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DARWINISM 



And now what is Darwinism ? It shall be told in the words of 

 the master himself. 



" If, under changing conditions of life, organic beings present 

 " individual differences in almost every part of their structure, and 

 " this cannot be disputed ; if there be, owing to their geometrical 

 " rate of increase, a severe struggle for life at some age, season, or 

 " year, and this certainly cannot be disputed ; then, considering 

 " the infinite complexity of the relations of all organic beings to 

 " each other and to their conditions of life, causing an infinite 

 " diversity in structure, constitution, and habits to be advantageous 

 " to them, it would be a most extraordinary fact if no variations 

 " had ever occurred useful to each being's own welfare, in the same 

 " manner as so many variations have occurred that have been 

 " useful to man. 



" But if variations useful to any organic being ever do occur, 

 " assuredly individuals thus characterised will have the best 

 " chance of being preserved in the struggle for life ; and from the 

 " strong principle of inheritance, these will tend to produce 

 " offspring similarly characterised. 



" This principle of preservation, or the survival of the fittest, I 

 " have called Natural Selection. 



" It leads to an improvement of each creature in relation to its 

 " organic and inorganic conditions of life ; and consequently, in 

 " most cases, [though by no means in all] it leads to what must 

 " be regarded as an advance in organisation. Nevertheless low 

 " and simple forms will long endure if well fitted for their simple 

 " conditions of life. . 



" Natural selection, on the principle of qualities being inherited 

 " at corresponding ages, can modify the egg, seed, or young, as 

 " easily as the adult. 



" Amongst many animals, sexual selection will have given its aid 

 " to ordinary selection, by assuring to the most vigorous and best 

 " adapted males the greatest number of offspring. 



" Sexual selection will also give characters useful to the males 

 "alone, in their struggles or rivalry with other males ; and these 



