The Conditions of Existence as Affecting the Perpetuation of Living Beings Lecture V. (of VI.), "Lectures to Working Men", at the Museum of Practical Geology, 1863, on Darwin's Work: "Origin of Species"

From the opening

Lecture V. (of VI.), Lectures To Working Men, at the Museum of Practical Geology, 1863, On Darwin's work: "Origin of Species".

IN the last Lecture I endeavoured to prove to you that, while, as a general rule, organic beings tend to reproduce their kind, there is in them, also, a constantly recurring tendency to vary--to vary to a greater or to a less extent. Such a variety, I pointed out to you, might arise from causes which we do not understand; we therefore called it spontaneous; and it might come into existence as a definite and marked thing, without any gradations between itself and the form which preceded it. I further pointed out, that such a variety having once arisen, might be perpetuated to some extent, and indeed to a very marked extent, without any direct interference, or without any exercise of that process which we called selection. And then I stated further, that by such selection, when exercised artificially--if you took care to breed only from those forms which presented the same peculiarities of any variety which had arisen in this manner--the variation might be perpetuated, as far as we can see, indefinitely.

The next question, and it is an important one for us, is this: Is there any limit to the amount of variation from the primitive stock which can be produced by this process of selective breeding? In considering this question, it will be useful to class the characteristics, in respect of which organic beings vary, under two heads: we may consider structural characteristics, and we may consider physiological characteristics.

A short sample. Read the whole book

More to read

• A Critical Examination of the Position of Mr. Darwin's Work, "On the Origin of Species," in Relation to the Complete Theory of the Causes of the Phenomena of Organic Nature Lecture VI. (of VI.), "Lectures to Working Men", at the Museum of Practical Geology, 1863, on Darwin's Work: "Origin of SpeciesThomas Henry HuxleyScience25 pages
• A Preliminary Revision of the North American Species of Cactus, Anhalonium, and LophophoraJohn Merle CoulterScience65 pages
• ABC's of ScienceCharles A. OliverScience10 pages
• AeroplanesJames Slough ZerbeScience166 pages
• An Introduction to Chemical ScienceRufus P. WilliamsScience208 pages