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V

THE

DESCENT OF MAN,

AXD

SELECTION IN RELATION TO SEX.

BY

CIIAPwLES DARWIN, M. A., F. R. S., Etc.

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS.

IN TWO VOLUMES. — Vol. I.

N W Y ( ) W IC :
1). A I' 1' I, ]•: T () N AND COMPAXV,
649 & r>51 nilOADWAV.
1871.

library of
The Church CoMege of
Ha wan

CONTENTS.

Introduction, . Page 1

PART I.

THE DESCENT OR ORIGIN OF MAN.
J CHAPTER I.

THE EVIDEKCE OF TUE DESCENT OF MAN FROM SOME LOWEK FOKM.

Nature of the Evidence bearing on the Origin of Man. — Homologous stmct-
ures in Man and the Lower Animals. — Miscellaneous Points of Corre-
spondence.— Development. — Rudimentary Structures, Muscles, Sense-
organs, Hair, Bones, Reproductive Organs, etc. — TheBeanng of these
three great Classes of Facts on the Origin of Man, . . . p. 9

CHAPTER II.

COMPARISON OF THE MENTAL POWERS OF MAJ( AND TUE LOWER ANIMALS.

The Difference in Mental Power between the Highest Ape and the Lowest
Savage, immense. — Certain Instincts in common. — The Emotions. —
Curiosity. — Imitation. — Attention. — Memory. — Imagination. — Reason.
— Progressive Improvement. — Tools and Weapons used by Animals.
— Language. — Self-Consciousness. — Sense of Beauty. — Belief in God,
Spiritual Agencies, Superstitions, p. 33

CHAPTER III.

COMPARISON OF THE MENTAL POWERS OF MAN AND THE LOWER ANIMALS —

continued.

The Moral Sense. — FutHlnmcntal Proposition. — The Qualities of Social
Animals. — Origin of SociaMlity. — Struggle bctwci-n Opposed Iii-
Htincts. —Man u Social Animal. — Tiw^ morn rnduriiig Social InstinolK
oonipicr other less Persistent Instincts. — The Social Virtues aloiio ro-

iv

CONTEXTS.

gardcd by Savages. — Tlie Self-regarding Virtues acquired at a Later
Stage of Development. — The Importance of the Judgment of tlie
Members of the same Community on Conduct. — Transmission of
Moral Tendencies. — Summary, P^ge 67

^CHAPTEE IV.

ON THE MANNER OF DEVELOPMEITT OF MAN FROM SOME LOWER FORM.

Variability of Body and Mind in Man. — Inheritance. — Causes of Varia-
bility.— Laws of Variation the same in Man as in the Lower Animals.
— ^Direct Action of the Conditions of Life. — Effects of the Increased
Use and Disuse of Parts. — Arrested Development. — Eeversion. — Cor-
related Variation. — Eate of Increase. — Checks to Increase. — Natural
Selection. — Man the most Dominant Animal in the World. — Impor-
tance of his Corporeal Structure. — The Causes which have led to his
becoming erect. — Consequent Changes of Structure. — Decrease in
Size of the Canine Teeth. — Increased Size and Altered Shape of the
Skull. — Nakedness. — Absence of a Tail. — Defenceless Condition of
Man, p. 103

CHAPTEE V.

ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE INTELLECTUAL AND MORAL FACULTIES
DURING PRIMEVAL AND CIVILIZED TIMES.

The Advancement of the Intellectual Powers through Natural Selection. —
Importance of Imitation. — Social and Moral Faculties. — Their Develop-
ment within the Limits of the same Tribe. — Natural Selection as af-
fecting Civilized Nations. — Evidence that Civilized Nations were once
barbarous, p. 152

CHAPTEE VL

ON THE AFFINITIES AND GENEALOGY OF MAN.

Position of Man in the Animal Series. — The Natural System genealogical.
— Adaptive Characters of Slight Value. — Various Small Points of Ee-
semblance between Man and the Quadrumana. — Eank of Man in the
Natural System. — Birthplace and Antiquity of Man. — Absence of
Fossil Connecting-links. — ^Lower Stages in the Genealogy of Man, as
inferred, firstly from his Affinities and secondly from his Structure. —
Early Androgynous Condition of the Vcrtcbratu. — Conclusion, p. 178

CONTENTS.

V

VcHAPTEE VII.

ON THE KACES OF MAN.

The Nature and Value of Specific Characters. — Application to tlie Eaces
of Man. — Arguments in favor of, and opposed to, ranking the So-
called Eaces of Man as Distinct Species. — Sub-species. — Monogenists
and Poljgenists. — Convergence of Character. — Numerous Points of
Eesemblanco in Body and Mind between the most Distinct Eaces of
Man. — The State of Man when lie first spread over the Earth. — Each
Eace not descended from a Single Pair. — The Extinction of Eaces. —
The Formation of Eaces. — The Efi'ects of Crossing. — Slight Influence
of the Direct Action of the Conditions of Life. — Slight or no Influence
of Natural Selection. — Sexual Selection, .... page 20C

PART II.

SEXUAL SELECTION.
CIIAPTEE VIII.

miNCirLES OF SEXUAL SELECTION.

Secondary Sexual Characters. — Sexual Selection. — Manner of Action. —
Excess of Males. — Polygamy. — The Male alone generally modified
through Sexual Selection. — Eagerness of the Male. — Variability of
the Male. — Choice exerted by the Female. — Sexual compared with
Natural Selection. — Inheritance, at Corresponding Periods of Life, at
Corresponding Seasons of the Year, and as limited by Sex. — Eelationa
between the Several Forms of Inheritance. — Causes why one Sex and
the Young are not modified through Sexual Selection. — SupplemcHt ou
the Proportional Numbers of the two Sexes throughout the Animal
Kingdom. — On the Limitation of the Numbers of the two Sexes
through Natural Selection, . . i . . . . p. 215

CIIAPTEE IX.

BEOONDAUT SEXUAL CnAItACTERS IN THE LOWER CLASSES OF TUF. AMM.VL

KINGDOM.

These Characters absent in the Lowest Clusses. — Brilliai>t Colors. — Mol-
lnsca. — Aiincruls. — Crustacea, Secondary Sexual Cluiractcra strongly
d(!veloped; Dimorphism; ('olor; Cliaraotcrs not acquirod boforo
Maturity.— Spiders, Sexual Colors of; Stridulation by the Muloa. —
Myiliipoda, 1>. 31'J

vi

CONTENTS.

CIIAPTEli X.

8EC0NDABY SEXUAL CUABACTERa OF INSECTS.

Divcr.sificd Structures possessed by the Males for seizing the Females.—
Differences between the Sexes, of which the Meaning is not under-
stood.— Difference in Size between the Sexes. — Thysanura. — Diptera.
— Ilemiptera. — Homoptera, Musical Powers possessed by the Males
alone. — Orthoptera, Musical Instruments of the Males, much diversi-
fied in Structure ; Pugnacity ; Colors. — Neuroptera, Sexual Differences
in Color. — Ilymenoptera, Pugnacity and Colors. — Coleoptera, Colors ;
furnished with Great llorns, apparently as an Ornament ; Battles ;
Stridulating Organs generally common to Both Sexes, . page 331

CHAPTER XL

INSECTS, continued. — order LEriDonEEA.

Courtship of Butterflies.— Battles.— Ticking Noise.— Colors common to
Both Sexes, or more brilliant in the Males. — Examples. — Not due to
the Direct Action of the Conditions of Life. — Colors adapted for Pro-
tection.— Colors of Moths. — Display. — Perceptive Powers of the Lepi-
doptera. — Variability. — Causes of the Difference in Color between
the Males and Females. — Municry, Female Butterflies more brilliantly
colored than the Males. — Bright Colors of Caterpillars. — Summary
and Concluding Eemarks on the Secondary Sexual Characters of In-
Bccts.— Birds and Insects compared, . .... p. S74

INTRODUCTION.

TnE nature of the following work will be best under-
stood bj a brief account of how it came to be written.
During many years I collected notes on the origin or
descent of man, without any intention of publishing on
the subject, but rather with the determination not to
puljlish, as I thought that I should thus only add to
the prejudices against my views. It seemed to me sutH-
cient to indicate, in the first edition of my * Origin of
Species,' that by this work " light would bo thrown on
the origin of man and his history;" and this implies
that man must be inclu<lcd with other organic beings in
any general conclusion rcsi)ecting his manner of appcur-
anco on this eartli. Xow the case wears a wholly dit-
ferent aspect. When u naturalist like Carl Vogt ven-
tures to say in his address as President of the National
Institution of Geneva (18C0), "personne, en Kun)|H»
au moins, n^oso plus soutcnir la cr6ation inde)MMidanto
ct do toutoa pieces, dca csp^cw," it JiimafnO-^t tb it at

2

INTRODUCTION.

least a large number of naturalists m::st admit that
species are the modified descendants of other species ;
and this especially holds good with the younger and
rising naturalists. The greater number accept the
agency of natural selection ; though some urge, whether
with justice the future must decide, that I have greatly
overrated its importance. Of the older and honored
chiefs in natural science, many unfortunately are still
opposed to evolution in every form.

In consequence of the views now adopted by most
naturalists, and which will ultimately, as in every other
case, be followed by other men, I have been led to put
together my notes, so as to see how far the general
conclusions arrived at in my former works were appli-
cable to man. This seemed all the more desirable
as I had never deliberately applied these views to a
species taken singly. When we confine our attention
to any one form, we are deprived of the weighty argu-
ments derived frdin the nature of the affinities which
connect together whole groups of organisms — their geo-
graphical distribution in past and present times, and
their geological succession. The homological structure,
embryological development, and rudimentary organs of
a species, whether it be man or any other animal, to
which our attention may be directed, remain to be con-
sidered ; but these great classes of facts afford, as it
appears to me, ample and conclusive evidence in favor
of the principle of gradual evolution. The strong sup-

INTRODUCTION.

3

port derived from tlie otlidt arguments sliould, however,
always be kept before the mind.

The sole object of this work is to consider, fii*stly,
whether man, like every other species, is descended
from some preexisting form ; secondly, the manner of
his development ; and thirdly, the value of the difler-
ences between the so-called races of man. As I shall
confine myself to these points, it will not be necessary
to describe in detail the differences between the several
races — an enormous subject, which has been fully dis-
cussed in many valuable works. The high antiquity of
man has recently been demonstrated by the labors
of a host of eminent men, beginning with M. Boucher
de Perthes ; and this is the indispensable basis for
understanding his origin. I shall, therefore, take this
conclusion for granted, and may refer my readers to
the admirable treatises of Sir Charles Lyell, Sir John
Lubbock, and others. Nor shall I have occasion to do
more than to allude to the amount of difference between
man and the anthropomorphous apes ; for Prof. Huxley,
in the opinion of most competent judges, has conclu-
Bively sliown that in every single visible character man
differs loss from the higher apes than these do from tlio
lower members of the same order of Primates.

Tliiti work contains hardly any original facts in
regard to man ; but, the conclusions at which I
irrived, alter drawing uj) a rough dratt, appearc<l to
me interesting, I thought that they miglit interest

4

INTRODUCTION.

others. It lias often and confidently been asserted, that
man's origin can never be known : but ignorance more
frequently begets confidence than does knowledge : it is
those who know little, and not those who know much,
who so positively assert that this or that problem will
never be solved by science. The conclusion that man is
the co-descendant with other species of some ancient,
lower, and extinct form, is not in any degree new. La-
marck long ago came to this conclusion, which has lately
been maintained by several eminent naturalists and
philosophers ; for instance, by "Wallace, Huxley, Lyell,
Yogt, Lubbock, Buchner, Rolle, etc.,' and especially by
Ilackel. This last naturalist, besides his great work,
*Generclle Morphologic' (1866), has recently (1868,
with a second edit. 1870) published his * IS'atiirliche
Schopfungsgeschichte,' in which he fully discusses the
genealogy of man. If this work had appeared before

* As the works of the first-named authors are so well known, I need
not give the titles ; but, as those of the latter are less well known in
England, I will give them : ' Sechs Vorlesungen iiber die Darwin'sche
Theorie : ' zwiete Auflage, 1868, von Dr. L. Biichner ; translated into
French under the title 'Conferences sur la Theorie Darwinienne,' 1869.
'Der Mensch, im Lichte der Darwin'sche Lehre,' 1865, von Dr. F. RoUe.
I will not attempt to give references to all the authors who have taken
the same side of the question. Thus G. Canestrini has published (' An-
nuario della Soc. d. Nat.,' Modcna, 1867, p. 81) a very curious paper on
rudimentary characters, as bearing on the origin of man. Another work
has (1869) been published by Dr. Barrago Francesco, bearing in Italian
the title of " Man, made in the image of God, was also made in the image
of the ape."

INTRODUCTION.

5

my essay had been written, I should probably never
have completed it. Almost all the conclusions at which
I have arrived I find confirmed by this naturalist, whose
knowledge on many points is much fuller than mine.
Wherever I have added any fact or view from Prof.
Ilackel's writings, I give his authority in the text, other
statements I leave as they originally stood in my manu-
script, occasionally giving in the foot-notes references
to his works, as a confirmation of the more doubtful or
interesting points.

During many years it has seemed to me highly
probable that sexual selection has played an important
part in difierentiating the races of man; but in my
* Origin of Species ' (first edition, p. 199) I contented
myself by merely alluding to this belief. When I came
to apply this view to man, I found it indispensable tu
treat the whole subject in full detail." Consequently
the second part of the present work, treating of sexual
selection, has extended to an inordinate length, com-
pared with the first part ; but this could not ])C
avoided.

I had intended adding to the present volumes an
essay on the expression of the various emotions by ni:m
and the lower animals. My attention was called to this
piibject niany.years ago by Sir Cliarles Heirs aduiirablo

' I'rof. Iliickel ifl the hoIc iiullioi- wljo, hIuco tlio puMu uiiun of llio
'Orlf^in,' linH diMouHScd, in \i\n vurioiirt workn, in a very nhio nianiuT, tlio
■uhjcct ofMuxual Bcloctiun, luul linn Hocn itH full importance.

G

INTRODUCTION.

work. This illustrious anatomist maintains tliat man
is endowed witli certain muscles solely for tlie sake
of expressing his emotions. As this view is obviously
opposed to the belief that man is descended from some
other and lower form, it was necessary for me to con-
sider it. I likewise wished to ascertain how far the
emotions are expressed in the same manner by the dif-
ferent races of man. But, owing to the length of the
present work, I have tliought it better to reserve my
essay, which is partially completed, for separate pub-
lication.

PAKT I.

THE DESCENT OR ORIGIN OF MAN.

THE DESOET^T OF

CIIAPTEll I.

Till: KVIDKNCE OV THE DESCENT OF MAN FK< >M SOME

LOWER FOIIM.

Niitiire of.tlio Evidence bearing on the Origin of Man. — Homologous struct-
ures in Man and the Lower Animals. — Miscellaneous Points of C'orre-
Hpoudence. — Development. — Kudimcntary Structures, Muscles, Sense-
organs, Hair, Bones, Reproductive Organs, etc. — Tbo Bearing of theso
throe great Classes of Facts on the Origin of Man.

He who wishes to decide wlicther man is tlie modiliod
(h'sccnduiit of some preexistini; form, Avoiild prolmbly lirst
iiMininj whether man varies, liowever sliglitly, in bodily
Klru(;turo and in mental faenlties ; and if so, whetlirr the
variations are transmitted to his olVspring in accordance
with tiiii hiws which jircvail with the lower animals; such
as that of the transniissi«»n of eliaracters to the same ai^e
or sex. Again, are the variations the result, as far as our
ignorance j)ermits us to judge, of the same general causes,
and ari! they governed by tlie same general laws, as in the
case of other organisms; for instance, by correlation, the
inherited eflects of use and disuse, etc. ? Is man subject, to
similar malconforinations, the result of arresteil develop-
ment, of nMluplication of jiarls, etc., antl diK's ho ilisphiy
in any of his aliomalies reversi«>n to some former and an-
v'lrui type »»f Htruclun ? Ii might also naturally b«' in-

10

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

quired whether man, like so many other animals, has given
rise to varieties and sub-races, differing but slightly from
each other, or to races differing so much that they must be
classed as doubtful species ? How are such races distrib-
uted over the world ; and how, when crossed, do they react
on each other, both in the first and succeeding genera-
tions ? And so with many other points.

The inquirer would next come to the important point,
whether man tends to increase at so rapid a rate, as to
lead to occasional severe struggles for existence, and con-
sequently to beneficial variations, whether in body or
mind, being preserved, and injurious ones eliminated. Do
the races or species of men, whichever term may be aj)-
plied, encroach on and replace each other, so that some
finally become extinct? We shall see that all these ques-
tions, as indeed is obvious in respect to most of them,
•must be answered in the affirmative, in the same manner
as with the lower animals. But the several considerations
just referred to may be conveni(^ntly deferred for a time ;
and we will first see how far the bodily structure of man
shows traces, more or less plain, of his descent from some
lower form. In the two succeeding chapters the mental
powers of man, in comparison with those of the lower
animals, will be considered.

Tlie Dodily Structure of Man. — It is notorious tliat
man is constructed on the same general type or model
with other mammals. All the bones in his skeleton can
be compared with corresponding bones in a monkey, bat,
or seal. So it is with his muscles, nerves, blood-vessels,
and internal viscera. Tlie brain, the most important of
all the organs, follows the same law, as shown by Huxley
and other anatomists. Bischoff,' who is a hostile witness,
admits that every chief fissure and fold in the brain of

' (jrossbiruwiuduDgcu dcs Mciicbcn,' 18G8, s. 90.

Chap. I.]

nOMOLOGICAL STRUCTURE,

11

inaii has its analogy in that of the oraiig ; but lie adds
tliat at no period of development do their brains perfectly
ai^ree; nor could this be expected, for otherwise their
mental powers would have been the same. Vulpian' re-
marks: "Les differences reelles qui existent entrc I'enee-
])liale de I'homme ct celui des singes superieurs, sout bien
minimes. II ne faut pas se faire d'illusions k cct egard.
]/hommc est bien plus pres des singes anthropomorphes
]»ar les caract^res anatomiques de son cerveau que ceux-ci

Ai lo sont non-seulement des autres niammifi-reg, mais
iiiCmcs de certains quadrunianes, des guenons et des ma-
caques.'' I5ut it would be supertluous here to give fur-
ther details on the correspondence between man and the
liiglier mammals in the structure of the brain and all
' iher parts of the body.

It may, however, be worth while to specify a few
points, not directly or obviously connected with struct* •
lire, by which this correspondence or relationship is well

liown.

Mai» is liable to receive from the lower animals, and to

"nimunii ate to them, certain diseases, as hy<lrophobi:i,
wirinla, the glan<lers, etc. ; and this fact ]»roves the close
Mmilarit v of tlieir tissues and blood, lK»th in niinute struct-

re and composition, far more plainly than does their coni-
I arifton under the best microscope, or by tl»o aid of tho

•«t chemical analysis. M«>nki>yB are liable to many of
the same noiwontagiouH disea««es as we are ; thus Heii^
j;er,* who carefully obsened for a long time the (

\zanB in itM native land, found it liable to catarrh, utili
liH" UMual symptoms, and which when often recurrent le<l
• • ronHumplion. These monkeys sulVere*! also from n|»o-

l«'xy, ii\tlammation of the bowels, and cataract in (^•

• 'l^. fur U V\ 1 by II. DalW, • 1. •

12

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

The younger ones when shedding their milk-teeth often
died from fever. Medicines produced the same efiect on
them as on us. Many kinds of monkeys have a strong
tustc for tea, coffee, and spirituous liquors : they will also,
as I have myself seen, smoke tobacco with pleasure.
IJri'lim asserts that the natives of nortlieastern Africa
catch the wild baboons by exposing vessels with strong
beer, by which they are made drunk. lie has seen some
of these animals, which he kept in confinement, m this
state; and he gives a laughable account of their behavior
and strange grimaces. On the following morning they
wore very cross and dismal ; they held their aching heads
with both hands and wore a most j)itiable expression ;
when beer or wine was offered them, they turned away
with disgust, but relished the juice of lemons.* An Amer-
ican monkey, an Ateles, after getting drunk on brandy,
would never touch it again, and thus was wiser than many
men. These trifling facts prove how similar the nerves
of taste must be in monkeys and man, and how similarly
their whole nervous system is affected.

Man is infested with internal parasites, sometimes
causing fatal effects, and is plagued by external parasites,
all of which belong to the same genera or families with
those infesting other mammals. Man is subject like other
mammals, birds, and even insects, to that mysterious law,
which causes certain normal processes, such as gestation,
as well as the maturation and duration of various diseases,
to follow lunar periods.' His wounds are rej)aired by the
same process of healing ; and the stumps left after the

* Brohm, ' Thicrleben,' B. i. 1864, b. 75, 80. On the Atelcs, s. 105.
For other analogous statements, see 8. 25, 107.

' Witli respect to insects see Dr. Laycock 'On a General Law of
Vital Periodicity,' Brititth Association, 1842. Dr. Macculloch, ♦Silliinan's
North American Journal of Science,' vol. xvii. p. 305, has seen a dog suf-
fering from tertiun ague.

Ciup. I.]

nOMOLOGICAL STKU(,TCRE.

13

amputation of his limbs occasionally possess, ( My
<liirin^ an early embryonic perir>d, some power ol regen-
eration, a.s in the lowest animals.*

The whole process of that most important function,
the reproduction of the species, is strikingly the same in
all mammals, from the first act of courtship by the male*
to the birth and nurturing of the young. Monkeys are
born in almost as helpless a condition as our own infants ;
and in certain genera the young dificr fully as much in
a])p( arance from the adults, as do our children from their
full-grown parents.* It has been urged by some writem
■A< an important distinction, that with man the young
arrive at maturity at a much later age than with any other
animal : but if we look to the races of mankind which
inhabit tropical countiies the difference is not groat, for
tlie orang is believed not to bo adult till the age of from
ten to fifteen years,* Man differs from woman in six**,
bodily strength, hairyness, etc., as well as in mind, in the
same manner as do the two sexes of many mammaU. It
in, in short, scarcely (>oKsiblo to exaggerate the cIoM cor-

* I hare t^rm th« eridaoM oo ihia heud In mj * VaH«lkm of AnloHili
tikit IlintJi I •aattUostkm,' vol il. p. 1ft.

^ **IUm u uncnk furibos QuAdramaaonuxi hum aublo dlgaotcaal
frmhiM InuBUMU a muOsm. riliniii, ertdo, odorata, poatm Mycin.
Mr. Youait, qui dia In llortk Zoologkk (BMtUHU) mrdkos mlmsfaw
• r«t, vir lo rebuj obaer • i» H Mfts, boo mlhl oertlMhM pro*

i«t1i, oi owmlofM ^lUKitm iiM.t c; afii • niaislris coainmvtnBL Bir
Andrew flniHli •! Bfobm notebtal U«m te CjmnwptiiVi. DMrisiiMi

> l«r rtUm Mrrml mutu de boo ra qa4 ol opfasor oibll taqibM polort
• r oamlo bowhiitmi •! QuaUninMak tfiomwmli. Narroi «obo
« j iKKvpliaki qiiilaHi hi ftHOii tookioro aipacte tmkmgwm oBgionuis
•''•I mifmqimm ■ooiodl uaio hw ob fmaJbm. iMipor •Igibol Jo*
I rr«, r« dl(BOM«bol in lortio, H adrucoboi vooo goaloqoo.**

* Tttb romorb U m* ' oipbobM v

wtrpktom opos by Ooufliuj A«u*i-ii»«^4« f, OovWr, * iiuu .s*k >im

.0 Nalor*,' ISU. p. M.

14

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

respondcncc in general structure, in the minute structure
of the tissues, in chemical composition, and in constitution,
between man and the higher animals, especially the an-
thropomorphous apes.

Emhryonic Development. — Man is developed from an
ovule, about the 125th of an inch in diameter, which
differs in no respect from the ovules of other animals.
The embryo itself at a very early period can hardly be
distinguished from that of other members of the verte-
brate kingdom. At this period the arteries run in arch-
like branches, as if to carry the blood to branchiaj which
are not present in the higher vertebrata, though the slits
on the sides of the neck still remain (/", <7, fig. 1), marking
their former position. At a somewhat later period, when
the extremities are developed, "the feet of lizards and
mammals," as the illustrious Von. Bacr remarks, "the
wings and feet of birds, no less than the hands and feet
of man, all arise from the same fundamental form." It
is, says Prof. Huxley," " quite in the latter stages of de-
velopment that the young human being presents marked
differences from the young ajic, while the latter departs as
much from the dog in its developments, as the man does.
Startling as this last assertion may appear to be, it is de-
monstrably true."

As some of my readers may never have seen a draw-
ing of an embryo, I have given one of man and another
of a dog, at about the same early stage of development,
carefully copied from two works of undoubted accuracy."

'0 ' Man's Place in Nature,' 1863, p. 07.

" The human embryo (upper fig.) is from Ecker, * Icones Phys.,*
1851-1859, tab. xxx. fig. 2. This embryo was ten lines in length, so that
the drawing is much magnified. The embryo of the dog is from Bi-
Bchoff, * Entwicklungsgcschichte des Hunde-Eies,' 1845, tab. xi. fig. 42 n.
This drawing is five times magnified, the embryo being 25 days old. The

Chat. I.]

EilBRYOXIC DEVELOPMEN T.

15

I'lU. 1.— Upper igVO liamail cni(>rTn. Otir:

I

a. Foro brmin, oorvbrmi boinl«i>UorM. | f. I

ladrlirrmlnt

IG

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

After the foregoing statements made by such high
authorities, it woukl be superfluous on my part to give a
number of borrowed details, showing that the embryo of
man closely resembles that of other mammals. It may,
however, be added that the human embryo likewise resem-
bles in various points of structure certain low forms when
adult. For instance, the heart at first exists as a simple
pulsating vessel ; the excreta are voided through a cloacal
passage ; and the os coccyx projects like a true tail, " ex-
tending considerably beyond the rudimentary legs." " In
the embryos of all air-breathing vertebrates, certain glands
called the corpora Wolftiana, correspond with and act like
the kidneys of mature fishes." Even at a later embryo-
nic period, some striking resemblances between man and
the lower animals may be observed. Bischoff says that
the convolutions of the brain in a human foetus at the end
of the seventh month reach about the same stage of de-
velopment as in a baboon w^hen adult." The great toe,
as Prof. Owen remarks," " which forms the fulcrum when
standing or walking, is perhaps the most characteristic
])eculiarity in the human structure;" but in an embryo,
about an inch in length, Prof. Wyman " found that the
great toe was shorter than the others, and, instead of be-
ing parallel to them, projected at an angle from the side
of the foot, thus corresponding with the permanent condi-

intcrnal viscera have becu omitted, and the titerinc appendages in botli
drawings removed. I was directed to these fibres by Prof. Huxley,
from whose work, ' Man's Place in Nature,* the idea of giving them was
taken. Ilackel has also given analogous drawings in his 'Schopfungs-
geschichte.'

" Prof. Wyman in ' Proc. of American Acad, of Sciences,' vol. iv.
1800, p. 17.

" Owen, 'Anatomy of Vctebrates,' vol. i. p. 533

'* 'Die Grosshimwindungen des Menschen,' 1808, s. 95

'5 ' Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol. ii. p. 553.

»« 'Proc. Soc. Nat. Ilist.' Boston, 1803, vol. ix. p. 185.

Chap I.]

RUDIMENT.^.

lion of this part in tlie quadruniana." 1 will conciu<le with
a quotation from Huxley," who, after asking, does man
originate in a diflVrent way from a dog, bird, frog, or fish ?
gays, " the reply is not doubtful for a moment ; without
question, the mode of origin and the early stages of the
development of man arc identical with those of the ani-
mals immediately below him in the scale : without a doubt
in these respects, he is far nearer to apes, than tlie ^HiS
arc to the dog."

Rudiments. — Tliis subject, though not intrinsically
more important than the last two, will f«jr several rea«ons
be liere treated with more fulness." Not one of the
higher animals can ]>c named which does not bear somo
l>art in a rudimentary con<lition; and man forms no ex-
ption to the rule. Kudimentary organs must be dis-
tinguished from tliose that are nascent; though in somo
ist s the distinction is not easy. The former are either
•solutely useless, such as the mamm:o of male r|u.id-
riqM <ls, or the incisor te«ah of ruminants which neviT cut
through the gums; or they are of such slight service to
their pn-sent |>o8ses»iors, that we cannot suppose tliat tlicy
w« re devclojKd under the conditions which now t.
Organfi in this hitter Htat<» are not strictly rudimentary,
but they are tending in tliis dire<'tion. Nascent organs,
on tlie otlier hand, tliougli not fully developed, are of high
service to their |M)HsesH<)n«, and are capable of further t!c-
Vrlopni' Kuilim 'v vari;»^

Slid thi.i 1.^ partly inli i»i^»i<.» , i . i , .a > u.^*. i*. or nr. 4. .\

' i tV'- . ' r- • r l '-^ .-A '"• • t > ^!»^.

ftM< |M|t< r, ' ' »•
iiiiailo drlU Hoc. d. N»' i^?. p. SI K by U. •

18

TDE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut I.

useless, and consequently are no longer subjected to nat-
ural selection. They often become wholly suppressed.
"When tliis occurs, they are nevertheless liable to occa-
sional reappearance through reversion ; and this is a cir-
cumstance well worthy of attention.

Disuse at that period of life, when an organ is chiefly
used, and this is generally during maturity, together with
inheritance at a corresponding period of life, seem to have
been the chief agents in causing orgarfs to become rudi-
mentary. The term " disuse " does not relate merely to
the lessened action of muscles, but includes a diminished
flow of blood to a j^art or organ, from being subjected to
fewer alternations of pressure, or from becoming in any
way less habitually active. Rudiments, however, may
occur in one sex of parts normally present in the other
sex ; and such rudiments, as we shall hereafter sec, have
often originated in a distinct manner. In some cases or-
gans have been reduced by means of natural selection,
from having become injurious to the species under changed
habits of life. The process of reduction is probably often
aided through the two principles of compensation and
economy of growth ; but the later stages of reduction,
after disuse has done all that can fairly be attributed to it,
and when the saving to be eff*ectcd by the economy of i
growth would be very small,'" are difficult to understand. I
The final and complete suppression of a part, already use- I
less and much reduced in size, in which case neither com-
pensation nor economy can come into play, is perhaps in-
telligible by the aid of the hypothesis of pangenesis, and
apparently in no other way. But as the whole subject of
rudimentary organs has been fully discussed and illustrated
in my former works," I need here say ho more on this head, j

" Some good criticisms on this subject have been given by Messrs.
Murie and Mivart, in 'Transact. Zoolog. Soc' 18G9, vol. vii. p. 92.

' Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' vol. ii. pp.
317 and 397. See also ' Origin of Species,' 5th edit. p. 535.

i

CnAP. I.]

RUDIMENTS.

19

TtiKliments of various muscles have been observed in
many parts of the human body ; " and not a few muscles,
which are regularly present in some of the lower animals
can occasionally be detected in man in a i^reatly reduced
conilition. Kvery one must have noticed the power which
many animals, especially horses, possess of moving or
twitching their skin; and this is etiected by the pannica-
lus carnosus. Kemnants of this muscle in an efficient
state are found in various parts of our bodies ; for in-
stance, on the forehead, by which the eyebrows are raiseiL
'J'hc jAntysina myoiihis^ which is well develoiK?d on tlie
neck, liclongs to this system, but cannot be voluntarily
brought into action. Prof. Turner, of Edinburgh, has
occasionally detected, as he informs me, muscular fasciculi
in five dilTerent situations, namely, in tlie axilhe, near the
scapulic, etc., all of which must be referred to the system
of the panniculus. He has also shown " that the tnmcidus
aternfdia or atcrnalis hrutorurn^ which is not an extension
of the rectus abdominalia^ but is closely allied to the
panniculus, occurred in the proportion of about three j>er
cent, in iipward of six hundrrd bo«liis : he adds, that thiji
muscle aflbrds "an excellent illustnition of tluj statement
that occasional and rudimrntary structiires are esjK'cially
liabU* to variation in arrangnncnt."

S -riK' f« \v yx-rstnis havf thr power of contractinpj the
hUjM les on tln'ir Hcalps; and thi'so muscles are

in a varialilc and partially rudiim ntary conilition. M. \,
lie (^andolle hai communicateil to me a curious instance
of the long-continued persistence or inheritance of thii

** For liuUnro, II. Uu hanl ('AnnaU-a (lr« S« irnc<<« Kat,* .ttl itrni^,
/.<M>|oK. 1H32, torn. stUL. p. IS) (lMorllM<«i ami Aifurcfl rudiini-niii nf what

• .\ not hi I ;«

<- , >l til till' liAM I, III « tiuirt

or U—M r irjr ciin<lMiMi)

Prul. \N . l iirticr, ' IW. lUiial I '

20

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

power, as well as of its unusual development. He knows
a family in whicli one member, the present head of a
family, could, when a youth, pitch several heavy books
from his head by the movement of the scalp alone ; and
he won wagers by performing this feat. His fatlier, uncle,
grandfather, and all his three children, possess the same
power to the same unusual degree. This family became
divided eight generations ago into two branches ; so
that the head of the above-mentioned branch is cousin in
the seventh degree to the head of the other branch. Tliis
distant cousin resides in another part of France, and, on
being asked whether he possessed the same faculty, im-
mediately exhibited his power. Tliis case offers a good il-
lustration how- persistently an absolutely useless faculty
may be transmitted.

The extrinsic muscles which serve to move the whole
external ear, and the intrinsic muscles which move the
different parts, all of which belong to the system of the
panniculus, are in a rudimentary condition in man ; they
are also variable in development, or at least in function.
I have seen one man who could draw his ears forward,
and another who could draw them backward ; " and, from
what one of these persons told me, it is probable that most
of us, by often touching our ears and thus directing our
attention toward them, could by repeated trials recover
some power of movement. Tlie faculty of erecting the
ears and of directing them to d^jferent points of the com-
pass, is no doubt of the highest service to many animals,
as they thus perceive the point of danger ; but I have never
lieard of a man who possessed the least power of erecting
liis ears — the one movement which might be of use to liim.
The whole external shell of the car may be considered a
rudiment, together with the various folds and prominences

" Cancstrini quotes Ilyrt. (' Annuario dclla Soc. del Naturalisti,'
Modena, 1867, p. 97) to the same effect.

ClIAP. I.]

RUDIMENTS.

21

(lieiix and aiiti-liclix, tragus and anti-tragug, etc.) which
in the lower animals strengthen and support the car when
erect, without adding much to its weight. Some authors,
however, suppose that the cartilage of the shell serves to
transmit vibrations to the acoustic nerve; but ^fr. Toyn-
Ix'C,** after collecting all the known evidence on this head,
concludes that the external shell is of no distinct use.
The ears of the chimpanzee and orang are curiously like
those of man, and I am assured by the keepers in the Zoo-
logical Gardens that tliese animals never move or erect
them; so that they are in an equally rudimentary condi-
tion, a." far as function is concerned, as in v Why
these animals, as well as the progenitors of m in, .-hould
liave lost the power of erecting their ears we cannot say.
It may Ik?, though I am not quite salisfu'd with this vie w,
that owing to their arboreal habits and great strength they
were but little exposed to danger, and so during a length-
< ncd period moved their can* but little, and thus gradually
lost the power of moving them. This would be a panillel
t a^e with tliat of those large and heavy birds, which from
inhabiting oceanic islands have not been ex|)osed to the
attacks of beasts of prey, and have consequently lo.st tho
powiT of 11 ifi ' thiir wings for llight.

'Hie c« <1 sculptor, Mr. Wmdner, ii^r. r». h me of

one littlo*[M< ly in the external ear, . . ho UoM
often observetl liolh in mm and women, and of which ho
jHrceived the full ^ n. His attention was first

called to the suljcct whilo at work ou his figure of l*uck,
to which he had given i>ointed earn, lie was thus lixl to
i \:iiiiino the earn of \ ' , and mi' y

nu»n» cari'fully thoiio ol n u m

a liltlr blunt fMiint, pr- • ; , ui l... ' d

»' I' ' ' , "T 1 • lit. Mj \, .1 made an c\ > ' (
and I'.i. I ' ui lue lh«' ■ "'111 _

Ithmry of
Tll« Churrh CoMegt of

22

TUE DESCENT OP MAN.

[Part L

ing. (Fig. 2.) Tliesc points not only project inward, but
often a little outward, so that they are visible when the
head is viewed from directly in front or behind. They are

variable in size and somewhat in po-
sition, standing either a little high-
er or lower ; and they sometimes
occur in one ear and not on the
other. Now the meaning of these
projections is not, I think, doubt-
ful; but it may be thought that
they offer too trifling a character
to be w^orth notice. This thought,
however, is as false as it is natural.
Every character, however slight,
Fio. 2.— iinmnn Ear, modciicfi must be the rcsult of somc definite

and drawn by Mr. Wooluer. , .» .

a. The projecting point. c^use ; and if it occurs in many

individuals deserves consideration.
The helix obviously consists of the extreme margin of the
ear folded inward ; and this folding appears to be in some
manner connected with the wiiole external ear, being per-
manently pressed backward. In many monkeys, which
do not stand high in the order, as baboons and somo
species of macacus,"' the upper portion of the ear is
slightly pointed, and the margin is not at all folded in-
ward ; but if the margin were to be thus folded, a slight
point would necessarily project inward and probably a
little outward. This could actually be observed in a
specimen of the Ateles heelzebuth in the Zoological Gar-
dens ; and we may safely conclude that it is a similar
structure — a vestige of formerly-pointed cars — which oc-
casionally reappears in man.

The nictitating membrane, or third eyelid, with its

*^ See also some remarks, and the drawings of the ears of the Lcmu.
roidca, in Messrs. Murie and Mivart's excellent paper in ' Transact. Zoo-
log. Soc.' vol. vii. 18C9, i)p. 6 and 90.

CirAP. I.]

RUDIMENTS.

23

accessory muscles and otlier htruclurcs, is f^pecially well
di veluped in birds, and is of nuK-h fiiiictiunal importance
to tliem, as it can be rapidly drawn across the whole ey«--
}>alL It is found in some reptiles and amphibians, and in
certain fishes, as in sharks. It is fairly well developed in
the two lower divisions of the mammalian series, namely,
in the monotremata and marsupials, and in some few of
the higher mammals, as in the M alrus. liut in man, tho
qiKulrumana, and most other mammals, it exists, as is a<l-
niitted by all anatomists, as a mere rudiment, called the
scinilunar fold."

The sense of smell is of tho hi;^hest imp<<n.iij> < lo the
greater number of mammahi — to snme, as the ruminants,
in warning them of danger; toothers, as the carnivora, in
finding their prey; to others, as the wild-boar, for both
purposes combined. I5ut the sense of smell Ls of ex-
tremely slight service, if any, even to savages, in whom it
is generally more highly developed than in the civilized
races. It dm'S not wani them of danger, nor guide them
to thiir food; nor does it jirevent tlie Ksquimnux from
hlcrping in the most fetid atmosphere, nor many savages
fmni eating half-jtutrid meat. Iliose who believe in the
principle of gradual evolution, will not readily admit that
this sense in its prc«. nt Htate was originally ac«)uired by
man, as he now ex So doubt he inherits the |>ower

in an enfeebled and so far rudimentary condiliou, from
some early progenitor, to whom it was highly serviceable
and by whom it wttH continually used. We can thus
jM rhapH understand how it is, as Dr. .M.iudsh y has truly

Muller"* • I '. • of IM.. V • i:t ^- tm- .h- • ■t' ^ M: !'
1 117. Owm, ' y ol \ \ul. Ill p

W«lniii, ' I'roe. /x)<»Iok. Hoe.' Norrmber 8, l"! S«o abo IL Knot,
» ! Ai»«lonil«l«/ p. 10«. T»

v.. .-I • I .

24

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

remarked," that the sense of sraell in man " is singularly
effective in recalling vividly the ideas and images of for-
gotten scenes and places;" for we see in those animals,
which have this sense highly developed, such as dogs and
horses, that old recollections of persons and places are
strongly associated with their odor.

Man differs conspicuously from all the other Primates
in being almost naked. But a few short, straggling hairs
are found over the greater part of the body in the male
Bex, and fine down on that of the female sex. In individ-
uals belonging to the same race these hairs are highly
variable, not only in abundance, but likewise in position :
thus the shoulders in some Europeans are quite naked,
while in others they bear thick tufts of hair.'" There can
be little doubt that the hairs thus scattered over the body
are the rudiments of the uniform hairy coat of the lower
animals. This view is rendered all the more probable, as
it is known that line, short, and pale-colored hairs on the
limbs and other parts of the body occasionally become
developed into " thickset, long, and rather coarse dark
liairs," when abnormally nourished near old-standing in-
llamed surfaces.'"

I am informed by Mr. l*aget that persons belonging
to the same family often have a few hairs in their eye-
brows much longer than the others ; so that this slight
j)cculiarity seems to be inherited. These hairs apparently
represent the vibrissa?, which are used as organs of touch
by many of the lower animals. In a young chimpanzee I
observed that a few upright, rather long, hairs projected

" 'The Physiology and Pathology of Mind,' 2d edit. 1868, p. 134.
Eschricht, Ucbcr die Richtungder Ilaarc am mcnschlichen Kiirp cr,
•MUllcr's Archiv fiir Anat. und Phys.' 1837, 8. 47. I shall often have to
refer to this very curious paper.

Paget, 'Lectures on Surgical Pathology,' 1853, vol L p. 71.

Chap. I.J

RUDIMENTS.

2A

above the eyes, where the true eyebrows, if present, would
have BtootL

The fine wooi-like hair, or so-callctl lanugo, with which
the human foetus durinj' the sixth mouth is thickly cov-
cretl, offers a more curious case. It is first developed
during the liflh month, on the eyebrows and face, and e«-
]»< ( ially round the mouth, where it is much longer than
ll. if on the head. A mustache of this kind was ob^^^•rve«^
1 V 1 '.-( hricht on a female fa-tus; but this is not so sur-
).r i-iiig a circumstance as it may at first appear, for the
tw'i -i XL'S generally resemble each other in all extcnial
characters during an early i>eriod of growth. Tlie direc-
tion and arrangement of the hairs on all parts of the fa*tal
body are the same as in the adult, but are subject to much
varial*ility. The whole surface, including even the fort»-
hi-ad and ears, is thus thickly clothed ; but it is a signifi-
cant fact that the palms of the hands and the soles of the
fi'ct are quite nakei], like the inferior surfaces of all four
extremities in most of the lower animals. As this can
ii.inlly 1m* an accidental coincidence, we must • r t\i6

woolly c«ivering of the fetus to be the rudinieiital n*pn*-
Ht titative of the first |M'rmanent coat of hair in thttso
III iiiimals which are Iwini hairy. This n preseii' ' i i*

' 'M .r,- .-..tMi ' '•■ . ' ! • .-o with ill- ti i.k'.v of

<} ,» .^^ Vv !^.<

1 H as if the ] th

wen) t ' to lieronie rud iry in the more > tl
r i< • « of man. These teeth are rnthrr smaller tlian tho

r , nit is likewijie the cftso with tho rorr%*ii|Min(l*

I ' : t«-«'i)i m the ti/i c nnil or in«l th(*y havo

"ijly t • '!" '.!, .• O . ,„^.|,

fjiiiiK 1 u . . . \ . I !

by-hii' • .Mhtj .u- I. . Uioio t. .

• RddiHrlil. ItUL s. 40, 47.

86

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

are curlier lost, than the other teeth. It is also remark-
able that they are much more liable to vary both in struct-
ure and ill the period of their development than the other
teeth." In the ^lelanian races, on the other hand, the
wisdom-teeth arc usually furnished with three separate
fangs, and are generally sound : they also ditler from the
other molars in size less than in the Caucasian races."
Pro£ Schaaff hausen accounts for this difference between
the races by "the posterior dental portion of the jaw being
always shortened " in those that are civilized," and this
sliortening may, I presume, be safely attributed to civil-
ized men habitually feeding on soft, cooked food, and
thus using their jaws less. I am informed by Mr. 15race
that it is becoming quite a common practice in the United
States to remove some of the molar teeth of children, as
the jaw does not grow large enough for the perfect devel-
ojiment of the normal number.

With respect to the alimentary canal, I have met witli
an account of only a single rudiment, namely, the vermi-
form appendage of the ciccum. Tltc cajcum is a branch
or diverticulum of the intestine, ending in a cul-de-sac, and
it is extremely long in many of the lower vegetable-feed-
ing mammals. In the marsupial koala it is actually more
than thrice as long as the whole body.'* It is sometimes
produced into a long, gradually-tapering point, and is
sometimes constricted in parts. It appears as if, in conse-
quence of changed diet or habits, the cajcum had become
much shortened in various animals, the vermiform append-
age being left as a rudiment of the shortened part. That

Dr. Webb, 'Teeth in Man and the Anthropoid Apes,' as quoted by
Dr. C. Carter Blake m 'Anthropological Review,' July, 18G7, p. 299.

Owen, 'Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol. iii. pp. 320, 321, 325.

'On the primitive Form of the Skull,' Eng. translat. in 'Anthro-
poV)gical Review,' Oct. 18G8, p. 426.

•* Owen, 'Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol iii. pp. 410, 434, 441.

ClIAP. I ]

RUDIMENTS.

27

ih'iA appendage is a rudiment, wc may infer from its email
hhi'y and from the evidence which I'rof. CaDei»trini " has
( ollected of its variahility in man. It \a occai)ionally quite
ab-ent, or again ia largely develojad. The pajifage ia
hometimes completely closid fur half or two-thirds of its
It'ti'^th, with the terminal part conjii«'tiijg of a flattened
hAuI expansion. In the orang this appendage ia lung and
ei.nvoluled ; in man it aris<^"}» frum the end uf the hhurt
( :i . HI!!. a!i'l i.H commonly from fuur tu live inehes ia
1 4 only aliuut the third of an inch in diameter.

Not only in it usi>leM, hut it in eometinien the caUM5 of
tleath, uf which fuet I have lately heard two inittanccs;
this is due to ttmall, hard hu«lie><, hueli as M-eds, entering tho
pa^^age and cau^ing intlanimation.**

In tlie Quadruniana, and hume other urdern of mam-
iiialo, especially in the ( arnivura, then* is a passage near
til*- luwer end uf the hiimirus, called the hUpra-< « -i 1 •. ^ -iil
loranien, through whit h the great nerve of the i ub
pa--i-, and often the great art<Ty. Now, in the huuienut
of man, aM Dr. .Stnithrn* *' and othern have hh«»wn, there
in ^i-nernlly a Iniee of this passage, and it i- len
l.iirly well develo|M'<l, U'ing fonne<l hy a d' h«.H»k-
l'k<* pHMN-Htt uf Ixme, complet4-d hy a hand ol t nX.
\\ li« II pri><M*nt t' ' ly |iaj»Mii U.; '

1- , .iii-l tir ' ' • ' X^lt uli i

I I line III J . .wer aui*

r. .1- rr<-f Mir. tlu-iT it

U. ti t7ty, have boUi rt-mark. tnir«Ur fmci %d %kk» milnl

K

» . J»«L fl. y**^ r Dr. K»oi. 'Otml \r^y*u

S- ^ «a. Mm • t MBoU M thte ,

m tU • BOiUa «!• tXtmA. 4« Ml. T^umkmm% iHk %ik

1 ..|*.«4t.

28

TUE DESCENT 01' MAX.

[Paut I.

occurs in about one per cent, of re'cent tskeletons ; but,
(luring ancient times, it appears to have been much more
common. Mr. Busk " has collected the following evi-
dence on this head : Prof. Broca " noticed the perforation
in four and a lialf per cent, of the arm-bones collected in
the * CimetiCire du Sud ' at Paris ; and in the Grotto of
Orrony, the contents of which are referred to the Bronze
period, as many as eight humeri out of thirty-two were
perforated ; but this extraordinary proportion, he thinks,
might be due to the cavern having been a sort of ' family
vault.' Again, M. Dupont found thirty per cent, of ])er-
foratcd bones in the caves of the Valley of the Lesse, be-
longing to the Reindeer period; while M. Lcguay, in a
sort of dolmen at Argenteuil, observed twenty-five per
cent, to be perforated ; and M. Pruner-Bey found twenty-
six per cent, in the same condition in bones from Vaureal.
Nor should it be left imnoticed that M. Pnmer-Bey states
that this condition is common in Guanche skeletons."
The fact that ancient races, in this and several other
cases, more frequently present structures which resemble
those of the lower animals than do the modern races, is
interesting. One chief cause seems to be that ancient
races stand somewhat nearer than modern races in the
long line of descent to their remote animal-like progeni-
tors.

