第25章

JustatthetimewhenthisthoughtwastakingforminGoethe’sbrain，thesameideawasgerminatinginthemindofanotherphilosopher，anEnglishmanofinternationalfame，Dr。ErasmusDarwin，who，whilehelived，enjoyedthewidestpopularityasapoet，therhymedcoupletsofhisBotanicGardenbeingquotedeverywherewithadmiration。Andposterityrepudiatingtheversewhichmakesthebodyofthebook，yetgrantspermanentvaluetothebookitself，because，forsooth，itscopiousexplanatoryfoot-notesfurnishanoutlineofthestatusofalmosteverydepartmentofscienceofthetime。

Buteventhoughhelackedthehighestartoftheversifier，Darwinhad，beyondperadventure，theimaginationofapoetcoupledwithprofoundscientificknowledge；anditwashispoeticinsight，correlatingorganismsseeminglydiverseinstructureandimbuingthelowliestflowerwithavitalpersonality，whichledhimtosuspectthattherearenolinesofdemarcationinnature。

"Canitbe，"hequeries，"thatoneformoforganismhasdevelopedfromanother；thatdifferentspeciesarereallybutmodifieddescendantsofoneparentstock？"Thealluringthoughtnestledinhismindandwasnurturedthere，andgrewinafixedbelief，whichwasgivenfullerexpressioninhisZoonomiaandintheposthumousTempleofNature。

HereishisrenderingoftheideaasversifiedintheTempleofNature:

"OrganiclifebeneaththeshorelesswavesWasborn，andnursedinOcean’spearlycaves；

Firstformsminute，unseenbysphericglass，Moveonthemud，orpiercethewaterymass；

These，assuccessivegenerationsbloom，Newpowersacquireandlargerlimbsassume；

Whencecountlessgroupsofvegetationspring，Andbreathingrealmsoffin，andfeet，andwing。

"ThusthetallOak，thegiantofthewood，WhichbearsBritannia’sthundersontheflood；

TheWhale，unmeasuredmonsterofthemain；

Thelordlylion，monarchoftheplain；

Theeagle，soaringintherealmsofair，Whoseeye，undazzled，drinksthesolarglare；

Imperiousman，whorulesthebestialcrowd，Oflanguage，reason，andreflectionproud，Withbrowerect，whoscornsthisearthysod，AndstyleshimselftheimageofhisGod——

Arosefromrudimentsofformandsense，Anembryonpointormicroscopicens！"[2]

Here，clearlyenough，istheideaofevolution。Butinthatdaytherewaslittleproofforthcomingofitsvaliditythatcouldsatisfyanyonebutapoet，andwhenErasmusDarwindied，in1802，theideaoftransmutationofspecieswasstillbutanunsubstantiateddream。

Itwasadream，however，whichwasnotconfinedtoGoetheandDarwin。Evenearliertheideahadcomemoreorlessvaguelytoanothergreatdreamer——andworker——ofGermany，ImmanuelKant，andtoseveralgreatFrenchmen，includingDeMaillet，Maupertuis，Robinet，andthefamousnaturalistBuffon——amanwhohadtheimaginationofapoet，thoughhismessagewascouchedinmostartisticprose。NotlongafterthemiddleoftheeighteenthcenturyBuffonhadputforwardtheideaoftransmutationofspecies，andhereiterateditfromtimetotimefromthenontillhisdeathin1788。Butthetimewasnotyetripefortheideaoftransmutationofspeciestoburstitsbonds。

Andyetthisidea，inamodifiedorundevelopedform，hadtakenstrangeholduponthegenerationthatwasuponthesceneatthecloseoftheeighteenthcentury。Vastnumbersofhithertounknownspeciesofanimalshadbeenrecentlydiscoveredinpreviouslyunexploredregionsoftheglobe，andthewisemenweresorelypuzzledtoaccountforthedisposalofalloftheseatthetimeofthedeluge。Itsimplifiedmattersgreatlytosupposethatmanyexistingspecieshadbeendevelopedsincetheepisodeofthearkbymodificationoftheoriginalpairs。Theremoterbearingsofsuchatheorywereoverlookedforthetime，andtheideathatAmericananimalsandbirds，forexample，weremodifieddescendantsofOld-Worldforms——thejaguaroftheleopard，thepumaofthelion，andsoon——becameacurrentbeliefwiththatclassofhumanitywhoacceptalmostanystatementastruethatharmonizeswiththeirprejudiceswithoutrealizingitsimplications。

