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Lyell letter to Wollaston Jun 1856 Thinks rudimentary organs the reacquirement of what was lost.

I see more & more how necessary it will be to consider cases of many species being given up, & yet some retained. Wollaston, Lyell Woodward A de Decandolle.

Lyell argues that we do not get back any very appreciable degree nearer to the old age of land connexion between India & P. Santos in the land calc. beds, because the percentage of identical species in the fossil & recent shells is nearly the same – yet say these calc. beds in antiquity are as nothing compared to Miocene.

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Lyell says that in the transmutationists the weakest point is the appearance of fresh organs. True, but what an example (Oh how weak for he instances tail, that man might get tail by wishing, because he has rudiment – but how first get the vertebræ – oh oh  look at increase in vertebræ – if he means how ever get vertebræ, I have nothing to so with it.

L. thinks that certain analogues conditions contrast the laws which produces species that then are closely affiliated. And such analogy is not likely to occur in very distant country or times. Think of affiliated species all over a continent.

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Lyell in a letter to Wollaston Jun 56 says Helix labyrinthus now has wide range in N. America & was an Eocene British fossil. I do not here understand they everywhere distributed.