The OS coccyx in man, though functionless as a tail,
l)lainly represents this part in other vertebrate animals.
At an early embryonic peri<5d it is free, and, as we have
seen, projects beyond the lower extremities. In certain
rare and anomalous cases it has been known, according to
Isidore Geoffroy St.-Hilaire and others," to fonn a small

••"On the Caves of Gibraltar," 'Transact. Intcmat. Congress of
rrchist. Arch.' Third Session, 18G9, p. 64.

" Quatrcfages has lately collected the evidence on this subject.
Revue des Cours Scicntifiques,' 1807-68, p. 025.

Chap. I.]

RUDIMENTS.

30

external rudiraent of a tail. TIic os coccyx is bliort, usu-
ally includinf( only four vertebra) ; and these are in a rudi-
inental condition, for they conj«i.st, with the exception of
t he \)'d<A\ one, of the centrum alone." TIk v are furni.-hed
willi florae small muscles; one of which, as I am informed
hy Prof. Turner, has been expressly described by Theile as
I rudimentary repetition of the extensor of the tail, which
is so largely developed*in many mammaU.

The spinal cord in man extends only as far downwanl
as the last dorsal or first lumbar vertebra ; but a thread-
like structure (ihcjiiuni Un/' ' i runs down the axiu of
the sacral part of the spinal < .mai, and even : ' • back
"f the coccygeal bones. The upjicr part <»l i... <• iit,
IS I'roC Turner informs me, is undoubtedly hon. . -us
sith the spinal cord; but the lower part apparently con-
^ merely of the pia maUr^ or vascular investing mem-
lirane. Even in thiji case the os coccyx may bo said to
pMSH4-,H a vcMtige of so important a utnicturo as the spinal
Mr<l, though no longer enclose«l within a bony canaL The
• 'Ho wing fact, for which I am also indebted to ProC
I'uriicr, shows how closely tin* os coccyx corresponds with
' 't • t.iil in the lower animaN: T.iiHohka ha.s r 'ly
I i' till- extn iiiity of tin* iM- • , > ry

I ited ImhIv, ulii' h i-^ ii the

in ! II. acral artery; an«l this dl-^rnvcry led KniUM; and
Nfrycr to examine the tail of a monkey (.Macacus) and of
a cat, iu Inith of which they found, though not at tho ex*

tn tiiity, a timilarly conv< Iv.

The r ' ry

'■■■n • ' . .1. ..... a

\ ' '■ ?i ■! II. -1 » to m

nn » part il

^. ut in the olio lu^x, b(Mng ' v^f

30 TUE DESCENT OF MAN. [Paut 1.

by a mere rudiment. Nevertlielcss, the occurrence of
such rudhuents is as difticult to exj^lain on the belief of the
separate creation of each species, as in the foregoing cases.
Hereafter I shall have to recur to these rudiments, and
shall show that their presence generally depends merely on
inheritance ; namely, on parts acquired by one sex having
been j^artially transmitted to the other. Here I will only
give some instances of such rudini(?nts. It is well known
that in the males of all mammals, including man, rudi-
mentary mammtc exist. These, in several instances, have
become well developed, and have yielded a copious supply
of milk. Their essential identity in the two sexes is like-
wise sho>\Ti by their occasional sympathetic enlargement
in both during an attack of the measles. The vesicula
2)rostaiica^ which has been observed in many male mam-
mals, is now universally acknowledged to be the homo-
logue of the female uterus, together with the connected
passage. It is impossible to read Lcuckart's able descrip-
tion of this organ, and his reasoning, without admitting
the justness of his conclusion. This is especially clear in
the case of those mammals in which the true female ute-
rus bifurcates, for in the males of these the vesicula like-
wise bifurcates.^* Some additional rudimentary structures
belonging to the reproductive system might here have
been adduced."

The bearing: of the three ^reat classes of facts now
given is unmistakable. But it would be superfluous here
fully to recapitulate the line of argument given in detail

41 Leuckart, in Todd's 'Cyclop, of Anat.' 1849-'62, vol. iv. p. 1415.
In man this organ is only from three to six lines in length, but, like so
many other rudimentary parts, it is variable in development as well as in
other characters.

See, on this subject, Owen, ' Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol iii. pp.
675, 676, 706.

CHAI'. I,]

RUDIMENTS.

31

in my ' Origin of Species.' The homological construdion
of llic whole frame in the members of the 8ame cUiss ia
intelligible, if we admit their descent from a common pro-
genitor, together with their Bubsequent adaptation to di-
ver^iitied conditions. On any other view the similarity of
pattern between the hand of a man or monkey, the foot of
a horse, the flipper of a seal, the wing of a bat, etc., is ut-
terly inexplicable. It is no scientific explanation to assert
that they have all been fonued on the same ideal plan.
\V'ith re>pect to development, wo can clearly understand,
on the principle of variations supervening at a rather laUj
embryonic period, and lx;ing inherited at a corresponding
jR-riod, how it is that tlic embryos of wonderfully different
Ibrms should still retain, more or less perfectly, the struct-
ure of their common progenitor. No other explanation
lias ever been given of the marvellous faot that the embryo
of a man, dog, seal, bat, reptile, etc., can at tirst hardly l>o
dist'" M-lied from each other. In order to understand
tin lice of ru<limentary organs, we have only to su|>-

]>os<,' that a former pr()genitor possessed the parts in ques-
tion in a perfect state, and that under changed habits of
life they became greatly reduced, either from simple dis-
UH4', or through the natural selection of those iudividuaU
whieh were least encumbered with a superfluous part, aided
by tin* otlier means pi ly indi< :it« .1.

Thus we ean un«ln i.tu i how it ha^ e«'m< t'» pa««s tiiat
iii:in, and all other vert«brate auimaN, liave Int ii con-
hlr»it t»-d (ill the same general nio«lrl, why iliey p:iHH thr«>u^li
the same early stages of devi ldpincnr. :ni.l \\ }\\' they r**-
tain c«Ttain rudiments in common > iitly wo

oii-^dit frankly to admit their cummunity of it; to

take any other view, is to n^Imit that our ownstructun\ ntul
that of nil tlie animals anMind u«, in a incrt> nnnrv* laid (o
• our jn ' III, Thif» c«M ' 'It-
tu. 1, if we l«H.k lo the memlM M . i

32

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

ries, and consider the evidence derived from their affinities
or classijfication, their geographical distribution, and geo-
logical succession. It is only our natural prejudice, and
that arrogance which made our forefathers declare that
they were descended from demi-gods, which lead us to
demur to this conclusion. But the time will before long
come when it will be thought wonderful that naturalists,
who were well acquainted with the comparative structure
and development of man and other mammals, should have
believed that each was the work of a separate act of crea-
tion.

Chap. IL 1 MENTAL POWERS. yy

CIIArXER II.

COMrAKISON OF THE MENTAL POWERS OF MAN AND TUE

LOWER ANIMALS.

Tlio DitTercnco in Mental Power between the Highest Ape and the Lowest
Savage, nnmensc. — Certain Instincts in common. — The Emotions. —
CurioMity. — Imitation. — Attention. — Memory. — Imagiiialion. — Kcason.
— Progressive Improvement. — Tools and Weapons used by Animals.
— Language. — Self-Consciousness. — Sense of Beauty. — Uclicf in God,
Spiritual Agencies, Superstitions.

We bavc Been in tlic last eliajttcr lliat man bears in bis
l>o(lily structure clear traces of bis descent from some lower
form; but it may be urj^ed tliat, as man diU'ers so greatly
in bis mental power from all otber animals, tbero must be
Home error in tbis conclusion. No doubt tbe difTerence in
tbirt respect is enormous, even if we compare tbe mind of
one of tbe lowest eavages, wbo ba.s no words to expresa
any numlnT bigber tban four, and wbo uses no abstract
terms for tbe connnonest objects or aflections,' witb tbat
of tbe most bigbly-organi/.ed ape. Tbo ditVerence would,
no doubt, still remain immense, evi-n if one of tbe bibber
apes bad been improved or civilized as nuu'b as n di»g bas
Imm'u in comparison witb its parent-fonn, tbe wolf or jackal.
Tin? Fueginns rank among tbe lowest barbarians; but I was
continually struck witb surprise bow closely tbe tbreo na«

' S<*<? iho ovldrniToii ihf'i- point-, imm ti !<v T.ul>t»<Hk, ' rii lii«luri«
Time*,* p. 854, rlc.

84 THE DESCENT OF MAN. [Paut L

lives on board 11. M. S. " Beagle," who had lived some
years in England, and could talk a little English, resem-
bled us in disposition, and in most of our mental faculties.
If no organic being excepting man had possessed any men-
tal power, or if his powers had been of a wholly different
nature from those of the lower animals, then we should
never have been able to convince ourselves that our high
faculties had been gradually developed. But it can be
clearly shown that there is no fundamental difference of
this kind. We must also admit that there is a much
wider interval in mental power between one of the lowest
fishes, as a lamprey or lancelet, and one of the higher apes,
than between an ape and man ; yet this immense interval
is filled up by numberless gradations.

Nor is the difference slight in moral disposition between
a barbarian, such as the man described by the old navi-
gator Byron, who dashed his child on the rocks for drop-
ping a basket of sea-urchins, and a Howard or Clarkson ;
and in intellect, between a savage who does not .use any
abstract terms, and a Xewton or Shakespeare. Differences
of this kind between the highest men of the highest races
and the lowest savages, are connected by the finest grada-
tions. Therefore it is possible that they might pass and
be developed into each other.

My object in this chapter is solely to show that tliere
is no fundamental difference between man and the higher
mammals in their mental faculties. Each division of the
subject might have been extended into a separate essay,
but must here be treated briefly. As no classification of
the mental powers has been universally accepted, I shall
arrange my remarks in the order most convenient for my
purpose, and will select those facts which have most struck
me, with the hope that they may produce some effect on
the reader.

Witli respect to animals very low in the scale, I shall

Chap. Il.J MENTAL rOWERS. '3h

have to give some additional fac ts under Sexual ."^cil Li .u,
bliowing that their mental powers are hi«j^her than mi«^lit
have heen expected. The variability of the fac ulties in
the individuals of the Fame species is an important point
for us, and some few illustrations will here be given. But
it would be superfluous to enter into many details on this
head, for I have found, on frequent inquiry, that it is the*
unanimous opinion of all those who have long attended to
animals of many kinds, including birds, that the individuals
dilhr greatly in every mental characteristic. In what
manner tlie mental powers were first developetl in the low-
est organisms, is as hopeless an inquiry as how life lirst
originated. These are problems for the distant fuHin-. if
they are ever to be solved by man.

As man possesses the same senses with the lower ani-
mals, his fundamental intuitions must be the Fame. ^lan
lias also some few instincts in common, as that of self-pres-
ervation, sexual love, the love of the motiier for her new-
born offspring, the power possessed by the lattOr of suck-
ing, and Ko forth, liut man, perhaps, has somewhat fewer
instincts tlian tliost* j)ossessed by tiic animals which come
next to him in the s* ri' Tlie oning in the Kastern i>l-
and", and the chimi in Africa, buiM plalf«»rms, on

which thoy sleep; and, as both ppccies follow the wuue
habit, it might bo argued that this was due to instinct,
but wo cannot fuel sure that it \B not the rcfiult of both
animals having similar wants, and |>OMCHsing nimilar ]>ow-
ers of reasoning. These apes, as wo may asHumc, avc»id
tlie many poisonous fruits of the tropics, and man ha** iiA
HU<1» knowledge ; but as our domestic animals, when tak«'n
to foreign lands, and when first turned out in the spriii/,
often eat poifmnous herbs, whii-h they afterward avoid, ue
cannot feel sure that the* apes do not learn fmm th« ir own
cx|M«rience, nr fmm that of their |»an*iits, what fniitji to
leli . t. It in, howercr, cvrtuin, im wo nliall |ire»i'Ully ikv,

3C

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

lhat apes have an instinctive dread of serpents, and prob-
ably of other dangerous animals.

The fewness and the comparative simplicity of the in-
stincts in the liigher animals are remarkable in contrast with
those of the lower animals. Cuvier maintained that instinct
and intelligence stand in an inverse ratio to each other ; and
some have thought that the intellectual faculties of the
higher animals have been gradually developed from their
instincts. But Pouchet, in an interesting essay,' has shown
that no such inverse ratio really exists. Those insects
which possess the most wonderful instincts are certainly
the most intelligent. In the vertebrate series, the least
intelligent members, namely fishes and amphibians, do not
I)ossess complex instincts ; and among mammals the ani-
mal most remarkable for its instincts, namely the beaver,
is highly intelligent, as will be admitted by every one
who has read Mr. Morgan's excellent account of this animal.'

Although the first dawnings of intelligence, according
to Mr. Herbert Spencer,* have been developed through the
nmltiplication and coordination of reflex actions, and al-
though many of the simpler instincts graduate into actions
of this kind, and can hardly be distinguished from them,
as in the case of young animals sucking, yet the more
complex instincts seem to have originated independently
of intelligence. I am, however, far from wishing to deny
that instinctive actions may lose their fixed and untaught
character, and be replaced by others performed by the aid
of the free will. On the other hand, some intelligent ac-
tions— as when birds on oceanic islands first learn to avoid
man — after being performed during many generations, be-
come converted into instincts, and are inherited. They

' * L'Instinct chez Ics Inscctcs.' * Revue (fcs Deux Mondes,' Feb.
1870, p. 090.

' ' The American Beaver and liia Work^,' 1868.

* ' The Principles of Psychology,' 2d edit. 1870, pp. 418-443.

Chap. U ]

MENTAL rO\VKl:S.

37

may then be said Uj 1>c degraded in character, for they are
no longer performed throuirh reason or from - «*ncc.
I5ut tlie greater niiinlx;r of the more complex in-iiu is a|>-
pear to have been gained in a wholly different manner,
through the natural selection of variations of simpler in-
Ktinctive action?*. Such variations appear to arise from
the same unknown causes acting on the cerebral organiza-
tion, which induce hlight variations or individual differ-
ence* in other parts of the body ; and these variations,
owing to our ignorance, arc often saitl to arise s|>onta-
H'ou-^ly. We can, I think, come to no other conclusion
with respect to the origin of the more r ' x instincts,
when we reflect on the marvellous in of sterile

worker-ants and bees, which leav.' n • - ' to inhe rit

the effects of experience and of j

Although a high degree of intelligence is certainly
compatible with the existence of complex instincts, as we
m>c in the insects just named and in the Waver, it is not
improbable that they may to a certain extent interfere
with each other^s development. Little is known alxmt
the fun of the brain, but we can j>erc»'ive that, a.<i

the int« L< :tial powers become hi-^hly «lr\ «1.»|h..1, the va-
ri : T i*-' • "f Mic bmin inti-' ^ t* d l»v the mo*l

i "f intcn'oi : ntid as a coiiM>-

<l part i; , . 1 to bo>

cotne lo*w w««ll filtt <l to answer in a d 1 i ' i . 1 . . . irm,
tliHt i-* live, manner to \> .i ■■. \- w-i or a»-

no^iatiom*.

I have on worth g. o

wc may eann^ u

II' "■ i' • ? , «■ .

II' ■ . , j. i«f

pi"'iV t. , 4

ii.

ler ia««', tl ly of j

38 THE DESCENT OF MAN. [Part I.

been gained, step by step, through the variability of tlie
mental organs and natural selection, witliout any conscious
intelligence on the part of the animal during each succes-
sive generation. No doubt, as Mr. Wallace lias argued,'
much of the intelligent work done by man is due to imita-
tion, and not to reason ; but there is this great difference
between his actions and many of those performed by the
lower animals, namely, that man cannot, on his first trial,
make, for instance, a stone hatchet or a canoe, through his
power of imitation. He has to learn his work by practice ;
a beaver, on the other hand, can make its dam or canal,
and a bird its nest, as well, or nearly as well, the first time
it tries, as when old and experienced.

To return to our immediate subject : the lower animals,
like man, manifestly feel pleasure and pain, happiness and
misery. Happiness is never better exliibited than by
young animals, such as puppies, kittens, lambs, etc., when
playing together, like our own children. Even insects
play together, as has been described by that excellent ob-
server, P. Huber,' who saw ants chasing and pretendmg to
bite each other, like so many puppies.

Tlie fact that the lower animals are excited by the same
emotions as ourselves is so well established, that it will not
be necessary to weary the reader by many details. Terror
acts in tlie same manner on them as on us, causing the
muscles to tremble, the heart to palpitate, the sphincters
to be relaxed, and the hair to stand on end. Suspicion,
the offspring of fear, is eminently characteristic of most
wild animals. Courage and timidity are extremely va-
riable qualities in the individuals of the same species,
as is plainly seen in our dogs. Some dogs and horses
are ill-tempered, and easily turn sulky ; others are good-
tempered; and these qualities arc. certainly inherited.

* 'Contributions to the Theory of Xatiiml Selection,' 1870, p. 212.

• ' Rcchcrches sur Ics Mceur3 dcs Founnis,' 1810, p. 173.

Chap. II.]

MEXTAL POWERS,

f^very one knows how liable auiinals are to furious r
and how plainly they show it. Many anecdotes, pmh.iinj
true, have been published on the long-delayed and artful
r(;ventrc of various animal.'*. The accurate Ueni;<'er and
lirelim^ Htatc that the American and African monkeys
which they kept tame, certainly revenged themselver*.
The love of a dog for h'la master is notorious ; in the
agony of death he has been known to caress his master,
and every one has heard of the dog suftering under vivi-
hcction, who licked the hand of the operator ; this man,
unless he had a heart of stone, must have felt remorse to
tlie last hour of his life. As Whewell ' has remarked,
wlio that reads the touching Instances of maternal aflec-
lion, related so often of tiie women of all nations, and of
the females of all animals, can doubt that the principle of
action is the same in the two cases?"

We see maternal aflection exhibited in the most triflinj^
details; thus Kengger observed an American mtnikcy (a
( ebus) carefully driving away the Hies which plagued her
infant ; and Duvaucel t*aw a Hylobates washing the faci s
of her ^ ' ones in a stream. So intense is the grief o(
ft-male lu ui.* ys for the loss of their young, liiat it inva-
rialily caused t!»e death of certain kinds kept in 1- r « •!»-
tinrmcnt by Ilrflim in Nortli Afrii-a. Orphan-ni*'; ro
always adopteil and carefully guarded by the other mon-
kcyfi, both uialcii and fema!' One female balK>on !iad m>
rapacious a heart, tliat she not only adopted younj; inon*
k« ;. s (t( (Uhcr s|H«<'ic«, but stole young dogn and catM, wliich
she continually carrieil alNiut. ller kindncHs, however, did
n<»f go so lar a* t<i hharo her footl with her a 1 ' I of!-
Kpniig, at which Hrrhm wan xurpriM-d, an ] " ! i. . :i'

^ All thr ' t on the •

n«i(ir«li«tii, £»;. ; . ^- >utr|{t«. i . , ■»

J'arviciiat,' Ifi ", fl I > • TlilciU iK-n.' It i -7.

40

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

Part L

ways divided every thing quite fairly with tlieir own
young ones. An adopted kitten scratclied the above-men-
tioned affectionate baboon, who certainly had a fine intel-
lect, for she was much astonished at being scratched, and
immediately examined the kitten's feet, and without more
ado bit off the claws. In the Zoological Gardens, I heard
from the keeper that an old baboon {C. chacma) had
adopted a Rhesus monkey ; but when a young drill and
mandrill were placed in the cage, she seemed to perceive
that these monkeys, though distinct species, were her
nearer relatives, for she at once rejected the Rhesus and
adopted both of them. The young Rhesus, as I saw, was
greatly discontented at being thus rejected, and it would,
like a naughty child, annoy and attack the young drill
and mandrill whenever it could do so with safety , this
conduct exciting great indignation in the old baboon.
Monkeys will also, according to Brclim, defend their mas-
ter when attacked by any one, as well as dogs to whom
they are attached, from the attacks of other dogs. But
we here trench on the subject of sympathy, to which I
shall recur. Some of Brehm's monkeys took much de-
light in teasing, in various ingenious ways, a certain old
dog whom they disliked, as well as other animals.

Most of the more complex emotions are common to the
higher animals and ourselves. Every one has seen how
jealous a dog is of his master's affection, if lavished on
any other creature ; and I have observed the same fact
with monkeys. This shows that animals not only love,
but have the desire to be loved. Animals manifestly feel
emulation. They love approbation or praise ; and a dog
carrying a basket for his master exhibits in a high degree
self-complacency or pride. There can, I think, be no doubt
that a dog feels shame, as distinct from fear, and some-
thing very like modesty when bi?gging too often for food.
A great dog scoras the snarling of a little dog, and this

Chap. II.] MENTAL POWERS. 41

may be called inagnaniiuity. Several observers liavo
stated that monkeys certainly dislike being laughed at ;
and they Bometimes invent imaginary offences. In the
Zoological Gardens I saw a baboon who always got into
a furious rage when his keeper took out a letter or Ixxik
and read it aloud to him; and his rage was so violent that,
as I witnessed on one occasion, he bit his own leg till the
bloo<l flowed.

We will now turn to the more intellectual emotions
and faculties, which are very important, as forming the
basis for the development of the higher mental powers.
Ariinial.^ manifestly enjoy excitement an<l suffer from
ennui, as may be seen with dogs, and, according to Keng-
ger, with monkeys. All animals feel wonder, and many
exhibit curiosity. Tliey sometimes suffer from this latter
quality, as when the hunter plays antics and thus attracts
them ; I have witnessed this with deer, and so it is with
tin* wary chamois, and with some kinds of wild-ducks.
Iln liin gives a curious account of the instinctive dread
which his monkeys exhibited toward snaki-s ; but their
curiosity was so great that they could not desist from oc-
cavioitally satiating their horror in a most human fashion,
hy lifting up tlic lid of the box in which the snakes were
kept. I was so much surprised at his account, that I took
:i wtuffc<l and coileil-up huake into the monkcy-hous4» at the
/•-<<l<»'/ic;il (lardcn**, and the e\<-ilrrncnt tlius cau.Hcil wax
<'f the most curious M|M'<-ta< l«'H which I ever iK'IieM.
'riir<«' "T'l < it H of ('rrc'.fif'it cuH wen* iho most alarmed;
they <I 1 al>out tli .(cs and uttered sharp signal'

cries of danger, which were undemtoiHl by the other
tnoiikeys. A few young monkeys and ono old Anubi*
baboon alonn t(M>k no notice of the snake. I then plactsl
the stuffeil specimen on the gnMind in one of the largtr
(«. After a time all t) ' ^

luuifi a 111 a largo circle, and, staring iiti«iiuji, \

42

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

a most ludicrous appearance. Tliey became extremely
nervous ; bo that when a wooden ball, with which they
were familiar as a plaything, was accidentally moved in
the straw, under which it was partly hidden, they all in-
stantly started away. These monkeys behaved very dif-
ferently when a dead fish, a mouse, and some other new
objects, were placed in their cages ; for, though at first
frightened, they soon approached, handled and examined
them. I then placed a live snake in a paper bag, with
the mouth loosely closed, in one of the larger compart-
ments. One of the monkeys immediately approached,
cautiously opened the bag a little, peeped in, and in-
stantly dashed away. Then I witnessed what Brehm has
described, for monkey after monkey, with head raised
high and turned on one side, could not resist taking mo-
mentary peeps into the upright bag, at the dreadful object
lying quiet at the bottom. It would almost appear as if
monkeys had some notion of zoological aflinities, for those
kept by Brehm exhibited a strange, though mistaken, in-
stinctive dread of innocent lizards and frogs. An orang,
also, has been known to be much alanned at the first
sight of a turtle.'

The principle of Imitation is strong in man, and espe-
cially in man in a barbarous state. Desor has remarked
that no animal voluntarily imitates an action performed
by man, until in the ascending scale we come to monkeys,
which are well known to be ridiculous mockers. Animals,
however, sometimes imitate each others' actions : thus two
species of wolves, which had been reared by dogs, learned
to bark, as does sometimes the jackal," but whether this
can be called voluntary imitation is another question.

• W. C. L. Martin, ' Xat. Hist, of Mammalia,' 1811, p. 405.
" Quoted by Vogt, 'M6moire surlcs Microccpliales,' 18G7, p. 168.
" ' The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' vol. L
p. 27.

CiiAP. n.]

MENTAL POWERS.

43

I'rorn one account which I have reaJ, there is reason to
Relieve that puppies nursed by cats sometimes Icani to
lick their feet and thus to clean their faces : it is at least
certain, as I hear from a perfectly trustworthy friend, that
some dogs behave in this manner. Binls imitate the
songs of their ]>arent8, and sometimes those of other
birds ; and parrots are notorious imitators of any sound
which they often hear.

Hardly any faculty is more important for the intellec-
tual progress of man than the power uf Attention, Ani-
mals clearly manifest this j>ower, as when a cat watches
by a hole and prepares to spring on its prey. WiM animals
sometimes become so absorbed when thus engaged, that
they may be easily approached. Mr. Hartlett has given
me a curious proof how variable this faculty is in mon-
keys. A man who traius monkeys to act used to purchase
common kinds from the Zoological* Society at the price of
five pounds for each ; but he offered to give double the
I>rice, if ho might keep three or four of them for a few
days, in order to select one. AVlien asked how he couhl
poHsibly so soon learn whether a particular monkey would
turn out a good actor, ho answered that it all dejK'ndiHl
on their jKjwer of attention. If when ho was talking ami
explaining any thing to a monkey, its attention was easily
diMtractcd, as by a lly on llie wall or other trilling ol
the caso wot hopeless. If he trie<l by punishment to
make an inattentive monkey act, it turned sulky. On
the other hand, n monkey which carefully att ^ I to him
< Muld always Im? truim d.

It is almost su|H'rl1uoui to state that animals have cx*
('« llcnt Mitmorirs for {MTsons and placon. A balHMin at tUo
<'a|M^ of (joo<I no|M*, ns I have Inen infonnctl by Sir An*
drew Smith, rvv> I him with joy aAer an nbnoncH* of

nine months. I hud a dog who wn« savage and avemcv to
all strongrm, antl I pur|H>ii4 ly (ri« d hit ni« nmry after an

44

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part. I.

absence of five years and two days. I went near the star
ble where he lived, and slioutcd to liim in my old manner;
lie showed no joy, but instantly followed me out walking
and obeyed me, exactly as if I had parted with him only
lialf an hour before. A train of old associations, dormant
during five years, had thus been instantaneously awakened
in his mind. Even ants, as P. Iluber " has clearly shown,
recognized their fellow-ants belonging to the same com-
munity after a separation of four months. Animals can
certainly by some means judge of the intervals of time
between recurrent events.

The Imagination is one of the highest prerogatives of
man. By this faculty he unites, independently of the will,
former images and ideas^ and thus creates brilliant and
novel results. A poet, as Jean Paul Richter remarks,"
" who must reflect whether he shall make a character say
yes or no — to the devil with him ; he is only a stupid
corpse." Dreaming gives us the best notion of this
power ; as Jean Paul again says, " The dream is an invol-
untary art of poetry." The value of the products of our
imagination depends of course on the number, accuracy,
and clearness of our impressions ; on our judgment and
taste in selecting or rejecting the involuntary combina-
tions, and to a certain extent on our power of voluntarily
combining them. As dogs, cats, horses, and probably all
the higher animals, even birds, as is stated on good au-
thority," have vivid dreams, and this is shown by tlieir
movements and voice, we must admit that they i)ossesB
some power of imagination.

Of all the faculties of the human mind, it will, I pre-
sume, be admitted that Jleason stands at the summit.

" *Les MoDurs des Fourmis,' 1810, p. 150.

" Quoted in Dr. Maudsley's * Physiology and 'Pathology of Mind,'
18G8, pp. 10, 220.

" Dr. Jcrdon, 'Birds of India,' vol. i. 18G2 p. xxi.

Chap. II.]

MENTAL rOWERfl.

45

Few pcrsoiiB any longer difepuic tliat animals possess some
power of reasoning. Animals may constantly be seen to
pause, deliberate, and resolve. It is a significant fact,
that the more the hal/its of any particular animal are
Ktudied by a naturalist, the more he attributes to reason
and the less to unlearned instincts.** In future chapters we
bhall sec that some animals extremely low in the scalt
apparently display a certain amount of reason. No doubt
it is often ditlicult to distinguish between the power of
n :i<on and that of instinct. Thus Dr. Hayes, in his work
<m 'The Open Polar Sea,' repeatedly remarks that hin
<l<».r'«, instead of continuing to draw the hlrdgt s in a com-
pact body, diverged and separated when thiy canio to
thin ice, so that their weight might bo more evenly dis-
triliutcd. Tiiis was often the first warning and notice
which the travellers received that the ice was becoming
thin and dangerous. Now, did the dogs act thus from
the experience of each individual, or from the example of
the older and wiser dogs, or from an inherited liaViit, that
i**, from an instinct? This instinct might possibly have
:ii i-< n since the time, long ago, when dogs were first em-
ployed by the natives in drawing their ^1. 1'. c : or the
An tic wolve". iho parent-stock of the 1 ^ ^,
may have a< I this instinct, imiK'Uing them not to
.it tack their prey in a close park wlien on thin ice.
t ions of this kind are moftt didicult to answer.

So many facts have Ixen reconletl in various works
showing that animals |m>ss4'SS hoimo ile'^'no uf reason, that
I will I 'sv tm\y two or time ir thenticaltHl
by Keii;;^! I , and relating to Ain«i. ui li* ' >\ ' h
nt.tftd 1..W in their order. He ulati-f* that \ *l
y i-. I , ■ 'i to hiM Tumilvi v -*, th< v hru i-lK -I fl>« mi i«

• ,•■ - . . ^' . i - .

iU«t lir giNm loo far Ui ut»«lrri«ti ,• the |>«i«rr of ln*lUKl,

4G

THE DESCENT OP MAN.

[Part L

lost much of their contents ; afterward they gently hit
one end against some hard body, and picked off the bits
of shell with their fingers. After cutting themselves only
once with any sharp tool, they would not touch it again,
or would handle it with the greatest care. Lumps of
sugar were often given them wrapped up in paper ; and
Kengger sometimes put a live wasp in the paper, so that
in hastily unfolding it they got stung ; after this had once
hap2:)ened, they always first held the packet to their ears
to detect any movement within. Any one who is not con-
vinced by such facts as these, and by what he may observe
with his own dogs, that animals can reason, would not be
convinced by any thing that I could add. Nevertheless
I will give one case with respect to dogs, as it rests on
two distinct observers, and can hardly depend on the
modification of any instinct.

Mr. Colquhoun " winged two wild-ducks, which fell on
the opposite side of a stream ; his retriever tried to bring
over both at once, but could not succeed ; she then, though
never before known to ruffle a feather, deliberately killed
one, brought over the other, and returned for the dead
bird. Colonel Hutchinson relates that two partridges
were shot at once, one being killed, the other wounded ;
the latter ran away, and was caught by the retriever, who
on her return came across the dead bird ; " she stopped,
evidently greatly puzzled, and after one or two trials,
finding she could not take it up without permitting the
escape of the winged bird, she considered a moment, then
deliberately murdered it by giving it a severe crunch, and
afterward brought away both together. This was the
only known instance of her ever having wilfully injured
any game." Here we have reason, though not quite per-
fect, for the retriever might have brought the wounded

"'The Moor and the Loch,' p. 45. Colonel Ilutchmson on 'Dog
Breakuig,' 1850, p. 46.

Chap. IL]

MENTAL rOWERf?.

47

liinl first and tlieu retiirneJ fur iIk; dead one, as in the
case of the two wiM-dueks.

The mulcteerH in South America say, " I will not give
you the mule whose step is easiest, but la mas racional^
— the one that reasons best;" and Humboldt" adds,
"this popular exjiression, dictated by long experience,
combats the system of animated machines, better {>erhaps
than all the arguments of speculative philosojihy."

It has, I think, now Ix'cn shown that man and the
liiL(her animals, especially the Primates, have some few
instincts in common. All have the same senses, intuitions,
and sensations — similar passions, alVections, and emotions,
even the more complex ones ; they feel wonder and curi-
osity; they possess the same faculties of imiUition, atten-
tion, memory, ima<^i nation, and reason, thougli in very
dilUrent degrees. Nevertheless many authors Iiave in-
sist«'<l that njan is separated through his mental faculties
l»y an imjtassable barrier from all the lower animals, I
formerly made a collection of alx)ve a score of such aphi>-
risnjs, but they are not worth giving, as their wide differ-
ence and number prove the ditlieulty, if not t!»e iin]H>Hsi-
bility, of the attempt. It has been asserted thai man
alone is capable of progressive improvement ; tlmt hu
alone makes use of tools or fire, domesticates other ani-
mals, ]H)Ssemies property, or employs language; that no
other animal is selfH onM ious, comprehends itst lf, has the
power of abstraction, or ]M)8het(.Hi-s g»'neral ideas; that
man alone has a sense of beauty, is liable to caprice, lias
the fiM'ling of gratit uib', mystrry, etc. ; iK-lirvrs in (mmI, or
is endowed with a < nee. I will har.ard a few rrmnrks

on the more imi»ortant and intrrcsting of tin ho points

Archbishop Sumner formerly maintaintnl '* that man

•» •IVnwftd N'«rr»ll». ' K' • ! » ^ 1 III p. I**,
»• guutctJ bj . ' 1 .' !»•

48

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

uluiie is capable of progressive improvement. With ani-
mals, looking first to the individual, every one who has
had any experience in setting traps knows that young
animals can be caught much more easily than old ones ;
and they can be nmch more easily approached by an
enemy. Even with respect to old animals, it is impossible
to catch many in'the same place and in the same kind of
trap, or to destroy them by the same kind of poison ; yel
it is improbable that all should have partaken of the i)oi-
Bon, and impossible that all should have been caught in
the trap. They must learn caution by seeing their breth-
ren caught or poisoned. In North America, where the
fur-bearing animals have long been pursued, they exhibit,
according to the unanimous testimony of all observers, an
almost incredible amount of sagacity, caution, and cun-
ning; but trapping has been there so long carried on that
inheritance may liavc come into play.

If we look to successive generations, or to the race,
there is no doubt that birds and other animals gradually
both acquire and lose caittion in relation to man or other
enemies; "and this caution is certainly in chief part an
inherited habit or instinct, but in part the result of indi-
vidual experience. A good observer, Leroy,** states that
in districts where foxes are much hunted, the young when
they first leave their burrows are incontestably much
more wary than the old ones in districts where they are
not much disturbed.

Our domestic dogs are descended from wolves and
jackals," and though they may not have gained in cun-

" ' Journal of Researches during the Voyage of the " Beagle," ' 1845,
o. 398. * Origin of Species,' Clh edit. p. 260.

^ • Lcttres ThiL Bur rintcUigcncc dca Animaux,' nouvcllc edit. 1802,
p. 80.

»' See the evidence on i\m head in chap. i. vol L * On the Variation
of Animals and Planta under Domestication.'

Chap. II.]

MENTAL POWERS.

49

iiiij*^, and may have lout in warine»9 and su?|'i •* yet

ihvy liavc progressed in certain moral rjualilie!*, -in

aflection, Ini.stwortliinoss, temper, and probably in .
oral intelligence llie common rat ha.s conquered and
Waten several other epecies throughout EurojH.*, in parU
of North America, Xew Zealand, and recently in I
mosa, as well as on the main land of CI Mr. Swiu-
hoc," who dcflcrilics these latter cases, aiUiOu • ~ ^' • vic-
t<jry of the common nit over the largo Jfus <■ • i to
its su|>erior cuniii'i 't w 1 ^hU latter quality i at-
tributed to the j ^0 of all ii:» f.; . iii
avoiding extirpation by man, as well as to nearly all the
leas cunning or weak-minded rats havin'/ been successively
destroyed by him. To maintain, in<I -ntly of any
direct evidence, that no animal during liie courm^* of ages
has progressed in iti* • or other mental f
beg the question of li*! evolution of - ' , li.
w« -V i!l sec that, according to Lart« t, , r .
h* _ »g to several ord« r- l iv.- 1 ir ' r '
ancient tertiary prototj'jx s.

It has often been suid that no aiiunnl uses any tool;
but tho chimpanxeo in a stato of natun* cracks a native
fruit, somewhat like a walnut, with a t.t..ii,.." l: .,{^,.r*'
eaAily taught an Araeriean > i
hard pn' ' " ^vard oi lU ui »t u^* i

»t«ineii l-t ... < • ,

ihM't I'.o r I t' . . , , , ^ jj^^,

t" n 1* on Iho

.•d th.»

r to move hr.ivv b.».Ii«*«; nnd I havr* i

a yoong orang put

< I

50

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

h:iiul to the Other end, and use it in the proper manner as
a lever. In the cases just mentioned stones and sticks
were employed as implements ; but they are likewise used
as weapons. Brehm " states, on the authority of the well-
known traveller Schimper, that in Abyssinia when the
baboons belonging to one species ( (7. gelada) descend in
troops from the mountains to plunder the fields, they
sometimes encounter troops of another species ( C. hama-
dri/as), and then a fight ensues. The Geladas roll down
great stones, which the Ilamadryas try to avoid, and then
both species, making a great uproar, rush furiously
against each other. Brehm, when accompanying the
Duke of Coburg-Gotha, aided in an attack with fire-arms
on a troop of baboons in the pass of Mensa in Abyssinia.
The baboons in return rolled so many stones down the
mountain, some as large as a man's head, that the at-
tackers had to beat a hasty retreat ; and the pass was
actually for a time closed against the caravan. It de-
serves notice that these baboons thus acted in concert.
Mr. Wallace " on three occasions saw female orangs, ac-
companied by their young, " breaking off branches and
the great spiny fruit of the Durian-tree, with every ap-
pearance of rage; causing such a shower of missiles as
effectually kept us from approaching too near the tree."

In the Zoological Gardens a monkey which had weak
teeth used to break open nuts with a stone ; and I was
assured by the keepers that this animal, after using the
stone, hid it in the straw, and would not let any other
monkey touch it. Here, then, we have the idea of prop-
erty ; but this idea is common to every dog with a bone,
and to most or all birds with their nests.

The Duke of Argyll" remarks, that the fashioning of

« ' Tliicrlcbcn,' B. i. s. 79, 82.

" 'The Malay Archipelago,' vol. i. 18G9, p. 87.

«' ' rrimeval Man,' 18G9, pp. 145, 147.

ruAV. II.]

MENTAL POWERS.

61

rm implement for a B|>ecial j>uq>osc is absolutely peculiar
> luaii; and he cousiders that this furins an immeasur-
able gulf between hijn and the brutes. It is no doubt a
very imjK)rtant distinction, but tliere apjK'ars to me much
truth in Sir J. Lubbock's suggestion," that when prime-
val man first used flint-stones for any puri)09c, he would
have accidentally splintered them, and would then have
ii*ed the sharp fragnuntn. Fn^m this step it would l>c a
nail one to intentionally break the flints, and not a very
A ide step to rudely fashion them. This latter advaucc,
however, may have taken long ages, if we may judge by
immense interval of time which elapsed before the men
f the ueolithio period took to grinding and p<^»Iishing
I heir stone tools. Jn breaking the flints, as Sir J. Lul>-
hock likewise remarks, sparks would have been < " 1,
and in grinding them heat would have been e\> .wvi:
"thus the two usual methods of obtaining fire may have
originated." The nature of fire would have !•< . n known
in the many volcanic regions where lava o nally
flows through forests. The aiithro|>omorphous ajK-s,
gui<b d probably by instinct, build for themselves temi>o>
iry platfonns; but as many instincts are largely con-
trolled by reanon, the simpler ones, such as this of build-
ing a platfonn, might readily pass into u voluntnr}* aud
< a< t. The < is known to cover itM'lf at

111 -I. I .w. h the leaves • . . > Tandanus ; and llnhm stati>«
that one of his balMx ri ^ tf<e«l to protci't IibvU from the

heat of the tun )»y ti "a >«tr:»w mat over i« head.

In thcuo Utter habitii, wo ] lily see Uie fimt nU }**
fward tomo of the simpler art«; namely, rude
lire and dreMi, M they aroM among the early ' >!•
torn of man.

/" -.— Tl ha« juiili) ^ t' I

0- ui liic chief diP' ^'I'twtH^n m.iit au<i u<i' lower

• PrvUbtuiM Immm; iW, ^ 471. aUk

52

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Part L

animals. ]Uit man, as a highly competent jutlge, Areh-
bishoj) Whately remarks, "is not the only annual that can
make use of language to express what is passing in his
miutl, and can understand, more or less, what is so cx-
]>ressed by another."" In Paraguay the Cehus azarm
when excited utters at least six distinct sounds, which ex-
cite in other monkeys similar emotions." The movements
of the features and gestures of monkeys are understood
})y us, and they partly understand ours, as Kengger and
others declare. It is a more remarkable fact that the dog,
since being domesticated, has learned to bark " in at least
four or five distinct tones. Although barking is a new
art, no doubt the wild species, the parents of the dog, ex-
pressed their feelings by cries of various kinds. With
the domesticated dog we have the bark of eagerness, as
in the chase ; that of anger; the yelping or howling bark
of despair, as when shut up ; that of joy, as when starting
on a walk with his master; and the very distinct one of
demand or supplication, as when wishing for a door or
window to be opened.

Articulate language is, however, peculiar to man ; but
he uses in common with the lower animals inarticulate
cries to express his meaning, aided by gestures and the
movements of the muscles of the face." This especially
holds good with the more simple and vivid feelings,
which are but little connected with our higher intelli-
gence. Our cries of pain, fear, surprise, anger, together
with their appropriate actions, and tlic murmur of a

" Quoted in * ^Vntbropological Review,' 1801, p. 158.
Renggcr, ibid. b. 46.

Sec my ' Variation of Animali and Plants under Dome.stication,*
vol. i. p. 27.

** See a discussion on this subject in Mr. E. B. Tylor's very interest-
ing work, 'Researches into the Early Uifilory of Mankind,' 1C05, chaps,
il to iv.

CuAP. II.] MK-VTAL POWEBa 53

in . 11. Li i.^ I.Li bciu^L.l Lliil<i, .11 . iji'T, » \|. restive than . .
Mordrt. It w not the imre jH>\ver of articulation that ..
tinj^uishes man from other animal!*, for, a^i every «
knowH, parrots can talk ; Lut it is his larj^c power of *
meting definite sounds with definite ideas ; and this obvi< • . •
ly depends on the development of the mental fuculii

As Uomo Tooke, one of the founders of the nol i<
science of philology, observes, language is an art, hi.-
br ■ ^ • • . ^riti; ild havo been a muL ii

nioiL ^1 - 'j,i It ct K.unlyis not a true ii»-
litinct, as every language has to be learned. It .I'****
ho\v« '. rr. wi'l' h* from all "r-linary art^, for man ^ .. i
in- ^. A^y to , as we see in the 1 . of

our young children; while no chiM has an instinctive
tendency to brew, bake, or write. MorcoTcr, no philolt>>

t now Rup|»OBes tliat any language has been delilK>rately
invented; each lias been slowly and uii >usly di'^

' ■ } ^ ■ many steps. Tlio ' utiinii by birds
< ::. I *:i w ral re«j)ects the near* .i;..il<»./y to language,
for all the mein^' • f • ■ r < ^jKci* h utt«T tin* n'jktiw in-
utif" »ivc rr'f " • .'• •• • • • 1 -iM t'

kii j . iT of ^

stii 'y; but the ac tual iK»nL', and c>rn th<»«
are l< : from tht ir pa

! M Daines ' n ** li

• u m r liio lir»t at io

\ • . tl I . rf. • . • ! I a

i I '
tlf

V Ti. . . .

. but at t can p<

they arr f nt ; and at l:i«t they am

• ^ •^f

«bo iHtmm 4« U MdK la

64

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

ihcir song round." Nestlings which have learned the song
of a distinct species, as with the canary-birds educated in
the Tyrol, teach and transmit llicir new song to their oli-
spring. The slight natural differences of song in the same
species inhabiting different districts may be appositely
compared, as Harrington remarks, "to provincial dia-
lects ; " and the songs of allied though distinct species
may be compared with the languages of distinct races of
man. I have given the foregoing details to show that an
instinctive tendency to acquire an art is not a peculiarity
confined to man.

With respect to the origin of articulate language,
after having read on the one side the highly-interesting
works of Mr. Ilensleigh AVedgwood, the Rev. P. Farrar,
and Prof. Schleicher," and the celebrated lectures of Prof.
Max Milller on the other side, I cannot doubt that lan-
guage owes its origin to the imitation and modification,
aided by signs and gestures, of various natural sounds,
the voices of other animals, and man's own instinctive
cries. When we treat of sexual selection we shall see
that primeval man, or rather some early progenitor of
man, probably used his voice largely, as does one of the
gibbon-apes at the present day, in producing true musical
cadences, that is in singing; we may conclude from a
widely-spread analogy that this power would have been
especially exerted during the courtship of the sexes, serv-
ing to express various emotions, as love, jealousy, triumph,
and serving as a challenge to their rivals. The imitation
by articulate sounds of musical cries might have given

" * On tlie Origin of Language,' by II. "Wedgwood, 1866. 'Chapters
on Language,' by the Rev. F. W. Farrar, 1865. These works arc most
interesting. Sec also ' De la Phys. et de Parole,' par Albert Lemoine,
1865, p. 190. The work on this subject, by the late Prof. Aug. Schlei-
cher, has been translated by Dr. Bikkcrs into English, under the title of
'Darwinism tested by the Science of Language,' 1869.

Ciup. II.]

MENTAL POWERS.

55

rise to words expressive of various complex emotions. As
Ix-'ariiig on the subject of imitation, the strong ten«KiH y
in our nearest allies, the monkeys, in microcephalous
idiots," and in the barbarous races of mankind, to imi-
tate whatever they hear deser^-es notice. As monkeys
ct riainly understand much tliat is said to them by man,
and as in a state of nature they utter signal-cries of dan-
ger to their fellows," it does not appear altogether incred-
ilile, that some unusually wise ape-like animal should have
tlioiight of imitating the growl of a beast of prey, so at
to indicate to his fellow-monkeys the nature of the ex-
pected danger. And this would have been a first step in
the formation of a language.

Ah the voice was used more and more, the vocal or-
gans would have been strengthened and perfected through
tlic jirinciple of the iidierited elVects of use; and this
would have reacted on the power of 8iK»ech. Hut the
r< lation between the continued use of language and the
drvelojiment of the brain has no doubt been far more im-
portant. The mental powers in some early progenitor of
man must have been more highly developed tlian in any
e\l-iing ajK*, before even the most im|Krfeot form of
f«p« (M-h could have come into use; but we may confidently
1m licve that the continued use and advancement uf thiii
|MiW(T would have reaeled on the mind by enabling and
rn' ouraging it to carry on long tniins of thought. \
I' ' ^ • I of thought can no morv Ik) tRr: 1' i

oil ^viUi'.aL iin Ui'l <>l words, wlwther ^' ' i or m'
than a long calculation without i

bri. If 'Mi!H *ir-». nl'o, fhrit r\. v t

•t *, I iuiT* (Iroa tiMui JouffttUof Rc*<A(vw««,*

>r 99\Amc9 oo tbU httul In lit* two «roHi4 M olWl qiolt4.

56

TOE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

almost rcqnirc some form of language, for the dumb, deaf,
and blind girl, Laura Bridgman, was observed to use her
fingers while dreaming." Nevertheless a long succession
of vivid and connected ideas may pass through the mind
without the aid of any form of language, as we may in-
fer from the prolonged dreams of dogs. We have, also,
seen that retriever-dogs are able to reason to a certain ex-
tent ; and this they manifestly do without the aid of lan-
guage. The intimate connection between the brain, as it is
now developed in us, and the faculty of speech, is well
shown by those curious cases of brain-disease, hi which
speech is specially aflected, as when the power to remem-
ber substantives is lost, while other words can be correctly
used." There is no more improbability in the eflects of
the continued use of the vocal and mental organs being
inherited, than in the case of handwriting, which depends
partly on the structure of the hand and jiartly on the dis-
position of the mind; and handwriting is certainly in-
herited."

AVhy the organs now used for speech should have
been originally j)erfected for this purpose, rather than any
other organs, it is not difticult to see. Ants have consicl-
erablc powers of intercommunication by means of their
antenna*, as shown by Iluber, who devotes a whole chap-
ter to their language. We might have used our fingers
as eflicient instruments, for a person with practice can re-
port #0 a deaf man every word of a speech rapidly de-
livered at a public meeting; but the loss of our liands,

See remarks on this head by Dr. Maudslcy, ' The PhyKiuIofi^T and
Patliolopy of Mind/ 2d edit 1868, p. 199.

w Many curious casefl have been recorded. See, for •, ' In-

quirics conconiinp the Intellectual Powerp,' \*y Dr. Al>ci , ISMS,

p. 150.

