256 



THE GEOLOGIST. 



Every individual plant and animal is confessedly acted on hj forces, 

 the precise nature of which has never jet been revealed by science. 

 Some conception may be formed of one, paramount in my mind, by 

 designating it progressive change. A principle of this kind appears 

 to me to be inherent in animated nature ; or, how can we otherwise 

 explain the " unity of plan " pervading both organic kingdoms, — the 

 " phenomena of parthenogenesis," — the " advance and progress in the 

 main" which our life system has undergone in past geological ages? 



There is no difficulty in referring instances which cannot be recon- 

 ciled with " an advance and a progress in the main ;" but these are 

 obviously exceptional. I cannot agree with Mr, Darwin in his view 

 of the " geological record " — of its being so " imperfect " as he seems 

 to think. Many important connecting links, binding in close union 

 all the members of our life-system, are undoubtedly wanting; but, in 

 taking a general survey of the facts revealed by marine palajontology, 

 commencing with the earliest organic period, and closing with the 

 present one, it is to me a matter of surprise, considering how limited 

 is the field of observation, that the "geological record" is so per- 

 fect. There is apparently some difficulty in accounting for the 

 occurrence of so many invertebrate orders — low as well as high — in 

 Cambrian rocks ; but we must not overlook the fact that such groups 

 now include forms of the simplest type, doubtful even as to their 

 ordinal ranTc ; nor must we overlook the probability of the primordial 

 Crustacea, annelids, cephalopods, palliobranchs, corals, etc., being 

 more closely related to each other than is the case with their repre- 

 sentatives of later geological periods. 



The supremacy of progressive change may be exemplified by re- 

 ferring to the successive modifications which the human organism 

 passes through in its progress towards maturity ; while the ancillary 

 or subordinate character of " natural selection " is well illustrated by 

 the changes which external agencies have effected on the same or- 

 ganism, producing, as admitted by nearly all, the leading varieties of 

 the human species. 



AYith respect to the varieties of man, I hold that most of them are 

 genetheonomous degradations of the Indo-Caucasian type, developed 

 by the pliysical conditions peculiar to the regions they respectively 

 inhabit. Cogent reasons may be advanced for regarding the American 

 Indian as having descended from the Mongolian, and the latter from 

 the Indo-Caucasiau. Even the aboriginals of Australia may be looked 

 upon as anotlier degraded race : those inhabiting the south and west 

 coasts are confessedly inferior to the adjacent oceanic tribes, as they 

 appear to be incapable of constructing canoes. Erom some remarks 

 recently m:ule by Professor Jukes, one might be led to attribute this 

 mark ot inieriority to the apparent absence in Australia of indigenous 

 timber suitable for canoes (vide ' Athenaeum,' No. 1793). I believe, 

 liowover, a more general cause has operated, — one involving physical 

 conditions. Nevertlieless, I certainly prefer accepting the particular 

 circumstance stated, as one of the means which have brought about 

 the degradation of the Australian, to adopting the view which con- 



