220 THE AMEBIC AN NATURALIST 



I Vol. XL [I 



The Linnean conception of species may have been too 

 broad, but it had the merit of being- understood. It has 

 yet to be shown that that conception of species has been 

 outgrown. The human mind is pretty nearly the same 

 to-day that it was a century and a half ago. The botan- 

 ists of to-day may be able to recognize species where 

 Lmne, and DeCandolle, and Gray could not, but the dif- 

 ference is by no means great enough to warrant such 

 great changes as have taken place in the conception of 

 species by some recent systematists. The human mouth 

 is probably a little smaller than it was thousands of 

 years ago, and probably the tendency is to a reduction 

 of its dimensions, but it certainly has not changed so 

 much as to warrant a marked reduction in the size of 

 tablespoons; much less does it give sanction to any pro- 

 posal to reduce them to the size of miniature saltspoons ! 

 The old spoons that still fit the average human mouth 

 very well are not likely to be displaced for much smaller 

 <»nes. I think it is highly probable that in like manner 

 we shall insist upon the old measure of species, for the 

 good reason that it is still well fitted to our mental needs 

 and mental capacity. The experience of botanists as a 



than that of the species-makers of re 

 sanction is not in deference to authoril 

 son that their species commend themi 

 prefer the Linnean idea of species 

 Linnean, but because it is more usefi 



and a half is thaTif^^fw^adaD 



chance that he hit up< 

 species; it is much mor< 