* The Variation of Aninuili and Plants under Domestication,' vol
li. p. C.

(lixr. 11]

unsT^L rowKB&

ft7

V. t ' M been A iciloaa iucou-

N A . iw..:ammb powctt Tocml or-

.- I on t!, "f-nom! r^m with 0011, aiwl

whlr!j ;.: i an :i ; >n, it WM.ob-

\Iou-ly]>r , if tli- .-r of ri>mm< *n bad to

hi: irnprtjvcd, that th« - would hare hem

Mill fiirtlicr <1 by the

aid of a>r 'U, uamcljr, the

I'.n'^tu' ai»«l ii liic ■ • not tiling

tli« ir V'M.-ai or ■ cch, i • • *^ "

I i fr»r Pf>«'<"<'!i.

l! <^1, if I I 1»V t :i

I I fur f

'li. ; •, • and cruH' ha\«- ><>*ui • r

1 • bi'in;; d ' '

N -id by llio la" •
a of .1^ '

T - "

u . J tracfl of mjiny w^rd^ f *

to tln« <*m«^ of wo rmn jH r i »\« il .^t ihrr '

*flM MM ttmi rr«Mr%« la iKU aflhtt hj Th 1U«4*Wt. *TW

I- ■ : ,1 »• ! • Iff.

"iUMi I lMtrn», Mr. nM^vtV,
rxMHM* fliigW ••rAt« m4 r««« ttm%

<i« IM ImMK U bM 1^ •«» k, la ft flT

iiiIiMm I

•IUm JUMfiill Mmk r ^

58

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

raologies due to community of descent, and analogies due
to a Biniihir process of formation. The manner in which
certain letters or sounds change when others change is
very like correlated growth. We have in both cases the
reduj)lication of parts, the effects of long-continued use,
and so forth. The frequent presence of rudiments, botli in
languages and in species, is still more remarkable. The
letter m in the word am, means I; so that in the expres-
sion lam, a superfluous and useless rudiment has been re-
tained. In the spelling also of words, letters often remain
as the rudiments of ancient forms of pronunciation. Lan-
guages, like organic beings, can be classed in groups under
groups ; and they can be classed either naturally, accord-
ing to descent, or artificially by other characters. Domi-
nant languages and dialects spread widely and lead to the
gradual extinction of other tongues. A language, like a
species, when once extinct, never, as Sir C. Lyell remarks,
reappears. The same language never has two birthplaces.
Distinct languages may be crossed or blended together^"
We see variability in every tongue, and new words arc
continually cropping up; but as there is a limit to tho
powers df the memory, single words, like whole languages,
gradually become extinct. As Max MQller ** has well re-
marked : " A struggle for life is constantly going on among
the words and grammatical forms in each language. The
better, the shorter, the easier forms are constantly gaining
the upper hand, and they owe their success to their own
inherent virtue." To these more important causes of tho
8ur\'ival of certain words, mere novelty may, I think, bo
added; for there is in the mind of man a strong love for
slight changes in all things. The survival or preservation

Sec remarks to this elTert by the Rev. F. W. Farrar, in an interest-
In;; article, entitled " Philology and Darwinism," in * Nature,' March 24^
1870, p. 628.

'Nature,' Jan. C, 1870, p. 257.

MENTAL rOWERSL

of certain favored Hordrf in llic i»iruj»glc for oxi uu
natural selection.

The perfectly regular and wonderfully complex c.»n-
Btruciion of the lan^^ges of many barbarous nations )ias
often been advance*! an a prwjf, either of the divine orij^in
of lhc*«c lan^aiaj,'c>», or of the hij^h art an«l fonner civiliza-
tion of their founders. Tlm» F. von Schle;;el writes: **In
thofic bngua^es which ap[>ear to be at the lowe^t ^^rado
of intellectual culture, we fre<juently observe a verj' hij;h
and eluliorate dej^'e of art in their gnimmatUal structure.
'riii.H in i-j4i»ecially the cane with the Basque and the I*ap-
poiii i- ■ 1 many of the American Ian "i i *' I5ut it
is a- . y an error to hjK-ak of any ij^e an an art

in the M-nhe of its having bei'U elaWrately and melhotli-
cally fijnned. I*liilologij»ts now admit that conjugal ion
drrji nsions, etc., originally exi>tod 18 distinct wonU, since
joined together; and tm such words express the most ob-
vi"UH relations betwei-n objects and p- . it is not sur-

I .1 . . „|jould have been u l i by the men of

II i iiiiigthe" ' ,'es. With resiKCt to jH-r-
f. fidlow ' ■ -i will best show how easily

V : ; n ( tO« OODBistS of no le^M than

1 ,'• all arranffc*! with |HTfcct symnie-

iry in r but a nxi* t docs n«»t cotisiilcr

nri .tiiiinal of this kiml as more |>crfe<*t tlian a b ! ono

\ . few part«, and with noDo ul ihcMi

li oil til side* of t) ^ ' Ho

junii) . thu tbllii. ». ' u of

I • 'of jM-rfr« ' . A .. .. '^»o

|i. • 1 • 'mplri oil -111 II ' \

of r«»fi«tniriiiin from > . I, of

i * ra* « «.

••llMfciiii I, 'lkM<»««» (U.

60

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I

From llit'sc few aud imperfect remarks, I coiicliulc that
tlic extremely comj^lex and regular construction of many
barbarous languages is no proof that they owe their origin
to a special act of creation.*' Nor, as we have seen, docs
the faculty of articulate speech in itself ofter any insuper-
able objection to the belief that man has been developed
from some lower form.

•

Self-conscious7iess^ Indlvidiiality, Abstraction^ General
Ideas, etc. — It would be useless to attempt discussing these
high faculties, which, according to several recent writers,
make the sole and complete distinction between man and
the brutes, for hardly two authors agree in their defini-
tions. Such faculties could not have been fully developed
in man until his mental powers had advanced to a high
standard, and this implies the use of a perfect language.
No one supposes that one of the lower animals reflects
whence he comes or whither he goes — what is death, or
what is life, and so forth. But can we feel sure that an
old dog with an excellent memory, and some power of
imagination, as shown by his dreams, never reflects on his
past pleasures in the chase ? and this would be a form of
self-consciousness. On the other hand, as BUchner " has
remarked, how little can the hard-worked wife of a de-
graded Australian savage, who uses hardly any abstract
words, and cannot count above four, exert her self-con-
sciousness, or reflect on the nature of her own existence !

That animals retain their mental individuality is un-
questionable. When my voice awakened a train of old
associations in the mind of the above-mentioned dog, ho
must have retained his mental individuality, although

Sec some good remarks on the simplification of languages, by Sir
J. Lubbock, 'Origin of Civilization,' 1870, p. 278.

*® * Conferences sur la Theorie Darwinicune,' French trans?lat., 186f , p.
132.

ClIAP. II.]

MENTAL POWEIL^.

Gl

every atom of his brain had i)robal>ly undergone change
more than once during the interval of five years. This
dog miglit have brought forward the argument lately ad-
vanced to crush all evolutionists, an<l said, "I abide amiil
all mental moods and all material clianges. . . . The
leaching that atoms leave their imjiressions as legacies to
other atoms falling into the places they have vacated is
contradictory of the utterance of consciousness, and is
therefore false; but it is the teaching necessitated by evo-
lutionism, consequently the hypothesis is a false one.""

Sense of Beauty. — This sense has Wen declared to bo
peculiar to man. IJut when we behold male birds elabo-
rately displaying their plumes and splendid colors before
the females, while other birds not thus decorated make
no such display, it is impossible to doubt that the females
admire the beauty of their male partners. As women
everywhere deck themselves with these plumes, the beauty
of such ornaments cannot be disputed. .The Hower-binls
by t;i«.t< fully ornamenting their playing passages with
gayly-colored objects, as do certain humming-birds their
ij" sts, oflrr aildilional evidence that they possess a senso
«>f beauty. So with the song of birds, the sweet Btrains
p«Min-d forth by the mules during tlie seaiK>n of love aro
rrrtainly admired by the frmah s, <»f which fact evidence
will henafler bo given. If female binU had Invn in-
"ripable <if appreci the lM>autiful - ' . the onift-

111 ' and ViiiceH <.i ir male partners, .i.i i .c labor and
(1 . 1 l-v them in diNplni'i " tlu-ir charms 1k»-

r 1 have been ( ,1 awav ; and thui

it is iniposNible to admit. Why certain brii^ht colom and
certain Nouudii iihould eicilo plensun% when in hannony,
eannot, I prcNume, l>o explained any more tlian why cer-
tain flavors and ncmtN art« agnM*ablo; but nMuie«lly tho

ItoT. Dr. J. U'Cauii. ' Ami l)«r«itiltm,' p I J

02

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

8aine colors and the same sounds arc admired by us and
by many of the lower animals.

The taste for the beautiful, at least as far as female
beauty is concerned, is not of a special nature in the hu-
man mind ; for it differs widely in the different races of
man, as will hereafter be shown, and is not quite the same
even in the different nations of the same race. Judging
from the hideous ornaments and the equally hideous music
admired by most savages, it might be urged that their
ajsthetic faculty was not so highly developed as in certain
animals, for instance, in birds. Obviously no animal
would be capable of admiring such scenes as the heavens
at night, a beautiful landscape, or refined music ; but such
high tastes, depending as they do on culture and complex
associations, are not enjoyed by barbarians or by unedu-
cated persons.

Many of the faculties, which have been of inestimable
service to man for his progressive advancement, such as
the powers of the imagination, wonder, curiosity, an un-
defined sense of beauty, a tendency to imitation, and tho
love of excitement or novelty, could not fail to have led
to the most capricious changes of customs and fashions.
I have alluded to this point, because a recent writer" has
oddly fixed on Caprice " as one of the most remarkable
and typical differences between savages and brutes." But
not only can we perceive how it is that man is capricious
but the lower animals are, as we shall hereafter see, capri
cious in their affections, aversions, and sense of beauty.
There is also good reason to suspect that they love nov
city, for its own sake.

Belief in God — Heligion. — There is no evidence tha
man was aboriginally endowed with the ennobling belie
in the existence of an Omnipotent God. On the contrary

w 'The Spectator,' Dec. 4, 1869, p. Ii30.

CUAP. II.]

MEKTAL rOWEBa

there is ampie evidence, derived not from ha ivellcrs,
hut from men who have long resided with >a\;i,:eH, that
numerous races have existed and still exist, who have no
idea of one or more gods, and who have no words in their
languages to express such an idea.*' The question is of
course wholly distinct from that higher one, whether there
t vists a Creator and Kukr of the universe; and this has
1m . ri answered in the aflinuative by the highest intellects
thai have ever lived.

If, however, we include under the tenn " relii^ion " the
1m lief in unseen or Hpiritual agencies, the case is w holly
dill*, rent ; for this Wlief seems to be almost universal with
the hss civilized races. 'Kor is it diHicult to comprehend
how it arose. As soon as the imi>ortant faculties of tho
iffiagination, wonder, and curiosity, together with some
]>ower of reasoning, had become partially develojK'd, man
would naturally have craved to understand what was
pa^-iiiL' around liim, and have vaguely sjK'culatrd on his
own i xihtence. As Mr. M^I^nnan " has remarked, "Sonu*
explanation of the jdienomena of life, a man must feign
for hinim lf; and to judge from the universality of it, th '
»)im|«h ^t ji\ {Hithesis, and the first to occur to men, s»
to have )>een that natural phenomena nro nscribablc tu
the prc^'neo in animals, plants, aitd tl> iid in tlic

forces of Nature, of such spirits prompting to oction m
uu u are c- is thry theiiif><-lves |k»sh< It is pruU-

nblc, as Mr. l^iur haii dearly shown, th.ti >iit ams may
httvi- first given ri»4» to the notion of - • ; for savage*
«)«. n .f readily distinguish 1 III suij. i-. 1 .^'It*^

' S<w M ncMml arlktia oo ihU ttil.jr. t ).t tho Iter. f. W. Tmn%r, la
iKr • ,* Aofr Kor (briber fmeim

•r^ ' Till . . ...... 1 449, p. M4 ; Aft*! ra

pe« U Urn In ItU 'Or^itin uf nvfHmllon,*

Hio Worvhip of AttbMb MhI ItAbU, to the ' Furinkf^liiii lU
On 1. 1M9, p. 431

04

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Vart I.

live impressions. When a savage dreams, the figures
which appear before him arc believed to have come from
a distance and to stand over him ; or " the soul of the
dreamer goes out on its travels, and comes home with a
remembrance of what it has seen." " But until the above-
named faculties of imagination, curiosity, reason, etc., had
been fairly well developed in the mind of man, his dreams
would not have led him to believe in spirits, any more
than in the case of a dog.

The tendency in savages to imagine that natural ob-
jects and agencies are animated by spiritual or living es-
sences, is perhaps illustrated by a little fact which I once
noticed : My dog, a full-grown and very sensible animal,
was lying on the lawn during a hot and still day ; but at
a little distance a slight breeze occasionally moved an
open parasol, which would have been wholly disregarded
by the dog, had any one stood near it. As it was, every
time that the parasol slightly moved, the dog growled
fiercely and barked. He must, I think, have reasoned to
liiraself ill a rapid and unconscious manner, that movc-

Tylor, 'Early llistory of Mankind,' 18G5, p. G. Sec also the three
striking chapters on the Development of Keligion, in Lubbock's ' Origin
of Civilization,' 1870. In a like manner Mr. Herbert Spencer, in his in-
genious essay in the 'Fortnightly Review' (May 1, 1870, p. 535), ac-
counts for the earliest forms of religious belief throughout the world, by
man being led through dreams, shadows, and other causes, to look at
hirariclf as a double essence, corporeal and spiritual. As the spiritual
being is supposed to exist after death and to be powerful, it is propi-
tiated by various gifts and ceremonies, and its aid invoked. lie then
further shows that names or nicknames given from some animal or other
object to the early progenitors or founders of a tribe, are supposed after
a long interval to represent the real progenitor of the tribe ; and such
animal or object is then naturally believed still to exist as a spirit, is hel
sacred, and worshipped as a god. Nevertheless I cannot but suspect tha
there is a still earlier and ruder stage, when any thing which manifes
power or movement is thought to be endowed with some form of life, an
with mental faculties analogous to our own.

rnxr. II.]

MKNTAL roWKKS

05

iiR iil williout aii) ;i]»|jarLiil cau-^ iii^i* .iU «l lln- jirt nee
of Kornc stran«^e living agent, aii«l no stranger had a right
to he on hi« terrilory.

The helief in Kpirilual agencies would easily jiaiM into
the belief in the existence of one or more godfl. For

s would naturally attribute to t^pirits the same
hions, the same love of vengeance or simplest form of juA-
tice, and the name aflfections which lh« y themselves exj»e-
l icrMNMh The Fi m app'ar to be in this resjK'cl in an
i lie coiitiiUwii, for when t! w on board the

" !• ' hhot some youni; duckl <'cim»'n«*, York

M • r T - hired in the nio^t >»oI. i. i ; . . .ner, 'M )h I -Mr.
i'; , . I » rain, much snow, blow much and this waj*
< vi<b ntly a retributive puni^^hment for wastint; human
I'M' i. So again he related hfiw, when his brother killed A
"wild man/* storms long ragc«l, much rain and snow fell.
Yet we could never discover that the Fuegians bdievetl
in what wo should call a Goil, or pr I any religious

fit* "; rind Jemmy liutton, with jusliiiahle prid« 'ly
« 1 that tliere was no dt vil in hin lan<l. lin^ *at-

I ition is the more rcmarkaMr, as with Havu«;es the

I I b:id Spir't"^ i-< ^ir rn'-r.- < ■•"I'-i .m im tli.- }>■ f in

•r of relii»i«»»i«» d< votion !•< r» highly couiplci
<>ii< , 11 .f Invi i« subi! I to an etnliod

and m uii in ; . , .• of de|H i,

f* »r, f' , ho|M> for the futun*, and |H r' »|'^

• * *. No 1' in

• ' inrcd lu : .1 loo-

pl« ((

UW M.

- 4

CG

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Pakt I.

Tlie beliavior of a dofj when rcturnins: to liis master after
an absence, and, as I may add, of a monkey to liis belowd
keeper, is widely ditlerent from that toward tlieir fellows.
In tlie latter case the transports of joy appear to be Bomc-
wliat less, and the sense of equality is shown in every ac-
tion. Prof. Braubach " goes so far as to maintain that a
dog looks on his master as on a god.

Tlie same hi^h mental faculties which first led man to
believe in unseen spiritual agencies, then in fetishism,
polytlu'ism, and ultimately in monotheism, would infalli-
bly lead him, as long as his reasoning powers remained
poorly develojx'd, to various strange superstitions and cus-
toms. Many of these are terrible to think of — such as the
sacrifice of liuman beings to a blood-loving god ; the trial
of innocent persons by the ordeal of poison or fire ; witch-
craft, etc. — yet it is well occasionally to reflect on these
superstitions, for they show us what an infinite debt of
gratitude we owe to the improvement of our reason, to
science, and our accumulated knowledge." As Sir J.
Lubbock has well observed, " it is not too much to say
that the horrible dread of unknown evil han^s like a thick
cloud Over savage life, and embitters every pleasure."
These miserable and indirect consequences of our highest
faculties may be compared with the incidental and occa-
sional mistakes of the instincts of the lower animals.

* Religion, Moral, etc., der Darwin'schen Art-Lchrc,' 1860, a. 53.
"'Prehistoric Times,' 2d edit. p. 571. In this work (at p. 553)
there will be found an excellent account of the many strange and capri.
eious customs of savages.

Oiup. III.)

MORAL SENSE

67

CHAPTKIi III.

C^IMI'AUISON OP THE MKXTAL POWEIW OF MAN AXI) TlIK

LOWER ANIMALS — Continued,

TIm' Moral Scruic.— FuiidaniciiUl ProposiUoiu — Th« Qualities of Social
AiiimaLi. — Ortjpa of Sociabilitjr. — Htruifgle between Opposed In-
h' Man a Social Anim ' - cndarinfp Social I nutincta

c . ither loas Pcni«t«m i . o Social Virtaea alone ra-

icardvd bjr Savagea. — The Bclf-ret^rdin^ Virtaca acquired at a I^cr
Staffo of Dcvclopnx ■ ' ' o

McimIx th of the »a !*
M -ml T« ti<Kncifii. — ~

1 tLI.LV hlii)^< I il»c lo ju'l'^im iil »»l lh»»»i- N\uu r»'

who inaifitaiii that, of all tlir ditUTencoti Wtwivii man ami
tin* I<)w»T aiiiinalH, tin* in -r tl Hfii<<e or conHcit'iire i-* ^^■ f ir
tin- m .-r ifnporlaiit. 'I um*, an MackiiUotili * r<
** Ijiful Hiiprrmacy over every other |>riiioi|ilo t»f

Iiiiriian urtion;" it bt kuiuiikmI up in that Hhort but iuiiK^
rioiiM wonl ouffht^ no full of lii^h anre. It iit the

lllo^t iiolilo of all the nttrihtitcn of iimti, 1< i !i : hitn with-
nut a moment*!! hesitation to riMk hi< life for that of a fel-
l.iw ere or after «lue ilell' .n, im|H lied dimply

l»y ! Im' 'I j» irrlin^ of T ■ ' ' • ' it ill H.Miio

t;r. if « uiHr. Imiiciiiii 1 I' llvl Won*

I

II in.
«

t till* » > t,

«U It

68

TlIK DESCENT OF MAN.

(Paut I.

Ihittcry, nor by any threat, but merely by holding up thy
naked law in the soul, and so extorting for thyself always
reverence, if not always obedience ; before whom all ap-
petites arc dumb, however secretly they rebel; whcjuc
thy original ? " *

This great question has been discussed by many writ-
ers* of consummate ability; and my sole excuse for touch-
ing on it is the impossibility of here passing it over, and
because, as far as I know, no one has approached it exclu-
sively from the side of natural history. The investigation
possesses, also, some independent interest, as an attempt
to see how far the study of the lower animals can throw
light on one of the highest psychical faculties of man.

The following proposition seems to me in a high degree
probable — namely, that any animal whatever, endowed
with well-marked social instincts,* would inevitably ac-
quire a moral sense or conscience, as soon as its intellect -

* 'Metaphysics of Ethics,' translated by J. W. Scmple, Edinburgli,
1836, p. 136.

* Mr. Bain Rives a list (' Mental and Moral Science,' 1868, pp. 543-725)
of twenty-six liritisii authors who have written on this subject, and whose
names are familiar to every reader; to these, Mr. liaiu's own name, and
those of Mr. Lecky, Mr. Shadworth Hodgson, and Sir J. Lubbock, as well
as of others, may be added.

^ Sir B. Brodie, after observing that man is a social animal (' Psycho-
logical Inquiries,' 1854, p. 192), asks the pregnant question, "Ought not
this to settle the disputed question as to the existence of a moral sense ? "
Similar ideas have probably occurred to manv persons, as they did long
ago to Marcus Aurclius. Mr. J. S. Mill speaks, in his celebrated work,
• Utihtarianism ' (1864, p. 46), of the social feelings as a "powerful natu-
ral sentiment," and as " the natural basis of sentiment for utilitarian mo-
rality ; " but, on the previous page, he says, " If, as is my own belief, the
moral feelings are not innate, but acquired, they are not for that reason
less natural." It is with hesitation that I venture to differ from so pn>-
found a thinker, but it can hardly be disputed that the social feelings ai
instinctive or innate in the lower animals ; and why should thoy not be »
in man? Mr. Bain (sec, for instance, * The Emotions and the Will," 1865,

ur III.

99

ual powers ha«l become as Wfll ik \ c1.»|k .1, or nearly a«
^\< II duveloiK-d, as in man. Y or, firstly^ the Ko<Mal in-
.18 lead an animal to take jileasure in t)ie t»4x:iety of
its fellows, to feel a certain amount of symi'.i^fiv with
them, and to j>erform various services for them. scr*
ices may be of a definite and evidently instinctive natun-;
! there may be only a wish and readiness, as with most
I the higher social animals, to aid their fellows in certain
II '■ .1 \, 1 ^. lJut thehe f« and services arc by no

ln< .ttiA cjiundc-d to all the in«hw<iu.iU of the hai
only to those of . ^ jj

as the mental i.. ..... .1,

images of all past tad m :! 1 V. in...

Kautly f»asMin^ through the brain of each in .
that ; ^ of diAsatiftfaction whirh invariably results, u
we shall hereafter see, from any unsatiwfud instinct, would
aris<«, as often as it was jwrceived that the endurim: and
always pniwnt stx'ial instinct had yirhled to s<»mc «
111 at the time sf ' but neither enduring in

iKi , nor leaviri ' 1 ' iu i ri \ . ry vivid impr(>i««>ion. It
U clear that man -uch as that of 1

cr»-r, nr<- in their u .-n: m- ! - \

1 9Lf9 not rradily or vividly re«
after the iHiwor of language had UtMi ;i
' s of the nt >» of th«' same ron>

di y exprenM-d, tho common . , how each n

t< ^t to act for tlx '.hmI, Hould naturally

a 1 ' ' ut 11 io to a4*tion. Hut the iu».

• ' . »

tin* f. (|<

70

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

stinctivc sympathy. Lastly^ habit in tlic individual woiiM
ultimately play a very important part in guiding the con-
duct of each member; for the social instincts and im-
I)ulHes, like all other instincts, would be greatly strength-
ened by liabit, as would obedience to the wishes and judg-
ment of the community. These several subordinate prop-
ositions must now be discussed ; and some of them at con-
siderable lencrth.

It may be well first to premise that I do not wish to
maintain that any strictly social animal, if its intellectual
faculties were to become as active and as highly devel-
oped as in man, would acquire exactly the same moral
sense as ours. In the same manner as various animals
have some sense of beauty, though they admire widely
ditferent objects, so they might have a sense of right and
wrong, though led by it to follow w^idely different lines of
conduct. If, for instance, to take an extreme case, men
were reared under precisely the same conditions as hive-
bees, there can hardly be a doubt that our unmarried fe
males would, like the worker-bees, think it a sacred duty
to kill their brothers, and mothers would strive to kill their
fertile daughters ; and no one would think of interfering.
• Nevertheless the bee, or any other social animal, would in
our supposed case gain, as it appears to me, some feeling
of right and wrong, or a conscience. For each individual
would have an inward sense of possessing certain stronger
or more enduring instincts, and others less strong or en-
during; so that there would often be a struggle which im-
pulse should be followed ; and satisfaction or dissatisfac-
tion w^ould be felt, as past impressions were compared
during their incessant passage through the mind. In this
case an inward monitor would tell the animal that it
would have been better to have followed the one im-
pulse rather than the other. The one course ought
to have been followed : the one would liavc been right

cjiAi'. in.]

MORAL SENSE

71

an<l liic other wrong; l>ut to thc-r t. rrn- T <}\ 11 !i to
n'<iir.

>, lahility. — Animals of many kinds arc social; we
fnul even dLstioct Bpecics livinj:^ toj^ethcr, as with some
Aniericau monkeys, and with the united flocks of rooks,
jackdaws, and starlinc^s. Man shows the same fcelin*? iu
his strong love for the dog, which the dog returns with
interest. Every one must liavo noticed how miserable
hors<"», dogs, sheep, etc., are when separated from their
♦••irnpanions ; and wliat aflection at least the two former
kinds show on their reunion. It is curious to si>eeulat<?
on tlie feelings of a dog, who will rest |K*acefully for hours
ill a rt>om with his master or any of the family, without
the least notice Wing taken of him ; but, if left for a short
time by himself, barks or howls dismally. We will con-
line our attention to the higher social animals, excluding
insects, although these aid each other in many important
ways. The most common service which the higher ani-
mals pi-rform for each other, is tin* warning each other of
d.ui_'« r by means of the utiitetl senses of all. Kvery
♦^porlnuian knows, as Dr. Jaeger remarks,* how tlilli« nlr it
is to a|»proarh animals in a herd or troop. Wild 1>
and cattle do not, I believe, make any dangcr-hignal ; but
the attitude of any ono who first discovers an enemy,
w aniH the otlum. UabbitH stamp loudly on the gruuml
with their hind-feet us a signal : sheep and chamois do the
name, but with their fi»re feet, uttering 1 e a whistle.

Many binls and some m uu U, which in

the case of seal* an? sai i . uc tl • • '

ITm leader of a » r !i of nioii .. f' •

nf ». r < < f jeH v\ j.' b<»f li of

WHli iW

72

Tin: DKSCENT OF MAX.

[Part I.

cial animals j)crform many litlle Horviccs for each otlur:
horses nibble, ami eows lirk each other, on any spot which
itches : monkeys search for cacli other's external para-
sites; ami IJrehm states that, after a troop of the Cerco-
jiit/iccits griseo-virid'is has rushed through a thorny
brake, each monkey Btix'tches itself on a l)nineh, and
another monkey silting by " conscientiously " examines
its fur an<l extracts every thorn or burr.

Animals also render more important services to each
other: thus •wolves and some other l>east8 of i)rt»y liuiit
in packs, and aid each other in attacking their victims.
IVlicans llsh in concert. The Ilamadryas babcKUis turn
over stones to lind insects, etc. ; and when they come to a
largo one, as many as can stand round, turn it over to-
gether and share the booty. Social animals mutually de-
fend each other. Tlie males of seme ruminants come to
the front when there is danger and defend the lierd with
their bonis. I shall also in a future chapter give cases of
two young wild-bulls attacking an old one in concert, and
of two stallions together trying to drive away a third
stallion from a troop of mares. Brehm encountered in
Abyssinia a great troop of baboons which were crossing
a valley : some had already ascended the oj)positc moun-
tain, and some were still in the valley : the latter were at-
tacked by the dogs, but the old males immediately hurried
down from the rocks, and with mouths widely opened
roare<l so fearfully, that the dogs precipitately retreated.
They were again encouraged to the attack ; but by thia
time all the baboons had reascended the Iieights, except-
ing a young one, about six months old, who, loudly calling
lor aid, climbed on a block of rock and was surrounded.

Ilamadryas turning over stones, the fact is given (s. 76) on the evidence
»f Alvarez, whosfc obsen'ations Ilreliin thinks quite trustworthy. For tirt;
cases of the old male halxKjns attacking the dogs, see s. 79; and, with re-
spect to the eagle, s. 5G.

lur III.)

MORAL SK.VSE.

73

^ >>v of the lari/cHt inalt?*, i in i <», » aim «i«^uu

' lifi from tlie iiKMiiitain, bluwiy went to the yoiin^ one,
ved him, ami triuiiiphaiitly Kd him away — tlje d*"*^
iM-iiif:^ too much aAtonihhed to make an attack. I cannot
r< sist giving another scene witich was witnessed by thi«
ime naturalist; an eagle seiml a young CVrcopithecuii,
which, by clinging to a branch, was not at once carrictl
tf; it cried loudly for ajsjiintancc, upon which the other
ii ' rs of the tro<jj> with much uproar i " I to the
r- Murrounded the eagle, and pullnl • many

f« i ... . «, th:it ho no longer t' '^t of li" • , i»ul only
!iow to t i]M'. Thin eagle, i. • )im n : . .. . :i^-Mr. !'v
■ oiild never again attack a monki-y in a troop.

It in certain that a^Kociated aninialM have a feeling of
'Vo for each other which is not felt by adult and non-
A animaN. How far in most caseM they actually
IiIac with each other's pains and pleasures is more
^lly with I ' to the latter. Mr. lUix-
• I, \s iio had e\ ais »»f '

' - "I . win- ii i iro<» in .N.'ri.'.K,

"I'Mnapairwift I'-t^anil, Mii i
thf 1 left it. M i«i -M^t I ' v n tHMip

4 horribb* M It in

lit to U have any •

•> c*an say what ci>

And on a • I

f ihul

all) u i lor II

!

n i» ■•■

b.

thnt th

of prrr. In

Id \Hf ' d to f..||M>% • I

74

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut I.

condiicl is not iiiucli worse than tliiit of tlic North Amer-
ican Indians who leave their feeble comrades to perish
on the plains, or the Feegeans, who, when their parents
get old or fall ill, bury them alive.'"

Many animals, however, certainly sympathize with
each other's distress or danger. This is the case even
witli birds ; Captain Stansbury " fomid, on a salt lake in
Utah, an old and completely blind pelican, which was very
fat, and must have been long and well fed by his compan-
ions. Mr. Blyth, as he informs me, saw Indian crows
feeding two or three of their companions which were
blind ; and I have heard of an analogous case with the
domestic cock. AVe may, if we choose, call these actions
instinctive ; but such cases are much too rare for the de-
velopment of any special instinct/' I have myself seen
a dog, who never passed a great friend of his, a cat which
lay sick in a basket, without giving her a few licks with
his tongue, the surest sign of kind feeling in a dog.

It must be called sympathy that leads a courageous
dog to fly at any one who strikes his master, as he cer-
tainly will. I saw a person pretending to beat a lady who
had a very timid little dog on her lap, and the trial had
never before been made. The little creature instantly
jumped away, but, after the pretended beating was over,
it was really pathetic to sec how perseveringly he tried to
lick his mistress's face and comfort her. Brelim " states
that when a baboon in confinement was pursued to be

Sir J. Lubbock, Trcliistonc Times,' 2J edit. p. 416.

As quoted by Mr. L. U. Morgan, 'The American IJeavcr,' 1808, p.
272. Captain Stansbury also gives an interesting account of the manner
in which a very young pelican, carried away by a strong stream, was
guided and encouraged in its attempts to reach the shore by half a dozen
old birds.

As Mr. Bain states, " effoctivc aid to a sufferer springs from sym-
pathy proper: " ' Mental and Moral Science,' 1868, p. 245.
'» *Thierlcben,' B. i. s.*85.

Chap. III.]

MOKAL SENSE.

75

punished, the others tried to protcet him. ll must have
been sympatliy in tlic cases ahovc given which led tlie
baboons and Cercopitheei to defend their young comrades
from the dogs and the eagle. I will give only one other
instance of Bympathetic and heroic conduct in a little
American monkey. Several years ago a keeper at the
Zoological Gardens, showed me some deep and scarcely
healed wounds on the nape of his neck, inflicted on him
while kneeling on the floor by a fierce baboon. 'Die little
i\meri<-an monkey, who was a warm frii nd of this keeper,
lived in the same lar_'<^ f ' iiipartment, and was dreadfully
afraid of the great b.. i. Xevertheh ss, as soon as he
caw his frien<l the keeper in j)eril, he rushed to the rescue,
and by screams and bites so distracted the baboon that
the man was able to escape, after running great risk, as
the surgeon who attended him thought, of his life.

IJesides love and jiympathy, animals exhibit other qual-
ities which in us wouhl be called moral ; and I agree wilfi

X/assi/,'* that dogs possess something very like a con-
K. itucc. They certainly |x>ssesrt some power of sclf-<'om-
maitd, and this docs not ap|K'ar to be wholly the result of
fear. Ah Jlraubach " remarks, a dog will n-frain from
Ht< aling food in the absence of his ma*itcr. Dogs have
long Imcu accepted as the very type t>f fi«lelity and oW»li-
viice. All animalN living in a luxly wliich defend ea« h
other or attack their enemi«»s in concert, mu^t bo in some
•legree faithful to each oilier; and tho^e that follow a
h-ader must Ihj in some degree olM «lii nt. When '
Ihmius in Abyssinia " plunder a ^^arden, they hilentl}
their leader; and if an impnid« nt yntmg animal n. . »

nois4«, he recel\<'^ ri -lap fr«»m the oIIm r« to teach him
fiilence and <> ; but »« toon an they arv »un)

»» m Art-Uhrr.' M.

llrrhm, • 1 1. ' II. I. r

70

Tin: DESCENT OF MAX.

[I'AUT I.

that lliero is no danger, all bIiow their joy by nuieh
clamor.

AVitli resi>ect to the impulse which leads certain ani-
mals to associate together, and to aid each other in many
ways, we may infer that in most cases they are impelled
by the same sense of satihfaction or j'leasure which they
exix?rieuce in perfonning other instinctive actions; or by
the same sense of dissatisfaction, as in other cases of pre-
vented instinctive actions. "We see this in innumerable
instances, and it is illustrated in a striking manner by the
acquired instincts of our domesticated animals; thus a
young shepherd-dog delights in driving and running round
a flock of sheep, but not m worrying them ; a young fox-
hound delights in hunting a fox, Avhilc some other kinds
of dogs, as I have witnessed, utterly disregard foxes.
AVhat a strong feeling of inward satisfaction must impel
a bird, so full of activity, to brood day after day over her
eggs ! ]\Iigratory birds are miserable if prevented from
migniting, and iK*rhaps they enjoy starting on their long
flight. Some few instincts are determined solely by pain-
ful feelings, as by fear, which leads to self-preservation, or
is specially dii*ected against certain enemies. Xo one, I j)re-
sume, can analyze the sensations of j^leasure or pain. In
many cases, however, it is probable that instincts are persist-
ently followed from the mere force of inheritance, without
the stimulus of cither pleasure or pain. A yonng pointer
when it first scents game, apparently cannot help pointing
A squirrel in a cage who jxits the nuts which it cannot eat,
as if to bury them in tl>e ground, can hardly be thought to
act thus either from pleasure or pain. Ilencc the common
assumption that men must be impelled to every action by
experiencing some pleasure or pain may be enoneous.
Although a habit may be blindly and implicitly followed,
independently of any pleasure or pain felt at the mo-
ment, yet if it be forcibly and abruptly checked, a vague

lur III.]

MOIIAL SKNSE.

77

n iiHc of diKsatiHfactioii is generally i \|.. ? . 1 ' '
is eH|K*ciaIly truelu regard to jM-rsons of :

It has often been assiiined tliat anin . a ere in the
lirst place rendered social, and that they feel as a conse-
quence uncomfortable when separated from each otlicr,
!id comfortable while together; but it is a more probable
lew that these sensations were first develojKHl, in order
tliat those animals which would profit by living in so
H ty, should be ii ' 1 to live • 'ler, in the same
jiiainier as the sensi- • 1 imngeranil iiu: pleasure of eating
were, no doub*. f*' -t acquired in order to induce : • • • »U
to fit. The 1 of pK-asure from *v ]< ■< . iy

>u of the parental or filial . ,1 thi«<

\teii>*ion may l>e in cliief part attributed to natunil
tion, but iK-rhaps in part to mere liabit. For with t
riinial.H which were Ix'nefited )»y living in close a8so«-ia-
• Ml, the individuals ^%hirh took the great«'^t ph'asure in
ty would Inut e«>(*a|K3 various dangers; while thoso
' 1 lea>t f»»r their < ' I lived -y

I J- ii«<h in greater nuni .i . Willi r : i . u»o

II i>f the parental and filial a*^ -us, w » appar-

111- Mt tfn» banis of the fix \ i-i, ir b-M"

but we innv ir
vtent gained th natuml i«

dy iMvn with the uiiuitual and op 1-
>g of f tho I ' n*Utiont, m with the

^^ '•i' it kill tin ir l>i InuieK, and with tho

«i '> kill til ; tho deniro

' ' ' r. l.ttions hav-

I .».t-i:i.j.- i I ,1.! ... di*titl<*i

that tif love. .\ tfi'tl'. r iu w \ ' ln-f

' find !• » V bo

it. Tlio litxo of A man for hi«
An<l to It that oi ^

78

Tin: DKSCENT OF MAN".

ITAltT I.

for liis master. Adam Smith formerly argued, as lias 31 r.
liaiii recently, that the basis of sympathy lies in our
strong retentiveness of former states of pain or j)leasure.
Hence, "the sight of another person enduring hunger,
cold, fatigue, revives in us some recollection of these
stati'S, which are painful even in idea." AVe are thus im-
pelled to relieve the sufferings of another, in order that
our own painful feelings may be at the same time relieved.
In like manner we are led to participate in the pleasures
of others.'^ But I cannot see how this view explains the
fact that sympathy is excited in an immeasurably stronger
degree by a beloved than by an indifferent person. The
mere sight of suffering, independently of love, would
suffice to call up in iis vivid recollections and associations.
Sympathy may at fii*st have originated in the manner
above sucrcrested : but it seems now to have become an
instinct, which is especially directed toward beloved ob-
jects, in the same manner as fear with animals is especial-
ly directed against certain enemies. As sympathy is thus
directed, the mutual love of the members of the same
community Avill extend its limits. Ko doubt a tiger or
lion feels sympathy for the sufferings of its own young,
but not for any other animal. With strictly social ani-
mals the feeling will be more or less extended to all the
associated members, as we know to be the case. With
mankind selfishness, experience, and imitation, probably
add, as ^Ir. Bain has shown, to the power of sympathy;

" Sec the first and strikin;; chapter in Adam Sinitirs * Theory of
Moral Sentiments.' Also Mr. Baiu^s 'Mental and Moral Science,* 18C8, p.
211, and 275-282. Mr. Bain states that " sympathy is, indirectly, a
source of pleasure to the sjTnpalhizcr;" and he accounts for this throuf^b
reciprocity. lie remarks that " the person benefited, or others in his
stead, may make up, by sympathy and good oflices returned, for all ihe
f acrifice." But if, as appears to be the case, sympathy is strictly an in-
stinct, its exercise would give direct pleasure, in the same manner as the
exercise, as before remarked, of almo-^t every other instinct.

Mur. III.]

MO UAL SEN.sk.

79

fi»r we arc IcJ by the hojK; of receiving ^ood in return to
perform acts of syinpathetic kindness to others ; and there
can be no doubt that the feeling of sympathy Is much
strengthened by habit. In however complex a manner
this feeling may have originated, as it is one of high im-
portance to all those animals which aid and defend each
other, it will have been increased, through natural selec-
tion; for tho.se communities which included the ' ' at
numlH'r of the most sympathetic mei . would .. - .:*-h
be.Ht and rear the greatest number of i

In many ca.ses it is im|K>s.sibIo to d» a hether cer-
tain social instincts have been acquired through natural
selection, or are the indirect ri^ult of other instincts and
faculties, such as sympathy, reason, exiK'ncnce, and a ten-
dency to imitation ;. or again, whether they are simply the
result of long-continued habit. So remarkable an instinct
as the pl:i Is to warn tin* community of dan-

ger, can i..*.- i>vvn the indirict nsull <»f any other

faculty ; it must then fore have Im'« ii dirtcily a ■ d.
Of) tfi.' oiliiT hand, the li iM» fullo\ve«l by the li . .»f
.1 uninials, of d. Jig the coninmnity an<l of
a iig their rn»'mies or their prey in concert, mny f»«T-
haps have oft d from mutual sympathy ; but :i%

ami in most caim;* ^ !i, must have Imh'U pt y ao-

natuntl •n.

and I -h

tion than olhrrs ; or.
ibi'V fin* fijnri' ]H'r*>-

V ' anr ro or |Miin.

^' thnt iHitnc mtirh

inoi I '

y I b«i ui I in ai >»•

60

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

tiuii ; as wlion a dog ruslies after a liaro, is rebuked,
pauses, hesitates, pursues again or returns ashamed to his
master ; or as between the love of a female dog for her
young puppies and for her master, for she may be seen to
slink away to them, as if half ashamed of not accompany-
in<x her master. But the most curious instance known to
me of one instinct conquering another, is the migratory
instinct conquering the maternal instinct. The former is
wonderfully strong ; a confined bird will at the proper
season beat her breast against the wires of her cage, until
it is bare and bloody. It causes young salmon to leap
out of the fresh water, where they could still continue to
live, and thus unintentionally to commit suicide. Every
one knows how strong the maternal instinct is, leading
even timid birds to face ojreat danixer, thouo:h with hesita-
tion and in opposition to the instinct of self-preservation.
Nevertheless the migratory instinct is so powerful that
late in the autumn swallows and house-martins frequently
desert their tender young, leaving them to perish miser-
ably in their nests. ^®

We can perceive tluit an instinctive impulse, if it be
in any way more beneficial to a species than some other
or opposed instinct, would be rendered the more potent
of the two through natural selection ; for the individuals
which had it most strongly developed would survive in

This fact, the Rev. L. Jenyns states (see his edition of ' "White's
Nat. Ili-st. of Selborne,' 1853, p. 204) was first recorded by the illus-
trious Jcnner, in ' Phil. Transact.' 1824, and has since been confirmed by
several observers, especially by Mr. Blackwall. This latter careful ob-
server examined, late in the autumn, during two years, thirty-six nests ;
he found that twelve contained young dead birds, five contained eggs on
the point of being hatched, and three eggs not nearly hatched. Many
birds not yet old cnough'for a prolonged flight are likewise deserted and
left behind. See Blackwall, 'Researches in Zoology,' 1834, pp. 108, 118.
For some additional evidence, although this is not wanted, see Leroy,
♦liettrcs Phil.' 1802, p. 217.

ClIAP. III.]

MORAL SENSE.

81

liir'^or numljcrs. AVhetlier this is the case with the niifru-
lory in coniimrison with the maternal instinct, may well
he doubted. The great persistence or &teady action of
the former at certain seasons of the year during the whole
day, may give it for a time j)aramount force.

Man a social animal. — 3Iost persons admit that man
is a social being. We see this in his dislike of solitude,
and in his wish for society beyond that of his own family.
Solitary confmement is one of the severest punishments
which can be inllicted. Some authors suppose that man
primevally lived in single families; but at tlie i>reseut
day, though single families, or only two or tliree together,
roam the solitudes of some savage lands, tliey are always,
as far as I can discover, friendly with other families in-
habiting the same district. Such families occasionally
meet in council, and they unite for their common defence.
It is no argument against savage man being a social ani-
mal, that the tribes inhabiting adjacent districts are al-
most always at war with each olhcr; for the social in-
stincts never exten<l to all the individuals of the same
Kjiecies. Judging from the analogy of the greater num-
ber of the Quadrumana, it is probable that the early ape-
like j»rogenitorfl of man were likewise social; but this is
not of nmch importance for us. Although man, as he
now exifits, lias few special instincts, having lost any
which his early jjrogcnitors may have possessed, this is no
reason why he should not have retained from an extreme-
ly remr)te period some degree of instinctive love and sym-
pathy for his frllowH. We an* indeed all ronseions that
wr <lo j»osHe!»s such sympathetic feelings ;*• but our con-

'* llunin rctiiarka (' An Emiuirjr Conrcnilni; the rrliiciplra of MormU,*
I ' , ! • ' ' 11} H< <*iiiK « iici'<>iiiiity r«ir itiiifof»»iii); that tb«

I. , , 1 :.. lom aro not miwlnt l. » nil. - f?!.! !• I ffi rml

to uj«, liul thai tbo view of tho furrocr . . . i* 7 ;

32

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

Fciousncss docs not tell us wlicthcr they are instinctive,
liaving originated long ago in tlie same manner as with
the lower animals, or whether they have been acquired by
each of us during our early years. As man is a social
animal, it is also probable that he would inherit a ten-
dency to be faithful to his comrades, for this quality is
common to most social animals. He would in like man-
ner possess some capacity for self-command, and perhaps
of obedience to the leader of the community. He would
from an inherited tendency still be willing to defend, in
concert with others, his fellow-men, and would be ready
to aid them in any way which did not too greatly inter-
fere with his own welfare or his own strono: desires.

The social animals which stand at the bottom of the
scale are guided almost exclusively, and those whicli stand
higher in the scale are largely guided, in the aid which
they give to the members of the same community, by
special instincts ; but they are likewise in part impelled
by mutual love and sympathy, assisted aj^parently by
some amount of reason. Although man, as just remarked,
has no special instincts to tell him how to aid his fellow-
men, he still has the impulse, and with his improved in-
tellectual faculties would naturally be much guided in this
respect by reason and experience. Instinctive sympathy
would, also, cause him to value highly the approbation of
his fellow-men ; for, as Mr. Bain has clearly shown," the
love of praise and the strong feeling of glory, and the
still stronger horror of scorn and infamy, " are due to the
w^orkings of sympathy." Consequently man would be
greatly influenced by the wishes, approbation, and blame
of his fellow-men, as expressed by their gestures and lan-
cruacre. Thus the social instincts, which must have been

the appearance of llic latter . . . throws a melancholy damp over the
hnagination,"

«o 'Mental and Moral Science,' 18G8, p. 254.

CllAP. III.]

MORAL SENSE.

83

.'ic(jiiircd by man in a very rude j-tuto, and probaljly even
l>y his early ape-like progenitors, still give the impulse to
many of Iiis Lest actions ; but his actions are largely de-
termined by the expressed wishes and judgment of his
fellow-men, and unfortunately still oftener by his own
strong, selfish desires. liut as the feelings of love and
sympathy and the power of self-command become strength-
ened by liabit, and as the power of reasoning becomes
clearer so that man can appreciate the justice of the judg-
ments of his fellow-men, he will feel himself impelled, in-
dependently of any j)leasure or j)ain felt at the moment,
to certain lines of conduct, lie may then say, I am iho
supreme jndge of my own conduct, and, in the words of
Kant, I will not in my own j»erson violate the dignity of
humanitv.

The more enduring Social Instincts conquer tfie less
J'crnifttent Instincts. — We Iiave, however, not as yet con-
hidered the main point, on which the whole question of
the' moral sense hinges. AVliy should a man feel that ho
ou'^ht to <»bey one instinctive desire ratiicr than another?
Why does he bitterly regret if he has yielded to the strong
s«'iis<» of Helf-j)reservation, and has not risked liis life to save
that of a fellow-creature; or wliy diK*a ho regret having
Htolen food from nevero hunger ?

It if) evident in the first place, that with mankind the
instinctive impnlseA have difU-rent degrees of strength ; a
young and timid niotluT urgctl by the maternal instinct
will, witliout a moment's hcHitation, run the greatest dan-
ger for her infant, but not for ii mere frlh»w-ereatun'.
Many a man, or vww boy, who nevi-r brf»»re risked his life
for aiiothrr, but in u horn courage and Nympathy were well
di'V( lo|H>d, has, disregarding the instinct of nelf-pni»crvtt«
tion, iuMtantaiieously plungrd into ti t<>rn>nt to Mre A
drowning fdlowcreatun*. In thin cano man iit ini|M*ll(*U

B4

Tin: DKSCKNT OF MAN.

[PAnx I.

l»y the Scimc instinctive motive, wliich caused tlic heroic
little Anieriean monkey, formerly described, to attack tho
jxreat and dreaded baboon, to save his keeper. Such ac-
tions as the above appear to be tlic simple result of tlu
•greater strength of the social or maternal instincts than
of any other instinct or motive; for they arc performed
too instantaneously for reflection, or for the sensation of
pleasure or pain ; though if prevented distress would be
caused.