ThusitisrecordedwitheclatthatthediscoveryofthecloseproximityofAmericaatthenorthwestwithAsiaremovesalldifficultiesastotheoriginoftheOccidentalfaunasandfloras，sinceOrientalspeciesmighteasilyhavefoundtheirwaytoAmericaontheice，andhavebeenmodifiedaswefindthemby"thewell-knowninfluenceofclimate。"Andthepersonswhogaveexpressiontothisideaneverdreamedofitsrealsignificance。

Intruth，herewasthedoctrineofevolutioninanutshell，and，becauseitsultimatebearingswerenotclear，itseemedthemostnaturalofdoctrines。Butmostofthepersonswhoadvanceditwouldhaveturnedfromitaghastcouldtheyhaverealizeditsimport。Asitwas，however，onlyhereandthereamanlikeBuffonreasonedfarenoughtoinquirewhatmightbethelimitsofsuchassumedtransmutation；andonlyhereandthereaDarwinoraGoethereachedtheconvictionthattherearenolimits。

LAMARCKVERSUSCUVIER

AndevenGoetheandDarwinhadscarcelypassedbeyondthattentativestageofconvictioninwhichtheyheldthethoughtoftransmutationofspeciesasanancillarybeliefnotreadyforfullexposition。Therewasoneoftheircontemporaries，however，who，holdingthesameconception，wasmovedtogiveitfullexplication。ThiswasthefriendanddiscipleofBuffon，JeanBaptistedeLamarck。Possessedofthespiritofapoetandphilosopher，thisgreatFrenchmanhadalsothewidestrangeoftechnicalknowledge，coveringtheentirefieldofanimatenature。

Thefirsthalfofhislonglifewasdevotedchieflytobotany，inwhichheattainedhighdistinction。Then，justatthebeginningofthenineteenthcentury，heturnedtozoology，inparticulartothelowerformsofanimallife。Studyingtheselowlyorganisms，existingandfossil，hewasmoreandmoreimpressedwiththegradationsofformeverywheretobeseen；thelinkingofdiversefamiliesthroughintermediateones；andinparticularwiththepredominanceoflowtypesoflifeintheearliergeologicalstrata。Calleduponconstantlytoclassifythevariousformsoflifeinthecourseofhissystematicwritings，hefounditmoreandmoredifficulttodrawsharplinesofdemarcation，andatlastthesuspicionlongharboredgrewintoasettledconvictionthatthereisreallynosuchthingasaspeciesoforganisminnature；that"species"isafigmentofthehumanimagination，whereasinnaturethereareonlyindividuals。

Thatcertainsetsofindividualsaremorelikeoneanotherthanlikeothersetsisofcoursepatent，butthisonlymeans，saidLamarck，thatthesesimilargroupshavehadcomparativelyrecentcommonancestors，whiledissimilarsetsofbeingsaremoreremotelyrelatedinconsanguinity。Buttracebackthelinesofdescentfarenough，andallwillculminateinoneoriginalstock。

Allformsoflifewhatsoeveraremodifieddescendantsofanoriginalorganism。Fromlowesttohighest，then，thereisbutonerace，onespecies，justasallthemultitudinousbranchesandtwigsfromonerootarebutonetree。Forpurposesofconvenienceofdescription，wemaydivideorganismsintoorders，families，genera，species，justaswedivideatreeintoroot，trunk，branches，twigs，leaves；butintheonecase，asintheother，thedivisionisarbitraryandartificial。

InPhilosophieZoologique(1809)，Lamarckfirstexplicitlyformulatedhisideasastothetransmutationofspecies，thoughhehadoutlinedthemasearlyas1801。Inthismemorablepublicationnotonlydidhestatehisbeliefmoreexplicitlyandinfullerdetailthantheideahadbeenexpressedbyanypredecessor，buthetookanotherlongforwardstep，carryinghimfarbeyondallhisforerunnersexceptDarwin，inthathemadeanattempttoexplainthewayinwhichthetransmutationofspecieshadbeenbroughtabout。Thechangeshavebeenwrought，hesaid，throughtheunceasingeffortsofeachorganismtomeettheneedsimposeduponitbyitsenvironment。Constantstrivingmeanstheconstantuseofcertainorgans。Thusabirdrunningbytheseashoreisconstantlytemptedtowadedeeperanddeeperinpursuitoffood；itsincessanteffortstendtodevelopitslegs，inaccordancewiththeobservedprinciplethattheuseofanyorgantendstostrengthenanddevelopit。Butsuchslightlyincreaseddevelopmentofthelegsistransmittedtotheoffspringofthebird，whichinturndevelopsitsalreadyimprovedlegsbyitsindividualefforts，andtransmitstheimprovedtendency。Generationaftergenerationthisisrepeated，untilthesumoftheinfinitesimalvariations，allinthesamedirection，resultsintheproductionofthelong-leggedwading-bird。Inasimilarway，throughindividualeffortandtransmittedtendency，allthediversifiedorgansofallcreatureshavebeendeveloped——thefinofthefish，thewingofthebird，thehandofman；nay，more，thefishitself，thebird，theman，even。

