256 



EEV. PROF. G. HENSLOWj M.A., F.L.S., 



in a masterly way before those who (with some knowledge of 

 palaeontology) were capable of following his arguments. He 

 understood the Professor to use the term " man " (on p. 248) as 

 connoting only his 2:)liysical organism, the mere homo, as the crown 

 and summit of the fauna of this planet, while, at the same time, 

 recognizing that the term man (in the sense of Scripture and 

 Philosophy) connoted a vast deal more, as he had himself contended 

 in his published writings for years past. 



Thought on this matter had moved on so far since Darwin's Origin 

 of Species by Natural Selection appeared, that the speaker found 

 himself in entire agreement with Professor Henslow in his state- 

 ment (p. 255) that the theory of " Natural Selection " and that of 

 " Self-adaptation " were mutually exclusive, and that to the theory of 

 self-adaptation " Directivity " is absolutely essential. He further 

 pointed out that Sir E. Eay Lankester's illustration from the 

 multiplicity of the eggs of the oyster (p. 254) had its parallel in 

 the plant-world in the tremendous waste of pollen of the conifers, 

 which was a matter of common observation to those who lived in 

 the heart of the pinewood country, giving rise to the phenomenon 

 known by the natives as " sulphur-rain." In connexion with the 

 remarks (on p. 249) on protoplasm as " the physical basis of life," 

 the speaker reminded the meeting of Professor Burden Sanderson's 

 remark in his Presidential Address to the British Association 

 (Nottingham Meeting, 1893) that " in another sense life may 

 be said to be the basis of protoplasm," a thesis which still holds 

 the field. 



Mr. Arthur W. Sutton said : I fully appreciate the responsibility 

 of responding to the Chairman's request that I should say a few 

 words in reference to this most interesting paper we have just 

 listened to. 



Forty years ago I had the privilege, with my friend Mr. Martin 

 L. Rouse, who is present to-day, of sitting under Professor Henslow 

 when he was Professor of Botany and Geology at the Royal 

 Agricultural College, Cirencester. Since that time the Professor, 

 who was then master of these subjects, has been continually 

 accumulating knowledge in the pursuit of Natural Science ; my time 

 has been spent in the study of plants themselves and their surround- 

 ings, under ordinary conditions of culture. 



May I mention that it was extremely difficult in the five minutes 