I am aware that some persons maintain that actions
l)erfonned impulsively, as in the above cases, do not conu'
under the dominion of the moral sense, and cannot bi
called moral. They confine this term to actions done de-
liberately, after a victory over opposing desires, or t«>
actions prompted by some lofty morive. But it appear-
scarcely possible to draw any clear line of distinction ol
this kind ; though the distinction may be real. As far as
exalted motives are concerned, many instances have been
recorded of barbarians, destitute of any feeling of general
benevolence toward mankind, and not guided by any re-
ligious motive, who have deliberately as prisoners sacri-
ficed their lives," rather than betray their comrades ; and
surely their conduct ought to be considered as moral. As
far as deliberation and the victory over opposing motive^
are concerned, animals may be seen doubting between op-
posed instincts, as in rescuing their ofl>^priug or comrades
from danger; yet their actions, though done for the good
of others, are not called moral. ^lorcovcr, an action re-
peatedly performed by us, will at last be done without
deliberation or hesitation, and can then hardly be distin-
guished from an instinct ; yet surely no one will pretend
that an action thus done ceases to be moral. On the con-

" I liHve Riven one such case, namely, of three Patagonian India!!^
who preferred being shot, one after the other, to betraying the plans of
their companions in war (' Jonrnal of liesearehes,' 1815, p. 103).

Chap. III.] MUUAL 85

Iraiy, Wc all IVel tiiul aa a- I cannot l>o C'" ' ' l a-
fcM-t, or a?* pfrfonned in the most noble li.a;.;. r, unK
Ihj done impul>iv« ly, without th liberation or effort, in tV.
name manner as by a man in whom the nKjuUitc 4 .
are innate. He who is forced to overcome his fear or want
of Hympatliy Ix-forc he acts, deserves, however, in one way
higher credit than the man whoso umatc disposition lea«U
him to a j^ood act without effort. As we cannot distin-
j;ui.»h between motives, we rank all a of a certain

class as ' ' I they are j)crform» ti ii\ u moral ^

A moral iM.ii^ < wc who is capable of coi: • 'M'^ hi- j.. :
and future actions or motives, and of ap| : . . 4 <»r 1* •
proving of them. We have no reason to huj»p«»M' t : .
<if the lower animals have this capacity; then-fore wIj. u
a monkey faces tlaiii^er to rescue its comrade, or takes
charge of an orphan-monkey, we do not call its conduct
moral. Hut in the ca^* of man, who alone can with cer-
tainty be ninki d as a moral In intj, actions of a cert i ti

' are called monil, whetlu-r perfoniu*<l delilKTr
alter a stniggle with op|M»«»ing nioiive-*, or from
"f hlowly-;;ained habit, or impul-i\« K
Ibit t I r. ttirn to our mor«- i" T'i.
ire Tnor«« |h»,^

to com ^, rri it cannot U* mniutainc^l '

tlu) i4M ial iii*»tinrt« an* < stnuit^er in man, or luivo

liecome str through l«>r .than tlio

instincts, fur of m !■ aion, hunger, !

vcngcanco, etc, <»y, thm, .1.., m ui re/
though ho may endeavor to b.ir re^t
ho has followoil thr . • • • • '
OlV« r : I'l l V ' i1(M

gr . ' ^f i»( ;

fr«»m fhe lowor

' some •!. -r . o of «

6G

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

LPakt I.

Man, from the aclivity of liis mental faculties, cannot
avoid redcction ; past impressions and images are inces-
santly passing through his mind with distinctness. Now
with those animals which live permanently in a body, the
social instincts are ever present and persistent. Such ani-
mals are always ready to utter the danger-signal, to de-
fend the community, and to give aid to their fellows in
accordance with their habits; they feel at all times, with-
out the stimulus of any special passion or desire, some de-
gree of love and sympathy for them ; they are unhapj>y
if long separated from them, and always happy to be in
their company. So it is with ourselves. A man who pos-
sessed no trace of such feelings would be an unnatural
monster. On the other hand, the desire to satisfy hunger,
or any passion, such as vengeance, is in its nature tempo-
rary, and can for a time be fully satisfied. Kor is it easy,
perhaps hardly possible, to call up with complete vivid-
ness the feeling, for instance, of hunger ; nor, indeed, as
has often been remarked, of any suftering. The instinc t
of self-preservation is not felt except in the presence of
danger; and many a coward has thought himself brave
until he has met his enemy face to face. The wish for
another man's property is, perhaps, as persistent a desire
as any that can be named ; but even in this case the satis-
faction of actual possession is generally a weaker feeling
than the desire ; many a thief, if not an habitual one, after
success has wondered why he stole some article.

Thus, as man cannot prevent old impressions contin-
ually repassing through his mind, he will be compelled to
compare the weaker impressions of, for instance, past hun-
ger, or of vengeance satisfied or danger avoided at the
cost of other men, with the instinct of symi>athy and good-
will to his fellows, which is still present, and ever in some
deuree active in his mind. lie will then feel in liis ima^i-
nation that a stronger instinct has yielded to one which

t il : . 1 1 1. J

MORAL SKN>K.

87

iiov, Scorns coiiij»:irall\ fly weak; ami iIkii that jicnsc <»f
«i -faction will inevitably l>e felt with whith nuin in
... . ...L like c%'ery other animal, in order that hin ii^

Htiiicts may be obeyed. The case Ixforc given, of the
fxallow, afibrdii an illn^tration, tiiou^h of a reversotl na-
»urc», of a temporary, though foi'thc time strongly per>i-i-
eiit, inHtinct conquering another inHtinct which in utiually
dominant over all others. At the pro[)cr season thetM?
bird-* Mrem all day long to Ix? impressed with the desire
t" II *' > habiti* c! 'f*!', are

" I'd ci itc in ii</ckA. U iii.v iiii 1. ' d

i-< ; ■ i.ng or bi i. ' r her ncstlifi ' mai«ii..ii ui-
Htiiict in probably r tl nri the i. _...;ory; but the

in«^tinrt which i.H more j- i -i i- i t gains the victory, an-l
la«t, at a moment when her young ones arc not in hi.
flu* takes flight and de»erts them. When arrived at the
end of her long journey, and the migratorj* iniitinct ceaMti
to art, what an agony of remorm; each binl would fit 1, if,
frofii !m iiig endowed with gn»at mental activity, nhe could
no( J. n vent the image . Ix fon' her mind

of Ih r young one* |H'riMiUi^ la iia i... ih fn»ni coM

and hungiT !

Ai Uh- rtU'tT'i fit of ri« »!i.n f iti \', 'M (^..^bf b«' nt-* t..
f.. !!•.*%• tho

■ 1 him to

hii own d(**irtii «| -
their

p. II-.*' of other II
pn«l and WCftker
« ' : social
M v« lil then f( « i

%i ith more ur I
tiii> . '1 III* |« roii»<
and jii'l^'i • p.»il i4. t ;
lii»ti, which, If weak.

f*. 1 •,

I

88

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Vakt r.

fXpc'rienceJ wlioii oilier instincts or di-sires are left uiisat-
islicd ; but every unsatisfied instinct lias its own proper
prompting sensation, as we recognize with liiinger, thirst,
etc. Man thus prompted, will through long liabit acquire
such perfect self-command, that his desires and passions
will at last instantly yield to his social sympathies, and
there will no longer be a struggle between them. TIio
still hungry, or the still revengeful man will not think of
stealing food, or of wreaking his vengeance. It is possi-
ble, or, as wc shall hereafter see, even probable, that the
habit of self-command may, like other habits, be inherited.
Thus at last man comes to feel, through acquired, and,
perhaps, inherited habit, that it is best for him to obey
his more persistent instincts. The imperious word ought
seems merely to employ the consciousness of the existence
of a persistent instinct, either innate or partly acquired,
serving liim as a guide, though liable to be disobeyed. Wo
hardly use the word ought in a metaphorical sense when
we say hounds ought to hunt, pointers to point, and re-
trievers to retrieve their game. If they fail thus to act,
they fail in their duty and act WTongly.

If any desire or instinct, leading to an action opposed
to the good of others, still appears to a man, when recalled
to mind, as strong as, or stronger than, his social instinct,
he will feel no keen regret at having followed it ; but ho
will be conscious that if his conduct were known to his
fellows, it would meet with their disapprobation ; and feA7
arc so destitute of sympathy as not to feel discomfort when
this is realized. If he has no such sympathy, and if his
desires leading to bad actions are at the time strong, and
when recalled are not overmastered by the persistent so-
cial instincts, then he is essentially a bad man;" and the

Dr. Prosper Dcspinc, in his 'Psychologic Naturcllc,' 18fi8 (torn. i. p.
243 ; torn. ii. p. 109), gives many cnrious coses of the worst criininali^, wlio
apparently have been entirely destitute of conscience.

Cnxr III.)

MORAL SEN'S£.

89

hi>U- n struiJiiij;^ iiioiivc Icli is the fear of j>u!ii-l:!ii<ut, and
tin* conviction that in the lon^-nin it wouMl • l.-t f r
his own Bfltiiih intortuts to regard llie good of oll»«. r& raliu r
than hiri own.

It lA obvioun that every one niay with an va^y eot»>
hi iciicc gratify his own de»ire«, if they do not inti-rfere
with hi» social in«tinctH, that ijt, with the good of others;
\nit in order to be quite free from self-reproach, or at least
of anxiety, it if almo^t ncci-i^sary for him to avoid tho di«-
approl or not, of hiK n.

N"r III . -I In itiK.in li ii*c fi\« d haMf^ oi ; .

j»« • iaily if til • ■ - ' ' ' i- .ri; |..r il

h«- will awu' He nitut

avoi.l tin- r» ] .1 of the - ' -1 or i»o«Iji, iii .. ai,

a<-< or<liii«4 to his knowlc«l:^o or i)U|»' -ii, he may ho*
li< vc ; hut in thin ca.Ho the additional fear of divine puulth-

Mi. :i' >-({i II »'ii|M n'en»-<,

T'/t* . i trdd' A lit J, . irUMiL—

rii<' a1> '\' . ..1 fir«l <■•* '"v an«i j..r. .... • i ilio moral

• . 'A ii . !i t« lU UH what \k> • f f.. »! .r .] . f con*

ri provea Un ii \s
with what w< f tlu* early and ui. in

• . li .n i i< itlty in niaiiliiid. Tho\irtti«-^ \^lii<}i iiKtut be

at lea^i , by rude men, so that they

• ' in a iHMiy, are th(MM« which are nt ill nvo|^
i t Hut they are | ' •{ al-

I • • . Mt i» men ("f the f^im tritie;

1 • tie* in rt lation

.. i hold toi*i (her
, wrm common: <

• «l«'h Cfitllr*

« MO

** Hot Ml aM* anlrW- In fti«* • tM?. 9m

Mr. W. Hmti ^ .|MfUi» ^

90

THE DESCKNT OF MAX.

[Paiit I.

Bucli sentiment beyonel these limits. A North American
Indian is well pleased with himself, and is honored by
others, when he scalps a man of another tribe ; and a Dyak
cuts oft' the head of an unoftcnding person and dries it as
a trophy. The murder of infants has prevailed on the
largest scale throughout the world," and has met with no
reproach ; but infanticide, especially of females, has been
thought to be good for the tribe, or at least not injurious.
Suicide during former times was not generally considered
as a crime," but rather, from the courage displayed, as an
honorable act ; and it is still largely practised by some
semi-civilized nations without reproach, for the loss to a
nation of a single individual is not felt ; whatever the ex-
planation may be, suicide, as I hear from Sir J. Lubbock,
is rarely practised by the lowest barbarians. It has been
recorded that an Indian Tiiug conscientiously regretted
that he had not strangled and robbed as many travellers
as did his father before him. In a rude state of civilization
the robbery of strangers is, indeed, generally considered as
honorable.

The great sin of Slavery has been almost universal, and
slaves have often been treated in an infamous manner. As
barbarians do not regard the opinion of their women, wives
are commonly treated like slaves. Most savages arc ut-
terly indifferent to the sufferings of strangers, or even dc-
lirrbt in witnessine: them. It is well known that the women
and children of the Xorlh-American Indians aided m tor-
t\iring their enemies. Some savages take a horrid pleasure

jcnce to rriuiitive Muu, iu the ' l oi luightly Twcview,' 18G7, p. 529, and
1808, p. 457, etc.

" The fullest account which I have met with is by Dr. Gcrland, in
' Uebcr das Ausstcrbcn dcr Naturviilkcr,' 1808 ; but I shall have to recur
to the subject of infanticide in a future diaptcr.

See the very interesting discussion on Suicide in Lccky's * History
of Kuropcau Morals,' vol. L 1SC9, p. 223.

Clup. III.]

MOUAL .SKNSE.

01

in cruelty to animalu," and humanity w.ui in un-

known virtue. Nevertheless, ft. line's of 1
kiiidnes* arc common, especially tlurinj^ sir „
the menil>ers of the same tril>o, aii«l are 8om( > l.-d

beyond the limits of the Irihe, iMimj^o Park's i ag
u-count of the kindnesH of the nej^ro women of tho inte-
rior to him is well known. 3Iany instauceji could In?
:ivcn of the noUe lidelity of Havaj^es toward eaeh other,
i»ut not to Btrangern; . o justilies tho

\ira of the Spaniard, ' .\. . , r, i*cvtr ira^t an Ind
re cannot Ikj fidelity wi'' • truth; and this f
ital virtue {» not rare 1 n the memU-rH «.i i;.

imo tril>e; thus Munu'<» lark h. ard the ncL'r • ^v "i.-n
I hing their young childrm to love tho tr . -i,
II, irt one of the virtucn which become!* so deeply n>oi-
l in the mind that it is nometimefl practised by savagm,
I at a high coht, toward straiigern; but to lio to yoor
• !y l>een t' a nin, an tho history of

> pla.iu v .xIiuwH. At sooo as a t ^
'. disol- ' • o becomes a cniwi,

A"- rude I I

rilK? without , this ^

I > 1 ia tho 1. rank; and n :\i in • 1

yet tunid man may Ik* far m«»re iiM-fuI
'I a brave f»ne, wo <
" vo a •

t a i
Ai
llaro ( .
, and tho power «
at all times h\\;h\y and i;

02

THE DKSCKNT OF MAN.

[Pabt I.

justly valueiL The AmerUan navagc voluMlarily .Mibum^
without a iTToan to tlio mo«t liorrid tortun*H to prove and
8trcni;thi n his fortiluJe and courairo ; and we c annot lielp
admirinj^ him, or even an Indian Fakir, who, from a fool-
ish religious mot ivr, -win-j'< su^-jKiuled hy a hook buried
in his He-nlu

The other self-ro/nrding virtues, whii h do not obviouH-
Iv, though they ally, affect the welfare of the tribe,

have never been esteemed by savages, though now highly
ai)i)reciated by civili/x^d nations. The greatest intemper-
ance with savages is no reproach. Their utter licentious-
ness, not to mention unnatural crimes, is something as-
tounding." As soon, however, as marriage, whether po-
lygamous or monogamous, Wcomes common, jealousy will
lead to the inculcation of female virtue ; and this being
lionored, will tend to spread to the uumarriiHl females.
How slowly it spreads to the male ser we sec at the pres-
ent day. Chastity eminently requires self-command, there-
fore it has been honored from a very early period in the
moral history of civilized man. As a consequence of this,
the senseless jiractice of celibacy has been ranked from a
remote period as a virtue." The hatred of indecency,
which appears to us so natural as to be thought innate,
and which is so valuable an aid to chastity, is a modern
virtue, appertaining exclusively, as Sir G. Staunton re-
marks," to civili/x'd life. This is shown by the ancient
rcli'/ious rites of various nations, by the drawings on the
walTs of Pompeii, and by the practices of many savages.

We liave now seen that actions are regarded by sav-
ages, and were probably so regarded by primeval man, as
good or bad, solely as they affect in an obvious manner

" Mr. MTxmnan hon {?Ireo (• rrimltiTc Marritrp.' p. « goo*!
rollcciion of facU on thw hca<!

wj^Ut, Ml ' ' " , ». i^oa, p. 1^>9.

** ' EiDbaM> lo c . •

' >r III ] MORAL 8EX9E. f j

■ farv of t -i —U fi iltAt of iIm* »pertc«, nor thai

' ■ " a' ' : • I. .1 ' V <!• : : \ <

our tUiKlAfd, are,

' ' •soM tribe. K< -tofn
•<> that the baa:

I

of Miiraitca,** l> aa aatbun !jr

a ygb view of ii< rml ha
"f tbrir • r .

1 4. auii*>ra appear lu rv*' ^i^i*
iiarfay, aa tbry aadosbc*

' * a

M

iImi

f
f

91

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Part I.

licul with the social instincts; and in the case of the
lowtT aniniuls it would be absurd to speak of these in-
stincts as having been developed from seltishness, or for
the happiness of tlio community. They have, however,
certainly been developed for the general good of the com-
nmnity. The term, general good, may be delined as the
means by which the greatest possible number of individuals
can be reared in full vigor and health, with all their facul-
ties perfect, under the conditions to which they are exposed.
As the social instincts both of man and the lower animals
liave no doubt been develo]>ed by the same steps, it would
be advisable, if fomid practicable, to use the same defini-
tion in both cases, and to take, as the test of morality, the
general good or welfare of the community, rather than the
general happiness ; but this defmition would perhaps re-
(piirc some limitation on account of political ethics.

When a man risks his life to save that of a fellow-
creature, it seems more api)roi)riate to eay that he acts for
the general good or welfare, rather than for the general
Ijappiness of mankind. No doubt the welfare and the
happiness of the individual usually coincide ; and a con-
tented, happy tribe will llourish better than one that is
discontented and unhappy. AVe have seen that, at an
early period in the liistory of man, the expressed wishes
of the community will have naturally inlluenced to a largo
extent the conduct of each member ; and as all wish for
happiness, the " greatest happiness principle " will havo
become a most important secondary guide and object ; the
social instincts, including sympathy, always serving as
the primary impulse and guide. Thus the reproach of lay-
ing the foundation of tlie most noble part of our nature in
the base principle of selfishness is removed ; imless indeed
the satisfaction which every animal feels when it follows
its proper instincts, and the dissatisfaction felt when i>re-
vented, be called selfish.

r.iAr. III.J

B.

Tl " r'X|vrctsion of xh" v mnd i i 1 'uient of iIms

of the fcaiiic < y, at : i-y or\l nnJ

uftonn'anl by writU-u lau<^uAge, «orv«. nn jiinl r« .1,

an a luo^t ini|>ortaut Kocoudary t, iu aitl of

till* fttx'ial ill , but hoi. •> in o) >o to them,

r fact u well * \ i by tlic j
iHofi

.. . . .ic,

of tifi have ft ll c .

id ft<«iai* :.

ut of

Hill . be giUiieti by

^ >t ill u.it iu the 1 all iLu

• ' • will :

by a lltii<l«Mi uio l>r< I'.n . II tbo

1 i%uinaM < <« her face, ami

to

iiiuny ..
l^ii'iw ; Dor ll
(• r« of tl
lix 11 ; but li is >

•o (b^-fity I

im ui

on the

llio

9G

THE DESX'EXT OF. MAX.

[Paut 1.

followctl iinlc'jK'nJc'iitly of reason. Neither eaii we Bay
why eerlaiii admirable virtues, siieli as the love of tnilh,
are much more hiujhly appreciated by some savage tribes
tliau by others;" nor, again, wljy similar ditlerenees pre-
vail even among civilized nations. Knowing how finnly
fixed many strange customs and superstitious have be-
come, wc need feel no surprise that the self-regarding
virtues should now apj)ear to lis so natural, sui>ported as
they are by reason, as to be thought innate, although
they were not valued by man in his early condition.

Notwithstanding many sources of doubt, man can
generally and readily distinguish between the higher and
lower moral ndes. The liiglier arc founded on the social
instincts, and relate to the welfarc of others. They are
8uj»ported by the approbation of our fellow-men and by
reason. Tlie lower rules, though some of them when im-
jdying self-sacrifice hardly deserve to be called lower,
relate chiefly to self, and owe their origin to public opinion,
when matured by experience and cultivated; for they are
not practised by rude tribes.

As man advances in civilization, and small tribes arc
united into larger communities, the simj)lest reason would
tell each individual that he ought to extend his social in-
stincts and sympathies to all the members of the same
nation, though personally unknown to him. This point
being once reached, there is only an artificial barrier to
prevent his sympathies extending to the men of all nations
and races. If, indeed, such men are separated from him
by great dificrenccs in appearance or habits, cxpcricnco
unfortunately shows us how long it is before wc look at
them as our fellow-creatures. Sympathy beyond the con-
fines of man, that is, humanity to the lower animals, seems

•* Good instances arc given hj Mi. Wallace in 'Scientific Opinion,'
Pcpt. 15, 18G9; and moro fully in his * Cuntrtbtiliuns to the Theory of
Natural Selection,' 1870, p. 3&3.

CuAf. III.] MOBAL 8ENSe.

97

to \}c one of the latest moral acquUitioiLS. It U a|»i>arently
unfclt by iKivage«, except toward their petn. How little
the old KoinanA knew of it u shown by their abhorrent

' idiatorial exhibitions. The rery idea of h ^y,
; u a-* I could observe, was new to most of the d.i . of
t lie rumpas. This virtue, one of the noblest witii wltich
;i in endowed, seems to arise incidentally from our sym-
^ . - liecomin'/ more tender and more widely difTusi-d,
until they are c\ 1 to all sentient Ixinpi. As soon as
tfii'* virtue is honored and pra< liied by some few men, it
spreads through instruction and example to the yotuij^,
e\ ly throuj;h public • i.

'i*ho i. ' in moral i utuire at which we can

. lA \\ .i. .1 ' " '•• that \v«- ' ^ • • • .1 our

1 '■ ' i» i.i inmo-^t ill' I . I...UK a;;aiii

tV T i ♦ . T ' I ml to ufi.**'* What-
. ■ . u> the mind, rendem
by so much the ea^i* r. A* MartMis Atirr*-
liitH long Af^o said, ^ Such an are thy haliitual thttu

I alj»o will bo the ehann'ter of thy mind; for the soul
1 by the t '

UiriM ri > has • !y

I.

l.y .

' I • • • r '. . ii
r I to ri^ht and wr..n,» .
t b.i«is in the in

98

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

Tlicre is not the least inherent improbability, as it seems
to me, in virtuous tendencies being more or less strongly
inherited ; for, not to mention the various dispositions and
liabits transmitted by many of our domestic animals, I
have heard of cases in which a desire to steal and a ten-
dency to lie appeared to run in families of the upper
ranks ; and as stealing is so rare a crime in the wealthy
classes, we can hardly account by accidental coincidence
for the tendency occurring in two or three members of the
same family. If bad tendencies are transmitted, it is
probable that good ones are likewise transmitted. Ex-
cepting through the principle of the transmission of moral
tendencies, we cannot understand the differences believed
to exist in this rcs2:>ect between the various races of man-
kind. We have, however, as yet, hardly sufficient evi-
dence on this head.

Even the partial transmission of virtuous tendencies
would be an immense assistance to the primary impulse
derived directly from the social instincts, and indu*ectly
from the approbation of our fellow-men. Admitting for
the moment that virtuous tendencies are inherited, it aj)-
pears probable, at least in such cases as chastity, temper-
ance, humanity to animals, etc., that they become first im-
pressed on the mental organization through habit, instruc-
tion, and example, continued during several generations
in the same family, and in a quite subordinate degree, or
not at all, by the individuals possessing such virtues,
having succeeded best in the struggle for life. My chief
source of doubt with respect to any such inheritance, is
that senseless customs, superstitions, and tastes, such as
the horror of a Hindoo for unclean food, ought on the
same principle to be transmitted. Although this in itself
is perhaps not less probable tlian that animals should
acquire inherited tastes for certain kinds of food or fear of
certain foes, I have not met with any evidence in support

CUAP. III.]

MORAL SENSE.

99

of the transmission of superstitious customs or senseless
habits.

Finallv, the social instincts which no douht were ac-
quired Ly man, as by the lower animals, for the good of
the community, will from the linst have given to him
some wish to aid his fellows, and some feeling of sym-
pathy. Such impulses will have served him at a very
early period as a rude rule of right and wrong. JUit as
man gradually advanced in intellectual power and was
enabled to trace the more remote consequences of his ac-
tions; as he acquired sufiicient knowledge to reject bane-
ful customs and superstitions; as he regarded more and
more not only the welfare but the happuiess of his fellow-
mcn ; as from habit, following on beneficial experience,
instruction, and example, his Bymj)athies became more
tender and widely dillused, so as to extend to the men
of all races, to the imbecile, the maimed, and other Ui«e-
lesrt members of society, and finally to the lower ani-
mals— so would the fitandard of his morality rise liiglu r
:nid higher. And it is admitted by moralists of the di-
ri\ati\c Hchool and by Home intuit ionists, that the stand-
ard of morality has risen hinco an early ju riod in the his-
tory of man."

As a Bt^^•••"^^ I'i'iy honietiines 1k» «< • m ""<»*!>cr on Wlwt'<'n
the various of tin; l<»w« r . iL iii not Kur-

pii'-iiig that there Hhould be a struggle in man between
his hoelal instinctH, with their derive<l virtues, aimI his
Iow< r, though, at the moment, Btrong« r impulsos or ilr-^inn.
This, as Mr. Gallon" has remarked, is all the Ktw Hur-

\ wrilcr In Uic • North Ilriti-.li JtrvU-w ' (Julr, 18«0. r '"'V «.M
of foniiliig » iwuml ju<l}^iiicnt, cxprvjij-it hiiu i lf
I ilt i-t. Mr. lA'i Vy (' Ili'<t. of llnmlN,* toL L p. 143) MvtiM to • oviiatii
extttil to colnrl'io.

K.M. r.ii.rl >1' ^ !!..r.!HBrT Trnluv* p 819.

100

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut L

prising, as man has emerged from a state of barbarism
within a comparatively recent period. After liaving
yielded to some temptation, we feci a sense of dissatisfac-
tion, analogous to that felt from other unsatisfied instincts,
called in this case conscience ; for we cannot prevent past
images and impressions continually passing through our
minds, and these in their weakened state we compare with
the ever-present social instincts, or with habits gained in
early youth and strengthened during our whole lives, per-
haps inherited, so that they are at last rendered almost as
strong as instincts. Looking to future generations, there
is no cause to fear that the social instincts will grow
weaker, and we may expect that virtuous habits will grow
stronger, becoming perhaps fixed by inlieritance. In this
case the struggle between our higher and lower mipulses
will be less severe, and virtue will be triumphant.

Summary of the last two Chapters. — There can be no
doubt that the difterence between the mind of the lowest
man and that of the his^hest animal is immense. An an-
thropomorphous ape, if he could take a dispassionate view
of his own case, would admit that though he could furni
an artful plan to plunder a garden — though he could use
stones for fighting or for breaking open nuts, yet that the
thought of fasliioning a stone into a tool was quite beyond
his scope. Still kss, as he would admit, could he follow
out a train of metaphysical reasoning, or solve a matho-
matic^il problem, or rellect on God, or admire a grand
natural scene. Some apes, however, would probably de-
clare that they could and did admire the beaaty of the col-
ored skin and fur of their partners in marriage. Tliey
woidd admit, that though they could make other apes
understand by cries some of their perceptions and simpler

The Duke of Argyll ('Primeval Man,' 1809, p. 188) has some good r<»-
marks on the contest in man's nature between right and wrong.

Cbai". Ill ]

MORAL SEN'SF

101

wants, the notion of cxprc*s«uig tlcliniU' i i . -y ilrtiuitc
KOundM had never crossed their minds. Tiic y nil;;hl iM^i^t
that they were ready to aid their fellow-ajM-s of llu? sanio
troop in many ways, to risk their lives for them, ami to
take cliari^e of their oq)han8; but they wouM Ix? forc« .l ♦ .
aeknowledge tliat di>interested love for all living m*atii
the roost noble attribute of man, wa.s quite In^yond tlu ir
comprehension.

Neverthele»*M the difference In mind between man and
the higher aniina* .t as it is, is certainly one uf
and not of kind. W c have M-en that the senses and iniui-
(ions, the various emotions and faeultie?*, hu« h as love,
memory, attt-ntion, curio.-^ity, imitation, reason, etc., of
whieh man boa»«iM, niiv b<- f-und in an incipient, or e\' m
honielimes in a well -. I condition, in the lowir ..

inal.-*. They are also eapable of home inherited improvt-
meiit, as wo seo in the domestic do^ compan d with thu
wolf or jackal. If it be maintained that certain \Ht\\
huch as ik'lf-consi iouHness, ab<»tr:iction, etc., are |KH*uliai to
man, it mav well be tiiat ihvMS are the ineideiital re<«uhH
of other hi ' ' i lvanr. ' • ' tualfi I thcM)

;i'4uin ar- the t • . ..» * «• •

III '''•...! \' u ' .» I ■! . ^ the |>. ..

I>' . r b« <•• '»ni«

• • I Un own ? N\
not aniwcr ; nor can we ui> id to tin* a««

• f Ic. Tlio ] of lanifuau'**
ntiU beam tho stamp ol ii. '1

h' ' •■ ' ■ . !

Im ,1. 1 111

hii other n.

ii.

!

lu of man** moml

102

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

rrAiiT I

tiition" — "with ihc aid of active intellectual powers and
the eQects of habit, naturally lead to the golden rule, "As
ye would that men should do to you, do yc to them like-
M'isc and this lies at the foundation of morality.

In a future chapter I shall make some few remarks on
the probable steps and means by which the several mental
and moral faculties of man have been gradually evolved.
That this at least is possible ought not to bo denied, when
we daily see their development in every infant ; and when
wc may trace a ])erfect gradation from the mind of an
utter idiot, lower than that of the lowest animal, to the
mind of a Newton.

'The Thoughts of Marcus Aurclius,' etc., p. 189.

uxr. IV.] UASSLU OF liKVELOrMEKT.

103

CIIAPTKi: IV.

X THE MAXySB OF : T Or MA

I. '

\ r nf Ikxlr aiwl Mind la llAB.~Iali«r4tMKw. ^snM**

« $mm» In Mas

•rt« — ArrMUd DvTtflTmvBt.- -C«r-
I^CTMM.^* to Io«r« alormt

; iXMBllMfit At. .a th« Wv)i. .

«« i:«itti*« T«*tk.— ljM«M»r aaJ AlUn-J 14 li^

« lift—. — A bacof of* . .•«fcf^!«*» I';!- n f

• 4 Ui.l

101

Tnr nf>'(TVT ok mas'.

[Vam I.

varied in :i like iiiaiuiiT. Ttic variations at each nncio-
hivc stage of descent must, also, have been in some man-
ner aceumulateJ and fixedv

The facts and con- ' is to In- l'in ^ n lu liii^ t ijapur
relate almost exclusive lo the i>rohablc means by which
the transformation of man has been effected, as far as his
boilily structure is concerned. The following chapter will
be devoted to the development of his intellectual and
moral faculties. Hut the present discussion likewise bear>
on the origin of the different races or specit^s of mankind,
whichever term may be preferred.

It is manifest that man is now subject to mucli varia
bility. No two individuals of the same race are qtii*
alike. AVe may compare millions of faces, and each vtil
be distinct There is an equally grt^at amount of diversity
in the proportions and dimensions of the various parts <-f
the body; the length of the legs being one of the m
variable points.* Although in some quarters of the world
an elongated skull, and in other quarters a short skull pn-
vails, yet there is great diversity of shape even within lh<
limits of the same race, as w iih the alwrigines of America
and South Australia— the latter a race "probably as pun
and homogeneous in blood, customs, and language, as any
in existence" — and even with the inhabitants of so cn-
fined an area as the Sandwich Islands." An emine;it den-
tist assures mc that there is nearly as much diversity in
the teeth as in the features. The chief arteries so fn-
quently run in abnormal courses, that it has been foir l
useful for surgical puq>08e8 to calculate from 12,

> • InTcsllRttlona In Militanr and Anlhrf»T^'1'>c. Sta»l«tic« of American
Soldicm,' by B. A. Gould, 1869, p. 25«.

• With reipoct to the "Cranial form* of the American a»x)rigi:
tee Dr. Ahkon Meiga in Troo. A- ^ , j .,^ ,

On Ihe AualraUan«,»eo 1' ' ' .'lS63,p. 87

On the SMidwIch UU . on Crama,'

Boston, 1868, p. 18.

M : or

105

' vn-^ : that Ukw of the (ur *

lo be rtn I'-V f

fome tbr

.IT MtXdM tliat the ' of fw
riate morecncsts miut have Lccii : in aeeonl*

net) with ihm MTtfrnl <!• Mr. J. \ has r»»

led* the oecmrrmice oi 3(M maicuUr ^Anatiuoa in
^'.*r' aiioti. ■ • ' ■ •

•oe. la the bet irt, Boi ooe bod j oot • *
«rn<t **f"'tri<1 f'>'^.**v wintiaf in drpeftar>

o mneewUr fjttrtn t-
booke.** A liafle body prMe*
nnbar of twctttj'6ro dktinri nboonaaU*
moecle innminm rsHce in mmnj «
no lete than t
^timuris •eoneen't
^•latMirt, WoM;* itLi^
vftHnUe thnn the t
»i/>i» nitfrr ff nf'*

iweon on the

M of the WoMn leoe «li%ii»r, mmmX go in onr

of the M"

It

100

THE DESCENT Oh' MAN'.

[Vaut I.

llial not a worJ need hero be said. So it is willi the lower
:uiiniulrf, as has hvcn illustrated by a few examples in the
last chapter. All who have had charge of menageries
admit this fact, and wo sec it plainly in our dogs and other
domestic animals. Brehm especially insists that each in-
dividual monkey of those which he kept under couline-
ment in Africa had its own peculiar disposition and tem-
per : he mentions one baboon remarkable for its high in-
telligence; and the keepers in the Zoological Gardens
2)ointed out to me a monkey, belonging to the New World
division, equally remarkable for intelligence, llengger,
also, insists on the diversity in the various mental charac-
ters of the monkeys of the same species which he kept hi
Paraguay ; and this diversity, as he adds, is partly iimate,
and partly the result of the manner in wliich they have
been treated or educated.'

I have elsewhere ' so fully discussed the subject of In-
heritance that I need here add hardly any thing. A
greater number of facts have been collected with respect
to the transmission of the most trifling, as well as of the
most important cliaracters in man than in any of the lower
animals ; thougli the facts are copious enongli with respect
to the latter. So in regard to mental qualities, their trans-
mission is manifest in our dogs, horses, and other domes-
tic animals. Besides special tastes and habits, general in-
telligence, courage, bad and good temper, etc., are cer-
tainly transmitted. With man we see similar facts in al-
most every family ; and we now know through the admi-
rable labors of Mr. Galton " that genius, which implies a

• Brchm, ' Thicrlcben,' B. i. 8. 58, 87. KcUjii^cr, ' ^aiigcthicre vou
Paraguay,' s. 57.

• ' Variation of Animals and Planta under Domestication,' voL ii. chap.

xii.

'ilercJiury Ucniui: an Inquiry into ita Laws and Consequences,*

1869.

Cjup. I V.J

MANNER OF DEVELOPMENT.

107

won<lL'rfully conii»ltx cuinl'iaaUuii ul* iii^ii 1 \i
to bu inherited; and, on the other h:i!id, ii :.iia
that insanity an<l deteri "- i* - 1 • * ' i - » - r
ill llie same families.

With respect to the causes of variability we are iu all
east s very ignorant ; but we can sec that in man as iu the
hnvrr aiiimal-o, they stand iu some nlation with the con-
ditions to which each siK-cies has been ex|K>sed during
se veral generation*?. J)v :a<d animals vary more
lha!» those in : * ' • ' i

t'i iht" «livt ! I.,

Thr «iifl\r« .a , . i i . , .

tieated animal--, nnd bo do the indi\ . . . . the h .:

race wh^n ii a vorv wide area, like tin* <^

AiiK \\ c : ; of diversified coi

in the more civilized nations, the members of which 1m»-

loii".^ tu of rank and follow

pation/, jiriM iitiiig a greater raiiije of character than tin*

ii: H of bar^ ' tis. Hut thi* i;

K ' 'u-n l>c« a • • ainl in h«>n»'

h.ii . . I" - li'l to exist. ' li. i> ii» \ ertheh'Srt an i »

0

H|M :ik of man, even if wo look only to the CiMiditiouA

Ul \*hieh ho has Ixh'U subjioted, **far mt»n' .].>•??. -•i-

cated " " than ony other animal. Some Havngr i

as thu Auatralians, aro not cximhichI to more <. 1

conditions than am many sjm ciiii which havo very \\ .

T'A In n - and much nioro iid

man diilrm widi ly from any utrietlyxhinii d um

P rogp«ci to t

** .Ho tvo of Umoi «rra •! all ■ImiUr In llir uimpm of Um bc«d • om mm*
ktd ' ••C* villi Am rr«iur. 4ua

' '•• I .0maQ.\ • iruw'-

108

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Part I.

for his breeding has not been controlled, either througli
nietliodical or unconscious selection. No race or body of
men lias been so completely subjugated by other men,
that certain individuals have been preserved and thus un-
consciously selected, from being in some way more useful
to their masters. Nor have certain male and female in-
dividuals been intentionally picked out and matched, ex-
cept in the well-known case of the Prussian grenadiers ;
and in this case man obeyed, as might have been expect-
ed, the law of methodical selection ; for it is asserted that
many tall men were reared in the villages inhabited by
tlie grenadiers with their tall wives.

If we consider all the races of man, as forming a single
siiecies, his range is enormous ; but some separate races,
as the Americans and Polynesians, have very wide ranges.
It is a well-known law that widely-ranging species are
much more variable than species with restricted ranges ;
and the variability of man may with more truth be com-
])ared with that of widely-ranging species, than with that
of domesticated animals.

Not only does variability ai)pear to be induced in man
and the lower animals by the same general causes, but in
both the same characters are affected in a closely analo-
gous manner. This has been proved in such full detail
by Godron and Quatrefages, that I need here only refer
to their works." Monstrosities, which graduate into
slight variations, are likewise so similar in man and the
lower animals, that the same classification and the same
terms can be used for both, as may be seen in Isidore
Geoffroy St.-IIilaire's great work.'* This is a necessary

" Godron, * Dc TEspbce,' 1859, torn. ii. livre 3. Quatrefages, •UDit6
de I'Espt'ce Ilumaine,' 1861. Also Lectures on Anthropology, given in
the 'Revue des Cours ScientiGques,' 18GC-18G8.

'**IIii}t. Gen. et Part, dca Anomalies de rOrganisation,' in three vol
ume^, torn. i. 1832.

CUJLP. IV.]

MAXNFJ: of DKVilLurjJKNT.

100

ooiLSoqiicnco of the same laws of change prevailing
throughout the animal kingdom. In my work on the
variation of domestic aniniaLs, I have atUniptcil to ar-
range in a rude fashion the laws of variation under
the following heads: The direct and definite action of
changed conditions, as shown by all or nearly all the in-
dividuals of the same species varying in the same manner
under the same circumstances. The efTects of the long-
continued use or disuse of parts. The cohesion of homol-
ogous parts. The variability of multiple parts. Com-
pensation of growth ; but of this law I have foun«l no
good instances in the case of man. The eflVcts of the me-
chanical pressure of one part on another ; as of the pelvic
on the cranium of the infant in the womb. Arrests of di^
Vi lopmcnt, leading to the diminution or suppn-ssion of
jiarts. The reappearance of longdost characters through
r- ■ -n. And lastly, correlated variation. All these
.i.cil laws apply equally to man and the lower ani-
mals; and most of them even to plants. It woid«l Ih»
BUpertluous Itero to discuss all of them but sevrr il ir..
no important for us, that they must be treated at c
able h-ngth.

/ ' itntl tl of ch <J.—

Thi« in a molt | I' . i >'. - ! . ^^ t.«l

tl * ' ' due*.* Hon»e « V nnd <KVii-

ii . on <»• ... .

Bnd valid r> > may ^

• p*iblUli«l • I t ttitipn (tat

110

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

as far as the innumerable structures are concerned, which
are adapted for special ends. There can, however, be no
doubt that chano^ed conditions induce an almost indefinite
amount of fluctuating variability, by which the whole or-
ganization is rendered in some degree plastic.

In the United States, above 1,000,000 soldiers, who
served in the late war, were measured, and the States in
which they were born and reared recorded." From this
astonishing number of observations it is proved that local
influences of some kind act directly on stature ; and we
further learn that " the State where the physical growth
has in great measure taken place, and the State of birth,
which indicates the ancestry, seem to exert a marked in-
fluence on the stature." For instance, it is established,
" that residence in the Western States, during the years
of growth, tends to produce increase of stature." On the
other hand, it is certain that with sailors, their manner of
life delays growth, as shown " by the great diflerence be-
tween the statures of soldiers and sailors at the ages of
seventeen and eighteen years." Mr. B. A. Gould en-
deavored to ascertain the nature of the influences which
thus act on stature; but he arrived only at negative
results, namely, that they did not relate to climate, the
elevation of the land, soil, or even " in any controlling
degree " to the abundance or need of the comforts of life.
This latter conclusion is directly opposed to that arrived
at by Villerme from the statistics of the height of the con-
scripts in different parts of FranCe. When we compare
the differences in stature between the Polynesian chiefs
and the lower orders within the same islands, or between
the inhabitants of the fertile volcanic and low barren
coral islands of the same ocean," or again between the

1* ' Investigations in Military and Antlirop. Statistics,' etc., 1869, by
B. A. Gould, pp. 93, lOY, 126, 131, 134.

" For the Polynesians, sec Pricliard's ' Physical Hist, of Mankind,'

Clup. IV.l

MANNER OF DEVELOPMENT.

Ill

Fucirians on the eastern and western shores of their
country, where the means of subsistence are very dif-
ferent, it is scarcely possible to avoid the conclusion that
better food and greater comfort do influence stature.
But the preceding statements sliow how difficult it is
to arrive at any precise result. Dr. Beddoe has lately
proved that, with the inhabitants of Britain, residence in
town and certain occupations have a deteriorating in-
fluence on heiglit; and he infers that the result is to a
certain extent inherited, as is likewise the case in the
United States. Dr. Beddoe further believes that wherever
a "race attains its maximum of physical development, it
rises highest in energy and moral vigor."

Whether external conditions produce any other direct
effect on man is not known. It miglit have been expected
that differences of climate would have had a marked in-
fluence, as the lungs and kidneys arc brought into fuller
activity under a low temperature, and the liver and skin
under a high one." It was formerly thought tliat the
color of the skin and the character of the hair were de-
termined by light or heat; and although it can hardly be
denied that some effect is thus produced, almost all ob-
servers now agree that the effect has been very small,
even after exposure during many ages. But this subject
will be more jiropcrly discussed when we treat of the dif-
ftrent races of mankind. AVitli our donieslic animals
llierc arc grounds for believing that cold and damp direct-
ly affect the growth of the liair; but I liave not met with
any evidence on this head in the case of man.

vol. V. 1817, pp. IIK, 283. Also Godron, 'Do rKspecc,' torn. ii. p. 289.
Thero ifl also a rcinurkublo diOuronco in appcuraiico betwcon the closely-
allied Hindoos inlmhiling tlio Upper Ganges and liengal ; eeo KIphin-
■loiio'rt • ITiHtory of Indiu,' vol. i. p. :J2 1.

'* MeinoirH, • Antliropolog. Soc.' vol. iii. 18G7-'09, pp. fiOl, 5rt5, B07.

>• Dr. Ilrakcnridgo, ' Theory of Diulhofiin,' ' Medical Thucj»,' Juno 19
ind July 17, 180V).

112

TIIK DESCENT OF MAX.

[Paiit I.

Effects of the increased Use and Disasc of Parts. —
It is well known that use strengthens the muscles in the
individual, and complete disuse, or the destruction of the
proper nerve, weakens them. Wlicn the eye is destroyed
the optic nerve often becomes atrophied. When an artery
is tied, the lateral channels increase not only in diameter,
hut in the thickness and strength of their coats. When
one kidney ceases acting from disease, the other increases
in size and does double work. Bones increase not only in
thickness, but in length, from carrying a greater weight.""
Different occupations habitually followed lead to changed
proportions in various parts of the body. Thus it was
clearly ascertained by the United States Commission"
that the legs of the sailors employed in the late war were
longer by 0.217 of an inch than those of the soldiers,
thou<Th the sailors were on an averacce shorter men ;
while their arms were shorter by 1.09 of an inch, and
therefore out of proportion shorter in relation to their
lesser height. This shortness of the arms is apparently
due to their greater use, and is an unexpected result ; but
sailors chiefly use their arms in pulling and not in sup-
porting weights. The girth of the neck and the depth of
the instep are greater, while the circumference of the
chest, waist, and hips, is less in sailors than in soldiers.

Whether the several foreccoinc: modifications would be-
come hereditary, if the same liabits of life were followed
during many generations, is not known, but is probable,
lienijcccr" attributes the thin lefjs and thick arms of the
Payaguas Indians to successive generations having passed

I have given authorities for these several stateincnts in my * Varia-
tion of Animals under Doracstieation,' vol, ii. pp. 297-300. Dr. Jaeger,
*' Ucber das Liingenwaehsthum dcr Kuoelien," • Jenaischcn ZciLschrift,'
Ii. V. Ilcfl i.

» •Investigations,' etc. By B. A. Gould, isr.9, p. 288.
" 'Siiugethiere von Paraguay,' 1830, s. \.

Cuxr.lV.] UASSr.R WD DEVELOPMENT.

113

nearly their whole lives in canoes, with their lower
xtremities motionless. Other writers have come to a
iuiilar conclusion in other analogous cases. According
"> Cranz," who lived for a long time with the Esfjuimaux,
the natives believe that ingenuity and dixlt rily in seal-
' it. };in ' Ol ' ir ]ii 'hefit art and virtue) is hen !'* '-v; tln rc
. . : in it, for the nun of a < ted seal-

catcher will distinguiAh himself though he Utsi his father
ri childhood.** Hut in this case it is mental a]>titudc,
juitc as much as Ixxli I y structure, which aiti>ears to 4>o
inherited. It is asserted that the hands of I r.

rs arc at birth 'larger than those of the gehir\. ' li.m
I he correlation which exists, at least in home bo
tween the development of the extr« • * ' ^ an*I . . . . jaws,
it is ]»ossible that in tliose class* s n^. lo not ! r ?• • -h
with their hands and fret, the javss would hv .in
*»izc from this cause. That they are genenilly smaller in
ri lined and civilized men than in hard-workin;; men or
;i\ages, is certain. IJut with savages, as .Mr. Ilerbirt
r** has remarked, the greater uso of the jaws in
* ' ! fooil, wouhl act in a direct man-

i» I >>ii 1 « ' 1 on til ' ' h

»li< y a uU.iir ■ ^ >' n

"1 ly;** ■ .s

due to lh*» I
scries of y

It is fii to every one that «

( t art' luible to InTomo :«
ftjid i«|jocUUl]r aavagi*!! nn* 'v ii« r.i v > d.

** 'IIlHory of arr«nUrxf .' l.nf lr«n«Ui 1?ST. vol I ft
** ' IttUriMnkK*

" * TIm Vsfkikm i4 Auu4M. IKmmmimauuu,

114

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Faut I.

sight and long-sight certainly tend to be inherited.*' The
inferiority of Eiiropeane, in comparison with savages, in
eye-sight and in the other senses, is no doubt the accumu-
lated and transmitted effect of lessened use during many
generations; for Kengger" states that he has repeatedly
observed Europeans, who liad been brought up and sj)ent
their whole lives with the wild Indians, who nevertheless
did not equal them in the sharpness of their senses. The
same naturalist observes that the cavities in the skull for
the reception of the several sense-organs are larger in the
American aborigines than in Europeans ; and this no
doubt indicates a corresponding difference in the dimen-
sions of the organs themselves. Blumenbach has also re-
marked on the large size of the nasal cavities in the skulls
of the American aborigines, and connects this fact with
their remarkably acute power of smell. The ^Mongolians
of the plains of Korthern Asia, according to Pallas, have
wonderfully perfect senses ; and Prichard believes that the
great breadth of their skulls across the zygomas follows
from their highly-developed sense-organs."

The Quechua Indians inhabit the lofty plateaux of
Peru, and Alcide d'Orbigny states" that from continually
breathing a highly rarefied atmosphere they have acquired
chests and lungs of extraordinary dimensions. The cells,

" * Tbc Variation of Animals under Domestication,' vol il p. 8.
• Siiugcthicrc von Paraguay,' s. 8, 10. I have had good opportuni-
ties for observing the extraordinary power of eyesight in the J'uegiaus.
Sc« also Lawrence ('Lectures on Physiology,' etc., 1822, p. 401) on tiiia
some suhject. M. Giraud-Teulon has recently collected ('Revuo des
Cours Scientifiquea,' 18V0, p. 625) a large and valuable body of evidence
proving that the cause of short-sight, *' Ccst Ic travail atsidu^ de pres.'*

•° Prichard, ' Phys. Hist, of Mankind,* on the authority of liluroeu*
bach, vol i. 1851, p. 311 ; for the sUtement by Palhis, vol. iv. 1844, p.
407.

