CHAPTER XVII. 

 THE ANCESTRAL SERIES OF MAN. 



II. Feom the Primitive Woem to the Skulled Animal. 



The Four Higher Animal Tribes are descended from the Worm Tribe. — The 

 Descendants of the Gastraea; in one direction the Parent Form of Plant- 

 Animals (Sponges and Sea-Nettles), in the other the Parent Form of 

 Worms. — Eadiateform of the former, Bilateral form of the latter. — The 

 Two Main Divisions of the Worms, Accelomi and Coelomati : the former 

 without, the latter with, a Body Cavity and Blood-vessel System. — 

 Sixth Ancestral Stage : Archelminthes, most nearly allied to Turbellaria. 

 — Descent of the Coelomati from the Accelomi. — Mantled Animals 

 (Tunicata) and Chorda- Animals (Chordoma). — Seventh Stage: Soft- 

 Worms (Scolecida). — A Side Branch of the latter: the Acorn- Worm 

 (Balanoglossus) . — Differentiation of the Intestinal Tube into Gill-intes- 

 tine and Stomach-intestine. — Eighth Stage : Chorda-Animals (Chor- 

 doma). — Ascidian Larva exhibits the Outline of a Chorda-Animal. — 

 Construction of the Notochord. — Mantled Animals and Vertebrates as 

 Diverging Branches of Chorda- Animals. — Separation of Vertebrates from 

 the other Higher Animal Tribes (Articulated Animals, Star-Animals, 

 Soft-bodied Animals). — Significance of the Metameric Formation. — 

 Skull-less Animals (Acrania) and Skulled Animals (Craniota). — Ninth 

 Ancestral btage : Skull-less Animals. — Amphioxus and Primitive Verte- 

 brate. — Development of Skulled Animals (Construction of the Head, 

 Skull, and Brain). — Tenth Ancestral Stage : Skulled Animals, allied 

 to the Cyclostomi (Myzinoidce and Petromyzonidce). 



" Not like the gods am I ! Full well I know ; 

 But like the worm which in the dust must go, 

 And, finding in the dust his life and weal, 

 Is crushed and buried by the traveller's heel.— 



