Origin of Species Variorum

→ of their descendants, may be supposed to be 1859 1860 1861 1866

OMIT 1869 1872

→ to be as fine as 1859 1860 1861 1866

not greater than 1869 1872

→ or these parents from their ancient and unknown progenitor. 1859 1860 1861 1866

and descendants. 1869 1872

→ on 1859 1860 1861 1866

would be natural; for, on 1869 1872

→ from A, or from I, 1859 1860 1861 1866

for instance, from A, 1869 1872

→ We shall certainly 1859 1860

We shall assuredly 1861 1866

Assuredly we shall 1869 1872

→ many descendants from 1859 1860 1861 1866

descendants from 1869

descendants from any 1872

→ although having few characters in common, 1859 1860 1861

although having but few characters in common, 1866

OMIT 1869 1872

link in each branch and sub-branch →of their descendants, may be supposed to be still alive; and the links →to be as fine as those between

existing

the finest

varieties. In this case it would be quite impossible to give

~~any~~

any

definitions

definition

by which the several members of the several groups could be distinguished from their more immediate

parents

parents;

→or these parents from their ancient and unknown progenitor. Yet the

~~natural~~

natural

arrangement in the diagram would still hold

good

good;

and

and,

→on the principle of inheritance, all the forms

descended,

descended

→from A, or from I, would have something in common. In a tree we can

distinguish

specify

this or that branch, though at the actual fork the two unite and blend together. We could not, as I have said, define the several groups; but we could pick out types, or forms, representing most of the characters of each group, whether large or small, and thus give a general idea of the value of the differences between them. This is what we should be driven to, if we were ever to succeed in collecting all the forms in any

one class

class

which have lived throughout all time and space. →We shall certainly never succeed in making so perfect a collection: nevertheless, in certain classes, we are tending

towards

this

end;

direction;

and Milne Edwards has lately insisted, in an able paper, on the high importance of looking to types, whether or not we can separate and define the groups to which such types belong.

Finally, we have seen that natural selection, which

follows

results

from the struggle for existence, and which almost inevitably

leads to

induces

extinction and divergence of character in the →many descendants from one

~~dominant~~

dominant

parent-species, explains that great and universal feature in the affinities of all organic beings, namely, their

sub-ordination

subordination

in group under group. We use the element of descent in classing the individuals of both sexes and of all

ages

ages,

→although having few characters in common,