of any decided advantage, or when further modified and improved, they would slowly spread and supplant their parent-forms. When such varieties returned to their ancient homes, as they would differ from their former
state, state, 1859 1860 1861 1866 1869 | state 1872 |
in a nearly uniform, though perhaps extremely slight degree,
they they 1859 1860 |
and as they would be found embedded in slightly different sub-stages of the same formation, they 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
would, according to the principles followed by many palæontologists, be ranked as new and distinct species. |
If
then, then, 1859 1860 | then 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
there be some degree of truth in these remarks, we have no right to expect to
find find 1859 1860 1861 | find, 1866 1869 1872 |
in our geological formations, an infinite number of those fine transitional
forms, forms, 1859 1860 | forms 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
which which 1859 1860 | which, 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
on
my my 1859 1860 1861 1866 | our 1869 1872 |
theory theory 1859 1860 | theory, 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
assuredly assuredly 1859 1860 | assuredly 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
have connected all the past and present species of the same group into one long and branching chain of life. We ought only to look for a few links,
some more closely, some more closely, 1859 1860 |
and such assuredly we do find— 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
some more
distantly distantly 1859 1860 | distantly, 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
related related 1859 1860 |
some more closely, related 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
to each other; and these links, let them be ever so close, if found in different stages of the same formation, would, by
most most 1859 1860 | many 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
palæontologists, palæontologists, 1860 1861 1866 1869 1872 | palæonto- logists, 1859 |
be ranked as distinct species. But I do not pretend that I should ever have suspected how poor
a record of the mutations of life, a record of the mutations of life, 1859 1860 |
a record of the mutations of life 1861 1866 |
was the record in 1869 1872 |
the best
preserved preserved 1859 1860 1866 1869 1872 | pre-served 1861 |
geological
section section 1859 1860 1861 1866 | sections, 1869 1872 |
presented, presented, 1859 1860 1861 | would present, 1866 | presented, 1869 1872 |
had not the
difficulty difficulty 1859 1860 1861 1866 | absence 1869 1872 |
of
our not discovering our not discovering 1859 1860 1861 1866 |
OMIT 1869 1872 |
innumerable transitional links between the species which
appeared appeared 1859 1860 1861 1866 | lived 1869 1872 |
at the commencement and close of each formation, pressed so hardly on my theory. |
The abrupt manner in which whole groups of species suddenly appear in certain formations, has been urged by several
palæontologists— palæontologists— 1860 1861 1866 1869 1872 | palæontologists, 1859 |
for instance, by Agassiz, Pictet, and
by none more forcibly than by Professor Sedgwick— by none more forcibly than by Professor Sedgwick— 1860 |
by none more forcibly than by Professor Sedgwick, 1859 |
Sedgwick— 1861 1866 1869 1872 |
as a fatal objection to the belief in the transmutation of species. If numerous species, belonging to the same genera or families, have really
|