Collectivelytheorgansmakeuptheentireorganism；andwhatistrueoftheindividualorgansmustbetruealsooftheirensemble，thelivingbeing。

WhatevermightbethoughtofLamarck’sexplanationofthecauseoftransmutation——whichreallywasthatalreadysuggestedbyErasmusDarwin——theideaoftheevolutionforwhichhecontendedwasbutthelogicalextensionoftheconceptionthatAmericananimalsarethemodifiedanddegenerateddescendantsofEuropeananimals。Butpeopleasarulearelittlepronetofollowideastotheirlogicalconclusions，andinthiscasetheconclusionsweresoutterlyopposedtotheproximalbearingsoftheideathatthewholethinkingworldrepudiatedthemwithacclaim。TheverypersonswhohadmosteagerlyacceptedtheideaoftransmutationofEuropeanspeciesintoAmericanspecies，andsimilarlimitedvariationsthroughchangedenvironment，becauseofthereliefthusgiventheotherwiseovercrowdedark，werenowforemostindenouncingsuchanextensionofthedoctrineoftransmutationasLamarckproposed。

And，forthatmatter，theleadersofthescientificworldwereequallyantagonistictotheLamarckianhypothesis。Cuvierinparticular，oncethepupilofLamarck，butnowhiscolleague，andinauthoritymorethanhispeer，stoodoutagainstthetransmutationdoctrinewithallhisforce。Hearguedfortheabsolutefixityofspecies，bringingtobeartheresourcesofamindwhich，asamererepositoryoffacts，perhapsneverwasexcelled。Asafinalandtangibleproofofhisposition，hebroughtforwardthebodiesofibisesthathadbeenembalmedbytheancientEgyptians，andshowedbycomparisonthatthesedonotdifferintheslightestparticularfromtheibisesthatvisittheNileto-day。

Cuvier’sreasoninghassuchgreathistoricalinterest——beingtheargumentofthegreatestopponentofevolutionofthatday——thatwequoteitatsomelength。

"Thefollowingobjections，"hesays，"havealreadybeenstartedagainstmyconclusions。Whymaynotthepresentlyexistingracesofmammiferouslandquadrupedsbemeremodificationsorvarietiesofthoseancientraceswhichwenowfindinthefossilstate，whichmodificationsmayhavebeenproducedbychangeofclimateandotherlocalcircumstances，andsinceraisedtothepresentexcessivedifferencebytheoperationsofsimilarcausesduringalongperiodofages？

"Thisobjectionmayappearstrongtothosewhobelieveintheindefinitepossibilityofchangeofforminorganizedbodies，andthinkthat，duringasuccessionofagesandbyalterationsofhabitudes，allthespeciesmaychangeintooneanother，oroneofthemgivebirthtoalltherest。Yettothesepersonsthefollowinganswermaybegivenfromtheirownsystem:Ifthespecieshavechangedbydegrees，astheyassume，weoughttofindtracesofthisgradualmodification。Thus，betweenthepalaeotheriumandthespeciesofourownday，weshouldbeabletodiscoversomeintermediateforms；andyetnosuchdiscoveryhaseverbeenmade。Sincethebowelsoftheearthhavenotpreservedmonumentsofthisstrangegenealogy，wehavenorighttoconcludethattheancientandnowextinctspecieswereaspermanentintheirformsandcharactersasthosewhichexistatpresent；or，atleast，thatthecatastrophewhichdestroyedthemdidnotleavesufficienttimefortheproductionsofthechangesthatareallegedtohavetakenplace。

"Inordertoreplytothosenaturalistswhoacknowledgethatthevarietiesofanimalsarerestrainedbynaturewithincertainlimits，itwouldbenecessarytoexaminehowfartheselimitsextend。Thisisaverycuriousinquiry，andinitselfexceedinglyinterestingunderavarietyofrelations，buthasbeenhithertoverylittleattendedto……