Quoted by Prichard, 'Researches into ihc Phys. Hist, of Muukind,
vol. V. p. 463.

Coir. IV ] MAXNEB OF DEVELOI'MENT.

115

alik), of the langs are liirger and more numerous than in
Kuropeana. These obscn ations have been doubted ; but
Mr. 1). Forbes carefully mea.sured many Aymaras, an allicil
race, living at the height of beiwecn ten and fifteen tboa-
sand feet ; and ho informs me** that they differ oonflptcn-
ou.sly from the men of all other races seen by him, in the
circuinffrencc and lenp^h of their bodies. In his table of
measurements, the stature of each man is taken at 1,000,
and the other measurements are reduced to this standard.
It is here seen that the extended arms of the Avmara?* arv

m

short in those of Kuroj» ' -rter t'

those • i -scgroca. The legs a u n^tu* . h. ! •

present this ramarkable ?• ' m'* i-* •. . that inc. v. .4

mcMored the femur is a . . ler tliau the tibia. On
an average the length of the femur to that of the tibia is
as 211 to 252; while in two Kuro[>cans mexstire*! at the
same time, the femora to the tibi:u were as 244 to -j'Mt ;
and in three Negroes as 258 to 241. The humerus is lil. •
wise shorter relatively to the foreann. This shortenini;
of tlukt part of the limb whieh is n< to the Ixnly,
jM'am to bo, as sugg<*ste^l to nn» by Ai. i urlK»s, a ras<' of
com|M*nsation in relati'm with the great ly.inort*a*4'd lenv;th %
of the trunk. Tlio Avrnims prr<u»nt some other » \r
|ioinls of struetun , ! Tcry small .

of the heel

These men are so til ed to their •

• itijii't wa^e4i lo I
. rale "t ^' •
w pure : .
: and li

.vn by •
and « hen now ton.

thcv sufU r

f

lln ir cli

*• Mr r»W.

Ktbftolofl

110

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

even williout measurement, that tlicsc peculiarities had all
decreased ; and on measurement their bodies were found
not to be BO much elongated as those of the men on the
high plateau ; while their femora had become somewhat
lengthened, as had their tibiie, but in a less degree. The
actual measurements may bo Feen by consulting Mr.
Forbears memoir. From these valuable observations, there
can, I lliink, be no doubt that residence during many gen-
jprations at a great elevation tends, both directly and indi-
rectly, to induce inherited modifications in the proportions
of the body."

Although man may not have been much modified dur-
ing the latter stages of his existence through the increased
or decreased use of parts, the facts now given show that
his liability in this respect has not been lost ; and we posi-
tively know that the same law holds good with the lower
animals. Consequently we may infer that, when at a re-
mote epoch the progenitors of man were in a transitional
state, and were changing from quadrupeds into bipeds,
natural selection would probably have been greatly aided
by the inherited eflects of the increased or diminished use
of the different parts of the body.

Arrests of Develojvnent. — Arrested development dif-
fers from arrested growth, as parts in the former state
continue to grow while still retaining their early condi-
tion. Various monstrosities come under this head, and
some arc known to bo occasionally inherited, as a cleft-
palate. It will suffice for our purpose to refer to tho
arrested brain-development of microceplialous idiots, as
described in Vogt's great memoir.'* Their skulls arc

» Dr. Wilckcns (' Landwirthscbaft. Wocbcnblatt,' Na 10, 1809) baa'
lately publisbcd an intcrcslin;; essay - bow d • animals,

wb'uh live in mountainous rc"- • V a. , i.amcs ni<i 1.

»* ' Mcmoire sur Ics Mien , . 7, pp. 50, 12.', 160, 171, 184,

198.

CHAf. IV.J

MANNEB OF UK NT. U7

1 the convolutions ' f t' hrun arc 1cm com-
; r T V .1 mrn. 1. fciniw, or ibo pro-

\r», U lanroly dcvcloixid, and the-
4 to an m4 " degree ; io that

J, . t, resemble the lower types of man-

kind. Their i: -nee and mort of iheir mental farul-
li„ arc . . TIjey cmnnoi acquire the \*ov. . r

of »peicb,uua uic uuully in vio of prolonp-d aii* n.
tion,but r .-. . . , .,, ^n. T . ^ • -^tr.^ '

...;y gai! .
nret, Tl»ey ♦

art; '"'^y ^'*^^*^

fu; . or inset- \' are thua n 1 of iho .

•hown by aknoat all l>oyi in <
apain rvminda lu bow UmU % ^ i

animaU, dcligbt to friik on any biiiuv i*.-^. » . v i .wall

. ^ 'So caica to bo b« "*v tnv'fjt

r t!»e ln«t brndi

tient, iMit mill «
i 1 it cl.Hk ly r lea a « ooding

; N.. r -.i- I adult member of tbo tamo
|i, wo may in one icdm coniidt r it aa a ca»«
'l"ho lower membcri In a Mm *oiuc .

Ww tho common pro^ K»'" i* prot^^

.otirorted ; an ! la that a |»art art.

'y pbai'- V.V'»>mrrt

('•ntinur

ooml or an

It t

118

Tin: DK.M i:n r cr max.

[VXKT I.

reversion. Certain Btnictun ~, regularly occurring in the
lower members of the group to which man belongn, occa-
sionully make their api>earancc in him, though not fouml
in tho normal human embryo ; or, if present in tho uur-
mal human embryo, they become developed in an abnor-
mal manner, though this manner of dcvelojiment is pr<
to the lower members of tho samo group. Those rcmju-kn
will be r. ' d clearer by the foUowii ^trationi.

In various mammals the uterus graduaUa Irom a double
organ with two distinct orifices and two pawagtfl, as in
marsupials, into a single organ, showing no signaof doubir
nc8S except a slight internal fold, as in the higher apes uicl
man. Tho rodents exhibit a |>erfect series of gradations
between theso two extreme stateX In all mammaU the
ntenis is developed from two simple primitive tubot, tho
inferior portions of which funn the comua ; and it is in
tho words of Dr. Farre '* by the coalescence of the two
comua at their lower extremities that the l>ody of the
uterus is fonned in man ; while in those animals in which
no middle portion or body exists, the cornua remain un-
united. As the development of the utenis ]>rocceda, tho
two comua beoomc gradually shorter, until at length they
are lost, or, as it were, absorbed into the bo<1y of the
utems.'' Tho angles of the utems arc still produced into
comua, eyen so high in the scale as in the lower apes, and
their allies tho lemurs.

Now in women anomalous cases are not very infre-
quent, in which the mature^ uterus is furnished with <
nua, or is partially divided into two organs; and h
cases, acf . r li't'^ to Owen, rej>eat "tho grade of con<
trative d« j.rnent," attained by certain ro<lents. 11-
perha]>s we have an instance of a simjdc arrest of cmbry-
omo development, with subsequent growth and perl
functional development, for eitlier side of the partially
double uterus is capable oC iK*rfonning the pru]K.T office

UAr. MjUjriB OF DITILOrilEXT U9

1 • 'atiuo. Ill Other And rarer catf, i Uoct ultr*
itim m Ibniied, cseb haviog iu proper oriiM asd
[•MMfflL** No Mch fUg« U pMMd throogh dwittg the
nUaarj derdopoiciit of the en ' ' b diMcwIt to

' ptflMip* Dot bnpti— itiiCy Uiai ibe two ilm-
^, iuuiuu, ^caoltiv* tiilM eoold know how ' as
fprMtioo Buj bo oeod) to grov into two •.. ct vteri,
' fi w\th n Y'Tt-oooftiiMtodoriieoMMl pt— ff,md eaeb
.«awfooe miMcWt, aenrca, gUodi and ve»>
f bad Dot fenaeHj paMod tbroagb a riiiln
•jvrM of doTalopOMttt, ae ia tbo eaea of exktiag auwa
• dbe Will pretood that eo pcrf •

-tiaa CQuUi i.

i.^ . A«t donnaat tiraatarBa art called baek bto aiiei*
aiil^ tmre tfi^ gable f'r tt^«* fVifl <frvrYofim«*fit
lia or?«n, etcn ■ lielaf* .1
f i(m<

tiri! I, ' .:u-r diM^usain;* ibo forrgoiag aad
\ AfHUM iiiebignae caM«, & at tbo momi ooDdaaioa aa

ihmi y • 0

•txMlmr bi^i*v, »hMti. >*4) V^udMiiiuuauA ai^i vii«cr

>U, aorm^** ^ * fot^hmk Tbit la tea

•< 'm Ibe I . faiDi; aad iImm it

li

arfli^liiiWrHii^ if Ami «k4

120

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[rAUT I.

progeuitor of man must have poBSCssed this bone nor-
mally divided into two portions, "vvhich BuLscqiiently be-
came fused together. In man the frontal bone consists of
a single piece, but in the embryo and in children, and in
almost all the lower mammals, it consists of two pieces sepa-
rated by a distinct suture. This suture occasionally per-
sists, more or less distinctly, in man after maturity, and
more frequently in ancient than in recent crania, especially
as Canestrini has observed in those exhumed from the Drift
and belonging to the brachycephalic type. Hero again he
comes to the sftme conclusion as in the analogous case of
the malar bones. In this and other instances presently to
be given, the cause of ancient races approaching the lower
animals in certain characters more frequently than do the
modern races, appears to be that the latter stand at a
somewhat greater distance in the long line of descent
from their early semi-human progenitors.

Various other anomalies in man, more or less anal-
ogous with the foregoing, liave been advanced by dil-
ferent autliprs " as cases of reversion ; but these seem not
a little doubtful, for we have to descend extremely low in
the mammalian series before we find such structures nor-
mally present."

" A whole serica of cases is given by Isid. GcofTroy St.-IIilairc,
MIii>t. dcs Anomalies,' torn. iiL p. 487.

** la my 'Variation of Animals under Domcsticaliou ' (vol. ii. p. r»7)
I attributed the not very rare cases of supernumerary niamma3 in won)cii
to reversion. I was led to this as probable conclusion, by the additional
mammsD being generally placed symmetrically on the breast, and rooro
especially from one case, in which a single efficient mamma occurred in
, the inguinal region of a woman, the daughter of another v. ' • w ith
gupcmumerary reanmia;. 15ut Prof. Proyer ('Der Kampf um ». in,'
18C9, s. 45) states that mammn erratica have been known to occur in
other situations, even on the back ; so that tho force of my argument ia
greatly weakened or perhaps quite destroyed.

AVilh much hesitation I, in the same work (vol. ii., p. 12), attributed
the fre<iucnt cases of polydactylism in men to reversion. I was partly led

Ciur IV.) MASXEU OF DEVELOI'MK.VT. 121

ill iiKiu t "'i are j*<i K« ily . ' ; a-

' i, their true caiiin - i an

<; ., . ^, " U indicated t'i. r. 'ii. -i! f • no of the

crown, which terminates in an - ^ iVex out-

wanl and flat or subconcavo within, at th« if which

Miirf.i - e there is a feeble prominence. The conical form it
Im «i r\j»n .»s(d in tho Mdanian races, esj- the
A . i. Tho canine is more d« < |i]y iin|ilaiitc l, and by

:i . ■ • ^ XeVt-nhelrss t' ' th

il w. i!H.n (or tiMi.ii^ i»i*
. .1 i-. . , . ., - -s |,ru|KT

e\< rv ! ir.je « .

as 1 1 ob44.'n'ei«, witli the canine teeth pi

beyond the othrm in the same manner, but
in a kim de^H?, as in tlie anthr 'jH.tn •< apes. In

t!»« ru«,« o|H'n iipaceH belwtn u t ' i» in t)ie one jaw
• for the of til ^ to tbo

*•^ ^ lie jaw. An iiii u I lit .k Iv.iilir tkull.

I • th^ iLr</i;r(i Pruf. f>«m'a lUt. nMoi, Uul MM of Um IcbtbfO|iltr7fW
'--^-t morv Uma f s aod Uftervferv, m I MppoMd, bad rvUlMd

' ttlMlMBStltM^iHA ' ft V IT-n • 911 V . N •* *^\Jkm\ wlfcnr

{lil M( ouij lio^rtiuu/

122

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paiit I.

Hi^iircMl l)y Wagner, is Biirprisiiigly wide.** Considering
how few aneient skulls have been examined in comparison
with recent skulls, it is an interesting fact that in at least
three cases the canines project largely; and in the Nau-
lette jaw they are spoken of as enormous.*"

The males alone of the anthropomorphous apes Iiavc
their canines fully developed ; but iji the female gorilla,
and in a less degree in the female orang, these teeth pro-
ject considerably beyond the others; therefore the fact
that women sometimes have, as I have been assured, con-
siderably projecting canines, is no serious objection to the
belief that their occasional great development in man is a
case of reversion to an ape-like progenitor. lie who rejects
with scorn the belief that the shape of his own canines,
and their occasional great develoiment in other men, are
due to our early progenitors having been provided with
these formidable weapons, will probably reveal by sneer-
ing the line of his descent. For, though he no longer in-
tends, nor has the power, to use these teeth as weapons,
he will unconsciously retract his "snarling muscles" (thus
named by Sir C. 13ell)*' so as to expose them ready for
action, like a dog prepared to light.

ISIany muscles are occasionally developed in man,
which are proper to the Quadrumana or other mammals.
Professor Vlacovich** examined forty male subjects, and
found a muscle, called by him the ischiopubic, in nineteen
of them; in three others there was a ligament which
represented this muscle; and in the remaining eighteen
no trace of it. Out of thirty female subjects this muscle
was developed on both sides in only two, but in three

*' Carl Vogt's 'Lectures on Man,' Eng. translut 1861, p. 151.
*^ C. Carter Blake, on a jaw from La Naulette, ' Anthropolog. Review,
1867, p. 295. Schaaflfhausen, ibid. 1868, p. 426.

" 'The Anatomy of Expression,' 1841, pp. 110, 131.

** Quoted by Prof. Cancstrini in the 'Aunuario,' etc., 1807, p. 90.

ClIAf. IV.]

MANNER OF DKVELOPMENT.

12a

olhere the rudimentary liL':unfUt was prc^int. Tlii*

ijiUHcle, t) ears to bo much more on in

the male u.aa m iii^ female sex; ami on llic ; pie of
ihc (lewrent of man from »oine lower fonn, it«» j i ■ : « c can
l>e unJenitood ; for, it has bet a delected in \« l ui «jf the
lower animal«, and in all of these it serves exclu»ivcly to
aid the male in the act of reproduction.

Mr. J. Wood, in hia valuahle »*eric« of papers/' has
!ninutely described a vast numlier of mtLscular variations
in man, which resemble normal »ln: - in the lower
Ih, L« ' ' only to the mu»« clo84-ly ro-

• those u^iilarly present in oui ia ... -t allies, t ho
< iimana, they are too numerous to be here even

• d. In a single male subject, having a stron*; Ixnlily
1 1 am. and well-formed ^kull, no less than seven muscular
variations were obse rved, all of which plaiidy n presented
muMcles proper to various kind* of a|H Ji. This man, for
iii-^tanco, had on l>olh sides of his ne<*k a tnie an«l i»ower-
ful ^levator cluriruUr^ such as is found in all kinds of

md which is said to occur in about one . • * ^ixty
i . i.uu subjocta.** Ajjain, this man ha^l "a I ab-

<1 ictor of tho mctatanuil b • • of the fi(\h . b
I'" f Iluxlev nnd ^fr 1 . r l»av«' wh- Mii

. in th> lower a^H**. ^ and

fvil t(u>l« ! t a :« •<c« «bo iW»if«* le lasm
mmI In iftrjtu^ coOM to ISMabls ikaM
. . f r»frrrnfM«< rvilto lo ill* |w>l*t«

ia Kjr i. ilv. las:

i ^' ' »»^ -n la

I \\. >m «aiSM«Mt -« •«« Ml UmM

\

124

TIIE DESCENT OF MAX.

(Paut I.

arms of man imimully characteristic BtnicturcH, but
their muscles are extremely liable to vary, bo as to re-
Bemble the corrt'spomliiig muscles in the lower animals."
Such reS4.'mblanee8 arc either complete and perfect or im-
perfect, yet in this latter case manifestly of a transitional
natuR\ Certain variations arc more common in man, and
others in woman, without our being able to assign any
reason. Mr. Wood, after describing numerous cases,
makes the following pregnant remark ; ** Notable depart-
ures from the ordinary type of the mu^^cular Blruetui<
run in grooves or directions, which must bo taken to in-
dicate some unknown factor, of nmch importance to a com-
prehensive knowledge of general and ficientific anatomy."*'
That this unknown factor is reversion to a former
Btato of existence may be admitted as in the highest de-
gree probable. It is quite incredible that a man should
through mere accident abnormidly resemble, in no less
tliau seven of his muscles, certain apes, if there had been
no genetic connection between them. On the other hand,
if man is descended from some ape-like creature, no valid
reason can be assigned why certain muscles should not

Prof. Macalifttcr (ibid. p. 121) hu tabnbtcd hifl obflorvations, and
ftiids thnt II most frequent in the foroanna,

BCfondly in tii^. i..l>, ..; ... i.. . t, etc.

** The Rev. Dr. IIau;^hton, nllcr fi'iyiu^ (' Proc R. Irish Academy,'
Juno 27, 1864, p. 716) a n inarkablc cx«o of Tariation in tlio buir i
fftor poUicit lonyuM^ adds: "Thid remarkable • phows that man

way sometimes pOHSC&d tbe arrangement of ten ^ - ^ and ftngcra

rharocteritftio of the macaque; but whether . .. uuld be ro-

pitded as a macaque passing upward into a man, or a man passing
flownward into a macaque, or as a congenital freak of Nature, I cannot
tkttdcrtAk' V.'* It is sati. '' • • hear so capable an ana
and so c:. d an opponent ' . >uism, admitting eren the

sibilitj of either of hLt first propose it ions. Prof. Macalister has also de-
scribed ('Proc R. Iri-sh Acad.' vol x. 1804, p. 138) variations in the
ficxor ' '« lonjuM, remarkable from their relations to the same muscle
la the ^; "nana.

ill

Cn.r IV.) IIAXNBR OF DBVELiiiMiINT 1

^ pear after an : - ">any li*ou»aoa

the laiM *i boiict, itie*, wxi

!on>d ftripeft - ^vptmr oa the

, after an intArrn S <w P-

of gCD' -4.

1 \ irlooa cnMCM of rcreraion arc »o clu*ily relaiid
lo Ibow of ruaiiuiutary orgaM gireo in the finl cHa|
that many of ihcm might have been inaiffcn ' r -

ilur. there! ' n a human ttlemi iuxuA»W

r {ireacnt in a nidimeotary
cott*iiU. nofinal state in oertain

mMmmn - ^ ndimeiital in man, aa

llie ^ , 'h ftrxt^ and the mamma in the male

p^t. nr» o otheri, foch aa the ropra.

y oeeaaionally appear, and ihcTD.
\iA\e >: under the head of n-

%e eercral revcrMonary, a« well m 1^ ' '

' the descent of i.*-.* i. ^ .a
'V 4«.ahlo manner.

fore

• !

r TTf^.'ff,' .. Tn mnn. fii In th«» lowrr

Wo cannoi

y

tuui^ud. Ilmu . . 'ttr* ar- t

' ' to tikmf> ' t • •■♦Vrr, m>

• *
fit?

t.

•aaaei'

12G

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

hair, color and constitution, arc more or less correlated."
Prof. Schaafl'Iiaiisen first drew attention to the relation
apparently existing between a muscular frame and strong-
ly-pronounced supra-orbital ridges, which arc so cliar-
acteristic of the lower races of man.

Besides the variations which can be grou2)cd Avitli more
or less probability under the foregoing heads, there is
a large class of variations which may be provisionally
called spontaneous, for they appear, owing to our igno-
rance, to arise without any exciting cause. It can, how-
ever, be shown that such variations, whether consisting »
of slierht individual differences, or of stron^lv-marked
and abrupt deviations of structure, depend much more
on the constitution of the organism than on the nature
of the conditions to which it has been subjected.'"

Hate of Increase. — Civilized populations have been
known under favorable conditions, as in the United States,
to double their number in twenty-fivc years; and, ac-
cording to a calculation by Euler, this might occur in a
little over twelve years." At the former rate the present
population of the United States, namely, thirty millions,
would in G57 years cover the whole terraqueous globe so
thickly, that four men would have to stand o^ each square
yard of surface. The primary or fundamental check to
the continued increase of man is the difficulty of gaining
subsistence and of living in comfort. We may infer that
this is the case from what we see, for instance, in the
Ignited States, where subsistence is easy and there is

The authorities for these several etatemcnts are given in my
• Variation of Animals under Domestication,' vol. ii. pp. 320-335.

This whole subject Las been discussed in chap, xxiii. vol. ii. of my
' Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication.'

See the ever-memorable ' Essay on the Principle of Population,*
by the Rev. T. Malthus, vol L 182C, pp. C, 517.

' lur. IV.]

MANNER OF DEVELOPMENT.

127

Illy of room. If sucli iiitaiis were sutMcnly JouMcmI
ill Great Britain, our number would be quickly doubktl.
^^'ith civilized nations the above primary check acts
chiefly by restraining marriages. The greater death-rato
of infants in the poorest classes is also very important ;
;is well as the greater mortality at all ages, and from
various diseases, of the inhabitants of crowded and mis-
erable houses. The effects of scvero epidemics and wars
arc soon counterbalanced, and more than counterbalanci <1,
in nations placed under favorable conditions. Emigratiun
?also comes in aid as a tcmponiry check, but not to any
great extent with the extremely poor classes.

There is reason to suspect, as Malthus has remarked,
that the reproductive power is actually less in barbarous
than in civilized races. Wo know nothing j>08itively on
this head, for with savagefi no census has been taken;
but from tho concurrent testimony of missionaries, and
of others who have long reside«l with such j»eople, it ap-
{H ars that their families are usually small, and largo ODOS
rare. This may be partly accdunled for, as it is b< ' \ 1,
by the women suckling tht ir infants for a pr.-. i _ I
|M rio<l; but it is highly probable that savages, who ofu n
suflt r much hardnhip, and who do not obtain so much nu-
tritious fo<Ml as civilized men, would \ms actually less pro-
litic. I haTo shown in a fonner work,*' that all our do-
II N-d (piadr and birds, and all our culti\

plaiilH, are moru Kriiie than' cics in

a state of r • It is no v.n. i lo Uiis <

I'luiiion thni .iw...!;!!-* »-ii<I !< n!y Huppi - i Wi.ii an excoliA oi
fiKMl, or ^^}^^u r. 1 : I .• f and that mof»t pbinlH

when . I. ;.. . , . I i: . , . |MMir to \ < TV r i *< • ',

ar« t . d mom or K hh nirrilr. We :

red men, who in onr M-nir ar*- ^

111*111. I

123

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Paiit r.

moiiticatetl, woul<l ])C more prolific than wild incn. It is
also probable that the inereased fertility of civilized na-
tions would become, as with our domestic animals, an in-
herited character: it is at least known that with mankind
a tendency to produce twins runs in families."

Notwithstanding that savages appear to be less pro-
lific than civilized people, they would no doubt rapidly in-
crease if their numbers were not by some means rigidly
kept down. The Santali, or bill-tribes of India, have
recently afibrded a good illustration of this fact; for they
have increased, as shown by ^Mr. Hunter,** at an extraor-
dinary rate since vaccination has been introduced, other
pestilences mitigated, and war sternly repressed. This
increase, however, would not have been possible had not
these rude people spread into the adjoining districts and
worked for hire. Savages almost always marry; yet
there is some i)rudential restraint, for they do not com-
monly marry at the earliest possible age. The young
men arc often required to show that they can support a
wife, and they generally have first to earn the price with
which to purchase her from her parents. With sav.r
the difliculty of obtaining subsistence occasionally limiu
their number in a much more direct manner than with
civilized people, for all tribes periodically suflTer from se-
vere famines. At such times savages arc forced to devour
much bad food, and their health can hardly fail to be in-
jured. 3rany accounts liave been published of their pro-
Irudin^j stomachs and emaciated limbs after and durinjr
famines. They are then, also, compelled to wander much
about, and their infants, as I was assured in Australia,
jierish in largo numbers. As famines are periodical, de-
pending chiefly on extreme seasons, all tribes must fluc-

" Mr. Sedgwick, 'Britwh and Foreign Medico-Chirurg. Review,' July,
lftG3, p. 170.

" ' The AimaLj of Uural Bengal,' by W. W. Hunter, 1808, p. 259.

Cujir. IV.] MANNER OF Di ST. \ 2 J

tuatc in number. They riv ^'r-x^Hly and reg.i' "'v ?• -
crease, aji tbero ic no ai . aso in the ^ , .

i'Mtd. Savagei when hardly jireseed encroach on tadi
<»ihrr*i5 territories, and war ia the n *tilt ; hut tliey arc in-
most always at war with their nc \ Thi y
iuv iuiblu to many :i ts on hind and water in thi-ir
' ** r food ; and la

of all, namely ii r of female

, and the habit of jir Tlie»c prao-

in many quarters of the world, and to-
lormerly to have i ' an Mr. M'l^-n-

a, ona»t '^ • cuAiw icml* se

, 1 soppoiting all

I mnv f»!«o l»o

to the 1

.11^ nuans of ti. ro is r<

that in some omcs (as in J it his Imto in-

y cmcouragcd as a mcttoi of i

! at I... .

tl»o I ' s of t

130

THE Di:SCENT OF MAX.

[Part L

tended to increase rapidly, but checks of some kind, either
periodical or constant, must have kept down their num-
bers, even more severely than with existing savages.
What the precise nature of these checks may have been,
wo cannot say, any more than with most other animals.
AVe know that horses and cattle, wliich arc not highly
prolific animals, when first turned loose in South America,
hicreased at an enormous rate. The slowest breeder of
all known animals, namely the elephant, would in a few
thousand years stock tlie whole world. The increase of
every species of monkey must be checked by some means;
but not, as Brehm remarks, by the attacks of beasts of
prey. No one will assume that the actual power of re-
jiroduction in the wild horses and cattle of America was
at first in any sensible degree increased ; or that, as eacli
district became fully stocked, this same power was dimin-
islied. No doubt in this case, and in all others, many
checks concur, and diflferent checks under di fie rent circum-
stances ; periodical dearths, depending on unfavorable
seasons, being probably the most important of all. So it
will have been with the early progenitors of man.

Natural Selection. — We have now seen that man is
variable in body and mind ; and that the variations are
induced, either directly or indirectly, by the same general
causes, and obey the same general laws, as with the lower
animals. Man has spread widely over the face of the
earth, and must have been exposed, during his incessant
migrations,** to the most diversified conditions. The in-
liabitants of Tierra del Fuego, the Cape of Good Hope,
and Tasmania in the one hemisphere, and of the Arctic
regions in the other, must have passed through many cli-
mates and changed their habits many times, before they

*• S e .-"tMH- pfHxl remarks to this cfTcct bv W. Stanley Jcvuu^^, A
Dc<lin.tiuji IVuiii Darwin :i Tlicory," ♦Nature,' 186U, p. 231.

CuMr. IV.] MANNrlR OF DtVKUil MJLST.

131

n acln 'l tfi' 'r T.r« -' ?iomc«.*' The early pfogfiiiloni of

man i , liko all other aiiimaU, to have

increatLe'l beyond tli« ir means of Bubsiiiteiicc ; they must
therefore occasionally have been exposed to a ftrugglc fur
1 \i»tonce, and consequently to the rigid law of natural
'»n. IWm fx-ial v:r s of all kinds will thus,
:iHi«'n:iIIy or haliiiuaily, have Ix^n iircacnred, and
I. I do not n fvT to ftrongly-
ruct ;' ■ ' ' ur only at long

to TTT ffrrmrr«. "Wo

kn.iw, fur in ,tliat t . § of oor ) 1 fwt,

u !i . !i di'tenninc our powers of movemi : *, i: liko
\\ •">• >.{ tin* lower at '* to incessant var. If,
tlu-n, th«' :iiM -lik«' I r ' I ' m of man which inl. i i d any

inu'O in it

I ' t In- I •!!< ...ill

\. J..' i» u. • ' 1 . • .i»'ir

|»<iv» « P» ' ' • 1 ■ ■ •

i-' ' ♦ • . ^' I « .ii< I

i the other and

1. u

Man in tho rudest state in which he now cxlsta is tho
lominaiit ■ ! that has i t* r ai i*4-.ir< b.
^ fpn

• wr« tl.

I. !. I I to I. rt». Tho

» ! ri rii' e of th(*a0 ehr^ •«!

132

THB DESCENT 01 MAS.

[Paut I.

by the final ailjitranicnt of the battle for life. Througli
his powers of intellect, articulate language has been
evolved; and on this his wonderful advancement has
mainly depended. He has invented and is able to use
various weapons, tools, trai)8, etc., with which he defends
himself, kills.or catches prey, and otherwise obtains food.
He has made rafts or canoes on which to fish or cross over
to nei<rhborin£c fertile islands. He has discovered the art
of making lire, by which hard and stringy roots can be
rendered digestible, and poisonous roots or herbs innocu-
ous. This last discovery, probably the greatest, excepting
language, ever made by man, dates from before the dawn
of history. These several inventions, by which man in the
rudest state lias become so preeminent, are the direct re-
sult of the development of his powers of observation,
tnemory, curiosity, imagination, and reason. I cannot,
therefore, understand how it is that Mr. 'Wallace •* main-
tains, that "natural selection could only have endowed
the savage with a brain a little superior to that of an
ape."

Althougli llic intellectual powers and social habits of

"* Quarterly llcview,' April, 18C9, p. 892. ThU subject ia more
fully discussed iu Mr. "Wullace'a •Contributions to tlrc Theory of Natural
Scluftion,' 1870, in which all the essays referred to in this work arc ro-
publiiihed. The * Essay on Man ' has been ably criticised by Prof. Clapa-
rude, one of the most distinguished zoologists in Europe, in an article
published in tho * liibliothequo Univcrsclle,' June, 1870. The i
quoted in my text will surprise every one who has read Mr. AVu.i.i ^ -
celebrated paper on ' The Origin of Human Races deduced from tho
Theory of Natural Selection,' originally published in the ' Anthropologi-
cal Review,' May, 1864, p. clviiL I cannot here resist quoting a most
j'l t r. ;i)ark by Sir J.Lubbock (' Trchi^storic Times,' 1SC5, p. 479) iu
ii to this paper, namely, that Mr. Wallace, " with characteristic

unselfishness, ascribes it (i e., the idea of natural selection) unreservedly
to Mr. Darwin, aliliouph, as is well known, he struck out tho idea indo
pcudcntly, and published it, tliough not with the same elaboration, at the

Bamr tMi:r-."

MANSER OF DEVEI. T. 133

arc of paramount in o ' '

nmlcrrato the imj^ortancc. ui i.. h<.h\y .tnt.ture, t h
• the r " r of this chapUr will Ikj U

. . ihc btcll. • il 1 - '1 or moral

V.'

discug«cMl in tV

l. ^ n to hammer with i a i. no ea.y matter. M

V. r.,. who hrxn irk^ to h an» < .r,K!ntr)' will admiL

, a«tr canaFr m

or in ki ' ^^'^ ^

n in tiiu '
, , : . U « of the huu I, arm, and >h .
liiji- KriiMS of touch. In thr '

• ionii a man : »
u,..udc.rnvv1s th- i » <>f

rou, m^\cM. i Ip flint into the rudct tool, or
• rm a barbed six ar or hook from a bono, .
: a perfect hand ; for, aa a met capable j
remarkji. the agmci
; . lanc««, or arrow-hca extra.
Uy and lonj; pra ' \W i

iirimcval m * '

1 own t or ru

^u^li n to havo a

it, no ng t ichang«

rtb«eluMe. am cooviDccd

tn mormoo* i

light of '
A man-likf» »

a* for

»1 .r^l

13-1

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

man can make. The structure of the hand in this respect
may be compared 'sWth that of the vocal organs, Avhich in
the apes are used for uttering various signal-cries, or, as in
one species, musical cadences ; but in man closely similar
vocal organs have become adapted through the inherited
c fleets of use for the utterance of articulate language.

Turning now to the nearest allies of man, and there-
fore to the best representatives of our early progenitors,
we find that the hands in the Quadrumana are constructed
on the same general pattern as in us, but are far less per-
fectly adapted for diversified uses. Their liands do not
serve so well as the feet of a dog for locomotion ; as may
be seen in those monkeys which walk on the outer mar-
gins of the palms, or on the backs of their bent fingers,
as in the chimpanzee and orang." Their hands, however,
arc admirably adajoted for climbing trees. Monkeys seize
thin branches or ropes, witli the thumb on one side and
the fingers and palm on the other side, in tlie same manner
as we do. They can thus also carry rather large objects,
such as the neck of a bottle, to their mouths. Baboons
turn over stones and scratch up roots with their liands.
Tliey seize nuts, insects, or other small objects, with the
thumb in opposition to the fingers, and no doubt they
thus extract eggs and the young from the nests of birds.
American monkeys beat the "\nld oranges on the branches
until the rind is cracked, and then tear it ofi:* with the fin-
gers of the two liands. Other monkeys open mussel-shells
with the two thumbs. With their fingers they pull out
thoras and burs, and hunt for each other's parasites. In
a state of Nature they break open hard fruits with the aid
of stones. They roll doAvn stones or throw them at their
enemies ; nevertheless, they perform these various actions
clumsily, and they are quite unable, as I have myself flcen,
to throw a stone with precision.

Owen, 'Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol. iii. p. 71.

Chap. IV.]

MANNER OF DEVELOrilENT.

135

It fiecms to me far from true that because "objects are
^'rasped clumsily" by monkeys, "a much less 6|K*cialm.*d
off^an of preheiisiou " would have served them " as well
as their present hands. On the contrary, I see no reason
to doubt that a more perfectly constructed hand would
have been an advantage to them, provided, and it is im-
]>ortant to note this, that their hands had not thus been
rendered less well adapted for climbing trees. We may
' < ct that a perfect hand would have been disadvanta-
<nis for climbing ; as the most arboreal monkeys in
the world, namely AteKs in America and Ilylobalts in
Asia, either have their thumbs much reduced in sire
and even rudimentary, or their fingers partially coherent,
HO that their hands are converted into mere grasping-
hooks."

As soon as some ancient member in the great series of
I lie I'rimates came, owing to a change in its manner of
proi iiriiig subsistence, or to a change in the conditions
of its native country, to live somewhat less on trees and
nion; on the ground, its manner of progression wouM have
b<'en modified ; and in this case it would have had to Ih»-
comc either more strictly ()ua<lrupi «lul or bipedal. l»a-
boorm frequent hilly and nn-ky districts, and only fn»ni
ii y climb up liiuh troi>s;** and they have acquired

iilmr>iit the gait of a Man alone has iHTonie a bi

and wo can, I think, partly see how he has come to assume
his CHTt attitud<', whi» h fMnn-* «»rii« of the ii
ouK diderenceN lM'tw<-<-ii him and his neAre^t .t..^ . >ii
could iKit huvi* attaine<l his present domi' « niu

•» 'guarlrrly I April, inf.v, \>

hi llyiiJ .<iriWy^«M. u tin .

rrj-nU ' , , I ' .1 , , \f )

CAM) »

llr.l.in '11. II. It. Ml

130

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

mirubly atlaptcd to act in obedience to liis will. As Sir
C. Bell" insists, "the hand supplies all instruments, and
by its correspondence with the intellect gives him univer-
sal dominion." But the hands and arms could liardly
liave become perfect enough to have manufactured weap-
ons, or to have hurled stones and spears with a true aim, as
long as they were habitually used for locomotion and for
supporting the whole weight of the body, or as long as
they were especially well adapted, as previously remarked,
for climbinjj trees. Sucli rouMi treatment would also have
blunted the sense of touch, on which their delicate use
largely depends. From these causes alone it would have
been an advantage to man to have become a biped ; but
for many actions it is almost necessary that both arms and
the whole upper part of the body should be free ; and ho
must for this end stand firmly on his feet. To gain this
great advantage, the feet have been rendered flat, and the
great-toe peculiarly modified, though this has entailed the
loss of the power of prehension. It accords with the prin-
ciple of the division of physiological labor, which prevails
throughout the animal kingdom, that, as the hands became
perfected for prehension, the feet should have become per-
fected for support and locomotion. With some savages,
however, the foot has not altogether lost its prehensile
power, as shown by their manner of climbing trees and
of using them in other ways."

If it be an advantage to man to have his hands and

**"Thc Uaml, its Mechanism," etc. 'Bridgewatcr Treatise,* 1833,
p. 88.

Iliickel has an excellent discussion on the steps by which man be-
came a biped: 'Xatiirliche Schupfungpgeschlchte,' 18C8, s. C07. Dr.
lUkhncr ('Conferences sur la Th6oric Darwiuicnne,' 18G9, p. 135) has
given good cases of the use of the foot as a prehensile organ by man ;
also on the manner of progression of the higher apes to which I allude
in the following paragraph : sec also Owen ('Anatomy of Vertebrates,'
vol. iii. p. VI) on this latter subject.

caxr. nr.]

MAXXER OF DEVELOPMKNT.

137

arma free and to etand firmly on his feet, of which there
can be no doubt from his prcoiiiincnt success in the battle
of life, then I can see no reason why it should not have
been advantageous to the progenitors of nian to have be-
come more and more erect or bi|x»dal. They would thus
have l>cen better able to have defended tliemselve* with
Btonea or clubs, or to have attacked their prey, or other-
wise obtained food. The liCst-^-on^t meted individuals
would in the long-run liavc succeeded best, and have sur-
vived in larger nur.)'- r-. If the gorilla and a few allied
forms liad become < . i, it might have Iki-u argued with
great force and apparent truth, tliat an animal could not
have been gradually converted from a quadni]»ed into a
bifXHl; as all the individuals in an iutermediato condition
woulil have l>een miserably ill-iitted for pn* n. Hut

we know (and this is well worthy of reflection) that sev-
eral kinds of ap^'S arc n<>w aeinally in this intermediate
condition; and no one d<»ul»ts tluit they are on the whole
well adapted for their conditions of life. Thus the gorilla
runs with a sidelong shambling gait, but nxire eoinmnnly
prf>greiis<*H by resting on its In-nt hainls. The loti" !iri<u'<|
njM's occasionally use their arms like crutclu"*, - -ig
tlieir biMlics forward Wtween them, and some kindi of
1 1 yl*>bat4>ii, without having been taught, can walk or run
upright with t^deruble • mm; yet they more awk-

^ ' 'i Icaa 1. We iu<o, in

M.- 'I • , \w: ii ' . ,. . ■ . 1 . , ,

n form of | ■ . ; ,j t... : . .i • . a .^u » ti ..^^s|

rui l that of I rn

A. th« j man Invame mt»re and nion?

<*rrct, with their hand* nnd arms more and more* ; il
for pr« n and othrr i «••«, with their fiH't an<l h'v'«

u' tl.< »ami' time I d f<ir finn iU|>|Hirt and

»" • II, •

It* • • ""^ i « it^d l«> in

138

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

the spine peculiarly curved and the head fixed in an altered
position, and all these changes have been attained by man.
Prof. Schaaftliausen" maintains that "the powerful mastoid
processes of the human skull are the result of his erect
position;" and these processes are absent in the orang,
chimpanzee, etc., and arc smaller in the gorilla than in
man. Various other structures might here have been
specified, which appear connected witli man's erect posi-
tion. It is very difficult to decide how far all these cor-
related modifications are the result of natural selection,
and how far of the hihcrited efiects of the increased use of
certain parts, or of the action of one part on another. No
doubt these means of change act and react on each other :
thus when certain muscles, and the crests of bone to which
they are attached, become enlarged by habitual use, this
shows that certain actions are habitually performed and
must be serviceable. Hence the individuals which per-
formed them best, would tend to survive in greater num-
bers.

Tlie free use of the arms and hands, partly the cause
and partly the result of man's erect position, appears to
have led in an indirect manner to other modifications of
structure. The early male progenitors of man were, as
previously stated, probably furnished with great canine
teeth ; but as they gradually acquired the habit of using
stones, clubs, or other weapons, for fighting with their
enemies, they would liave used their jaws and teeth less
and less. In this case, the jaws, together with the teeth,
would have become reduced in size, as we may feel sure
from innumerable analogous cases. In a future chapter we
nhall meet with a closely-parallel case, in the reduction or
complete disappearance of the canine teeth in male rumi-

"On the Primitive Form of the Skull," translated in 'Anthropo-
logical Review,' Oct. 18G8, p. 428. Owen (' Anatomy of Vertebrates,'
rol. ii. 18G6, p. 551) on the mastoid processes in the higher apes.

Ciup. IV.]

MANNER OV DKVELurMENT.

13a

nants, apparently in relation with the development of
their horns; and in horses, in relation with their habit of
lij'htinjj with their incisor teeth and hoofs.

In the adult male anthropomorphous apes, as RQti-
meyer," and others have insisted, it is precisely the effect
which the jaw-muscks by their great development have
produced on the skull, that causes it to diller so greatly in
many respects from that of man, and has given to it
truly frightful physiognomy." Therefore, as the jaws aii<l
ti eth in the progenitors of man gradually become retluced
in size, the adult skull would have presented nearly the
same characters which it offers in the young of the an-
thropomorphous ajK/s, and would thus have come to
resemble more nearly that of existing man. A great re-
duction of the canine teeth iu the males would almost cer-
tainly, as we shall hereafter see, have affectrd through
inheritance the teeth of the fi mah s.

As the various mental facuhie-* liuvc gradually de-
veloped, the brain wouM almost certainly have become
larger. Xo one, I jiresume, doubts that the large sixc of
the brain in man, relatively to his Wly, in comparistm to
that of the gorilla or orang, is closely connected with his
hi'^her mental |KJWers. Wo meet with closely-analogou*
faeti* with insects, in which the cerebral ganglia are of
extraordinary dimen^ions in antii; these ganglia in all the
n 1 ICS larger than in the leiw in-

l< i' i» u > I-. . len,** On the other hand, no

'on- • • " -i of any two a *- or of

a»iv t !v gauged bv \ * • • m

fi dor Thivnvctl, ci ^ohtuoK »u I)«rlhn'a t.<

l»

rM.* IH70, p. 14. %j ,on. Mr. V, Dmntln, «l (br m the c*f

fangtU of the h'^trmim n^«.

140

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[PxrtL

tents of tlic'ir skulls. It is certain that there may be extraor-
dinary mental activity with an extremely small absolute
mass of nerv'ons matter ; thus the wonderfully diversified
instincts, mental powers, and affections of ants, arc gen-
erally known, yet their cerebral ganglia arc not so large
as the quarter of a small pin's head. Under this latter
point of view, the brain of an ant is one of the most mar-
v^ellous atoms of matter in the world, perhaps more mar-
vellous than the brain of man.

The belief that there exists in man some close relation
between the size of the brain and the develoi)ment of the
intellectual faculties is supported by the comparison of the
gkuUs of savage and civilized races, of ancient and modem
j)Ooj>lc, and by the analogy of the wliolc vertebrate series.
Dr. J. Barnard Davis has proved " by many careful meas-
urements, that the mean internal capacity of the skull in
Kuropeans is 92.3 cubic inches; in Americans 87.5; in
Asiatics 87.1 ; and in Australians only 81.9 inches. Prof.
Broca" found that skulls from graves in Paris of the
nineteenth century, were larger than those from vaults of
the twelfth century, in the proportion of 1484 to 142G ;
and Prichard is persuaded that the present inhabitants of
Britain have "much more capacious brain-cases" than the
ancient inhabitants. Nevertheless it must be admitted
that some skulls of very high antiquity, such as the famous
one of Neanderthal, are well developed and capacious.
With respect to the lower animals, 31. E. Lartet," by
comparing the crania of tertiary and recent mammals, bo-
longing to the same groups, has come to the remarkable
conclusioe that the brain is generally larger and the con-
votutions more complex in the more recent form. On the

'0 • rhilosophical Transaction?,' 1869, p. 613.

" Quoted in C. Vogt's 'Lectures on Man,' Eug. translat. 1804, pp. 88,
90. Prichard, •Phys. Ilist. of Mankind,' vol. i. 1838, p. 305
^ * Comptes Rcndufl dea Stances,' etc., June 1, 1868.

Cdaj'. IV.J JiA-N.SLii ul bLiLLOVMEST. 141

other hand, I hnvo shown" that the brains of doinei»tio
rabbits arc considerably reduced in bulk, iu comparison
with those of the wild rabbit, or hare ; and this may be
attributed to their having been closely confined during
many generations, so that they have exerted but little
llieir intellect, instinctH, N?n»e8, and voluntary movements.

llio gradually ■ -ing weight of the brain and
hkull in man must ha .L influenced the d« vrl ' • nt of the
MiM '^''' '^ spinal column, m ' . • ' " . 1 was

1 <Tect. As tV:- . ^ iH:ing

1 ut, the it -. ^ of the brain will,

also, have influenced the form of the ^kuU ; for many facts
show how easily the skull is thus affected. Kthnologista
iM-lieve that it is m 1 by the kind of cradle in which
infants sleep. Habitual .»>] i :: f the i - and a cic-
atriv from a bum have ; 1 the

farial Ixines, in y • - • • . i"'

have liecomo fix« 'l ... i - '., i-tu «.l

f' r\ is has cli: ' 1 if" j "f tTir

1. . . c licetl ;: . . • ■ i ; :i ■ I • ^ I ■ >

fr*»m the brain | r ..'* I have ^hown

' with lor I io trifling a cause aa

>rwar<l of ono ( foriK'ard on 1 1 lo

Ixjne (if the skull ; so that the )»ones uu llio

ul. Lastly, if anjf
lit rt-AM* iif . -i*nrnU siae,

'Ui ait^ t L.tngc ill its ni< i i , u Um mcotAl

^'TImV > «r AalMb sad IImIs Sftdcr DMMSllmllaa,* vol L

4

. 1

142

THE DESCEXT OF MAN.

[P^RT I.

[>owcr8 were to be miicli incrcasctl, or diininislieJ, witliout
any groat clianj^e in tlio size of the body ; llic shape of
the Kkiill would almost certainly bo altered. I infer this
from my observations on domestic rabbits, some kmds of
which liave become very much larger tlian the wild
animal, while others liave retained nearly the same size,
but in both cases the brain has been much reduced rela-
tively to the size of the body. Now I was at first much
surprised by finding that in all these rabbits the skull had
become eh)ngated or dolichocephalic; for instance, of two
skulls of nearly equal breadth, the one from a wild rabbit
and the other from a large domestic kind, the former was
only 3.15, and the latter 4.3 inches in length." One of
the most marked distinctions in different races of man is
that the skull in some is elongated, and in others rounded;
and here the explanation suggested by the case of the
rabbits may partially hold good; for Welcker finds that
short men incline more to braehycephaly, and tall men
to doliehocephaly ;"" and tall men may be comj)ared with
the larger and longer-bodied rabbits, all of which liavc
elongated skulls, or arc dolichocephalic.

From these several facts we can to a certain exum
understand the means through which the great size and
more or less rounded form of the skull has been acquired
by man; and these are characters eminently distinctive of
him in comparison with the lower animals.

Another most conspicuous diflference between man and
the lower animals is the nakedness of his skin. Whales
and dolphins (Cetacea), dugongs (Sirenia), and the hip-
popotamus, arc naked; and this may be advantageous to
them for gliding through the water; nor would it be in-

' Variation of Animals/ etc., vol L p. 117 on the elongation of tha
skull ; p. 119, on the cflcct of the lopping of one ear.

'•Quoted by SchaaflThauscn, in * Anthropolog. Review,' Oct. Ib08»
p. 419.

Cuxr. IV.]

MANNER OF DEVEf^PMENT.

