, which is 

 above implied, and the scope of reversion is suf- 

 ficiently wide to cover every variation, under domesti- 

 cation, or under nature. Darwin's theory lays claim 

 to be a tenable hypothesis, only in the event, that 

 variations are inexplicable, and may proceed forever* 

 or indefinitely. This assumption of his, is, however, 

 completely negatived by the facts of Reversion, which 

 show that the sole variation possible, is the regain of 

 characters lost, and that when all of the characters, 

 which any species has lost, have been recovered, the 

 limit of positive variation, for that species, is reached. 



If it be conceded, that proof of a glaring hiatus, inter- 

 vening between a theory and the facts upon which such 