Wildanimalswhichsubsistuponherbagefeeltheinfluenceofclimatealittlemoreextensively，becausethereisaddedtoittheinfluenceoffood，bothinregardtoitsabundanceanditsquality。Thustheelephantsofoneforestarelargerthanthoseofanother；theirtusksalsogrowsomewhatlongerinplaceswheretheirfoodmayhappentobemorefavorablefortheproductionofthesubstanceofivory。Thesamemaytakeplaceinregardtothehornsofstagsandreindeer。Butletusexaminetwoelephants，themostdissimilarthatcanbeconceived，weshallnotdiscoverthesmallestdifferenceinthenumberandarticulationsofthebones，thestructureoftheteeth，etc……

"Natureappearsalsotohaveguardedagainstthealterationsofspecieswhichmightproceedfrommixtureofbreedsbyinfluencingthevariousspeciesofanimalswithmutualaversionfromoneanother。Henceallthecunningandalltheforcethatmanisabletoexertisnecessarytoaccomplishsuchunions，evenbetweenspeciesthathavethenearestresemblances。Andwhenthemulebreedsthatarethusproducedbytheseforcedconjunctionshappentobefruitful，whichisseldomthecase，thisfecunditynevercontinuesbeyondafewgenerations，andwouldnotprobablyproceedsofarwithoutacontinuanceofthesamecareswhichexciteditatfirst。Thusweneverseeinawildstateintermediateproductionsbetweenthehareandtherabbit，betweenthestagandthedoe，orbetweenthemartenandtheweasel。Butthepowerofmanchangesthisestablishedorder，andcontinuestoproducealltheseintermixturesofwhichthevariousspeciesaresusceptible，butwhichtheywouldneverproduceiflefttothemselves。

"Thedegreesofthesevariationsareproportionaltotheintensityofthecausesthatproducedthem——namely，theslaveryorsubjectionunderwhichthoseanimalsaretoman。Theydonotproceedfarinhalf-domesticatedspecies。Inthecat，forexample，asofterorharsherfur，morebrilliantormorevariedcolors，greaterorlesssize——theseformthewholeextentofvarietyinthespecies；theskeletonofthecatofAngoradiffersinnoregularandconstantcircumstancesfromthewild-catofEurope……

Themostremarkableeffectsoftheinfluenceofmanareproduceduponthatanimalwhichhehasreducedmostcompletelyundersubjection。Dogshavebeentransportedbymankindintoeverypartoftheworldandhavesubmittedtheiractiontohisentiredirection。Regulatedintheirunionsbythepleasureorcapriceoftheirmasters，thealmostendlessvarietiesofdogsdifferfromoneanotherincolor，inlength，andabundanceofhair，whichissometimesentirelywanting；intheirnaturalinstincts；

insize，whichvariesinmeasureasonetofive，mountinginsomeinstancestomorethanahundredfoldinbulk；intheformoftheirears，noses，andtails；intherelativelengthoftheirlegs；intheprogressivedevelopmentofthebrain，inseveralofthedomesticatedvarietiesoccasioningalterationsevenintheformofthehead，someofthemhavinglong，slendermuzzleswithaflatforehead，othershavingshortmuzzleswithaforeheadconvex，etc。，insomuchthattheapparentdifferencebetweenamastiffandawater-spanielandbetweenagreyhoundandapugdogareevenmorestrikingthanbetweenalmostanyofthewildspeciesofagenus……

Itfollowsfromtheseobservationsthatanimalshavecertainfixedandnaturalcharacterswhichresisttheeffectsofeverykindofinfluence，whetherproceedingfromnaturalcausesorhumaninterference；andwehavenotthesmallestreasontosuspectthattimehasanymoreeffectonthemthanclimate。

"Iamawarethatsomenaturalistslayprodigiousstressuponthethousandswhichtheycancallintoactionbyadashoftheirpens。Insuchmatters，however，ouronlywayofjudgingastotheeffectswhichmaybeproducedbyalongperiodoftimeisbymultiplying，asitwere，suchasareproducedbyashortertime。

WiththisviewIhaveendeavoredtocollectalltheancientdocumentsrespectingtheformsofanimals；andtherearenoneequaltothosefurnishedbytheEgyptians，bothinregardtotheirantiquityandabundance。Theyhavenotonlyleftusrepresentativesofanimals，buteventheiridenticalbodiesembalmedandpreservedinthecatacombs。

"Ihaveexamined，withthegreatestattention，theengravedfiguresofquadrupedsandbirdsbroughtfromEgypttoancientRome，andallthesefigures，onewithanother，haveaperfectresemblancetotheirintendedobjects，suchastheystillareto-day。

