yi THE WOKLD OF LIFE 



In Chapter IX. I deal with some little-known phenomena 

 in that hitherto neglected field of enquiry which I have termed 

 " Eecognition Marks." Besides the obvious uses implied by 

 their name, I have shown that they are of great importance — 

 perhaps absolutely essential — in the process of the evolution 

 of new species. During the enquiry I have arrived at the 

 somewhat startling conclusion that the exquisite variety and 

 beauty of insect-coloration and marking have not been devel- 

 oped through their ovni visual perceptions, but mainly — per- 

 haps even exclusively — through those of higher animals. I 

 show that brilliant butterflies do not, and almost certainly 

 cannot, recognise each other by colour, and that they probably 

 do not even perceive colour at all except as to a certain extent 

 presenting visual differences. 



But besides the discussion of these and several other allied 

 subjects, the most prominent feature of my book is that I enter 

 into popular yet critical examination of those underlying funda- 

 mental problems which Darwin purposely excluded from his 

 "works as being beyond the scope of his enquiry. Such are the 

 nature and causes of Life itself, and more especially of its 

 most fundamental and mysterious powers — growi:h and repro- 

 duction. 



I first endeavour to show (in Chapter XIV.) by a careful 

 consideration of the structure of the bird's feather ; of the 

 marvellous transformations of the higher insects ; and, more 

 especially of the highly elaborated wing-scales of the Lepidop- 

 tera (as easily accessible examples of what is going on in every 

 part of the structure of every living thing), the absolute neces- 

 sity for an organising and directive Life-Principle in order to 

 account for the very possibility of these complex out-growths. 