143

jiirious to them from the \ot» of wanii*V < .^ur',-^
V. Inch iiiliubit the c<j1<1« r r«\:ion* arc |»r
layer of bluhbcr, nen'ing the same i»ur! the fur of

mraU and ottem. KlephanU and rl >Imf^t
hairleM; and, as eertain extinct tpccies which formerlr
lived under an arctic climate were covered with long wo«>l
or hair, it would : " f the <

of Ixjth f;4*nci-a li.i-i . i u.. «i ii..ay cover:
rr,. to heat. Thin apfK-ar^ ti . , , . ^ ,

• '. r 'H in India whii h » V--

more hairy ll».in lii , .

we th'-n irifer that mnn In-eame tli i of hair fn»m liar-
iiij :i' d ii«»iiie lri'|>i« :»l I.ind? Tlie (iict

of the hair LN.*in«; ehn tly r 1 in the male tcx on the

rh«-«>t and face, and in both vcxet at the junction of all
four linihn with the trunk, thi« it

thai ' Ir waa lout bcfuic Uian ltc« • ; I' l u.v

• V ' ■• •> moil hair Won. 1 I ii' ■ ^ i

• heat of the tun. Tl. ..
-* a curiottii e»e« T ' "n. f r M
tini<-* it nmiit hu ■ n one of the ii.

ytt it U thickly • ' > liair. In t!

a.'r« « of <n

144

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I,

cliiied to bt'lievc, as we shall sec under sexual selection,
tluit man, or rather primarily woman, hecam-c divested of
hair for ornamental purposes; and according to this belief
it is not surprising that man should diller so greatly in
hairiness from all liis lower brethren, for characters gained
tlirough sexual selection often diller in closely-related
forms to an extraordinary degree.

According to a popular impression, the absence of a
tail is eminently distinctive of man ; but as those apes
which come nearest to man are destitute of this organ,
its disappearance does not especially concern us. Never-
theless it may be well to own that no explanation, as far
as I am aware, has ever been given of the loss of the tail
by certain apes and man. Its loss, however, is not sur-
prising, for it sometimes difters remarkably in length m
species of the same genera : thus in some species of Maca-
cus the tail is longer than the whole body, consisting of
twenty-four vertebrie ; in others it consists of a scarcely-
visible stump, containing only three or four vertebrae. In
some kinds of baboons there are twenty-five, while in the
mandrill there are ten very small stunted caudal vertebra?,
or, according to Cuvier," sometimes only five. This great
diversity in the structure and length of the tail in animals
belonging to the same genera, and following nearly the
same habits of life, renders it probable that the tail is not
of much importance to them ; and if so, we might have ex-
pected that it would sometimes have become more or less
rudimentary, in accordance with what we incessantly see

served by various authors. Prof. P. Gcrvab ('Ilist. Xat. des Mammi-
fftres,' torn. i. 1854, p. 28), however, states that in the Gorilla the hair is
thinner on the back, where it is partly rubbed off, than on the lower sur-
face.

Mr. St. George Mivart, * Proc. Zoolog. Soc.' 18G5, pp. 5G2, 683. Dr.
J. E. Gray, ' Cat. Brit. Mas. : Skeletons.' Owen, * Anatomy of Verte-
brates,' vol. ii. p. 51Y. Isidore Geoffroy, ' llist. Nat. Gen.' torn. ii. p. 244.

%

Chap. IV.] MAXNtU OF DEVELOl'MEXT.

14.-,

with other Btructures. The tail almost always ta|>cr8
toward the end, whether it be long or short ; and thin, I
preHunie, results from the atrojdiy, through disuse, of the
terminal muscles, together witli tlieir arteries and nerves,
leading to the atropliy of tlie terminal bones. With re-
spect to the 08 coccyx, which in man and the higher ai>e8
manifestly consists of the few basal and tapering segments
of an ordinary tail, I have heard it asked how could these
Iiave Ixjcomc completely embedded within the body ; but
there is no difficulty in this respect, for in many monkeys
the basal segments of the true tail are thus embed«le«l.
For instance, Mr. Murie informs me that in the skeleton ot
a not full-grown JSr<i<*tiruA inornatttn^ he counted nine or
ten caudal vertebru% wliidi altogether were only 1.8 inch
in length. Of these the three basal ones appeared to have
l>cen embedded ; the remainder forming the free part of
the tail, which was only one inch in length, and half an
inch in diameter, lien*, then, the thrte embedded caudal
verteliKD plainly corresjmnd with the four coalesced ver-
tibno of the human o« coccyx.

i have now endravnn d lo show that > f the m(»st

di •■ '»- .. . I 1' I • • f man have in all ]'i i'.ilMlity b
a- y, or nion* romntonly indin* . .,

tl .. . '»n. W«' •■^1' iM bear in mind thai

lu \\% in Htrurturo or • ai, which ariMif nn

service to an organism in atlapting it to itii habits of
to tlio fooil whicli it connumeH, or pasnivcly to tho sur>
rounding conditionn, cannot have Wvn tlius accpii! !
W'o must not, however, l>c too confident in d * \< h:ii
nKxlifloations are of - ^ \ i .

\\\< w little u <

or w - in till . • i I

an oi r -i ri' v ..r ••

Nor .

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

Ll'AUT L

us Isidore Geoffroy lias Bliown in the case of man, many
stranixe deviations of structnre are tied toixctlicr. Inde-
l)endently of correlation, a change in one part often leads,
tlirougli the increased or decreased nse of other parts, to
other changes of a quite unexpected nature. It is also
well to reflect on such facts, as the wonderful growth of
galls on plants caused by the poison of an insect, and on
the remarkable changes of color in the plumage of parrots
when fed on certain fishes, or inoculated with the poison
of toads ; " for we can thus see that the fluids of tlie
system, if altered for some special purpose, might induce
other strange changes. We should especially bear in
mind that modifications acquired and continually used
during past ages for some useful purpose would probably
become firmly fixed and might be long inherited.

Thus a very large yet undefined extension may safely
be given to the direct and indirect results of natural selec-
tion ; but I now admit, after reading the essay by Niigeli
on plants, and the remarks by various authors Avith respect
to animals, more especially tliose recently made by Prof.
Broca, that in the earlier editions of my ' Origin of S^ie-
cies ' I probably attributed too much to the action of natu-
ral selection or the survival of the fittest. I have altered
the fifth edition of the Origin so as to confine my remarks
to adaptive changes of structure. I had not formerly
sufliciently considered the existence of many structures
which appear to be, as far as we can judge, neither bene-
ficial nor injurious ; and this I believe to be one of the
greatest oversights as yet detected in my work. I may
be permitted to sayj as some excuse, that I had two dis-
tinct objects in view, firstly, to show that species had not
been separately created, and secondly, that natural selec-
tion had been the chief agent of change, though largely

* The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' voL ii.
pp. 280, 282.

Cll.MV IV. ]

MANNER OF DKVtLOl MKNT.

147

ai«letl by the iiiherited effects of habit, and blightly by the
direct action of the surrounding conditions. Nevertlieless
I was not able to annul tlic iiilluence of my former belief,
then widely prevalent, that each Fpeeies had been pur-
posely created ; and this led to my tacitly assuming that
every detail of structure, excepting rudiments, was of
Homc special, though unrecognized, service. Any one
with this assumption in his mind would naturally extend
the action of natural selection, either during past or jires-
ent times, too far. Some of those who admit the jirincipio
of evolution, but reject natural Ht K ciion, H.'em to forget,
when criticising my ]>ook, that I had the above two ob-
' tH in view ; lience if I have cmd in giving to natural
c'tion great power, which I am far i'nnn admitting, or
in having exaggerated its power, which is in itself prob-
able, I have at lea«t, as I hope, done good servieo iu aid-
ing to overthrow the dogma of separate creations.

That all organic Ix'ings, including man, present many
mudilications of stnicture which are of no serv ice to them
ut preMcnt, nor have been fonnerly, in, ob I cati now »co^
probable. We know not what produees the numbi*rleM
hlight differences betwiM n the indivi»lual.s of each sjKcien,
f<»r re\< v I 'Ti o!dy< 'ir': i) -- pn>bUni a few hteps back-
ward; I K'li ]K.*< . have had it;* ou n etlicient
rauftc. If tliciio cause!*, whatever they may be, wcro to
act more uniftjnnly and enei '\y during a lengthcDod
IKTioil (and no rexiAon can Im* i i why this should not
ham- occur), tlio retiult would probably l>c not mero
slighi uidividtial •! ' . l^ut well-marked, conKtani
moditir ■ .M«» ' h are in noway In'm*-
ficial < hav»' I-. .u k. ^ i i. V ' ' • d

I, how*

tlio frvc ill' udag

f

148 TUE DESCENT OF MAN. [yxar 1.

of many iiidivitluals. The same organism might acciniro
in this manner during successive periods successive modi-
iications, and these woukl be transmitted in a nearly uni-
form state as Ions: as the cxcitin<j causes remained tho
same and there was free intercrossing. AVith respect to
the exciting causes we can only say, as when speaking of
so-called si)ontaneous variations, that they relate much
more closely to the constilution of the varying organism,
than to the nature of the conditions to which it has been
subjected.

Conclusion. — In this chapter we have seen that as man
at the present day is liable, like every other animal, to
multiform individual difterences or slight variations, so no
doubt were the early ]>rogenitors of man ; the variations
being then as now induced by the same general causes,
and governed by the same general and complex laws. As
all animals tend to multiply beyond their means of sub-
sistence, so it must have been with the progenitors of
man ; and this will inevitably have led to a struggle for
existence and to natural selection. This latter process
will have been greatly aided by the inherited eftects of
the increased use of parts ; these two processes incessant-
ly reacting on each other. It appears, also, as we shall
hereafter see, that various unimportant characters have
been acquired by man through sexual selection. An unex-
plained residuum of change, perhaps a large one, must be
left to the assumed uniform action of those unknown agen-
cies, which occasionally induce strongly-marked and ab-
nipt deviations of structure in our domestic productions.

Judging from the habits of savages and of the greater
number of the Quadrumana, primeval men, and even tho
ape-like progenitors of man, probably lived in society.
AVith strictly social animals, natural selection sometimes
acts indirectly on the individual, through the preservation

Cmap.JV]

MANSER OF VF.VF.LOVMKST.

of vai'iutionii which are beneliciul only to the coinniuuiiy.
'A c« lity includinj^ a large nuniWr of wcli<'iiiluwe«l
iii<li\ 1 luais iucrea.«e.s in iiuml>er and is vi< * * - r
other and less well-ciiJowed communiliiii ; a.lii >. . h
hrr -ir fr memljer may gain no advantage over t' r
ij. n of the same community. With as.^
sectu many renvarkahlc itnicture;*, which arc of little or
no Bcr^'icc to the individual or its own of&priiig, such a«
the pollen-collecting apparatus, or the sting of the worker-
Wc, or the great jaws of soldicr'ants, have been thus ac-
quired. With the higher hocial animal.<«, I am not awaro
that any ^t - * r(% l>cen mo<lified solely for the goo*l
of the coni.il I.. ly, though some an." of tircniidary service
to it. For inxtari • . i' honis of niniiuant!i and •■ •"-'^ '
canine teeth of I . ,h a? T-'^ nr f . ? ive Ixt-n a> ^ . . .
the males as wea|)ona for bat they arc um^I

in defence of the henl or tr<. ip. In rcgartl to certain
mental the cas4», as we shall §eo in the fo: ^

< ' , is wholly diflferent ; for these faculties have Ikvu
chuily, or even • 'f* gaiind for the Wnefit of the

c- • . ; the indt\ the community

Im .11^ .ii iiie same time iiiamcli^ iMuthicd.

It h d to such view*

1. I
1.

that **thc hutnnii frriin*- ' ! fn»m '

tif hnit«ni, in t

niul I u to tay, it ii B «i

all ot to n

•cIocUmu. kiv

M«iS* IMf. |k ML

150

TIIK DKSCKNT OF MAN.

(Pakt I.

of the body, the absence of great teeth or claws for de-
feiico, the little strength of man, his small Fpeed in run-
ning, and his slight power of Fmell, by which to discover
food or to avoid danger. To these deficiencies there
might have been added the still more serious loss of the
l)ower of quickly climbing trees, so as to escape from ene-
mies. Seeing that the unclothed Fuegians/;an exist under
their wretched climate, the loss of hair would not have
been a great injury to primeval man, if lie inhabited a
warm country. When we compare defenceless man with
the apes, many of which arc provided with formidable
canine teeth, we must remember that these in their fully-
developed condition are possessed by the males alone,
being chiefly used by them for lighting with their rivals ;
yet the females, which are not thus provided, arc able to
survive.

In rcGrard to bodilv size or strength, we do not know
whether man is descended from some comparatively small
species, like the chimpanzee, or from one as powerful as
the gorilla ; and, then fore, we cannot say w hether man
lias become larger and stronger, or smaller and weaker,
in comparison with his progenitors. We should, how-
ever, bear in mind that an animal possessing great size,
strength, and ferocity, and which, like the gorilla, could
defend itself from all enemies, would probably, though
not necessarily, have failed to become social ; and this
would most effectually liave checked the acquirement by
man of his higher mental qualities, such as sympathy and
the love of his fellow-creatures. Hence it might have
been an immense advantage to man to have sprung from
some comparatively weak creature.

The slight corjioreal strength of man, liis little speed,
his want of natund weapons, etc., are more than counter-
balanced, firstly by his intellectual powers, through which
he has, while still remaining in a barbarous state, formed

Cnir. IV J

VAKNTR OF nrvEropifrvT

161

for hiiiiiMrlf weapons, tooLi, etc., and - lly by his fx
qualities which lead him to give aid to hin fcIluH-'incii
to receive it iii return. No country iu the w '»
in a greater dej^rec with dn • .u« Ix-a^ts th . . ^
Africa; no couiitr}' jireseut-, i., >re fearful j»!
nhijiH than the Ar- !•<• region* : vi-t one of the ]•
naiiH'ly, the . n, nia thenifK.lvi^ iu

Africa, an do the dwarfed K<^}uimaux in the Anti
region!, TIic early |irogenit<»p» of man were, no doubt,
inferior in it t, and prubably in social d on, to

the lowett 4 Bava;;<>(i ; but it ia qui' •

that ' , if, »»liilo

they ^1 i inAiij i '-: i.i. ,1 i*. ' •l^!>•

ing treen, e(c.,they at the ^.l ..

ha<l inliabited nt, or «

aa Ati . or New < i, <»r Komeo (the latter island
now t«*nante<l by lh« oranu'), th« y would not havo
Iax'U e 11 |K>«ed t^ any In an area a« largo

M on« ■ o and

^ ' '" .biO con-

d of the

i . 1 • •

152

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

n'Ar.T I.

CIIAPTEll V.

ON THE DEVELOPMENT OP THE INTELLECTUAL AND MOBAli
FACULTIES DURING TKIMEVAL AND CIVILIZED TIMES.

The Advancement of the Intellectual Powers tlirouj?li Natural Selection. —
Importance of Imitation. — Social and Moral i'acultics. — Their Dcveloji-
ment within the Limits of the same Tribe. — Natural Selection as af-
fecting Civilized Nations. — Evidence that Civilized Nations were onoo
barbarous.

The subjects to "be discussed in tbis chapter arc of the
hij^liest interest, but are treated by me in a most imperfect
and fragmentary manner. Mr. Wallace, in an admirable
l)apcr before referred to,* argues that man, after he liad
partially acquired those intellectual and moral facidties
A\ hich distinguish him from the lower animals, would have
been but little liable to have had his bodily structure
modified through natural selection or any otlier means.
For man is enabled through his mental faculties "to keep
witli an imchanged body in harmony witli the changing
universe." lie has great power of adapting his habits to
new conditions of life. He invents weapons, tools, and
various stratagems, by which lie procures food and de-
fends liimself. When he migrates into a colder climate
lie uses clothes, builds sheds, and makes fires ; and, by the
aid of fire, cooks food otherwise indigestible. lie aids his
fellow- men in many ways, and anticipates future events,

* • Aulbropological Review,' May, 1801, p. clvUL

CUAP. V.J

INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES.

153

Even at a remote jxiriod be practised some suLdiviiiiou of
labor.

Tbe lower animals, on tbo olber band, must liave tiicir
bodily structure modilicd in order to eurvive under great-
ly-cbanj^ed conditions. Tbey must be rendered 6troni,'er,
or acquire more effective teetb or claws, in order to defe nd
tbemselves from new eneniies; or tbey must be reduced
in size bo as to escape detection and danger. AVben tbey
migrate into a colder climate tbey must become clotbed
wiib tbicker fur, or bavc tbcir constitutions altered. If
tbey fail to bo tbus modified, tbey will cease to exist.

Tbe case, bowever, is widely different, as Mr. Wallace
bas wilb justice insisted, in relation to tbe intil' I and
moral facultieg of man. Tbcsc faculties arc vaii.ii .r ; and
wc bave every reason to believe tbat tbe variations tend
to be inberited. Tberefore, if tbey were formerly of bigb
1 iM. rt:incc to primeval man and to bis ajK^like pro-
s, tbey would bave been jHTfected or advanced
llirougli n.itural selection. Of tbe bigb imi>ortanco of tbo
intellectual faculties tbere can be no doubt, for man main-
ly owes to them bis jtreCminent jiosition in tbo world.
We can sec tbat, in tbo rudest state of stK-iety, tbe indi-
\ idtials wbo were tbo most ^ , wbo hw 1 an«l

HM d tbo best V MS or tr.ij wbo w« r- able

f ' nd ibem-' . . • , would n ..i ; grt at» >t ii • ' ■ r of
Tlio IribtH \*bi» b includt d tbo larg* iT
lis endowed would incnahe in number and sup-
plant olber trilM"*. NumlK>ni dr|Knd primarily on iho
III. un« of su ice, and ibin, partly on tbo pby»ical
nnturo of tbo country, but in a murb ' degret^ on tbo

arts which aro tbcru ; As n inb> im t ami

i'« N it is often nltti luiibt r i . by the six

• ' • '! ' th of tho

tti« It "I .» li •»'*. (ttet w » •» • ....^ < t ...u> » i'T It" •'"'^

• AfW a ihm Uw mmJbms or uibc«i, •kkk art steaiM Uiu m»

154

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I

cess, and these depend in part on the nature and amount
of the food wliich can be obtained. In Europe the men
of tlie Bronze period were supplanted by a more powerful
and, judging from tlieir sword-handles, larger-handed
race J ' but their success was probably due in a much
higher degree to their superiority in the arts.

All that we know about savages, or may iufer from
their traditions and from old monuments, the history of
which is quite forgotten by the present inhabitants, shows
that from the remotest times successful tribes have sup-
planted other tribes. Relics of extinct or forgotten tribes
have been discovered throughout the civilized regions of
the earth, on the wild plains of America, and on the iso-
lated islands in the Pacific Ocean. At the present day
civilized nations are everywhere Bupi)hinting barbarous
nations, excepting where the climate opposes a deadly bar-
rier; and they succeed mainly, thougli not exclusively,
through their arts, which are the products of the intellect.
It is, therefore, highly probable that with mankind the in-
tellectual faculties have been gradually perfected through
natural selection; and this conclusion is sufficient for our
purpose. Undoubtedly it would have been very inter-
esting to have traced the development of each separate
faculty from the state in which it exists in the lower
animals to that in which it exists in man ; but neither my
ability nor knowledge permits the attempt.

It deserves notice that as soon as the progenitors of
man became social (and this probably occurred at a very
rarly period), the advancement of the intellectual faculties
will have been aided and modified in an important manner,
of which we see only traces in the lower animals, namely,
through the ]irinci2)le of imitation, together with reason

oilier tribe aasuiuc, as Mr. Maine rLiuarkri ('Ancient Law,' 1861, ]). 131),
that tlicy arc the co-dcscc!i(lant3 of the same ancestors.
3 Morlot. ♦ Soc. Vaud. Sc. Kat.' 1800, p. 294

Chap. V ]

IN TELLECTUA L FACULTIES.

155

:iinl exiMiricnce. Ajx^s are much given to imitation, as aro
the lo\ve»t savaj^es ; and the simple fact, prcvioiuly ro-
A rred to, that after a time no animal can be caught in the
H;imc place by the same sort of trap, shows ^lat animals
Icam by oxiK.riencc, and imitate each other's caution.
Now, if some one man in a tribe, more <a<raciou8 than the
otiitn*, invented a new snare or wea|M»n, or other means
of attack or defence, tlie phiinest self-interest, without the
as^i^^tancc of much reas<»ninj» power, would prompt tlie*
other members to imitate him; and all would thus profit.
The habitual practice of each now art muAt likewise in
some slight degree strengthen iho intellect. If the new
invention were an imjxjrtant one, the trilx? would increase
in number, spread, and sujiplant other tribes. In a trilic
tlms rendered more nur- ' would alwavs bb a

rather In-tter change of ih. i»i;iu > i .»lher 8U|H"rior and in-
ventive members. If such men left children to inherit
tlii ir TiTu' il BujK'riority, tli«' » liance of the birth of still
.iiH members would be s«nnewhat Iwlt^T, ami
in A very small tribe decidedly better. Kveii if they left

Mren, the tril>e would still include ihfir blood-
r< l:iii.»im; and it has Ikhmi asi^ertainrd by agriculturista*
that by pnm-rving and brf^din.; frt»m the family of an

' ' ' ^ ' I wa4 futinil to be valuable,

I..* il' it< 'i< 1 iii-i> < a ttbtaineiL

Turning now to tho s.H-ial an-l mnrd fnftilf In
or«b'r that I or lh«« m of

tnati, fthould hav«> I .4
till- »tame i tii
live in a lNi«ly ; and tli(«y no dmilii 1 tho natno

r- ncral d; I ' '

r>«'parBt<*<l it"ut iiii i( I oiiii a It «, i>a u .tiiiit lilt > \« ' .tfi tiA^ w
(I larttajii b my * VuUUoti of AwkmaU <iail#f UmmmIA

150 THE DESCENT OF MAN. [Part I.

felt some degree of love ; they would have warned each
otlier of danger, and liave given mutual aid in attack or
defence. All this implies some degree of sympathy, fidel-
ity, and courage. Such social qualities, the paramount
importance of which to the lower animals is disputed by
no one, were no doubt acquired by the progenitors of man
in a similar manner, namely, through natural selection,
aided by inherited liabit. When two tribes of primeval
man, living in the same country, came into competition,
if the one tribe included (other circumstances being
equal) a greater number of courageous, sympathetic, and
laithful members, who were always ready to warn each
other of daiiger, to aid and defend each other, this tribe
would without doubt succeed best and conquer the other.
Let it be borne in mind how all-important, in the never-
ceasing wars of savages, fidelity and courage must be.
The advantage which disciplined soldiers liave over un-
disciplined hordes follows chiefly from the confidence
which each man feels in his comrades. Obedience, as Mr.
JJagchot has well shown,' is of the highest value, for any
form of government is better than none. Selfish and con-
tentious j^eoplc will not cohere, and without coherence
nothing can be eff*ected. A tribe possessing the above
qualities in a high degree would spread and be victorious
over other tribes; but in the course of time it would,
judging from all j^ast history, be in its turn overcome by
some other and still more highly-endowed tribe. Thus
the social and moral qualities would tend slowly to ad-
vance and be diftuscd throughout the world.

But it may be asked. How within the limits of the
same tribe did a larcje number of members first become
endowed with these social and moral qualities, and how
was the standard of excellence raised ? It is extremely

* Kcc a remarkable Bcries of articles on Physics and Politics in the
•Fortnightly Kcview,' Nov. 1867; April 1, 1808; July 1, 1869.

Ciup, v.]

MORAL FACCLTIES.

157

<1oubtful whether the offHprinj» of tlie more syniiiathctic
anJ benevolent parents, or of those which were the most
faithful to their comni<le«, would be reared in greater
number than the children of Belfi.^h an«l treacherous par-
ents of the same tribe, lie who was ready to sacrifice his
]\{2j as many a navai^'c has Inxn, rather than Wtray his
comrades, wouM often leave uo oflVpring to inherit his
noble nature, llic bravest men, who were always willing
to come to the front in war, and who freely risked their
lives for others, would on an average j*erUh in lar;;tT nuin-
Iht than other men. Therefore it seem* «. nr 'v » . -i.lo
(bearing in mind that wc are not h ^ lO
trilMj Wing victorious over another) that the ; r of
men gifted with nuch virtues, or that the inl of their

excellence, could bo increased thn>U';h nat i,
that is, by the sur^'ival of the fittot.

Altl ' the circumstanci s which lead to an increase
in the i. of men thus endowi d within the same trilio

are too < to l>e clvarly followed «»ut, we can trace

s*>me of the probable utepii. In the Wrt^t phice, as iho rra-
sonifi'/ T»'^wer»i and f^n -idit of the menilH r-" Wcnrn*^ i'M-
pro\ h man i* ^ learn from e\i

if he his fellow-men, he would comnionlv :

in retuni. From this low motive he mit;ht :i
habit of n i the ' ^

> lh« Uwiing of
S}:jij.4r M lo bcnoYolcnt

t»«*u«. I iiring many grmiu

tion« T ' • 1

to the

praise and our r

V Tt M writ

, an* 1

s«-t II III iliif 1 • ' th« I

158

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

and tliis instinct no doubt was originally acquired, like all
the other social instincts, through natural selection. At
how early a period the progenitors of man, in the course
of their development, became capable of feeling and being
impelled by the praise or blame of their fellow-creatures,
we cannot, of course, say. But it appears that even dogs
appreciate encouragement, praise, and blame. The rudest
savages feel the sentiment of glory, as they clearly show
by preserving the trophies of their prowess, by their
habit of excessive boasting, and even by the extreme care
which they take of their personal appearance and decora-
tions ; for unless they regarded the oj)inion of their com-
rades, such habits would be senseless.

They certainly feel shame at the breach of some of
their lesser rules ; but how far they experience remorse is
doubtful. I was at first surprised that I could not recol-
lect any recorded instances of this feeling in savages ; and
Sir J. Lubbock " states that he knows of none. But if we
banish from our minds all cases given in novels and plays
and in death-bed confessions made to priests, I doubt
whether many of us liave actually witnessed remorse;
though we may have often seen shame and contrition for
smaller offences. Bemorse is a deeply-hidden feeling. It
is incredible that a savage, who will sacrifice his life
rather than betray his tribe, or one who will deliver him-
self up as a prisoner rather tlian break his parole,^ would
not feel remorse in his inmost soul, though he might con-
ceal it, if he had failed in a duty whicli lie held sacred.

"We may therefore conclude tliat primeval man, at a
very remote period, would have been influenced by the
praise and blame of his fellows. It is obvious, that the
members of the same tribe would approve of conduct

6 'Origin of Civilization,' 1870, p. 2G5.

' Mr. "Wallace gives cases in his * Contributions to the Theory of
Natural Selection,' 1 870, p 354.

Cdap. v.]

MuiiAL FACULTIES.

159

wliich appeared to tliem to be for the general good, and
would reprobate that which appeared evil. To do good
unto others — to do unto others as ye would they should
do unto you — is the foundation-stone of morality. It if,
therefore, hardly jjossible to exatrgeratc the importance
during rude times of the love of praise and the dread of
bhime. A man who was not impelled by any deep, in-
stinctive feeling, to Hacrilice his life for the good of other?*,
yet was roused to such actions by a f^nf^e of glory, would
by his example excite the game wish for glory in other
men, and would strengthen by exercise the noble feeling
of admiration. He might thus do far more good to his
tribe than by begetting ofl'-pring with a tendency to in-
lierit his own high character.

With increased experience and reason, man perceives
the more remote consequences of his actions, and the Fclf-
regarding virtues, such as temperance, chastity, etc.,
which during early times are, as we have before seen,
utterly disregarded, come to be higldy esteemed or even
held sacred. I need not, however, reiK'at what I have
Huid on this head in the third chapteik Ultimately a

lihwomplex sentiment, having its first origin in the
Hocial instincts, largely guided by iho apprulmtion of our
fi'Uow-men, nile«l by n^nson, si«lf-ii ' . and in Uter
' ' 14 fe<«l by instruction

1 ii.ki'ii, .iii I wnti'iiicdfCOn-'liiiiiiViU i.K'i tI ^ • ' —e or con-

nee.

It in'i f Tj'«t b<« fMr"<ift» M that, aM' m ''i n 1 * 'V •^tand*
Jtr.l rtf . lit or I . . . . rn- h

liial man aii«l hix < i over tho other m«Mi

II* trilM>, yet that an advancement in the > «1 of

t y and nn iiicr« :iite in the nuniUT o! ihI
u Hill certainly an immenfH«

■' V ' • in,

lilt iu < lio, ii win p *

ICO

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Paat I.

degree the spirit of patriotism, fiJelity, obedience, courage,
an<l HvinpHtliy, were always ready to give aid to each
otlicr and to sacrifice themselves for the common good,
would be victorious over most other tribes ; and this
would be natural selection. At all tinges throughout tho
world tribes have supplanted other tribes; and as morali-
ty is one clement in their success, the standard of morality
and the number of well-endowed men will thus every-
where tend to rise and increase.

It is, however, very difficult to fonn any judgment
why one particular tribe and not another lias been success-
ful and has risen in the scale of civilization. Many sav-
a<_fes are in the same condition as when first discovered
several centuries atjo. As Mr. l>a<iehot has remarked, wo
arc apt to look at progress as the normal rule in human
society ; but history refutes this. The ancients did not
even entertain tho idea ; nor do tho Oriental nations at tho
present day. According to another high authority, Mr,
Maine,* " the greatest part of mankind has never shown a
particle of desire that its civil institutions should be im-
j)roved." Progress seems to depend on many concurrent
favorable conditions, far too complex to be followed out.
Hut it has often been remarked, that a cool climate from
leading to industry and the various arts has been highly
favorable, or even indispensable for this end. The Esqui-
maux, pressed by hard necessity, have succeeded in many
ingenious inventions, but their climate has been too severe
for continued progress. Nomadic habits, whether over
wide plains, or through the dense forests of the trojjics, or
along the shores of the sea, have in every case been highly
detrimental. While observing the barbarous inhabitants
of Ticrra del Fuego, it struck me tlLit the p<- • >n of
Bome property, a fixed abode, and the union of many fami-

Ancient I^w,' 1861, p. 22. For Mr. BagcUot'a remarks, ' ForU
nightly Reriew,' April 1, 1808, p. 452.

Cmxr. V ] CIVILIZKD XATI I^l

ujhI. r i < hiff, were the indwpcn^ ^ ' ^ lobii*.,
civilizat. Such hahitti almoi»t ntt« rti^
tion of the ^rouii l ; aii<l the fin>t pf^r** io c .
wouM probably result, a« I have v. ne phown/ i
ia>ni(5 ffiich accident aa thi- m « .1- of a fruit-tn ■ i

bi*ap of rvfiuc and pr / an umijiu

The • ' oi lite tin^ adv.i

towai'i wtiiuu oii 1^ lit praaeat much too dii!i<Milt to bo

M..r-. . 1

the Uat and pniM-nt c i. > I hi'.

vanccmcnt of man from a f«inii« r

to hU pmknit irtate aa a barbar

on tho ap^encj of natural i on <

may be hcrv worth J I ioct han Ut n aMv

diacnaaed by Mr. W . iL * an.i Nlr.

Wallace and Mr. (ialt<m. .M » •

tak^n from th<nk) thr«H» aatli • - 1 » • uiai^

in V or mln'f nr<- « ti . . ! '...it unr-

> i 1 M - - ' f», W

• i".

I ; wo build n OI-

... r 4 i., liat. tl tiM

1 4* I la tka ' DvUia •

102

THE DESCKNT OF MAX.

[Paut L

becilc, the inaimeil, and the tsick ; we institute poor-laws ;
and our medical men exert their ulmoBt skill to save tlio
life of every one to the last moment. Tliere is reason to
believe that vaccination has preserved thousands, wlio
from a weak constitution would formerly have Buccumhed
to small-pox. Tlius the weak members of civilized socie-
ties propagate their kind. No one who has attended to
the breeding of domestic animals will doubt that this
must be higlily injurious to the race of man. It is sur-
prising how soon a want of care, or care wrongly directed,
loftds to the degeneration of a domestic race ; but except-
ing in the case of man himself, hardly any one is so igno-
rant as to allow his worst animals to breed.

The aid wliich we feel imiicUed to give to the helpless
is mainly an incidental result of the instinct of sympathy,
which was originally acquired as part of the social in-
stincts, but subsequently rendered, in the manner pre-
viously indicated, more tender and more widely diffused.
Nor could we check our sympathy, if so urged by bard
reason, without deterioration in the noblest part of our
nature. The surgeon may harden himself while perform-
mg an operation, for he knows that lie is acting for the
good of his patient ; but if we were intentionally to neg-
lect the weak and helpless, it could only be for a con-
tingent benefit, with a certain and great present evil.
Ilence we must bear without complaining the undoubtedly
bad effects of the weak surviving and propagating tht*ir
kind ; but there appears to be at least one check in steady
action, namely tiic weaker and inferior members of society
not marry ing so freely as the sound ; and this check might
be indefinitely increased, though this is more to be hoped
for than expected, by the weak in body or mind refraining
from marriage.

In all civilized countries man accumulates property
and bequeaths it to liis children. So that the cliildrrn in

CuAr. v.]

CIVILIZED SATl

103

the Kaine country do i. . any nuaiiji htart fair io *^ •
race f'-r "iJcceM. 15ut this ii* far f- 'Mi an unrnir' 1 .
for w the accumulation of - 1 the a:

prog^ress ; and it is chii-fly through their i>ower that the
civilized races have extended, and arc now ever)'where
extending, their ran^e, bo a.H to take the place of the lower
racci. Xor d<jc« the ni^xh rate accui a of wealth

interfere with the j»r<>c«'*« of .s< l« < tii*n. \V hcu a p<x>r uimx
\h ' • >< rich, hill cl. ' ' • traded or pr^jfes^^ionsi in

wi.. .1 iiere in ntni;:^. • . *hat the able in U- ly

and mind nucceed lx'^<«t. The |ireii4'ni'c of a l>«>tly of u • '.'
inMtructe«l men, who have not to Ial>>r for their da .
brcmd, m im|H>rtant to a degree which cannot 1h> o\ <:
estimated; a« all high intellectual work i« carried on by
them, and on ffuch work material pro^remi of all kindb*
mainly depenil«, not to mention other and higher advan-
tage*. . No doubt wealth, when ' Teat, temU to <
vert men into uaeloM drom*)*, bui i..< .r nuniU'r i« n«
large; and foaie degree of eliminatitm hrri* occurs, a<« u<
dailv rii4i men, who liap|M n to bo f w.N ir y.r fli - \'

' away all their wealth.
I'rini lira with entailed ottatoe ie a moro dir.
evil, f > it may formerly have been a grrat a«l%
by tl I of a 1 chuM, and any g<

i* -t iutn«, though lilt V

mlly marr

iM. ry. N

wlien*, thr ; iw of are so c-

M>nie eon I ; ry « h(« k« mt* nr«M^ The men «i

rich ihnmKh \ r .» an> able to eeleci gro.

a' • wurnt »» .

tti I..... » The . 14m^ m*)

1C4

THE DESCEXT OF MAN.

[Part 1.

the continued presi i \ aiinu of the same lino ol" desceul,
without any selection, are checked by men of rank always
wishing to increase their wealth and power; and tliis they
effect by marrying lieiresses. But the daughters of parents
who have produced single cliildren, arc themselves, as
Mr. Galton has shown," apt to be sterile ; and thus noble
families arc continually cut off in the direct line, and their
wealth flows into some side-channel ; but unfortunately
this channel is not determined by superiority of any kind.

Although civilization thus checks in many ways the
action of natural selection, it apparently favors, by means
of improved food and the freedom from occasional hard-
ships, the better development of the body. This may be
inferred from civilized men having been found, wherever
eomj)ared, to be physically stronger than savages. They
appear also to have equal powers of endurance, as has
been proved in many adventurous expeditions. E^'en the
great luxury of the rich can be l)ut little detrimental ; for
the expectation of life of our aristocracy, at all ages and
of both sexes, is very little inferior to that of healthy Eng-
lish lives in the lower classes."

AVe will now look to the intellectual faculties alone.
If in each grade of society the meinl)ers were divided
into two equal bodies, the one including the intellectually
superior and the other the inferior, there can be little
doubt that the former would succeed best in all occupa-
tions and rear a greater number of children. Even in tho
lowest walks of life, skill and ability must be of some ad-
vantage, though in many occupations, owing to the great
division of labor, a very small one. Ilenoe in civilized
nations there will be some tendency to an increase both

>• • Hcroditary Genius,' 1870, pp. 132-140.

" Soe the fifUi and sixth columns, compile<l from good authoritic!*, in
the table given in Mr. E. R. Lankcster's 'Comparatirc Longevity,' 1870,
p. 115.

COAf. V.)

CIVILIZKD NATI«

\t5 -

in the nuiii '-r aa-l in ilit -i .ii ..i. i -f the i' * " ♦ lally
alilf. liut I du not to assirt that thu i . . ^ may
not be nK>ro than « i balanced in other wayn, M by
the mul .lion of the reckless and imiirovidi-ut ; but
even to Much as thesi*, ability mu»t )>c ^ome a<lvanta<;e.

It has often Ixrcn objected to views likc^the foreg*
that the niodt eminent uu-n who ha%'c ever lived have liii
no o*' ^ to inherit their Mr. « i

»ay»», i I • I am un:^ble i * • m i

*i ! • •■ • r, ait i *\r^ men and
oi ...m arc i. . .»c. I have, i.
of eminence are by no mennn «o,** (trrnt 1
founders of beneficent n ■ I
disco vefx*rs in science*, aid the ] d in a

Csr higher degree by tlieir workii than by 1 ; a nu-
UK'niUs progeny. In the caM> of (-or|iorral nlruclun**, it
in tlie selection of the slightly 1h tt* r ^ t ' the
cliiiiiiiation uf tlie ^ h-on u " ^ i i:. «. ^ . ;uals,
. ! • t ilie prv*cr\.t:. :) of ^' • ] and nrt«

. tea, that leads t-* tl-- n-l . *|m-. ;. »

Si it will bo with the > >
the •oourwhat more able men in < lo of

•ttce— ding rather liettrr tlcui tl.i* Ices able, and eonee
loeti' rtMiog in ti .if not oibrrwiM* ptntm' 1
Whvu m any nation the* I of in^Ueel and the

number of ' '•^'tual mm l.^.< incweeJ, we may es*
|irrt ^' M of the * 'x ri from an avrragfi, aa

•ho* ,!»..fi, •» ,• r •• • w '! appear

In regard to ' aooM eHmiiMilUni of

the wor«l di»t>rMi it aIwav* |q progrree evc^ In
I' s afe eiertK

I I (of long |H

- 1C6

TilL l^l^cLM Uk ilA.N.

mil their l)a<l qiialitiui^. Melancholic and insaiio persons
arc confined, or commit suicide. Violent and quarrel-
Bomo men often come to a bloody end. Ilestless men who
will not fi)llow any steady occupation — and this relic of
barbarism is a groat check to civilization " — emigrate to
newly-settled cpuntries, where they prove useful pioneers.
Intemperance is so highly destructive, that the cxiKicta-
tion of life of the intomi>erate, at the age, for instance,
of thirh>*, is only 13.8 years; while for tho rural laborers
of KiiLjlaiul at tho same age it is 40.69 years." Profligate
women bear few children, and profligate men rarely
marry ; both suflTer from disease. In tho breeding of do-
mestic animals, the elimination of those individuals, though
few in number, which are in any marked manner inferior,
is by no means an unimportant clement toward success.
This especially holds goo<l with injurious characters which
tend to reappear through reversion, such as blackness in
sheep ; and with mankind some of tho worst dispositions
wliioh occasionally without any assignable cause make
tlii'ir appearance in families, may perhaps be reversions
to a savage state, from which we are not removed by very
many- generations. Tiiis view seems indeed recognircd in
tho conmion expression that such men arc the black sheep
of the family.

With civilized nations, as far as an advanced stand-
ard of morality, and an increased number of fairly well-
endowed men are concerned, natural selection apparently
cflfects but little; though the f^indamental social instincts
were originally thus gained. Hut I have already said
enough, while treating of the lower races, on tho causes

»• • Ilemliurj Gcniun,' 1870, p. 347.

" £. Raj Laoktttcr, 'Comparatiro Longcritjr,* 1870, p. 115. Tlie
Ubic or the intompcnto is from Kcuon'f * Viul SuiitUoc' In regard to
profligacr, see Dr. Farr, ^'Jofluenoe of Marriagt oo lfort:i1WT;* 'V.^t
Assoc. for the Promotioa of Social Sdeace,* IMS,

CuAt.y.] ClVii../: i' N .; 167

yrh'f'h lo lUo n Ivan^'o of moralhj, H!im*lr, the nrv

l»r II of our icn— the ilrt-nL*
»yi:. « by habit— example mod ii n — reiico
I & I . I urro tclf-iiiierat — in«t :ig3rottUif

■till r I'fcUu;;!.

A wuttt iuiportaiit v' (•> n'l

• DUmbi'r u. : i la** Ka%

f urged by Mr. ( n,'* I\ ,
4l Um Triy pocir , .0 arv oil. 1

'/ rice, abnott . y marry early, while

t\i< 1 Crainil, wIm aro gcnmUy oibenriae Yirtii-

uuA, marry late in a that th«-y may be able to top
port ' ^-a and their children in oomfort. Thoae

who marry early prodoea within a f^ren period not only
a grealcr n . ^ x, • |,y |>|.^

Ihtncan,** ti^^^) i^i ^^iucc Ui«iuy more iii..iii>.a. The chil-
drm, Uf " * «-r, that are bom by mothera daring the
i. o( . .. are lica% irraD<! Up/'T. nn<l t^f»reforD v^^*-

fooTB TigonNH, than thoM- ner p«

'lliiM tlie rccklcea, degraded, aA«l oft. a Tteiow mewtw ri
of ■oeiely, tend to im wee at a ^iuk kt r rale than the
|in*videiit and generally virtoooe ni<iii(xnL Or aa Mr.

puu tee: ''The rarflm*, • . aaaeplring

f '--*fT" 'tbbtta: the fofwtaalag^

•elf raep»%iiU|(, ai<«uiM'u« »>?ot, etern in his murallty, epb^
iinal im hk hktk, m^pidomM and dMplined in hie iMeltt.
gert^ Tf%94^ hU Tftm in ttrn^He en.f In eeWba<»r,

m •

Of Kone and

Celts — and in a duzou ^fuoratioiig five^ixths of tlio popu-
lation would he CVIts, but liviv-Hixtlis of the pro)H.Tty, of
the power, of the intelleot, would Ixloiig to the one-ftixth
of Saxons that reniaiued. In the eternal ^stru^i^lo for
existence,* it would be the inferior and less favored mcc
that had prevailed — and prevailed by virtue not of ita
good qualities but of itM faults.*'

There are, however, some i im k.«» to ilii» nu
ti'ndency. We have seen that the intem|K'rate sufli r from
a hii;h rate of mortality, and the extremely protligato
leave few oflsprinj;. The jK>orest classes crowd into towns,
and it has In^en pro veil by Dr. Stark from the statistics of
ten years in Scotland,'* that at all ages the death-rate is
higher in towns than in rural districts, and during the
first live vears of life the town death-rate is almost ex-

m

octly double that of the niral districts/* As these retunis
include both the rich and the poor, no doubt more than
double the numlnT of births would be rctfuisite to kei*p
up the numl>er of the very poor inhabitants in the towns,
relatively to tiu»»e in the country. With women, mar-
riage at too early an age is highly injurious ; for it has
been found in France that twice as many wives nnder
twenty die in the year, as died out of the same number
of the unmarried.** llie mort.ility, also, of husbands un-
der twenty is " excessively high,*' '* but what the cause of
this may be seems doubtful. J>astly, if the men who pru-
dently di'lay marrying until they can bring up their
families in comfort, were to select, as they of^en do, wo-
men in the prime of life, the rate of increase in the better*
class would ' ^- '* tly lessenetl.

T* A\ n*" « ! r\!i « n<>rT!u>M«^ b''f?v of •-♦•if i'-tii *-.

* 'Itulh .Vimu^ iU.'pu(l ul iiiiUi.*, . tU., Ui

*' Tbcss quoUtiona sr« Ukrn fron oor blglmt •utborit;
quottiow, DUDcl/, Dr. Farr, b bb psptr ** On the Inilomct of MarTiaf;r

1 1 .r.ii^ |HA3, thai ihc* uiintarrM»l OMQ i
!• raocr, U ' M . . ti the agM of twcoty aii«l rtgkljr* <lk ia »
modi Ukrget proportion than tli« marnt «I : for iaslMMr,
out of every 1,000 onBairirtl mm, brtvi^ m^gm of
t ^1 . . > < tiaally tli«^l, whilr uf tho nrrfaul

o.^ ' A MiuuAf Uw «a* '-^l to bold good,
• . v-an lata ftod I*- ' < ' i« Mrtiro popal»-
«• a?^ «f fwi-n- '!an<l: for ioMMn^

au<l thirtr. 14.97 1, wMW oC tlk0 mar>

only . 'Afi

" ilocWoriMwa • Itfv

IM boMO or d: r

If

uc any tiUumAi} m body or md> I

•t*bU> BMrry, <ir vill hm rrjrrted. I>r ^..li

' 1. ^ • ooM to tbo ooo0lo4aa iKoi nnrriagv U

« « main

no

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

\i\it t vt rv one must liavc known instances of men, who
with weak liealth ilurini:^ youth did not marry, and yet havo
survived to old age, tljousjh remaining weak and tlierc-
fore always with a lessened chanco of life. There is anoth-
er remarkable circumstance which seems to support Dr.
Stark's conclusion, namely, that widows and widowers in
France sufter in comparison witli the married a very heavy
rate of mortality; but Dr. Farr attributes this to the J)0^^
erty and evil habits consequent on the disruption of the
fnmily, and to grief. On the whole we may conclude with
Dr. Farr tliat tlie lesser mortality of married than of un-
married men, which seems to be a general law, is mainly
due to the constant elimination of imperfect types, and to
the skilful selection of the finest individuals out of each
Buccessivo generation ; " the selection relating only to tho
marriage state, and acting on all corporeal, intellectual,
and moral qualities. We may, therefore, infer that sound
and good men who out of prudence remain for a time un-
married do not sufter a high rate of mortality.

If the various checks specitied in the two last para graphs,
and j)erhaps others as yet unknown, do not prevent the reck-
less, the vicious, and otherwise inferior members of society
from increasing at a quicker rate than the better class of
men, tlie nution will retrograde, as has occurred too often
in the history of the world. "NVc must remember that prog-
ress is no invariable rule. It is most difticult to say why one
civilized nation rises, becomes more powerful, and spreads
more widely, than another; or why the same nation i)ro-
gresses more at one time than at another. We can only say
that it depends on an increase in the actual number of tho
population, on the number of the men endowed with high in-
tellectual and moral faculties, as well as on tlieir standard
of excellence. Corporeal structure, except so far as vigor of
body leads to vigor of mind, appears to have little influence.

It has be<'Ti urged by scvcrni writers that as high in-

Chat. V.J ClXlLUuu .naTIOXS. i;i

Ullcctuiil powerB are a«lvantapeou« torn nation, the oil
Greeks, wbo stocxl *^mv L'r.i«li lii ^her in iir Uuin any
race that hau even lit to have risen, if the

jK)wer of natural on weru real, still higher in tl »•

Kcule, increaaed in auuibcr, and ^• 1 the whole of I'-u-
roi>e. Hero wo have the ta» it a>-u: . so often nia«if

with rt^pect t<» ^ ' ' ; ihere is ^'nio in-

T t. t< 1 T- ' jtDiint in mind an I

• \>-^>on<\» on nvi' v

' it IM

at-: . in « < r. I r

may have a i»tajre«, a' I

yet have fit t from Ui ! *

(treeka n ivo ntro;^ra«ii ii iruui u uaui ui •
iH'twoen the many uniall ttattii, fn»m
\iholo country, from th«' i- tiro of .-. i i •

tnmo penfnaiity ; f»ir ti . . d not iu* . . • until *Ml .
wi n- €'n« rN i'< 'l f 1 * rnipt to the very conv**" 'l i -
w«»(<-ni I who now no immt ly »ur-

|»tiiiii thi ir f«»nni«r ^ j;euitom and ntand at llie nim-

mit of ei on, owe little or none of th* ir ► rit y to

dir«Tt inl • from t • though v*o

much to tlMs »( -Wji ui Uii*! u d |h< )

Ml. » V. \. ' • |..»t

M iW li«ialii tmi at%>ail •if— ml «• iMi nO^t Mr.

172

TUE DESCENT U\S.

initiin>, thoeo given to mciliUitiuii or culture of the mind,
Imd no refuge except in the bosom of the Church ^ hich
dcmandeil celibacy ; and this couKl hardly fuil to have had
u deteriorating influence on each BucceMuvo generation.
During this same ]K>riod the Holy Inquiiition Bi'lectrd with
extreme care the frecKt and boldest men in order to burn
or imprison them. In Spain alone fM>mcof the b*
those who doubted and quest ioniHl, ami without «iMuin > ,
there can be no progress — were eliminated iluriu'^ tin
centuries at the rate of a thousand :v vi :ir. The e\ il wli: •
the Catholic Church has thus eil i, though nodoul'
coimterbalMiced to a certain, ]>erha|M large exteiit in other
ways, is incalculable; neverthelcM, Europe hoA progressed
rfl an uni>aralleled rate.

