REVIEWS AND EXCHANGES 
7 1 
at the same time we regret that Mr. Lowerison feels it his duty to emphasise so 
continuously the brutal and the selfish side of history. The pictures of imple- 
ments and local views, one of which we are permitted to reproduce, add to the 
attractiveness of the volume, whilst the notes, though brief, give it a scientific 
character. 
Darwinism and the Problems of Life. By Conrad Guenther, Ph. D., Professor 
at the University of Freiburg. Translated from the third edition by Joseph 
McCabe. A. Owen and Co. Price 12s. 6d. net. 
We are not sure that we agree with the translator of this work in thinking that 
“ the quantity of popular evolutionary literature in our tongue is so slight that a 
fresh work of acknowledged competence should be assured of a welcome.” Doubt- 
less there are many people anxious to receive a dogmatic summary of the results, or 
alleged results, of modern science, and then to talk glibly about them, without the 
drudgery of any training in observation which might make them capable of appre- 
ciating the weight of any of the evidence upon which those results are based. We 
shall always insist on the primary importance of such observational discipline as a 
pre-requisite to any opinions that are to be thought worth a hearing. There may, 
however, be room for two expositions of the modern post-Darwinian theories of 
evolution, one elementary and explanatory for the tyro, or that unsatisfactory 
person, “ the general reader,” the other comprehensive and argumentative, with 
adequate pieces justifcatives and bibliographical references for the more advanced 
student. We cannot help thinking that Professor Guenther has fallen between 
these two stools. His point of view is that of Darwin as modified by Weismann, 
with none of the “ heresy ” of the Neo-Lamarckian, and “no knowledge of science 
is presupposed.” Whilst commendably light to hold, the volume is printed on 
such thick paper that, though over two inches thick, it contains little more 
400 pages. Not a few of these are wasted in “ fine writing ” ; and, though 
eight out of the twelve chapters are named from the larger divisions of the 
animal kingdom, there is not space enough for any detailed exposition of the 
evolution of these groups, as the various side issues of the theory are desultorily 
discussed as they are suggested by one or other class of animals. Thus colour and 
play are treated under Mammalia ; sexual selection under birds; geological suc- 
cession, the power to re-form lost members, and warning colours under reptiles; 
rudimentary organs under fishes ; mimicry, instinct, and the inheritance of 
acquired characters, under insects. It is difficult, for this reason, for the student 
to get a good general view of the theory : the work would, in fact, have been 
the better for such summaries as those with which Darwin habitually closed his 
chapters. We are grateful to the author for his defence of the kingfisher. 
“What does it really matter,” he says, “if the kingfisher does destroy a few 
fishes a day — and generally fishes that are no use to us ! He makes up for that 
by his beautiful appearance. How sad it would be if we were to lose for ever 
the unforgetable moments that come to the solitary dreamer by the stream when 
he catches sight of this bird with its plumage of jewels !” On the other hand, 
we trust that the following is not his notion of logical reasoning: “The theory 
of evolution was formulated before Darwin ; the theory of selection was created 
by him. But the theory of evolution itself owed its great advance to Darwin’s 
book, chiefly because he provided the explanatory hypothesis of selection. Hence 
it is not improper to include both theories under the title ‘ Darwinism.’” With 
this fundamental non-sequitur , the work also suffers at the hands of a translator 
who appears to have no acquaintance with the subject at first hand. We read, 
for instance, of “ the chirp of the wood-pigeon,” “ the processionary butterfly,” 
the “comb” on the breast-bone of carinate birds, “crabs” in the Silurian, “the 
ringed adder,” and the “tortoise” feeding upon frogs, and of the “ strepsitera ” ! 
We are glad that plants are but slightly touched upon, as our brain could not 
stand much more like this: “The ‘plant egg,’ which is found also in flowers, 
but only in small quantities, is in this case enclosed in a capsule that is called 
the ‘seed-bud’ or germ, and is drawn out in a long stalk called the ‘pistil’ 
above.” But, in the absence of scientific names, or even capital letters, what 
will the zoological tyro make of the following passage, or indeed of the whole of 
p. 175? “With this [ovum] it [the fish] swims to one of the larger painter’s 
