562 THE WONDER OF LIFE 



brought forward, and we may consider a few which may 

 be called typical. 



There is the well-known case of the stork's bill, which 

 Weismann admitted to be difficult. The upper half was 

 accidentally broken off, the lower jaw was amputated to the 

 same length, in the course of time both were regenerated — 

 a very remarkable achievement. 



Now is there any evidence that such a serious injury 

 might occur in ordinary life ? If it is not a loss that is at all 

 likely to occur, then it is not easy to understand why any 

 organic provision should be made for its compensation. 

 The difficulty was lessened by the report of Bordage, that 

 in cock-fights similar injuries were frequent and were often 

 followed by very remarkable regeneration. In one case 

 the premaxillse and part of the mandible were torn off — a 

 large fraction of the entire beak — yet both bones and horny 

 coverings were regenerated. Now cock-fighting, though 

 elaborated by men of more or less evil device, is a natural 

 phenomenon. Cocks are given to fighting furiously, inj uries 

 are frequent, and it is just the sort of ever-recurrent injury 

 for the reparation of which provision might be made. 

 When we discover, furthermore, that male storks also fight 

 furiously, sometimes fatally, the difficulty of the stork's 

 bill seems, as Weismann says, to become an exception 

 proving the rule. 



Another difficult case which Weismann discusses is that 

 the eye of the newt (Triton) may be regenerated, as Bormet 

 and Blumenbach showed long ago, after serious injury. 

 We now know that if the lens alone be carefully taken 

 out, it will be replaced. These are very remarkable 

 instances of regeneration, but the question immediately 

 arises, What chance is there that in natural conditions a 



