AND THE LOWER ANIMALS. 219 



CHAPTER XIX. 



THEOEY OF GENEAGENESIS. 



The investigation of the attempts at a scientific ex- 

 planation, which, were brought about by the existence 

 of geneagenetic phenomena, leads us to the first 

 object of these researches, — the discovery of a common 

 law governing the various general processes at work 

 in the formation of animals, and the indefinite pre- 

 servation of species. 



Our attention has been successively drawn to these 

 three processes — transformation, metamorphosis, and 

 geneagenesis. With the assistance of a few examples, 

 I have been able, without much difficulty, to mark out 

 the application of this law in the phenomena which 

 characterize the two first. When we came to animals 

 in which geneagenesis presented itself, I was enabled 

 to go more fully into details. Here I had to intro- 

 duce the reader to a class of ideas little known 

 generally; and, in order to show their peculiarities 

 and exceptions, it was necessary to enter into a de- 

 scription of their variety and complication. I have 

 now to point out the results of theory, after having 

 spoken of those of observation ; and, in order to help 

 the reader to appreciate the different schemes of which 

 geneagenesis is the starting-point, I must in a few 

 words recapitulate the leading features of this phe- 

 nomenon. 



