Origin of Species Variorum

→ beneath the Silurian strata, 1859 1860

beneath the Silurian strata,— 1861

rich in fossils beneath the Silurian strata,— 1866

rich in fossils beneath the Cambrian strata,— 1869 1872

→ plainest manner by the 1859 1860

OMIT 1861 1866 1869 1872

→ I have reason to believe that one great authority, 1859 1860 1861

it is evident from the recent works of 1866

OMIT 1869 1872

→ from further reflexion entertains grave doubts on this subject. 1859 1860

from further reflection entertains grave doubts on this subject. 1861

that he now almost gives up this view; and some other great geologists and palæontologists are much shaken in their confidence. 1866

now gives the support of his high authority to the opposite side; and most other geologists and palæontologists are much shaken in their former belief. 1869

now gives the support of his high authority to the opposite side; and most geologists and palæontologists are much shaken in their former belief. 1872

→ think the natural 1859 1860 1861

believe that the 1866 1869 1872

→ and who do not attach much weight to the facts and arguments of other kinds given in this volume, 1859 1860 1861

OMIT 1866 1869 1872

→ in which the history is supposed to be written, being 1859 1860

in which the history is written, being 1861

being 1866

OMIT 1869 1872

→ apparently abruptly changed 1859 1860 1861

OMIT 1866 1869 1872

→ entombed 1859 1860 1861 1866

which are entombed 1869 1872

→ but widely separated, formations. 1860 1861

but widely separated formations. 1859

but widely separated formations, which falsely appear to have been abruptly transformed. 1866

formations, and which falsely appear to us to have been abruptly introduced. 1869 1872

in which

several whole

several

whole

groups of species

first appeared

first appear

appear

in our European

formations;—

formations;

the almost entire absence, as at present known, of

~~fossiliferous~~

fossiliferous

formations →beneath the Silurian strata, are all undoubtedly of the

most serious

gravest

nature. We see this in the →plainest manner by the fact that

~~all~~

all

the most eminent palæontologists,

namely,

namely

Cuvier,

Owen,

....

Agassiz, Barrande,

Pictet, Falconer,

Falconer,

E. Forbes ,

&c,

&c.,

and all our greatest geologists, as Lyell, Murchison, Sedgwick,

&c.,

have unanimously, often vehemently, maintained the immutability of species. But →I have reason to believe that one great authority, Sir Charles

Lyell

Lyell,

→from further reflexion entertains grave doubts on this subject. I feel how rash it is to differ from

these great

the foregoing

these

authorities, to whom, with others, we owe all our knowledge. Those who →think the natural geological record

is in

any degree perfect, →and who do not attach much weight to the facts and arguments of other kinds given in this volume, will undoubtedly at once reject

the

theory. For my part, following out

Lyell's

Lyells

metaphor, I look at the

~~natural~~

natural

geological

record

record,

as a history of the world imperfectly kept, and written in a changing dialect; of this history we possess the last volume alone, relating only to two or three countries. Of this volume, only here and there a short chapter has been preserved; and of each page, only here and there a few lines. Each word of the slowly-changing

language

language,

→in which the history is supposed to be written, being more or less different in the

~~interrupted~~

interrupted

successive

succession

chapters, may represent the →apparently abruptly changed forms of life, →entombed in our

consecutive

consecutive,

→but widely separated, formations. On this view, the difficulties above discussed are greatly diminished, or even disappear.