i88 5 .] 
73 
Death and Individuality . 
to itself), does not exist in Nature, except subjectively as a 
rather fantastic notion of the human mind. The term 
“ individual” is applied to things utterly incommensurate 
with one another. An individual 'protozoon, an individual 
polyp, and an individual inseCt, are not homologous and 
comparable bodies. It is mere slavery to a false form of 
speech to imagine that their “ individuality” is a common 
quality ; for, on the contrary, the same word indicates here 
three distinct phases. I know not how to account for the 
immense significance attributed to the mystical idea of indi- 
viduality, which in reality corresponds only to a physiolo- 
gical capacity for a separate existence, but in usage is tacitly 
assumed to be the name of some vague fundamental property 
of life, which, however, the mind cannot apprehend. Now, 
we have renounced considering a wing in a bee, a bird, or a 
bat as identical or homologous with every wing, either on 
account of its name or its function. But, although the 
different kinds of individuals of animals and plants are much 
more unlike one another than are the manifold types of 
wings, yet individuality is generally taken to mean a uni- 
formly identical something ; and that is untrue. Of course 
the matter is really very simple, and indeed self-evident, as 
to its true nature; and the singular obscurity prevailing is 
probably due only to the problem not having been clearly 
thought over. At present the condition of opinion upon the 
subject reminds one of the ancient notions of beauty, ac- 
cording to which beauty was an inherent quality of objects, 
not an impression of the mind, a psychological state. 
Despite custom, it is plain that “ individual ” has many 
meanings ; yet it is usual to compare “ individuals ” with 
one another throughout the animal kingdom. This error 
has been repeated by Weismann and Goette, because they 
both assume that the death of a single protozoon is equiva- 
lent to the death of one of the higher animals. Goette, 
however, has partially emancipated himself from this idea, 
which I believe to be errroneous. The death of a unicellular 
is entirely different from the death of a multicellular indi- 
vidual. 
To Huxley we owe the first scientific determination of 
individuality. His essay on the subject ought to be tho- 
roughly studied by every biologist. Life occurs in cycles of 
cells ; each cycle comprises all the cells springing from a single 
impregnated ovum ; the whole of every cycle is homologous 
with every other whole cycle, no matter whether every cell 
is a so-called individual, or whether they constitute several 
individuals ( e.g ., polyps) or a single one (vertebrates). All 
VOL. VII. (THIRD SERIES). G 