The remarkable success of the English as colonitts
over other European nations, which is well illustrated by

ring the progress of the Canadians of 1 >)i and
1 i\ lu ll extraction, has been ascribed to their " ti.iuii / :tii l
persistent energy;" but who can say how the Kn:;li>U
"li " 1 their energy? There is apparently much truth in

lief that the wonderful progress of the Ignited Slate.**,
well as the character of the people, are the results of
natural selection; the more energetic, restless, and coura-
geous men from all jxirts of EurojKS having emigrated
during the last ten or twelve generations to that great
country, ami having there succeeded best." Ix>oking to
distant future, I do not think that the lU^v. Mr. Zinckc

an exaggerated view when he says:** "All other
11*^ of events — as that which resulte«l in the c - of
inin l in (^n <'<'<\ hm'I \\)\' -}\ r-^nM' •! i') t'lf . of

; iu hating; tuwercd, th the gcocrml aUUMl*

•r.l ■• !~

» >: . ^nr"-t, IMS, p. 82%

tbo, * Xatare,* On Danrinlinn air Dec 1869, p.

* Uat Winter b Ui« I'nilod Suie*,' 1S66, j». 29.

Cbat. T.J

-!/>nTv anfw-if to bave j I rwlmt mh*-n

:^ or ntbrr m mhM'nrj v
••sm of Aogl^^^wxoB caiiKrslMMi to Um v« > *.
( nrMTun M !■ the probkm ci the adYSM of ciTilmHina,
we c«n at les«i M that a Batioa whir? og a

l.-n^'tKrii^J period the ^,nat1 ■uihcr ui ui^^ u^u-Ue^
lual, coergciie, brave, paiiiocie, and baoavoloal mm, wo«UI
n< nlljr prarail over kaa fitrorad ualioot.
.N^iunl •^?r<iiott fullnv« frv»m tH« atrvggW for eiiat-
. nr^: nn ', u a iH) dwiar. It ia tmpoa*

/ to ivfrrc, b«l vhalhar viaelj b Mwihar
tha rate at which man teodi to iarrrata; Cor thi*
fi l«rharo«a tiibaa to talaiiticidtf aad maajr othrr
iliaed natioiM to ahjcct . elihaej,
' liMi uie ■iiiiiigai of the |inidctit. i " • m mm
' •'OilhaMaMphjirfcAlcTUa wtthlhakia - v^^mak,
r4'/fit f.» f-TT*^ ?»n tmoMUUly fr<»fn tl>« tam*

.tttmtt 1 he iK«< \*c^ t\
. to ttft aolaaUoa, aaMft voald t»r«cr

.lard to tly raak of if hood When n a
maajr pnrta of the vurld cnofona arena uf the nkust kc^
tile land prided ^ daring ra, Ut vhidi

are fapnhia of aii|i|«M«;4u^ uniifimi i^ii>X hoMa, ii
mifhi hanfffnad that thnalff«ggla Cpt n -v^ hid Mt
haaafnflckallji^paTvr* tn f tir.« hia hifhMt

•f andaid. Jn4ff4«t ( mMm and tha

«niM: ehaa » hi^ agiliM Tarinhtttly
in the tniailaXnnl and mor%X fcwdllaa, for th^
vaMMBl thrangh anlml lalaatiaa No donh« wmek

•Ui^cat h«l It 1 Iw 4«/«Uc<.4 whether lha aMi

(avotmhla vonhi h* .. « .dked,hnd not tha rain of hwnnii

l^ 'M r»r4 1 •♦vl the f«»«^'V^'^< •tr^tf-tr etWteneo

Tin: DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut I.

On the evidence that all civilized nations icCre once
barbarous. — As >vc have had to coiiBitUr the steps by
wliicli gome Benii-liiiinan treat iiro has been gradually raised
to the rank of man in liis most perfect state, the present
subjeet cannot bo quite passed over. But it has been
treated in so full and admirable a manner by Sir J. Lub-
bock," Mr. Tylor, Mr. ^I'Lennan, and others, that I uee<l
here give only the briefest sununary of their results. The
arguments recently advanced by the Duke of Argyll"
and formerly by Archbishop Whately, in favor of the be-
lief that man came into the world as a civilized being and
that all savages have since undergone degradation, seem
to me weak in comparison with those advanced on the
other side. IMany nations, no doubt, have fallen away in
civilization, and some may have lapsed into utter bar-
barism, though on this latter head I have not met with
any evidence. The Fuegians were probably compelled by
other conquering hordes to settle in their inhospitable
country, and they may have become in consequence some-
what more degraded ; but it would be diflicult to prove
that they have fallen much below llic l>()ln(Midns who in-
habit the finest parts of Brazil.

Tlio evidence that all civilized nations are the de-
scendants of barbarians, consists, on the one side, of clear
traces of their former low condition in sjill-existing cus-
toms, beliefs, language, etc.; and, on the other side, of
proofs that savages are independently able to raise theni-
selves a few steps in the scale of civilization, and have
actually thus risen. The evidence on the first head is
extremely curious, but cannot be here given : I refer to
such cases as that, for instance, of the art of enumeration,
which, as Mr. Tylor clearly shows by the words still used

' On the Origin of Civilizatidu," ' Troc. Ethnological Soc' Nor.
2C, 1867.

» • Primeval Man,' 1*8C9.

Chap. V.J

175

in Kome plACMi, origiiiatt-d in couiilinyj the fingeri, firwt of
one liaiid an«l then of the olber, and lastly of the t<»«n.
W'f Ijavo Irocw of thin in our own decimal system, and in

le Koman numeral?*, which afl4T reaching to the uu:
v., chanjjc into VL, etc., when the other hand no douU
d. So again, "when wc speak of threejw-ore and
. •• r i,v * 'csimal p^ • • ^ -ooro
:.>r 20- ^ i * «•

* arge
■'•ears

iid '/r li
lie art of m ire ni h of i d

r. i»' rjn. it i« hardly ]• to read Mr. M'l^ ii-

^ work*' and not admit that u1iiim»i all ci- it
iiiln * X of such ni'l ' ' . i <•

\\ iial ancirnt n:i* ■ - ni: . . h .r

^ti . . II hy t! ' w of

h tni<'e«« '•till r . WM

r rude. Many . ^ i«ui»« > an» the

ts of former fnl-<' n h^'ious In 1 • 'ITie highest
•nn of religion — the ^rand i«li»a of (i«M| hating »in and
• "oqsnwi ^ was mikno« tl

. . T T » » k
a

i r

17G

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[l»AI{T I.

curious uceouut wliit li he gives of the weapons, tools, and
arts, used or practised by savages in various parts of tlio
world, it caimot be doubted that these have nearly all
been independent discoveries, excepting perhaps the art
of making lire." The Australian boomerang is a good in-
stance of one such indei)endent discovery. The Tahitiana
when first visited had advanced in many respects beyond
the inhabitants of most of the other l*olynesian islands.
Tliere are no just grounds for the belief that the high culture
of the native Peruvians and Mexicans was derived from
any foreign source ; '* many native plants were there cul-
tivated, and a few native animals domesticated. We
should bear in mind that a wandering crew from some
semi-civilized land, if washed to the shores of America,
would not, judging from the small influence of most mis-
sionaries, have produced any marked effect on the natives,
imless they had already become somewhat advanced.
Looking to a very remote period in the history of the
world, we find, to use Sir J. Lubbock's well-known terms,
a paleolithic and neolithic j)enod ; and no one will pretend
that the art of grinding rough flint tools was a borrowed
one. In all parts of P^urope, as far cast as Greece, in Pal-
estine, India, Japan, New Zealand, and Africa, including
Egypt, flint tools have been discovered in abundance ; and
of their use the existing inhabitants retain no tradition.
There is also indirect evidence of their former use by the
Chinese and ancient Jews. Hence there can hardly be a
doubt that the inhabitants of these many countries, which
include nearly the whole civilized world, were once in a
barbarous condition. To believe that man was aboriginally
civilized and then suffered utter degradation in so many

" Sir J. Lubbock, ' rrehi.storic Times,' 2d edit. 18C9, chaps, xv. and
xvi. etpaMim.

'* Dr. Y. Miillcr haa made some good remarks to this effect in th«
Rciac dcr Novara: Anthropolog. Thcil,' AbtbciL uL 1868, 8. 127.

CIVILIZED V\TTr.V<J

r. '_:lons, is to take a pitiably low \i« w of human nature
It in apparently a truer and more cheerful view tliat prog.
r< ?is has been much more general than retro: n; thmt
man has risen, though by slow an<l internij»lv i .>■:. j -;. fr »m
a lowly condition to the highest Ktandard us yet ailuiucd
by him in knowledge, moraN, and religion.

178

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paht I.

ClIAPTEU VI.

ON THE AFFIJOTIES AND GENEALOGY OP KAN.

Po»ition of Man in the Aninuil Sories. — ThcNntural SvKtcm poncalo^'ioml.
— Adaptive Characters of Sli^'lit Value. — Vorious Small I'oints of Jio-
Bomblanco between Man and the Quadrutnpna. — Rjink of Man in the
Natural System. — Birthplace and Antiquky of Man. — Ab»enco of
FoBuU Conncctin(;-link». — Lower Stages in the ( '. • ' ' ^T .m, m
inferred, firstly from his Affinities and secondly i. .re. —

Kurly Androgynous CoDdition of tho Vcrtcbrata. — Conclusion.

Even if it be i^rantod that the (lifltTcncc betwton ma«
aiul liis lu'arest allies is as great in eorporeal Ktriietiire as
Boinc naturalists maintain, and allhoui;h we must grant
that the difference between them is immense in mental
power, yet the facts given in the previous chapfers de-
clare, as it appears to me, in tho plainest manner, that
man is descended from some lower form, notwithstanding
that connecting-links have not hitherto been discovered,

Man is liable to numerous, slight, and diversified varia-
tions, which are induced by the same general causes, arc
governed and transmitted in accordance with the same
general laws, as in the lower animals. Man tends to mul-
tiply at so rapid a rate that his offspring are necessarily
exposed to a struggle for exi.stence, and consequently to
natural selection. He lias given rise to many races, some
of which are so different that they have often been ranked
})y naturalists as distinct species. His body is constructed
on tho same homological jilan as that of other mammals,

Clur. VL)

AFFINITIES A5D

179

indcpc-ndentlj of the uica to which tl -\] |.-r** may

V. » ]». IT" pft««<*^ through tho §ain<' j ^ o

X Ho rclaiiw many ru • »n*\
■ »tracturvi», whirh no doubt wvro once -
< ten ooctsicmmlly mako tlieir m|^»caraiu-«' iti
whirh wc have cTcry rwuwn to bcliere wcrv y
hU early i»r<»v'' • •» of nuiii ii

difTfrfnl u ' ' '

i.ouA a|iiJcaniocc« >^ *
^ti.h an sdmiiston

other hand, an ^
Mian b the oo-de«c«-:

iwn and lower form.
Soma natnraliatii, from Uiug deeply imprt^MNl with
the mental and > en* uf man, have 1 the

' imis tho lluiii.tu, the
1^ to man a separate
. I . t . j • • ami or » Iakm^

' ^ ' -how, a« I haTo

. the lower aai-

III mit lenaely in dcgna.

A , howrvrr u'rt at. doet noC Jnatlfy a«

in ' man tn ^ lorn, a« will perbapa bo

tiia mental \ ^ of twu
an^i which
Thi «it;u ivuee is
*■ diflbmil ki»il« tluMi
ttumal fWm^V

.tt.l ! « Ha ^ lln iKo

>tl, t«*

• 1« Hi It.w

la Ma t««v .

180

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paiit I.

female ant, wouKl require, as Pierre IIuLer has bIiowii, a
large volume; I may, however, briefly specify a few pointP.
Aiits communicate information to each other, and several
unite for the same work, or games of i)lay. Tliey recog-
nize their fellow-ants after months of absence. They build
great edifices, keep them clean, close the doors in the even-
ing, and post sentries. Tliey make roads, and even tun-
nels under rivers. They collect food for the community,
and when an object, too large for entrance, is brought to
the nest, they enlarge the door, and afterward build it up
again.' They go out to battle in regular bands, and free-
ly sacrifice their lives for the common weal. They emi-
grate in accortlanco with a preconcerted jHan. They cap-
ture slaves. They keep Aphides as milch-cows. They
move the eggs of their aphides, as well as their own eggs
and cocoons, into warm parts of the nest, in order that
they may be quickly hatched; and endless similar facts
could be given. On the whole, the diflorence in mental
l)ower between an ant and a coccus is immense; yet no
one has ever dreamed of placing them in distinct classes,
much less in distinct kingdoms. No doubt this interval is
bridged over by the intermediate mental powers of many
others insects ; and this is not the case with man and the
higher apes. But we have every reason to believe that
breaks in the series are simply the result of many forms
having become extinct.

Prof. Owen, relying chiefly on the structure of tin-
brain, has divided the mammalian series into four sub
classes. One of these he devotes to man ; in another h(
places both the marsupials and tlie monotremata; so thjjt
he makes man as distinct from all other mammals as arc
these two latter groups conjoined. This view ])a8 not
been accepted, as far as I am aware, by any naturalist

•Sec the very inloreating article, " L' Instinct chcz le8 Insects," hy
M. George Poucbct, 'Kevuc des Deux Mondcs/ Feb. 1870, p. 682.

CuAP. VI.J AmSITIH- AM) <.E.SKALo(,V.

181

rajiablc of forming an iii«lt'iK'U«iont judgiiu'nt, and tlierc"
fore need not here be further considered.

We can understand why a classification founded on
any single character or organ— even an organ m wonder-
fully complex and important as the brain— or on the M -'i
development of the mental faculties, Is almost sure u*
prove unsat' * This principle has indeed been trii-d

with hymei. I ; .s insects; but when thus classed by
their habits or instincts, the arrangement prove<l thor-
oiiglily artificial.* Clas!«iiicatioiui may, of coane, be ba<« 1
oil any character whatever, aa on sife, color, or the •
nient inhabited; but naturalista have long felt a profound
i-onviction that there is a natural system. This system,
it is DOW generally admitted], must 1h>, as far as {»<>s!)ible,
il in arra' iit — that is, the co-descendants
oi lii ... . I »t together in one group, -

ar • its of anv other form; but i;

tV ^ . I "o will Ik* their de-ioeiidantH,

.1.1 I tii«- two J. . will form a larger group.

Th«' amount of diflerenro Ix'twiM'u trie several gr»t»iT>'« —
that is, the amount of mfHlifiration whieh ea« h ha.*
•MC— will 1k» eipnus***! by auch terms a«« genem, f i
or<Ier«, and claascs. As we have no nM*or«l of th- ' «•!
d.*r. ' ^ ' t

the d« ^ J • "I
to \h' ' ' I- }

. / Of I
giia^aa wt^ro found to r.
of worils and

'ly rr< <l as x % Mmmoa

IQO

Ih'IIIK* U«< I -tit . 4

182

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Tart I.

adaptations to similar lialjits of life: two animals may,
for instance, have liad tlieir whole frames modified for
living in the water, and yet they will not be brought any
nearer to each other in the natural system. Hence we can
see how it is that resemblances in unimportant structures,
in useless and rudimentary organs, and in parts not as yet
fully developed or functionally active, are by far the most
serviceable for classification ; for they can hardly be due
to adaptations within a late period ; and thus they reveal
the old Hues of descent or of true allinity.

We can further see why a great amount of modifica-
tion in some one character ought not to lead us to sepa-
rate widely any two organisms. A part which already
difiers much from the same part in other allied forms has
already, according to the theory of evolution, varied
much ; consequently it would (as long as the organism
remained exposed to the same exciting conditions) be
liable to further variations of the same kind ; and these,
if beneficial, would be preserved, and thus continually
augmented. In many cases the continued development
of a part, for instance, of the beak of a bird, or the teeth
of a mammal, would not be advantageous to the species
for gaining its food, or for any other object ; but with man
we can see no definite limit, as far as advantage is con-
cerned, to the continued development of the brain and
mental faculties. Therefore in determining the position
of man in the natural or genealogical system, the extreme
development of his brain ought not to outweigh a multi-
tude of resemblances in other less important or quite un-
important points.

The greater number of naturalists who have taken
into consideration the whole structure of man, including
his mental faculties, have followed Blumenbacli and Cu-
vier, and have placed man in a separate Order, under tlie
title of the Bimana, and therefore on an equality with tlio

Clup. VI.]

AFFINITIES AND GENEALOGY.

183

(JrJcTS of the QuaJrumaua, Cariiivora, etc. Recently
many of our best naturalists have recurred to the view
first propounded by Linuajus, so remarkable for his sa-
gacity, and have placed man in the same Order witli ih-
(^uadrumana, under the title of the Primates. The justi< .
of this coucluision will be admitted if, in the first pla« . ,
we bear in mind the remarks just made on the conjpara-
tively small im|>ortance for classilication of the great de-
velopment of the brain in man ; bearing, also, in mind
that the strongly-marked dilTcrcnci s iKtween the skulls of
man and the Qua<lrumana (lately insisted u\ton by lii-
schofl* Aeby, and others) apparently follow from their dif-
fcn-ntly-develoiHjd brains. In the second place, we must
remember that nearly all the other and more imi>ortaitt
differences 1>etween man and the Quadrumana Sre mani-
festly a«laptive in their nature, and relate chiefly to the
erect position of man; such as the structure of his han<l,
foot, and pelvis, the curvature of his spine, and the po-
sition of his heath The family of seaU ofil'm a gooil il-
lustration of the small imix)rtanco of adaptive characters
for classification. These animals differ from all other Car-
nivora in the form of their boilies and in the structure <*f
their limbs, far more than do< s n u\ the ' '

yet in ev«*ry »'yf»t4-m, from that *>: < ii\ 'ivT to u.
r< nt one by Mr. 1*1 r* • iU an* ran' ■ 1 ih « ni« «
in the < >r.h r «.f t) i . If i I not l-

own i would nev*r ha. t of f. .

iM^iamte onler for his own reet ptlMii.

It wcmld W I I my limits, and i|ui(e lK*yonil in\
know! 11 to name the itinum< rahU' points of itruet-

um ill which intin a^reen with the olh«r Tri
grrot • • • • • , ' ■

dlJM*U^ <<i U.t-» -.ul'j. t, .lil t 1. 1 .k.r :j

184

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

that man in all parts of his organization differs less from
the higher apes, than these do from the lower members of
the same group. Consequently there " is no justification
for placing man in a distinct order."

In an early part of this volume I brought forward
various facts, showing how closely man agrees in consti-
tution with the higher mammals ; and this agreement, no
doubt, depends on our close similarity in minute structure
and chemical composition. I gave, as instances, our lia-
bility to the same diseases, and to the attacks of allied
parasites ; our tastes in common for the same stimulants,
and the similar effects thus produced, as well as by various
drugs ; and other such facts.

As small unimportant points of resemblance between
man and the higher apes are not commonly noticed in
systematic works, and as, when numerous, they clearly
reveal our relationship, I will specify a few such points.
The relative positions of the features are manifestly the
same in man and the Quadrumana ; and the various emo-
tions are displayed by nearly similar movements of the
muscles and skin, chiefly above the eyebrows and round
the mouth. Some few expressions are, indeed, almost the
same, as in the weej^ing of certain kinds of monkeys, and
in the laughing noise made by others, during which the
corners of the mouth are drawn backward, and the lower
eyelids wrinkled. The external ears are curiously alike. In
man the nose is much more prominent than in most mon-
keys ; but we may trace the commencement of an aquiline
curvature in the nose of the Hoolock Gibbon ; and this in
the Semnojnthcciis naslca is carried to a ridiculous extreme.

The faces of many monkeys are ornamented with
beards, whiskers, or mustaches. The hair on the head
grows to a great length in some species of Semnopithe-
cus ; " and in the Bonnet monkey [Macacus radiatus) it

« Isid. Gcoffroy, ' Hist. Nat. G6n.' torn. ii. 1859, p. 217

CuAP. VI.] AFFISIIIES AND GENEALOGY. l«5

•

radiates from a point on the crown, with a parliniij down
the middle, as in man. It is commonly said that the fore-
liead gives to man his noble and intellectual appearance;
hut the thick hair on the head of the Bonnet monkey ter-
minates abruptly downward, and is succeeded by such
short and fine hair, or down, that at a little distance tho
forehead, with the exception of the eyebrows, appears
quite naked. It has been erroneously asserted that eye-
brows are not present in any monkey. In the species just
named the degree of nakedness of the forehead ditlers in
ilitlerent individuals, and Eschricht states' that in our
chihlren the limit betwt en the hairy scalp and the naked
forehead is sometimes not well defined ; so that here wo
seem to have a trifling case of reversion to a progenitor,
in whom the forehead had not as yet become quite nakrd.

It is well known that the hair on our arms tends to
converge from above and below to a jioiut at the elbow.
Tliis curious arrangt nu nt, so unlike that in nu»8t of the
lower manmials, is common to the gorilla, chimpanzee,
orang, some sp<'cies of Hylobatcs, and even to some few
American monkeys. Hut in J/i/lohates agHU the hair
• »n the forearm is directed downward or toward the wrist
ill tho ordinary manner; and in //. lar it is nearly eroct,
with only a very slight forward indinatiun; §o tliat in
this latter s|H'eie8 it ifl in a tninsitional state. It can
li.inlly be doubted tliat with njost mammals the thiekneHM
of the hair and its direction on the bark is adapt<'<l to
throw off the rain; even the tninsverse hairs on the foro-
h-gs of A dog may ••ervo for this end when he is coih»d up
UM^M ji. Mr. Wallace remarks that tlic convergence of tho
hair toward the elbow on the nrmii of the onuig (wh«M»o
liabits ho hnji »o carefully stuilittl) nerves to thn>w off tho
taiti, when, aji \$ tho cuittom of thiN nnimnl, the annn aro

' " i:rl>cr din lUrhluiiK ilrr lloiiro/* rlc, MuUcr'i * ArtbU fUr AMi

unit iiiM.' ma?. • SI
0

186 THE DESCENT OF ItfAN. [Part I.

l)ont, with the hands clasjx'il round a branch or over its
own liead. Wc should, liowcvcr, bear in mind that the
attitude of an animal may perliaps be in part determined
l)y tlie direction of the hair; and not tlic direction of tlie
liair by the attitude. If the above explanation is correct
in the case of the orang, the hair on our forearms otVers a
curious record of our former state ; for no one supposfs that
it is now of any use in throwing oil* the rain, nor in our pres-
ent erect condition is it properly directed for this purpose.

It would, however, be rash to trust too much to the
princi|)le of adaptation in regard to the direction of the
hair in man or liis early progenitors ; for it is impossible
to study the figures given by Eschricht of the arrange-
ment of the hair on the human fcr-tus (this being the same
as in the adult) and not agree witli tliis excellent observer
that other and more comj)lex causes have intervened.
Tlie points of convergence seem to stand in some relation
to those points in the embryo which are last closed in
during development. There appears, also, to exist some
relation between the arrangement of the hair on the limbs,
and the course of the medullary arteries.'

It must not be supposed that the resemblances be-
tween man and certain apes in the above and many other
points — such as in having a naked forehead, long tresses
on the head, etc. — are all necessarily the result of un-
broken inheritance from a common progenitor thus charac-
terized, or of subsequent reversion. ^lany of these resem-
blances are more probably due to analogous variation,
which follows, as I have elsewhere attempted to show,*

• On the hair in Ilylobatos, sec * Nat. Hist, of Maramalfi,* by C. L.
Martin, 1841, p. 415. Also, Inid. Gcoffroy on 4hc American monkeys and
other kinds, 'Hist Nat. Gen.' vol. IL 1859, pp. 210, 243. Eschricht, ibid,
p. 40, 55, Gl. Owen, • Anat. of Vertebrates/ vol. iil p. 019. \Vallace,
'Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection,' 1870, p. 841.

• • Origin of Spociea,' 6th edit. 1809, p. 194. * The Variation of Ani-
nials and IManta under Domestication,' vol ii. 1808, p. 348.

Chap. VI ] AFFINITIES AND GENEALOGY.

187

from co-dcsccnded organism 8 liavini; a similar constitution
and having boon actod on by himilar caaftcs inducing
variability. With respoct to the Kimilar «lircetion of the
hair on the foroarms of man and cortain monkoys, aji thi«i
character \b common to almost all the anthropomoqihous
ajKfi, it may probably l>c attributed to inheritanoe ; bat
not certainly to, as some very distinct American monkeys
are thus characterized. The came remark is applicable to
the tailless • 'ion of man ; for the tail is absent in all
the anthr • !ioui apes. Xeverlhele«is this character

cannot \\. . . . .inly l>o attri' to inhrritance, as the
tail, though not absi-nt, is n. iiary in 6<'Veral othiT
Old World and in some Xew World H|>i'cies, and is quite
alMont in several S]>ccies belonging to the allieil group of
Ix'murs.

Although, as wo have now seen, man lias no just right
to form a se parate Order for his own re* , ho may

iH-rhn- Mu a «1! * ' ^ ' ' or Family. I'roC llux*
h-y, in la - *.i«»t wor.., V' ites into three SuIh

r-- TriMu!v the Antlu j . . . .^..ii man alone, the

' rTv»nlrv'< of nil kind"*, and the I^>niu>

ridiD with the «i f lcinun«. As far as dil-

ferences in e<*rtain imitortant iM>iiitB of strurture are coo-
cemed, man may no dotibt rightly claim the rank of ■
Sulnorder; and this r ^ too low, if we look chiefly to
his mental f -s. > ' - % gwlof jfl

fMiint of vit H ii ■ - K IS too hi ({h, and

that man ottght tn iwiia " • -^ *veTca

only a 8nl>family. If \«> • rni

proctJIng from a eoniroon '
thftt two of them might afi^ r tlio
ir ekaaffMl ma •till to remain as

line migbi U
>*' as to o to rank as a d

188

Tin: hkscent of mav.

[Part I.

Family, or oven OnliT. But in thia ease it is almost vvr-
taiu that the third line would still retain through inheri-
tance numerous small points of resemblance with the
other twolineB. Here, then, would occur the difticulty, at
present insoluble, how much weight wc ought to assign in
our classifications to strongly-marked dillerences in some
few points — that is, to the amount of modification under-
gone ; and how much to close resemblance in numerous
unimi)ortant points, as indicating the lines of descent or
genealogy. Tho former alternative is the most obvious,
and perhaps the safest, though the latter appears the most
correct as giving a truly natural classification.

To form a judgment on this head, with reference to
man we must glance at the classification of the Simiada*.
This family is divided by almost all naturalists into the
Catarhine group, or Old World monkeys, all of which are
characterized (as their name expresses) by the peculiar
Ftnicture of their nostrils and by having four premolar>
in each jaw ; and into the Platyrhine group or New World
monkeys (including two very distinct sub-groups), all of
>vhich are cliaracterized by dific'rently-constructed nostrils
and by having six ])remolars in each jaw. Some other
small diflerences might be mentioned. Now man unques-
tionably belongs in his dentition, in the stnicturc of liis
nostrils, and some other resjKJcts, to the Catarhine or Old
World division ; nor does he resemble the I'latyrhines
more closely than the Catarhines in any characters, ex-
cepting in a few 6f not much importance and apparently
of an adaptive nature. Therefore it would be against all
probability to suppose that some ancient New World
species had varied, and had thus produced a man-like
creature with all the distinctive characters proper to tho
Old World division ; losing at the same time all its own
distinctive characters. There can consequently hardly bo
a doubt that man i>^ an offshoot from the World Sim-

ruir. VI I AKFIMTIES AND i.KSKAl.iH.r. 180

ian ft torn ; and t) *^ •

lie munt be rlfirtl v*/.i i... i

The aiithropomon ' ' gorilla. ' V-r'i-

|raii£cc, onui^, and ^ a d

nuJ>-^roup from the other (Jld World monkeys by m
natuniliAtfl. I am aware thai « t, rvlyinj? « ii *

»*tructiiro of the brain, d»H*« not ninui t' n- • .1

^ 1 no doubt it U a l»r«'k« . ii.i> i\.> . r..

I- Mr. M. iji. Mi%art nmarka,*' **» i .

and aberrant funnn to U- " r." Tb« n-

niaiiii* ■ 'n-anthroiiomori i uMmk0j«,ara

av'uii. UnI by - • two or thr,^

the ty|>o of oi>« im '
p. liut it appean from K. Gaudry*t won
in Atticm, that during tlio Miocene period a 1

'1 tl.» re, whieh eonm'< li-d Sen \ecaa !
eua; and tbia probably illu»trateft thi n m «1

«' ' hijjher j^rou|Hi w» re « 'no* • .'rlht r.

ii i.ic aiiiiirupumorpboua * ^ i i • I'urm a

i<4tunil fob-friNilH UiMI M i> > < m, n«>t

..fi!v JM nl! thrt^ rham'^eri wi rtun-.ti

•ine group, but in oibrr i-
k '< r*. t i h an the abamer uf a tail and uf •
. ap|ir;) r I hat

neOi r«>|M>ii. A%o b«:

to mail, i ' ^
ciUier lower •ui/-t;t*'

190

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Pakt I.

resembling the higher antliropomorphous apes in so many
respects. No doubt man, in comparison with most of hia
allies, has undergone an extraordinary amount of moditi-
cation, chiefly in consequence of his greatly-developed
brain and erect position; nevertheless, we should bear in
mind that he *' is but one of several exceptional forms of
Primates." *'

Every naturalist, wlio believes in the principle of
evolution, will grant that the two main divisions of the
SimiadiC, namely the Catarhinc and Platyrliine monkeys,
with their sub-groups, have all ])rocceded from some one
extremely ancient progenitor. The early descendants of
this progenitor, before they had diverged to any con-
siderable extent from each other, would still have formed
a single natural group ; but some of the species or incipi-
ent genera would have already begun to indicate by their
diverging characters the future distinctive marks of the
Catarhinc and Platyrhine divisions. Hence tlie members
of this supposed ancient group would not have been so
uniform in their dentition or in the structure of their
nostrils, as are the existing Catarhinc monkeys in one way
and the IMatyrhines in another way, but would have
resembled in this respect the allied Lemuridic which difter
greatly from each other in the form of their muzzles,** and
to an extraordinary degree in their dentition.

The Catarhinc and Platyrhine monkeys agree in a
multitude of characters, as is shown by their unques-
tionably belonging to one and the same order. The maqy
characters which they possess in common can hardly
have been independently acquired by so many distinct
species; so that these characters must have been inheritetU
But an ancient form which possessed many characters

'» Mr. St. G. Mivurt, 'Transact. Phil. Soc' 1807, p. 410.
'* ilcssrs. Murio and Mivart on the Lcmuroidoa, ' Transact. Zoolog.
Soc.' vol. vii. 18G9, p. 5.

Cnxr.Xl] APFIXITIES AND GENEALOGY,

191

common to the Catarhiuc and I'Lityrhino monkeja, and
otheni in an intermeiliato condition, and somo few perhapn
diiitinct ffx>m those now prfsent in cither group, would
undoulitcdly have been ranked, if t»cen by a naturalist, aw
nn a|ie or monkey. And afi man under a geneal !
point of view b< ' to the Catarhine or OH \N or».i
tit^K-k, wc must c« ji i * le, liowt vir much the conclusion
may reixlt our pride, that our early proj^vnilon* wuuM
have been projjerly thua d'-^t /TinU'd." Hut we must nut
full into tho frror of BUp|*os it the early pr^^i-nilor of

the who! " .in stock, int - man, w:i .1 with,

or even chm4'ly resembled, any « 3|h? or n.

On th^ Ttirthjtlarf and Antitptity of Man. — Wc are
naturally led to inquire where was the bir of man

at that ^' 'f denrenl wlu*n our prop-uHorB divcrj;iHl
from th' ' le Moi'k. The fa«*t tint thry beloogcd

to thin K . .»rly hhows that tin y inl i' • I the Old
World; but iKit Australia nor anv ix^iw • 1. an w«'

may inft-r fr m the laws of gro^rnphicil d i Tm

each i^n-nt : i of the world tin* liviii;^ n
r|o*<'ly r- to th«* oxtinrt it|M*<-i« 4 of tht* »«nn' n "^»i«»n.

It U • probahlo that Afri. .i w;i^ forim riv

itrd by . afM'^ ( li»«4 ly alUed to th*

1 a« thi**o tv '-ics am i
\ , . -"fuewliat n»- t. ) r*>bablr li«at our >

intMpi li\rd on the A' • 'a

liut it i« tisriaas to s|m
ncmriy as Inrn* s<i -x t-
l^rtrt, V

•i«ii«i4ir * It \

m »a«c ti

192

TIIK DESCKNT OF MAX.

[Vxr.r I.

Ilylobates, existed in Kurope during llie Upper Miocene
period; and sinec so remote a period the earlli has cer-
tainly undergone many great revolutions, and there has
been ample time fur migration on the largest scale.

At the period and place, whenever and wherever it
may have been, when man first lost his hairy covering, ho
probably inhabited a hot country ; and this would have
been favorable for a frugiferous diet, on which, judging
from analogy, lie subsisted. AVe are far from knowing
how \oufx ai'o it was when man first diverged from the
C'atarhine stock ; but this may have occurred at an epoch
as remote as the Eocene period; for the higher apes had
diverged from the lower apes as early as the Upper Mio-
cene period, as shown by the existence of the lAryopithe-
cus. AVc are also quite ignorant at how rapid a rate or-
ganisms, whether high or low in the scale, may under
favorable circumstances be modified : we know, however,
that some have retained the same form during an enor-
mous lapse of time. From what we see going on under
domestication, we learn that within the same ])eriod some
of the co-descendants of the same species may l)e not at
all changed, some a little, and some greatly changed.
Thus it may have been with man, who has undergone a
ijreat amount of modification in certain characters in com-
parison with the higher apes.

The great break in the organic chain l)etween man and
his nearest allies, which cannot be bridged over by any
extinct or living species, lias often been advanced as a
grave objection to the belief that man is descended from
some lower form ; but this objection will not appear of
much werght to those who, convinced by genend reasons,,
believe in the general principle of evolution. Breaks in-
cessantly occur in all j)arts o{ the series, some being wide,
sharp, and defined, others less so in various degrees ; as
between the orang and its nearest allies — between ihv.

Ciui-. VI.)

AFKINITIES AND L.EXEAUKJV.

Tar-iui ami the otlnT Ix?miiri«liL — between the elephant
Hii'l ill a inort* Klrikin;; manner Wlween the Oniilhorhyn-
chus or Kclii«liia, and other mammaln. lJut all thoc*
liffaki* di'i)end merely on the number of relatt**! fornix
whit h have become exti At some future iM ri.xl, not
wry distant a« meajiured i ri' :r: • civiliz*-d racei*
of man will almoKt eertain.y « \!. . and n |»laco
throu-'hout the world t' . v \» tli.- ^ inw

lime t'l' •i'i'!ir"i»"Mi..r|»i . . i .

liriH r 1 no doubt bo extormiiiate«l.

bn ak will then Iw rendentl wid»-r, for it will intonru.
lM-tw«i'n man in a more eivilixed wtatc, M wo may ho|M>,
than the CmucaniAU, and ftoine afM* aA low aa a baUwn, in*
hi«»ail of ts at presK'nt Wtwion thr lu'^ro or Aufitralian
and 1 1

NViUi r^-]H L to llu- .. r ••

to ronm*ct man with hi- i

' w ruM' h •» r. «•■< ' fi ' ' ' ■ • w ... i • . . . "

^f in all th»* n
rlaiuM** the «li- f ft>a«il r < ha* Ihhmi an rx-

tnim-ly nlow and forliiii<»ui pr«» \ I it l»e

for<^ottrn that th'^it* ' h are th«* ra«Mii lil

:ifr>rd remain* <*cinn( i with »omo r&tinct ft|

• r ha%'o not a* )ii ed by ({ihiIukuia.

rliiiH fhr«*»
had >N
now • U> fidluw t «M oC

;;«nMMUofry, ' ti ih«^ tir*( ) • the i

tt .<«oi

194

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

Blight aid from the periotls, as far as ascertained, of their
successive appearance on tlie eartli. Tlie Lemuridic stand
below and close to the Siniiadic, constituting a very dis-
tinct family of the Primates, or, according to llackel, a
distinct Order. This group is diversified and Lroken to
an extraordinary degree, and includes many aberrant
forms. It lias, therefore, probably suffered much extinc-
tion. Most of the remnants survive on islands, namely, in
Madagascar and in the islands of the Malayan archipelago,
-where they have not been exposed to such severe compe-
tition as they would have been on well-stocked continents.
Tills group likewise presents many gradations, leading, as
Iluxley remarks,'* " insensibly from the crown and sum-
mit of the animal creation down to creatures from which
there is but a step, as it seems, to the lowest, smallest,
and least intelligent of the placental mammalia." From
these various considerations it is probable that the Simiadic
were originally developed from the progenitors of the ex-
isting Lemuridic ; and these in their turn from forms stand-
ing very low in the mammalian series.

The Marsuj)ials stand in many important characters
below the placental mammals. They appeared at an
earlier geological period, and their range was formerly
mucli more extensive than what it now is. Hence the
Placentata arc generally supposed to have been derived
from the Implacentata or ]\Iarsupials ; not, however, from
forms closely like the existing Marsupials, but from their
early progenitors. The Monotremata are plainly allied to
the ^larsupials; forming a third and still lower«division in
the great mammalian scries. They are represented at the
j)resent day solely by the Ornithorhynchus and Echidna ;
and these two forms may be safely considered as relics of
a much larger group which have been preserved in Austra-
lia through some favorable concurrence of circumstances.

" ' Man's Place in Nature,' p. 105.

CuAP. VI.] AFFINITIES AND GEXEALOGY 195

The Moiiotremata are eminently interesting:, aB in several
important poiuti* of structure Ihey lead toward the elaM
of reptiles

In attempting to trace the gimealogy of the -Maui-
inalia, and therefore of man, lower down in the scric'^, wi-
Ijecome involved in g^reater and greater obscurity, llu
who wihhes to Rec what ingenuity and knowledge can
effect, may consult Prof, llut kel's works." I will con-
tent myself with a few gen« ral n marks. Kvery evolu-
tionist will admit that the five great vertebrate clans* s,
namely, mammals, birds, repliks, amphibians, and fi>hes,
are all descended from some one prototype ; for they have
much in common, esj>ceially during their embryonic state.
As the clas« of fishes is the most lowly organized and aj^-
jM'ared Ixforc the others, we may conclude that all the
members of the vertebrate 'kingdom are drrived from some
lish-likc animal, less highly or ' inizid than any as yet
found in the lowest known l . ions. The Ix lief that
animals ho distinct as a monkey or elephant and a hum-
ming-bird, a snake, frog, and fish, etc., could all ha\u
spning from the same parents, w ill apin^ar monstroiui to
those who haro not attended to the recent pn>gress of
iiatund hisl^iry. For this Wlief implicfi the fi»nncr ex-
istence of links elofiely binding tog» ther all tlu*M» forms,
now w» x " • ' .' unlike.

Nevt I • it is certain that groups of animahi hiivtt
••It-*' d. or do now eiixt, %*liii h ikTve to connect morp or
U - • ly the h< \rr:il ^rt at vertebrate claMieA. Wc have

••r%* . J. « M . t Wra la bb *G«oefrll« llnn>H«t«.i;ic* (IT i>

ti HMWV •■perUI rr(rrrt%c« to luAn it.
'N 'tflMA,* IMS ]' < 1! r.

1S49, |>. i ^ •! b« tmdiwn

•Ua, bto I.
•bob ttofb.

of ibc oC Um im»9ni l«Mr wfkm of Um

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut I.

Been that the Ornithorliynclius graduates toward reptiles ;
and Prof. Huxley has made the remarkable discovery,
confirmed by Mr. Cope and others, that the old Dinosau-
rians are intermediate in many important respects between
certain reptiles and certain birds — the latter consisting of
(he ostrich-tribe (itself evidently a widely-diffused rem-
nant of a larger group) and of the Archeopteryx, that
strange Secondary bird having a long tail like that of the
lizard. Again, according to Prof. Owen," the Ichthy-
osaurians — great sea-lizards furnished with paddles — pre-
sent many affinities with fishes, or rather, according to
Iluxley, with amphibians, Tliis latter class (includuig in
its highest division frogs and toads) is plainly allied to
the Ganoid fishes. These latter fishes swarmed during
the earlier geological periods, and were constructed on
what is called a highly-generalized type, that is, they pre-
sented diversified affinities with other groups of organisms.
The ami)hibians and fishes are also so closely united by
the Lepidosiren, tliat naturalists long disputed in whicli
of these two classes it ouglit to be placed. The Lepido-
siren and some few Ganoid fishes have been preserved
from utter extinction by inhabiting our rivers, which are
liarbors of refuge, bearing the same relation to the great
waters of the ocean that islands bear to continents.

Lastly, one single member of the immense and diver-
sified class of fishes, namely, the lancelet or amphioxus, is
BO different from all other fishes, that Ililckel maintains
that it ought to fonn a distinct class in the vertebrate
kingdom. This fish is remarkable for its negative charac-
ters ; it can hardly be said to possess a brain, vertebral col-
umn, or heart, etc. ; so that it was classed by the older
naturalists among the womis. Many years ago Prof.
Goodsir perceived that the lancelet presented some affini-
ties witli the Ascidians, which are invertebrate, hcrmaphro-

20 ' Palucontology,' 18G0, p. 199.

CUAP. VI.]

AFFINITIES AND GENE-VLOGV.

(lite, marine creatures i>eniianeiitly attached to a 8U|i{K>rt.
They hardly appear like animals, and consLst of a t»im{>Ie,
tou;^!i, leathery sack, with two small projectuig oriliets.
They belong to the .Mc»lluHcoida of Huxley — a lower di-
vision of the great kingdom of the Mollusca ; hut tlu*y
have recently been j»laced by some naturali.sis among the
Vermes or worms. Their larva3 somewhat ri'semble tad-
j»oKr in Bhapo," and have the power of Bwimming freely
about. Some observations lately made by M. Kowa-
h vsky," since confinned by Prof. Kuppfer, will form a
discovery of extraordinary interest, if still further ex-
tended, as I hear from M. Kowalevsky in Naples he has
now effected. The discovery is that the larva) of A»-
cidians are related to the Vertebrata, in their manner of
dfVelopment, in the relative ]>osition *>( tiie nervous sys-
t' 'n. md in j» .^-< -vlnfr a structure closely like the chorthi
'Jt of rate animals. It thus ap|K'ars, if we

njay rely on embryology, which has always proved tlio
safest guide in classification, that wo havo at last gaininl
a clew to the source whence the Vertebrata have hwn do-
rived. Wo sliould thus Ijo justified in believing that at
an extremely r(>mote iK>riod a gnjup of animals existi>d,
r- nibling in many r- - the larviu of our pr»'S» nt A»-
ndian**, which <liv»Tg» 'I » two great branches — tin- tuie
r< t rograding in 1 ..' i"! ■ ♦ 1 t - I s "! ' t'; | ' . nt

' I IumI Ui« ' t ion of

M ti I. ftnd t

I the FfttkUod IsUntU, in April,
' )m loeaoM>>

In a rwry Am IkMDl. ll wm

iho hn00l of Uto Un a.

198

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Pakt L

class of Ascidians, the other riBiiig to the crown and summit
of tlie animal kingdom by giving birth to the Vcrtebrata.

We have thus far endeavored rudely to trace the
genealogy of the Vertcbrata by the aid of their mutual
atlinities. We will now look to man as he exists ; and we
t^hall, I think, be able partially to restore during successive
j)eriods, but not in due order of time, the structure of our
early jirogenitors. This can be eftected by means of the
rudiments which man still retains, by the characters which
occasionally make their appearance in him through rever-
sion, and . by the aid of the principles of morphology
and embryology. The various facts, to which I shall here
allude, have been given in the previous chapters. The
early progenitors of man were no doubt once covered with
hair, both sexes having beards; their ears were pointed
and capable of movement; and their bodies were provided
with a tail, having the proper muscles. Their limbs
and bodies were also acted on by many muscles which
now only occasionally reappear, but are normally present in
the Quadrumana. The great artery and nerve of the hu-
merus ran through a supra-condyloid foramen. At this or
some earlier period, the intestine gave forth a much larger
diverticulum or cajcum than that now existing. The foot,
judging from the condition of the great-toe in the foetus,
was then prehensile ; and our progenitors, no doubt, were
arboreal in their habits, frequenting some warm, forest-clad
land. The males were provided with great canine teeth,
which served them as formidable weapons.

At a much earlier period the uterus was double ; the
excreta were voided through a cloaca ; and the eye was
I)rotected by a third eyelid or nictitating membrane. At
a still earlier period the progenitors of man nuist have
been aquatic in their habits ; for morj)hology i>lainly tells
US that our lungs consist of a moilified swim-bladder, which

Chap. VI.]

AFFINITIES AND GEKBALOGT.

109

once served as a float. The clefts on the neck in the emliryo
of man show where the branchio; once cxbted. At about
ihi.s period the true kidueys were replaced by the cor|K»ra
wolrtiana. Tlie heart ex'Lste<l as a Himpic pulsating Teasel ;
;ind the chorda dorsal ui took the place of a vertebral col-
umn. These early prc<lece«8or8 of man, thus seen iu the
dim recesses of time, muht have l^eeu as lowly organized
as the lancelet or aniphioxus, or even still more lowly or-
;^anize<i.

There is one other point desen ing a fuller not I ;
has lon^ ]HH*n known that in the vertebrate kingdom one
sex licars rudiments of various acco*S4^)ry parts, appertain-
ing to the ropnxluclive system, which pr .J to
the opposite sex ; and it has now l>een aAcc i u.aifi UiUt at
a very early embryonic prriu.l both sexi-s |Kissf!iS truo
male and female glands. llrn« «• -..m.' « \tremely rem«»i«
progenitor of the whole vt ri« )»ratc . ui ap|K'ars to
hare iMsen hcrmaphnxlite or androgynous." lUit here wo
< iicounter a singular difliculty. In the mammalian cIu^h
the males poness in their ve^i<■ula) prostatica rudiments
of a ntenis with the adjacent passage; they bear aU<>
r ' of ni:- , and some male ma
*■ a 1 , .! ■! i1 -ick." Otlu r a
I, At! w r, tlirn, to • ;» '

•it fv I""- I . . , ,|

" IK,- v .

Ami.' 1S70. a. B7«. Ihm rwuH Ims hmm mnitM at

■ ' It Sfifv

UmA IKo m>««mI orgUM nf rtrn " M - P * . r
•Midi 'mmpkt'

»

uf\. t. .

•Th

(torn %k0

In «K«)r mi^

200

Tin: DKSCKNT T)F MAX.

fpAKT I,

Ihu chief ilistinctions of its ])roi)CT c lass, ami llicreforc atti r
it had diverj^cd from the lower classes of the vertebrate
kini^dom? This seems improbable in the highest degree;
for, had this been the case, we might have expected that
some few members of the two lower classes, namely jSshes
and ampliibians, would still liavc remained androgynous.
We must, on the contrary, believe that when the live ver-
tebrate classes diverged from their common jirogcnitor the
sexes had already become separated. To account, how-
ever, for male mammals possessing rudiments of the accesso-
ry female organs, and for female mammals possessing rudi-
ments of the masculine organs, we need not suppose that
their early progenitors were still androgynous after they liad
assumed their chief mammalian characters. It is quite j^ossi-
ble that, as the one sex gradually acquired the accessory or-
gans proper to it, some of the successive steps or modifi-
cations were transmitted to the opposite sex. When we
treat of sexual selection, we shall meet with innumerable
instances of this form of transmission — as in the case of
the si)urs, plumes, and brilliant colors, acquired by male
birds fur battle or ornament, and transferred to the fe-
males in an imperfect or nidimcntary condition.

The possession by male mammals of functionally im-
])erfect mammary organs is, in some respects, especially
curious. The Monotremata Jiave the proper milk-secret-
ing glands with orifices, but no nipples ; and, as these
animals stand at the very base of the mammalian series,
it is probable that the progenitors of the class possesse«l,
in like manner, the milk-secreting glands, but no nipples.
This conclusion is su})portcd by what is known of their

•* Scrranus ia well known often to be in an herinaphroditc condition ;
but Dr. Guutlicr informs me that he is convinced that this is not its nor-
mal ptatc. Descent from an ancient androgynous prototype would, how-
ever, naturally favor and explain, to a certain extent, the recurrence of
this condition in these 6shes.

