X. CLASSIFICATION OP 3IONOCARDIAN ANIMALS. 



foundation; we may presume, in short, that if the facts 

 we have brought forward were capable of other inferences, 

 and other combinations, those we have advanced would 

 long ago have been overthrown ; for mere individual opi- 

 nion has nothing to do with the question at issue. We 

 almost regret, indeed, that this has not been attempted 

 by some naturalist with talents and knowledge equal to 

 the task : such a discussion might have elicited many 

 truths, and have led to many useful explanations. But 

 the fact of the matter seems to be, that all those among 

 our own countrymen whose works have placed them 

 as the most eminent in the different branches of zoology 

 they respectively cultivate, — all these, we say, with 

 hardly a solitary exception*, have expressed their belief 

 in one or other of the propositions formerly stated. 

 That the old empiric mode of study is daily giving way 

 to the inductive or philosophical, is a fact which will at 

 once be placed beyond doubt, when w r e mention the 

 names of MacLeay, Kirby, Horsfield, Westwood, Ste- 

 vens, and Waterhouse, in entomology ; Vigors, Sir 

 "William Jardine, Selby, and Gould, in ornithology ; and 

 John E. Gray, in general zoology. Now here we actually 

 have the names of nearly all the most experienced 

 naturalists and best known authors in the kingdom, who 

 are thus, from their extensive knowledge of details, the 

 only competent judges. Each of these have adopted, 

 either wholly or partially, the theory of the circularity, 

 the parallelism, or the symbolical relationship of natural 

 groups. If the weight of authority, therefore, was to 

 become the test of truth, the Quinarians may well 

 exult in their strength. But this is not all, — the spirit 

 has spread far and wide: we could name a long list of 

 students, some indeed already masters, both in England 

 and our colonies, who have caught the spirit of induc- 

 tive zoology, and are now pursuing it with an ardour 

 and a success that will soon render them worthy to fill 

 the seats of those among us who may drop, full of years 



* I believe I should bring -into this list our admirable entomologist Mr. 

 Curtis; but I know not exactly where his opinions have been expressed. 



m 