"Fromalltheseestablishedfacts，theredoesnotseemtobethesmallestfoundationforsupposingthatthenewgenerawhichI

havediscoveredorestablishedamongextraneousfossils，suchasthepaleoetherium，anoplotherium，megalonyx，mastodon，pterodactylis，etc。，haveeverbeenthesourcesofanyofourpresentanimals，whichonlydiffersofarastheyareinfluencedbytimeorclimate。Evenifitshouldprovetrue，whichIamfarfrombelievingtobethecase，thatthefossilelephants，rhinoceroses，elks，andbearsdonotdifferfurtherfromtheexistingspeciesofthesamegenerathanthepresentracesofdogsdifferamongthemselves，thiswouldbynomeansbeasufficientreasontoconcludethattheywereofthesamespecies；

sincetheracesorvarietiesofdogshavebeeninfluencedbythetrammelsofdomesticity，whichthoseotheranimalsneverdid，andindeednevercould，experience。"[3]

ToCuvier’sargumentfromthefixityofEgyptianmummifiedbirdsandanimals，asabovestated，LamarckrepliedthatthisprovednothingexceptthattheibishadbecomeperfectlyadaptedtoitsEgyptiansurroundingsinanearlyday，historicallyspeaking，andthattheclimaticandotherconditionsoftheNileValleyhadnotsincethenchanged。Histheory，healleged，providedforthestabilityofspeciesunderfixedconditionsquiteaswellasfortransmutationundervaryingconditions。

But，needlesstosay，thepopularverdictlaywithCuvier；talentwonforthetimeagainstgenius，andLamarckwaslookeduponasanimpiousvisionary。Hisfaithneverwavered，however。Hebelievedthathehadgainedatrueinsightintotheprocessesofanimatenature，andhereiteratedhishypothesesoverandover，particularlyintheintroductiontohisHistoireNaturelledesAnimauxsansVertebres，in1815，andinhisSystemedesConnaissancesPositivesdel’Homme，in1820。Helivedontill1829，respectedasanaturalist，butalmostunrecognizedasaprophet。

TENTATIVEADVANCES

WhilethenamesofDarwinandGoethe，andinparticularthatofLamarck，mustalwaysstandoutinhighreliefinthisgenerationastheexponentsoftheideaoftransmutationofspecies，thereareafewotherswhichmustnotbealtogetheroverlookedinthisconnection。OfthesethemostconspicuousisthatofGottfriedReinholdTreviranus，aGermannaturalistphysician，professorofmathematicsinthelyceumatBremen。

ItwasaninterestingcoincidencethatTreviranusshouldhavepublishedthefirstvolumeofhisBiologie，oderPhilosophiederlebendenNatur，inwhichhisviewsonthetransmutationofspecieswereexpounded，in1802，thesametwelvemonthinwhichLamarck’sfirstexpositionofthesamedoctrineappearedinhisRecherchessurl’OrganisationdesCorpsVivants。Itissingular，too，thatLamarck，inhisHydrogelogieofthesamedate，shouldindependentlyhavesuggested"biology"asanappropriatewordtoexpressthegeneralscienceoflivingthings。Itissignificantofthetendencyofthoughtofthetimethattheneedofsuchaunifyingwordshouldhavepresenteditselfsimultaneouslytoindependentthinkersindifferentcountries。

Thatsamememorableyear，LorenzOken，anotherphilosophicalnaturalist，professorintheUniversityofZurich，publishedthepreliminaryoutlinesofhisPhilosophiederNatur，which，asdevelopedthroughlaterpublications，outlinedatheoryofspontaneousgenerationandofevolutionofspecies。Thusitappearsthatthisideawasgerminatinginthemindsofseveraloftheablestmenofthetimeduringthefirstdecadeofourcentury。Butthesingularresultoftheirvariousexplicationswastogivesuddenchecktothatundercurrentofthoughtwhichforsometimehadbeensettingtowardsthisconception。Assoonasitwasmadeclearwhithertheconcessionthatanimalsmaybechangedbytheirenvironmentmustlogicallytrend，therecoilfromtheideawasinstantaneousandfervid。ThenforagenerationCuvierwasalmostabsolutelydominant，andhisverdictwasgenerallyconsideredfinal。

Therewas，indeed，onenaturalistofauthorityinFrancewhohadthehardihoodtostandoutagainstCuvierandhisschool，andwhowasinapositiontogainahearing，thoughbynomeanstodividethefollowing。ThiswasEtienneGeoffroySaint-Hilaire，thefamousauthorofthePhilosophieAnatomique，andformanyyearsthec