ing. Yet a few species are found on the 
ground and under dead leaves, etc. These 
are all small and inconspicuous; but two 
larger kinds are found on trees bordering the 
way; they often aestivate during the dry 
season in forks and hollows of ike trees. 
One of these has some resemblance to an 
African type, though on examination it 
proves to be different. Another remarkable 
shell whose aperture bears some resemblance 
to an ear belongs to a type peculiar to South 
America called Plekocheilus by Guikling. The 
type species Bulimus glaber is an inhabitant 
of Brazil, while allied species are found in 
Venezuela. Of the species called glaber 
three forms occur, one in South America, 
one in Trinidad and one in Grenada. The 
examples from each locality are distin¬ 
guishable and may be called geographical 
races, and as such they are indeed incipient 
species. It is thirty years ago, ar least, that 
I enunciated the theory that species in many 
if not in ail cases originated somewhat sud¬ 
denly, and this is brought about by migra¬ 
tion or isolation of individuals. All indivi¬ 
duals have some tendency to vary from the 
type and the tendency to vary in particular 
directions is inherited. It is usually kept in 
check by constant interbreeding among the 
individuals of the species. But when a pair 
or set of individuals become isolated their 
peculiarities become more pronounced and 
developed so as to originate a new species. 
When in the course of migrations and 
changes forms come together again (hey 
appear as distinct or allied species. An 
extension and repetition of this process leads 
to the production of what are called genera, 
orders, classes and other divisionsand distinc¬ 
tions all of which, to he true and valid, must 
be based on genetic relationship or “ Descent 
with modification.” An exactly similar 
process of evolution has taken place in the 
domain of Mythology, where stories have 
branched off from the main stem of solar 
mythology migrated to different tribes and 
regions, and when they get back in course of 
time with names and minor details alteicd 
they are considered as quite distinct stories 
from the more direct descendants 
of the original stem, though to the mind 
of the expert the fundamental character by 
which the story is recognized as a solar 
myth remains unaltered. (See Cnx’s Aryan 
Mythology and Max Muller’s Chips and 
Lectures.) Habit, as you know, is inveterate 
and heredity is only habit. I wish to illus¬ 
trate this by the case of univalve shells 
which, as you are aware, are spiral or 
