428 The American Naturalist [May, 



less movements fall away. This is the kind of "selection " that con- 

 sciousness does in its acquisition of new movements. And bow the 

 results of it are conserved from generation to generation, without the 

 Lamarkian factor, has been spoken of above. 



Finally, a word merely of the relation of consciousness to the energies 

 of the brain. It is clear that this doctrine of selection as applied to 

 muscular movement does away with all necessity for holding that con- 

 sciousness even directs brain energy. The need of such direction seems 

 to me to be as artificial a- Darwin's principle showed the need of special 

 creation to be for the teleological adaptations of the different species. 

 This necessity of supposed directive agency done away in this case as 

 in that, the question of the relation of consciousness to the brain be- 

 comes a metaphysical one; just as that of teleology in nature became 

 a metaphysical one ; and science can get along without asking it. And 

 biological as well as psychological science should be glad that it is so — 

 should it not ? 



I may add in closing that of the three headings of this note only the 

 last (third) is based on matters of my private opinion ; the other two 

 rest on Prof. Cope's own presuppositions — that of intelligent selection 

 in his sense of the term, and that of the bearing of Social Heredity 

 (which he admits) upon Lamarckism. In another place I hope to 

 take up the psychology of Prof. Cope's new book in some detail. 



J. Hark Baldwin. 



Observations on Prof. Baldwin's Reply. — In order to com- 

 prehend the question at issue, it is necessary to state certain fundamen- 

 tal principles of evolution. This process consists in the development 

 of the heterogeneous from the homogeneous as Spencer expresses it ; 

 or in more specific language, evolution consists in the development of 

 specialized structures from generalized material. Primitive organic or 

 living beings consist of protoplasm which is, as compared with higher 

 organisms, generalized. That is, they are without disfinct muscular, 

 nervous, or digestive organs, etc. How are psychic conditions related 

 to this process of specialization ? Prof. Baldwin states that an animal 

 is able to " select through pleasure, pain, experience, association, etc.,' 

 from certain alternative complex movements which are already possible 

 for the limb or member used." This means that under guidance of a 

 form of consciousness, certain existing muscles are selected to perform 

 certain movements, while other muscles are neglected. Now if this be 

 possible to a muscular system specialized into discrete bundles, it is also 

 possible to a primitive contractile protoplasm which is not yet differ- 