Ciup. VI ] AFFINITII> AM> GEXEALOGV.

201

manner of development ; for Profe«»or Turner informs me,
on the authority of KOlliker aii<l Lau<;er, that in the em-
bryo the mammary glamJs can be distinctly traced beforv
the nijiples arc in the leant vi.^ibU-; and it ehould bebonjc
in mind that the development of nuccci^sive parts in the
individual generally peeins to n-pre^^ent and accord with
the development of Hur« ( «.».i\ o 1m in^r^ Jn the same line of
descent, 'ilie Mar.-upialh tlillVr lYv in the Monotremata by
pf»«c< >.-inpr nipples ; ^ .tV-t* t) . > ■ ^"nns were p*-' ^-riMy fir>l
a< J 1 by tlie Mai , > y had di . 1 from,

and rijk-n al)ovc, the Monotremata, and were then tnin»-
mitted to the placental mammals. No one will supi>ofo
that after the 3Ian»upial!) had approximately acquire<l
their present structure, and therefore at a rather lato pe-
riod in tho development of the mammalian scries, any of
its m- ^ 'ill remained ' AVo •eem, then-

ftjre, « . liii" 1.' 1 to recur to u - i 4 vii w, and t . • .

elude that the nipples were first - iK'd in the l\ :
<if '. m.- very early marsupial form, and were tlx tv
vt with a «-<iinmon law of inheritance, t:

in a functionally imjx'rfect condition to tlie ni .!•

Nevertheless, a Mi^pieion has sometimes en>ssoil my
mind that lon^ after the progenitors of the whole mam*
malian clft.«s had cea*ed to be ondro - 1 ' .

mi^'ht have yielded » ' ' • ^uunj;;
and, in the ' f . , i ,

have carrit i ! :
not n|'''« *tr ti'tt-rl'.- '•*, if •

rif ^ of the 1 I

tb ichrs, bntrh them, and aftrrwiinl, ns

iMime iH'lievr, nourish the \

** Mr liorkvood bctirtr* (AJ i)tMi(«<J tit ' <.>
Ai 4, |k M»|. ft<«i vliAl Im olMr^ llM 4r«rk^i«r«« a

202

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

LPaut I.

male tislics liatcli the eggs witliin their moutlis or braii-
cliial cavities ; tliat certain male toads take the cliaplets
of eggs from tlie females and wind them round their own
thighs, keeping them there until the tadpoles are born ;
that certain male birds undertake the whole duty of incu-
bation, and that male pigeons, as well as the females, feed
their nestlings with a secretion from their crops. But tho
above susjjic'ion first occurred to me from the mammary
glands in male mammals being developed so much more
perfectly than the rudiments of those other accessory re-
j)roductivc parts, which are found in the one sex though
proper to the other. The mammary glands and nipples,
as they exist in male mammals, can indeed hardly bo
called rudimentary; they arc simply not fully developed
and not functionally active. They are sympathetically
affected under the influence of certain diseases, like the
same organs in the female. At birth they often secrete a
few drops of milk ; and they have been known occasion-
ally in man and other mammals to become well devel-
oped, and to yield a fair supply of milk. Now if wc sup-
pose that during a former prolonged period male mam-
mals aided the females in nursing their olls])ring, and that
afterward from some cause, as from a smaller number of
young being produced, the males ceased giving this aid,
disuse of the organs during maturity would lead to their
becoming inactive; and from two well-known principles
of inheritance this state of inactivity would probably bo
transmitted to the males at the corresponding age of ma-
turity. 15ut at all earlier ages these organs would be left
unaffected, so that they would be equally well developed
in tiie young of both sexes.

mouths, Pcc a very interesting paper by Prof. Wyman, in * Proc. Boston
Soc. of Xat. Hist.' Sept 15, 1857; also Prof. Turner, in 'Journal of
Aiiat. and Pliys.' Nov. 1, ISCC, p. 78. Dr. Gunther ba.s Ukewigo dc8cribo<J
siuiilur cases.

CUAT. VI.]

JlfFINTTIES AND nEXEALOGV.

SOS

Conclusion. — The Ix^t dcTinitioii of advancement or
progreM in the organic Rcalo ever given, is that by Von
Haer; and this rests on the amount of differentiation and
s|)ecialization of the several parts of the same Wing, when
arrived, as I shouhl l>e inclined to add, at maturity. Now
as organisms have 1 m* hIowIv adapte<l by means of
natural selection for n^. reified lines of life, their parts
■will have 1m . - r-i--. fn^m tht- advantage gainetl by tV •11-
vixion of ;il labor, mori- and more differe:. i

and hj 1 for various functions. The same part a{»-

jK'ars often to have Iki ii nKxlified first for one puqn*?**',
and then long afterward for some other and quite distinct
pur|>o(ie ; and thus all the parts arc rendere*! more and
more complex. ISut eaeh oru':tnism will still retain the
genend lyjK; <if structure of the progenitor from whit h it
wa4 aboriginally derived. In aeeordance with this vi< \v
it seoms, if we turn to - ' • 'leal evidence, that organi/,4
tiou on the whole has n-i . .. • d throughout the world bv
slow and interrupted stt ps. In the gnat kin-^dom (»f the
Vertebrata it has culminated in man. It nmst not, how-
ever, 1>e suppoN4 d that grou|Mi of organic beings art* al-
ways supplanted and disapficar M foon M they havo
given birth to other and nion* |K rf«-<>t grou|i«i. The Iatt«-r,
though ovrr th« ir pri d« r**, \\\ \\ nt»t h

iHTonio l*»ll«r ui •■ ' for ull pl;u«H in tin- < « ondtm
N' l' Sonu* ol<i . I li np|H ir t'» • o'lrx u > d IrMiu in-
l i f.r"t«. ». I ^ u' • t|»( V li;i\<- n t 1m « Tj r\-

I I . . . I and iIm tilt« 11 V ! ' <

in cofiHtnieting our , by gi\ing us a f.>

of former and hi*t y*- * we mu«t not fall i

the c*rrfir of lo< a tli<- m of any low .

•

V «»• I

I"

1 ■ 1 ' ■■•»•»'

204

THE DESCENT OF MAX.

[Part I.

glaiico, apparently consisted of a group of marine ani-
mals," resembling the larviD of existing AsciJians. These
animals probably gave rise to a group of fishes, as lowly
organized as the lancelet ; and from these the Ganoids,
and other fishes like the Lepidosiren, must have been de-
veloped. From such fish a very small advance would
carry us on to the amphibians. "VVe have seen that birds
and reptiles were once intimately connected together ; and
the Monotremata now, in a slight degree, connect mam-
mals with reptiles. But no one can at present say by
what line of descent the three higher and related classes,
namely, mammals, birds, and reptiles, were derived from
either of the two lower vertebrate classes, namely am-
phibians and fishes. In the class of mammals the steps
are not difficult to conceive which led from the ancient
IMonotremata to the ancient Marsupials ; and from these
to the early progenitors of the placental mammals. AVe
may thus ascend to the Lemurida? ; and the interval is not
wide from these to tlie Simiada?. The Simiada) then
branched off into two great stems, the New World and
Old "World monkeys ; and from the latter, at a remote

^ All vital functions tend to run their course in fixed and recurrent
periods, and with tidal animals the periods would probably be lunar ; for
such animals must have been left dry or covered deep with water — sup-
plied with copious food or stinted — during endless generations, at regular
lunar intervals. If, then, the vertebrata are descended from an animal
allied to the existing tidal Ascidians, the mysterious fact that, with the
higher and now terrestrial Vertebrata, not to mention other classes, many
normal and abnormal vital processes run their course according to lunar
periods, is rendered intelligible. A recurrent period, if approximately
of the right duration, when once gained, would not, as far as we can
judge, be liable to be changed ; consequently it might be thus transmitted
during almost any number of generations. This conclusion, if it could
be proved sound, would be curious ; for ^e should then sec that the pe-
riod of gestation in each mammal, and the hatching of each bird's eggs,
and many other vital processes, still betrayed the primordial birthplace
of these animals.

CiiAv. VI.] jlFHS'ITIES AND GENEALOnV.

205

j»< rio.l, Man, tln' \\ "11 1* r and glory f>f tlu* I'ni\ < r~«'. pro-

Thus wc have given to man a iK.'di<j^ree of prodigiuiw
length, but not, it may be said, of noble quality. The
world, it has often been remarked, appears as if it had
long been preparing for the advent of man ; and this, in
one sense is strictly true, for he owes his birth to a long
line of progenitors. If any single link in this chain had
never existed, man would not have been exactly what he
now is. Unless wc wilfully close our eyt j<, we may, with
our present knowledge, approximately recognize our |>ar-
entagc ; nor need wc feel a.shamed of it. The most hum-
ble organism is something much higher than the inorganic
duHt under our feet ; and no one with an unbiaitoed mind
ran study any living creature, however humble, without
biing struck with enthusiasm at its marvellous i^tructure
and properties.

200

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

CHAPTER VII.

ON THE KACES OF MAN.

The Nature and Value of Speoific Characters. — Application to the Races
of Man. — Arguments in favor of, and opposed to, ranking the So-
called Kaccs of Man as Distinct Species. — Sub-species. — MoDOgeniBts
and Poiygcnists. — Cpnvcrgenco of Character. — Numerous Points of
Resemblunco in Body and Mind between the most Distinct Races of
Man. — The State of Man when he first spread over the Earth. — Each
Race not descended from a Single Pair. — The Extinction of Races. —
The Formation of Races. — Th(J Effects of Crossing. — Sliglit Influence
of the Direct Action of the Conditions of Life. — Slight or no Influence
of Natural Selection. — Sexual Selection.

It is not my intention licre to describe the several so-
called races of men ; hut to inquire what is the value of
the differences between tliem under a classificatory point
of view, and how they have originated. In determining
whether two or more allied forms ought to be ranked as
Fpecies or varieties, naturalists are practically guided by
tlie following considerations : namely, tlie amount of dif-
ference between them, and whether such differences relate
to few or many points of structure, and whether they arc
of physiological importance ; but more especially whether
they arc constant. Constancy of character is what is
chiefly valued and sought for by naturalists. Whenever
it can be shown, or rendered i)robable, that the forms in
question have remained distinct for a long period, this be-
comes an argument of much weight in favor of treating
them as species. Even a slight degree of sterility between

Cuxr. Vir ]

THE RACES OF ilAN

207

any two forms when firht croMed, or in their oflr^prin^, is
^'euerally considered an a decisivo test of their sjK'cifio
ditftinctoess; and tlieir continued persistence without
blending within tlie Fame area, is usually accepted as
huflkient evidence, either of Rom«* det^rec of mutual steril-
ity, or in the ca^e of aiiinials of Home repu«;nance to
mutual pairing.

Independently of blending from intercrotsinpr, the
complete abHenco, in a well-investigated r- -n, of varii*-
ticH linking togrth»T any two closely .. . fonns, itt
probably the most im|»ortaiit of all the criterions of their
Hjiociric distinctness ; and this is a ftomewhat diflerent con>
kideration from mere constancy of character, for two
forms may bo highly variable and yet not yiHd inter-
mediate vari«' ' iphical di^tribution is often un-
r- ' v anil h«jiin.i. inly brought into | '

S'- ;i, .L i.>nns living m i • u i lcly-separated a^^a^, m
nhirh mont of the other inli tits are s|ici'in«'ally dis-
tinct, an' theiUM-lves usuallv . ! rit :i« diKtinrt: Vnt in
tnith this affords no aid in tli tii: 'jtn<jT :d

races from so-calle<l good or tnn* sj

■ Now let us apply tlusi* gen<Talty-admitt« «1 pr^'
to the nic<*s of man, viewing him in the i^ame spirit M m
^i«it would any other animal. In rv^'arti to ih«
t o( di*' '\%it n the rates, l#

J « .1 tin «• |H>wers of ti.f. i»j It
■ ' } , . ' . . , "■ . , -If.. \ . ^ ] ^

IK an cannot at fir«i d.

yrt they soon Bp|i«ar t<> r: and

th« lllodoo ouinol at lint f>rrc«*ivo an
t M • « n thr Brvrral Kur<*|M-4ti : !
tuirt ^ of man, with thr « >

I Ml. I.

208

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

tribes, are much more like eacli other in form than would
at first be supposed. This is well sho^\^l by the French
photographs in the Collection Anthropologique du Museum
of the men belonging to various races, the greater number
of which, as many persons to whom I have shown them
have remarked, might pass for Europeans. Nevertheless,
these men if seen alive would undoubtedly appear very
distinct, so that we are clearly much influenced in our
judgment by the mere color of the skin and hair, by
slight differences in the features, and by expression.

There is, however, no doubt that the various races,
when carefully compared and measured, differ much from
each other — as in the texture of the hair, the relative pro-
portions of all parts of the body,' tlie capacity of the
lungs, the form and capacity of the skull, and even in
the convolutions of the brain.' But it Avould be an endless
task to specify the numerous points of structural differ-
ence. The races differ also in constitution, in acclimatiza-
tion, and in liability to certain diseases. Their mental
characteristics are likewise very distinct ; chiefly as it
would appear in their emotional, but partly in their intel-
lectual, faculties. Every one who has had the opportunity
of comparison, must have been struck with the contrast
between the taciturn, even morose, aborigines of. South
America and the light-hearted, talkative negroes. There
is a nearly similar contrast between the Malays and the
Papuans,* who live under the same physical conditions,

' A vast number of measurements of Whites, Blacks, and Indians, are
given in the * Investigations in the MiUtary and Anthropolog. Statistics
of American Soldiers,' by B. A. Gould, 1809, pp. 298-358 ; on the ca-
pacity of the lungs, p. 471. See also the numerous and vahiable tables,
by Dr. "Weisbach, from the observations of Dr. Scherzer and Dr. Schwarz,
iu the 'Rcisc der Novara: Anthropolog. Theil,' 18G7.

2 Sec, for instance, Mr, Marshall's account of the brain of a Bush-
woman, in * rhil Transact.' 18G4, p. 519.

* Wallace, 'The Malay Archipelago,' vol. iL 18G9, p. 178.

Chap. VII.]

THE RACES OF MAN.

209

and arc separated from each other only hy a narrow space
of sea.

We will fir^t consider tlic arguments which may be
advanced in favor of classing the races of man as di-stiiict
species, and then those on the other side. Jf a naturalist,
wlio had never before seen such Ixings, were to compare
a Negro, Hottentot, Australian, or Mongolian, he would
at once perceive that they diflln^I in a multitu»lo of

• liaracters, some of slight aixl some of considerable im-
jinrtance. On inqiiiry he would find that they were adapte<l
to live under widil yHlitVrrent climates, and that they dif-
fered somewhat in bodily constitution afid mental disp^n
sition. If lie were then t<»ld that hundreds of similar
hjK'cimens could ))c brought from the same countries, he
woidd assuredly declare that thry were as gooil s{>eeie^aii
many to which he had been in tlie liabit f»f aflixing sp«'cific
names. Tliis conclusion would W greatly strengtliened as
H«M»n as he had ascertained that these forms had all n^-
taincd the same character for many centuries; and that
ii< «jroc«, apparently identical with existing negr<K»s, liad
li\ed at lea'-t i,OUU years ago.* He would aUo h» ar from

* Willi rfffpoc-t U> the fi)^n>ii of the (Atu<> i- y.-\\ttiMi i aw* of Atioo«
^iiiilKi M. I*ooch«i Mja (*Tho I'lurmlilj of tho llutnaii Hmct*^* Ei^{lkli
IHAI, p ' ' tt h<7 «Ai far fruiii fludiiiK nx^tguiublo rrfir^

tl.< • • k-. !• "-.Tilrr. I •mr o|' tlx- ti.<>«t ntft^'K tnAtlt^l raCM Olft>

not !><■ I with thai d«-v'rr«- of ui .tti.n.itv wliith ti.i^ht hftro btOI

'•ill' l»cri Dtil.j.At. Tlxi* MrMra. N'otI

.<.].. 1 1.1, , 1 ^ . 1 uf >' ut« Utai lUmoMi IL, or Um

(•:• i(, hat N«(ur«Mi tup* ! -craaf Knot, aaoilMr Ann b«»

)>'\>T in the fpedflo dlatUirikon of the rMM of man (* lUrr* of Utn*
I - ■ " I' ■ IUmr*««
I' I iDcr thai

I . ., .1. . . ;n %» iV

1 II tltK llrilUh Mui. im «ltli two ooti

• '.At Um fttalur (iC Aii»tiao|i)t HI., «• acrvvkl •

210

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Paut I.

an excellent observer, Dr. Lund,* that the human skulls
found in the caves of Brazil, entomhed with many extinct
mammals, belonf^ed to the same type as that now prevail-
ing: throuixhout the American Continent.

Our naturalist would then, perhaps, tuni to geograi)h-
ical distribution, and he would i»robably declare that
forms differing not only in appearance, but fitted for the
hottest and dampest or driest countries, as well as for the
Arctic regions, must be distinct species. lie might appeal
to the fact that no one species in the group next to man,
namely, the Quadnimana, can resist a low temperature or
any considerable change of climate ; and that those species
which come nearest to man liave never been reared to
maturity, even under the temperate climate of Europe.
He would be deeply impressed with the fact, first noticed
by Agassiz,' that the different races of man are distributed
over the world in the same zoological provinces, as those
inhabited by midoubtedly distinct species and genera of
mammals. This is manifestly the case with the Australian,
Mongolian, and Xegro races of man ; in a less well-marked
manner with the Hottentots ; but plainly with the Pa])uan8
and Malays, who are separated, as !Mr. Wallace has
shown, by nearly the same line which divides the great
iVfalayan and Australian zoological provinces. The ab-
oriirines of America ranjxe throughout the continent: and
this at first appears opposed to the above rule, for most
of the productions of the Southern and Northern halves
differ widely; yet some few living fonns, as the opossum,

Ftrongly ne^rro cast of features ; but Messrs. N ott and Gliddon (ibid. p.
146, fig. 5.3) dc.«-Hribe bira as "a hybrid, but not of negro intermixture."

• As quoted by Xott and Gliddon, * Types of Mankind,' 1854, p. 439.
They give also corroborative evidence ; but C. Vogt thinks that the sub-
ject requires further investigation.

Diversity of Origin of the Human Races," in the ' Christian E*-
amlucr,' July, 1 850.

Cuxr. VII.)

THE RACES OP MA.V.

211

ran<^c from the one into the other, as did formerly some
of the gigantic Edentata. The Esquimaux, like olhrr
Arctic animals, extend round the whole ]>olar rcgioiu. U
fthould be observed that the mamnmlian forms which in-
liabit the several zoological provinces, do not difTcr from
each other in the same degree; bo that it can hardly be
con.sidered as an anomaly that the Negro diflt rs mon%
and the American much Ic^s, from the other races of man
tiian do the mammals of the same continents from those
of the other prnvi- Man, it may be added, d*M.'s not

a|»|>ear to ha\e a! . .lally inhabited any oceanic island;
and in this res|>ect he resembles the other meml>ert of lua
eiass.

In determining whether the varieties of the same kind
of domestic animal should be ranked as specifically dis-
tinct, that is, whether any of them are deseen»led from
distinct wild - ry naturali*«t would lay much

♦^trfSH on til- • «li< d, of tlu'ir external paniHiit H

iM-ing «p«M-i .., I. All the ni"'- ♦'•ess wouM Ik»

lai<l on llii' l.i' t, .1' it would Ik* an e\. ^ . iial one, fi>r I
am inforim'd by Mr. Denny that thr most dilTereut kinds
of dogs, fowls, and pigeons, in I id, are iiifest4tl by
the same spi*cie« of I'ediculi or I; N'ow Mr. /V. Murray
has ( !y examineil the T i rulleeteil in different

rouiitru'«% irom the diffrfcnt ra« « n «if man;* and he fintU

■ ' ' 'y in color, but in

t* In e\ery ra»c in

•♦I ^»'!' " ' i tlifferiMUH*

I f • M of t W .. ill tlio Ptt» , ,

li' i h s<inie San . .

c*ni on l»oard sift i^l on to the I uf ih«*

Ivi'^'liali •ailtim, thi-v dit««l in th> m« of thrtw or '

r lo

212

THE DESCENT OF MAX

[Part I.

South America, of which he gave me specimens. These,
again, appeared larger and mucli softer than European lice.
Mr. ISIurray procured four kinds from Africa, namely from
the Negroes of the Eastern and Western coasts, from the
Hottentots and Caffres ; two kinds from the natives of
Australia ; two from North, and two from South America.
In these latter cases it may be presumed that the Pediculi
came from natives inliabiting different districts. With
insects slight structural differences, if constant, arc gen-
erally esteemed of specific value : and the fact of the races
of man ])eing infested by parasites, which appear to be
specifically distinct, might fairly be urged as an argument
that the races themselves oughf to be classed as distinct
species.

Our supposed naturalist, liaving proceeded thus far in
his investigation, would next inquire whether the races of
men, when crossed, were in any degree sterile. He miglit
consult the work" of a cautious and philosophical ob-
server, Prof. Broca ; aiKl in this lie would find good evi-
dence that some races were quite fertile together; but
evidence of an opposite nature in regard to other races.
Thus it has been asserted that the native women of Aus-
tralia and Tasmania rarely produce children to European
men ; the evidence, however, on this head has now been
shown to be almost valueless. Tlie half-castes arc killed
by the pure blacks ; and an account has lately been pub-
lished of eleven half-caste youths murdered and burnt at
the same time, whose remains were found by the police."

• * On the riienomcna of IlybriJity in the Genua Ilotno,' Eng. trans-
lation, 1864.

" Sec the interesting letter by Hr. T. A. Murray, in the ' Anthropo-
log. Review,' April, 1868, p. liiL In this letter Count Strzelecki's state-
ment, that Australian women who have borne children to a white man
arc afterward slcrile with their own race, is disproved. M. A. dc Qua-
trefages ha'J also coll-'ctcd ('Revue dcs Cours Seientifiqucs,' March, 1809,

Ciup. VII ]

THE KACE.S OY MAN.

213

A^uin, it has often been said tliat when mulattoes inter-
marry they produce few children ; on the other hand, Dr.
iiachinan of CharlcMtou " positively at^s^rts that he han
known mulatto families which have intermarried for sev-
eral generation}*, and have continued on an average as
fertile a** either pure whites or pure blacks. Inquiries
fonnerly made by Sir C. Lyell on this subject lc*d him, as
he infurms me, to the same conclusion. In the United
Stat< H the census for the year 1854 include<l, accordin;^ to
l)r I' w hman, 405,751 nmlatt<x-s; and this numlxT, coin
hi . J all the circumstances of the cx-^e, seems small;
but it may partly be accounteil for by the dfjrndi'd and
auomaloUM | n of the class, and by the j ;u*y of
the women. A certain amount of absorption of mulatttM-s
into negroes must always be in progress; and this would
lead to an apparent diminution of the former. Tbo in-
ferior vitality of nmlattoes is sjioken of in a tnistwo:
work" as a well-known phenomenon; but this is a
ferent consi l' ' i fn>ni their lesksened fertilitv: and ran
liardly be a . . < d as a pr»>«»f of the sjK'citli- .
of tla* |»arent ra4-es. No doubt both animal u
hybrlils, when pro<luced from extremely distinct
are liablu to prematurv death; but the parents of mi.
toes cannot \h: put under the e y of extremely <;

linct sfKN-ies, 'Hie ■ n Mule, to no' - for h

life and vigor, an !

conn* ' ■ thert' i.» .a . - il.'<^4;M<i Kiii»»i^

and \ : other anai< ^ > - cases could \te addict

I- it ••h«'tdd hwaOer !»«• pr.«\« .| \} i» r«lt tli. m.

|i ?^'') iiii»cb vtktmcv Ut«i Au*' > Sfv Mrt Mntl*

V'f \ ♦n . • V f . ..

It A. ■ . ^

214

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

of men were perfectly fertile together, he who was incliued
from otiier reasons to rank them as distinct species, might
with justice argue that fertility and sterility are not safe
criterions of specific distinctness. We know that these
qualities arc easily affected by changed conditions of life
or by close inter-breeding, and that they are governed by
highly complex laws, for instance that of the unequal fer-
tility of reci])rocal crosses between the same two species.
With forms which must be ranked as undoubted 8i)ccie8,
a perfect series exists from those which arc absolutely
sterile when crossed, to those wliich arc almost or quite
fertile. The degrees of sterility do not coincide strictly
with the degrees of difference in external structure or liab-
its of life. Man in many respects may be compared with
those animals which have long been domesticated, and a
large body of evidence can be advanced in favor of the
Pallasian doctrine," that domestication tends to eliminate

" ' The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' vol. ii.
|). 109. I may here remind the reader tliat the sterility of species when
crossed is not a specially-acquired quality ; but, like the incapacity of
certain trees to be grafted tojrethcr, is incidental on otlicr acquired dif-
ferences. The nature of these diflerences is unknown, but they relate
more especially to the reproductive system, and much less to external
structure or to ordinary difTercnccs in constitution. One important ele-
ment in the sterility of crossed species apparently lies in one or both
having been long habituated to fixed conditions; for wo know that
changed conditions have i^special influence on the reproductive system,
and we have good reason to believe (as before remarked) that the fluctu-
ating conditions of domestication tend to eliminate thai sterility which is
so general witli species in a natural state when crossed. It has olsewhoro
been shown by me (ibid. vol. ii. p. 185, and ' Origin of Species,' r»tli edit,
p. 317) that the sterility of crossed species has not been acquired through
natural selection : we can see that when two forms have already been
rendered very sterile, it is scarcely possible tliat their sterility should bo
augmented by the preservation or survival of the more and more sterile
individuals; for us the sterility increases fewer and fewer offspring will
be produced from which to breed, and at last only single individuals will
be produced, at the rarest intervals But there is even a higher

Cnxr. \ ii ]

THE BACES OF ilA.N.

215

the Hteriiity wliicli is »o general a result of tbecroMiiig of
hIKcies in a ntSLte of uature. From thiHo icvcnil consid-
cratioDH, it may Ikj justly urged tliat the perfect fertiliiy
of tlie iiitercrotwed nices of man, if C6tahlii>he<l, would
not a)>ftolutely preclude ua from ranking them as dij»tijict

ii-'i- j - i' all) oi Kriiiil V , I.. ■ r «»i ilic «»li-].ri:i_:

froinaer" - * 'luej* lie-en in- " • itlord t \ !

\thether .. <'ti '!it t.. ! t>i>' . i

varietit , ^ after - . . uce, 1 have

i*ome to tho concIuHiun that no . il rules uf thin kind
ran l>e tnintid. ThuM with mankind the ofljipriiig of di*>
tiuet racea rvaeuible ill all reapccta the ofl>pring of true
H|K'eie« and of varietieH. Thiji in «hown, fur iuAtauce, hy
the manner in which the charaetem uf both p are
lilendiMl, and by one form aliiior' tnother t i rt>

|M'aled cruMAja. In thiji lattrr « » > ilic ]•
eruftM'd i(|K'clea and \arietirH n t.iin fur :i ' i -
driu v to rt'Tert to thi ir :ifi< • -^'m, ei»j . . y to t'
V - pre|iotent in tran • on. When any ch .
han suddenly apiteannl in a race or »|Kx*iua an the r«
of a ningle act of \ ii, aa b general with mtmittrtMi.

tien/' ami thia race i • i -ned with another not thua char-
U' 1, the chanu'trm in quention do noC con . u|>-

14 M««l« ; BO IImI Ike M-ti -mmm

216

THE DKSrKNT OK MAN.

[Taht I.

jjear in a blcmled condition in the young, but arc trans-
mitted to them either perfeetly deveh)j)ed or not at all.
As with the crossed races of man eases of this kind rarely
or never occur, this may be used as an argument against
the view Buggested by some ethnologists, namely, that
certain characters, for instance the blackness of the negro,
first appeared as a sudden variation or sport. Had this
occurred, it is probable that mulattoes would often have
been born either completely black or completely white.

AVe have now seen that a naturalist might feel himself
fully justified in ranking the races of man as distinct spe-
cies ; lor he has found that they arc distinguished by many
ditVerences in structure and constitution, some being of im-
portance. These differences have, also, remained nearly
constant for very long periods of time. He will liave been
in some degree influenced by the enormous range of man,
which is a great anomaly in the class of mammals, if man-
kind be viewed as a single species. He will have been
struck with the distribution of the several so-called races,
in accordance ^^ith that of other undoubtedly distinct
species of mammals. Finally, he might urge that the mu-
tual fertility of all the races has not yet been fully proved ;
and even if proved would not be an absolute proof of their
specific identity.

On the other side of the question, if our supposed natu-
ralist were to inquire whetlier the fonns of man kept dis-
tinct like ordinary species, when mingled together in large
immbers in the same coimtry, he wouhl immediately dis-
cover that this was by no means the case. In IJrazil ho
would behold an immense mongrel poj>ulation of Negroes
and Portuguese ; in Chiloe and other j)arts of South Amer-
ica he would l)ehold the whole ]K)i)ulation consisting of
Indians and Spaniards blended in vari<jus degrees." In

M. dc Quatrrfagcs ba^ given (' Antbnipulog. Review,' Jan. 1869,

f iiir VILJ

TflE R.%CES OF M AN-

SI?

many |iarl« of the ^aiiie continent he would m< • l \« . ii
the mo»t cutnplfx vro^nt A Ix-lwefn Xfj^nx'?*, Indiaon, mud
EuroiK^ani ; and mvU triple crofftefl afford the icTmsi
tcRt, judging from the vegetahle kingdom, of the mutual
fertility of the parent-fonns. In one inland of the rarifio
he would find a small i>opulation of minirled Polym-^iau
and ' di bUxxl ; and in the Viti Ar< i-
latiuii ol i'olynesiatm and Negritos crosM.*d m aii d«gr(i-s.
Many analogoun caA4n could l>e added, for inataoce, in
S Africa. Hencr the rac**** of man • • - i-
I; ' to c«jcxi»»t wiilmul fii«»i<»ji; an i : 'i,

lu . i.nrv cn-ci, nff -r lx t' <• \\-<: i\ t«

tinctneaa.

Our naturalist would likcwiM.* be murh di«tiirlM-^l a«
MMjn as he j>erceived that the distincti * t»f

every race of man were highly variahlc. Thw striki^
every one when he firvt beholdn the ti> ^ in Itraail,

who liavo lxx*n *
•tunc n'mark ^
mmoy otlu-r r .
acfer nti
* •

tniM*, are not n«
bm Mid. II

r4< e, but lb«-««' ai
In ihr M-vrral A
«'Mn*id<'r *
•lia|Mi < '

'Dif •h \^

I • t ■ I • ' . tt.U > f\ : ,■

' from all ul Africa. THo

with the i . . iiwUna, and with

. Ih' il- ^ • I V * . 'her a?)' ' •

'i i - '! -1 r \ • . . ■

nn in rti.ir-«> ti r as Las «
II offrr « fie<cu>
than thoM- . any *■

U* \iv

218

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

ho it is with every otlicr cliaracter. Now all naturalists
have leanied, hy dearly-hought experience, how rash it
is to attempt to define sjieeies by the aid of inconstant
eliaracters.

But the most weighty of all the arguments against
treating the races of man as distinct species, is that they
graduate into each other, independently in many cases, as
far as we can judge, of their liaving intercrossed. Man
has been studied more carefully than any other organic
being, and yet there is the greatest possible diversity
among capable judges whether he should be classed as a
single species or race, or as two (Virey), as three (Jacqui-
iiot), as four (Kant), five (Blumenbach), six (Bullbn), seven
(Hunter), eight (Agassiz), eleven (Pickering), fifteen (Bory
St. Vincent), sixteen (Dcsmoulins), twenty-two (Morton),
sixty (Crawfurd), or as sixty-three, according to Burke."
Tliis diversity of judgment does not prove that the races
ought not to be ranked as species, but it shows that they
graduate into each other, and that it is hardly possible to
discover clear distinctive characters between them.

Every naturalist who has had the misfortune to under-
take tlic description of a group of highly-varying organ-
isms, has encountered cases (I si)eak after experience)
j)recisely like that of man ; and if of a cautious disposi-
tion, he will end by uniting all the fonns which graduate
into each other as a single species ; for he will say to him-
self that he lias no right to give names to olyects which
he cannot define. Cases of this kind occur in the Order
which includes man, namely, in certain genera of monkeys ;

105) that the skulls of miiny South Germans and Swiss arc "aa short and
as broad as those of the Tartars," etc.

Sec a good discussion on this subject in AVaitz, ' Introduct. to An-
thropology,' Eng. translat 1863, pp. 198-208, 227. I have taken Bomo
of the above Btatoments from II. Tuttlc's ' Origin and Antifjuity of Physical
Man,' Boston, 18G6, p. 35.

Chap. VII.)

TlIK RACES OP MAX.

219

\sliilc in otlicT mra, a-> m i iJucu.-, Ili«>^L oi iho

.-jH-cicM can Ik* delirmineJ with < < i lainty. In the Anu ri-
< an genus Cebus, the variuus furnm are ranked by M»nie
naturaltHtM a« hpecies, by others aR mere gcogniphicul
race*. Now, if DunierouH K[>ecimenB of Cebus were col-
lected from all part« of South America, and those forms
which at present appear to be niRfifically distinct, were
found to graduate into each other by clotie steps, they
would Ik! ranked by most naturali>ts an mere varieties or
races ; and thus the gnater nuniWr of naturalists have
:i< f« d with res|>ect to the rac« H of man. Nevcrtheles* it
iiiti-t l»e confe»t^;d that there are fonnt», at Ua*it in the
''♦■tblc kinpbim,'* >*hich we cu'in- r -iv.'' ! ? (' '» ' a*
J , but which arc connect«»l ; ^ !y

• .f inti rcrohhinjj^, l»y numberless j;r;i<l:ilions.

ic naturalists have bitely employed the term " sut>-
-|M cies" to ite forms which |H>jn*ess many of the

I teristicM of true ►jHi ies, but which hardly diMTVO
! Ii a rank. Now, if we rellect on the weighty argti-
alMiVc ;;iven, for rai>«in^ the races of man to the
of sjM'cics, and the iniU|HT.»blc tV'^' • • •^o

ill "b fining ihcni, tin- term ** - 'it

i.M.l ;v ith mu« h t'T' 'ir':. T V. 1;.; .. . :.|t

' • t. rm **nico*' will i »ys Ik* en , I. T\w

e nf lenns iM only do fur im|>(irtant as it io i . .. iiiy do>
to use, as far as that may bo |»uMiibU\ the saiiM
r r UN fur the same >^ *>( . I "y^

tliu is r»n'\y poMiibie^ for wiiiiui ti ■ the

H il ii 111 t< h >ii. 'lO

^< i«< i .4 tt.< . . 1 I 'nns that ar^ |MtiitU^ a.

• II..'* . . M

i m4. .\mi t<i«j k*a

220

THE DESCENT OF MAN

[Pakt I.

yet all must equally be ranked as species. So again the
species within the same large genus by no means resemble
each other to tlie same degree : on the contrary, in most
cases some of them can be arranged in little groups round
other species, like satellites round planets."

The question whether mankind consists of one or sev-
eral species has of late years been much agitated by an-
thropologists, who are divided into two schools of mono-
genists and polygenists. Those who do not admit the
principle of evolution, must look at species either as sep-
arate creations or as in some manner distinct entities;
and they must decide what forms to rank as species by
the analogy of other organic beings which are commonly
thus received. But it is a hopeless endeavor to decide
this point on sound grounds, until some definition of the
term " species " is generally accepted ; and the definition
must not include an element which cannot possibly be as-
certained, such as an act of creation. TVe might as well
attempt without any definition to decide whether a cer-
tain number of houses should be called a village, or town,
or city. "We have a practical illustration of the difficulty
in the never-ending doubts whether many closely-allied
mammals, birds, insects, and plants, which represent each
other in North America and Europe, should be ranked
Fpecies or geographical races ; and so it is with the pro-
ductions of many islands situated at some little distance
from the nearest continent.

Those naturalists, on the other hand, who admit the
principle of evolution, and this is now admitted by the
greater number of rising men, will feel no doubt that all
the races of man are descended from a single primitive
stock ; whether or not they think fit to designate them as
distinct species, for the sake of expressing their amount

' Origin of Species,' 5th edit. p. 68.

CliAP. VII.]

THE RACES OF MAX.

221

of difFercnce." Willi our domestic animals the question
whether the various races have arisen from one or more
species is different. Although all such race?*, as well as
all the natural species within the same genus, have un-
douhtedly sprung from the same primitive stock, yet it is
a fit subject for discussion, whether, for instance, all the
domestic races of the dog have acquired their present
diflferenccs since some one species was first domesticated
and bred by man ; or whether they owe some of their
characters to inheritance from distinct soecies, which had
already been modified in a state of nature. AVith man-
kind no such question can arise, for he cannot be said to
liavc been domesticated at any particular period.

When the races of man diverged at an extremely re-
mote epoch from their common progenitor, they will have
differed but little from each other, and been few in num-
ber; consequently they will then, as far as their distin-
guishing characters are conccnied, have had less claim io
rank as distinct species, than the existing so-called races.
Xevertlieless such early races would perhaps have bei'n
ranked by some naturalists as distinct species, so arbitrary
is the term, if their differences, although extremely slight,
had been more constant than at present, and had not
graduated into each other.

It is, however, j>oshible, tliough far from probable,
that the early progt nilon* of man might at first have di-
verged much in character, until tlu y became more iinliki'
rach other than are any existing races ; but that subsr-
qui ntly, a8 suggesttMl l>y Vogt," they coiivt-rged in eh '
after. When man seleets for the same objrct the .
Kpriiig of two <li«linct Hpet-ies, lie HoiiietimeH in-ln.-.- n
far nH genmil appearance is concenied, a con

H<-.' Trof Ituxl. V !.i i!,^ . ff. . t in t1 .• • r..rtiil|{htly I!
p. 376.

'* ' I<<xmrv« on llan,' Kti/. trmimbt. 1864, p. 4AH.

222

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

amount of convergence. This is the case, as sliown "by
Von Kathusius," with the improved Lrecds of 2)igs, which
arc descended from two distinct species ; and in a less
well-marked manner with the improved breeds of cattle.
A great anatomist, Gratiolet, maintains that the anthro-
pomorphous apes do not form a natural sub-group ; but
that the orang is a highly-developed gibbon or semno-
pithecus ; the chimpanzee a highly-developed macacus ; and
the gorilla a highly-developed mandrill. If this conclu-
sion, which rests almost exclusively on brain-characters,
be admitted, we should have a case of convergence at
least in external characters, for the anthroj)omorj)hous
apes are certainly more like each other m many points
than they are to other apes. All analogical resemblances,
as of a whale to a fish, may indeed be said to be cases of
convergence ; but this term has never been applied to
superficial and ada2)tive resemblances. It would be ex-
tremely rash in most cases to attribute to convergence
close similarity in many points of structure in beings
which had once been widely different. The form of a
crystal is determined solely by the molecular forces, and
it is not surprising that dissimilar substances should some-
times assume the same form; but with organic beings we
should bear in mind that the form of each depends on an
infinitude of complex relations, namely, on the variations
which have arisen, these being due to causes far too intri-
cate to be followed out — on the nature of the variations
which have been preserved, and this depends on the sur-
rounding 2)hysical conditions, and in a still higher degree
on the surrounding organisms with which each has come
into competition — and lastly, on inheritance (in itself a
fiuctuating element) from innumerable progenitors, all of

"'Die Racen dcs Schweines,' 18G0, s. 46. 'Vorstudicn fiir Ge-
Bchichtc, etc., Schweincschiidel,' 18(Vi, b. 104. With respect to cattle,
see M. de Quatrefagcs, 'Unite dc TEspece Uuniaine,' 1861, p. 119.

ClIAP. VII. J

THE KACES OF MAN.

223

which have had their forms dcteniiined through eqiuilly
complex relations. It appears utterly incredible that two
organisms, if diflering in a marked manner, should ever
afterward converge so closely as to lead to a near ai>-
proach to identity throughout their whole organiz:ition.
In the case of the convergent pigs above referred to, evi-
dence of their descent from two primitive stocks is still
))lainly retained, according to Von Nathusius, in certain
bones of their skulls. If the races of man were descen<led,
as supposed by some naturalists, from two or more dis-
tinct sjHjcies, which had ditTered as much, or nearly as
much, from each other, as the orang diflers from the go-
rilla, it can hardly be doubted that marked dilferences in
the structure of certain bones would still have been dis-
coverable in man as he now exists.

Although the existing niccs ol man dilllr in many re-
spects, as in color, hair, shape of skull, pro|)ortions of tho
bo<ly, etc., yet if their wIkjIc organiz:ition be taken into
consideration they are f»>und to resemble each other closelv
in a multitude of points. ^lany of these jMunta arc of
HO unimportant or of so singular a nature, that it is ex-
tremely improbable that thoy should have been inde|M'n-
d«'ntly acquired by a!)originally distinct s|>i'eiini or nirtn.
The samo remark hold^ goo<l with eipial or <•
with rcfifMTt to tho » |M>intM of n .my

betwiMMi lh<' f t di iiii. ; i ku h of man. 1 lu Ai ti
aborigines, \ ".and KuropraiiM^ ,lirt*,r as niu« it n ui
<»a<di other in n ; ih nt»v t' r. . t c . 'Ii «• n \h> n:\t\\< ' •
y«'l I wan incesMuntly . ih** I

giunii uu lM»ard thu ** Ih igle," with the many lillle ti
of rharaetiT, iihowinf( how nimilar their inln«N wer«« to
our^; and »o it wim with n full-bhMMliMl ue^ro with
I •

lb \\l.'> Hlli 1.41. lull^ ti.».i .Ml. iur » ttUd >U .J. l.(lb>

224

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

bock's interesting works" ean hardly fail to be tlee2)ly im-
pressed with the close siniiliarity between tlic men of all
races in tastes, dispositions, and liabits. This is shown by
the pleasure which they all take in dancing, rude music,
acting, painting, tattooing, and otherwise decorating them
selves — in their mutual comprehension of gesture-language
— and, as I shall be able to show in a future essay, by the
same expression in their features, and by the same inar-
ticulate cries, when they are excited by various emotions.
This similarity, or rather identity, is striking, when con-
trasted with the different expressions which may be ol>-
served in distinct species of monkeys. There is good
evidence that the art of shooting with bows and arrows
has not been handed doAvn from any common progenitor
of mankind, yet tlie stone arrow-heads, brought from the
most distant parts of the world and manufactured at the
most remote periods, are, as Nilsson has shown,"* almost
identical ; and this fact can only be accounted for by the
various races having similar inventive or mental powers.
The same observation has been made by archaeologists
with respect to certain w^idely-prevalent ornaments, such
as zigzags, etc. ; and with respect to various simj)le beliefs
and customs, such as the burying of the dead under
megalithic structures. I remember observing in South
America," that there, as in so many other parts of the
world, man has generally chosen the summits of lofty hills,
on which to throw up piles of stones, either for the sake of
recording some remarkable event, or for burying his dead.

" Tylor's 'Early History of Mankind,' 1866 ; for the evidence witli
rcj'pcct to gesture-language, see p. 54. Lubbock's ' Prchistorio Times,'
2d edit. 1869.

^* ' The Primitive Inhabitants of Scandinavia,' Eng. translat. edited
by Sir J. Lubbock, 1808, p. 104.

Ilodder M. Westropp, on Cromlechs, etc., * Journal of Ethnological
Soc' as given in 'Scientific Opinion,' June 2, 1869, p. 3.

' Journal of Researches : Voyage of the Beagle," ' p. 46.

CiiAP. VII.] THE RACES OF MAK. 225

Xo^v, when naturalists observe a close ac'r*^ ttkmiI iii
numerous Btnall details of habits, tastes, and ti ^ iion»,
)>etweeu two or more domestic nices, or between nearly-
aHie<l natural forms, they use this fact aa an argument
that all arc descended from a common progenitor who
was thus endowed ; and consequently that all should ha
classed under the same 8j)ecie8. The same argument may
be aj>[)lied with much force to the races of man.

As it is improbable* that the numerous and unimiKui.aii
|K)ints of resemblance between the sevc-nil races of man
in bodily structure and mental faculties (I do not liere re-
fer to similar customs) should all have 1km?i>- independently
acquired, they must have been inherited from progeniton*
who were thus cliaracterized. We thus pain some iuhight
into the early state of man, before he had spread step by
Ht<'p over the face of the earth. The spreading of man to
rei,'ionH widely-separated by the sea, no doubt, preceiled
any consi<lerable amount of divergence of character in
the several ra<'es ; for <»therwise we hhould sometimes
meet with the same race in distinct ctaitinents; and this
is never the cas*-. Sir J. Lubbm k, after ciunparing tho
arts now practised by savages in all parts of tho world,
^p4-4-ifKfi those which man could not have known, when ho
lirst wandered from his original birthplace; for if onco
Icanied they would never have Ikku f»»r^oiien.*' lie thus
hhows that *^the s|K>ar, which is but » tleveU>pment of the
knife )K»int, and the club, uhich is but a long h i * , aro
(he only tliingft left.** lie admitt. howe\i'r * .> art

of ni ' fire probably had already iM-eii «1. , , 1, for
it is • •»! i" t r »< . ' ]\"\\ . \ i - f I'l u', and »•« Vmo>» n

lo tho . : 1 , : jK\ r thr

art of making r\u\v cnn«M« or rmAs wn<i likrwi

but as man e»i»tr<l at n n nioto v]> i tho land in

many places iit«MMl at a very • ni lovrl, he wouUl lia\«

220 THE DESCENT OF MAN. [rAiii I.

•

been able, without tlic aid of canoes, to have spread widely.
Sir J. Lubbock further remarks how improbable it is that
our earliest ancestors could have " counted as high as ten,
considering that so many races now in existence cannot
get beyond four." Nevertheless, at this early period, the
intellectual and social faculties of man could hardly have
been inferior in any extreme degree to those now pos-
sessed by the lowest savages ; otherwise primeval man
could not have been so eminently successful in the
struggle for life, as proved by Ins early and wide dif-
fusion.

From the fundamental differences between certain lan-
guages, some philologists have inferred that when man
hrst became widely dittused he was not a speaking ani-
mal ; but it may be suspected that languages, far less per-
fect than any now spoken, aided by gestures, might have
been used, and yet have left no traces on subsequent and
more highly-developed tongues. Witliout the use of some
language, however imperfect, it appears doubtful whether
man's intellect could have risen to the standard implied
by his dominant position at an early period.

Whether primeval man, when he possessed very few
arts of the rudest kind, and when his power of language
was extremely imperfect, would have deserved to be
called man, must dej^end on the definition which we em-
ploy. In a series of forms graduating insensibly from
some ape-like creature to man as he now exists, it Avould
be impossible to fix on any definite point when the term
" man " ought to be used. But this is a matter of very
little importance. So again it is almost a matter of in-
difference whether the so-called races of man are thus
designated, or are ranked as species or sub-species ; but
the latter term appears the most appropriate. Finally, wo
may conclude that when the principles of evolution are
generally accepted, as they surely will be before long, the

Chap. VII ] THE RACES OF MAN. 227

<lisputc between the monogenists aiul llic polygenists will
•Vie a silent and unobserved death.

One other question ought not to be passed over witli-
out notice, namely, whether, as is sometimes assumed, each
sub-species or race of man has sprung from a single pair
of progenitors. With our domestic animals a new race
can readily be formed from a single pair possessing some
new character, or even from a single individual thus char-
.ictt-rized, by carefully matching the varying oUspring;
but most of our races have been formed, not intentionally
from a selected pair, but unconscivusly ]*y the preservation
of many individuals which have varied, however sliglitly,
ill some useful or desired manner. If in one country
stronger and heavier horses, and in another country light-
er and fleeter liorses, were habitually preferreil, we may
feel sure that two distinct sub-breeds would, in the course
of lime, be produced, without any jiartieular pairs or intli-
viduals having been separate*! and bred from in either
< ouiitry. Many races have been thus foruu d, and their
niaiiiuT of formation is closely analogous >\ ilh that of natu-
ral Mp4 cieH. We know, also, that the^ horses whieh Iiavo
been brought to the Falkland Islands ha\e bec ome, during
hueeessivo gcncratiouH, mnaller and weaker, wliile thoKo
whieh have run wild on the Pampas have nrquirtnl larger
:ind coarBor heads ; and sueh chungen nro manifestly due,
not to anyone pair, but to all the individuals having Ihvii
' to the same mnilitions, nide<l, ]MThap«i, by the

j iiipjple <if revj*rsioii. The ni-w Hub-brtHnU in none of
1 h« -r i-:iHen are deseended from any single pair, but fnmi
many indi\ i«luuU >\ hieh hav(*>ari(>d in different <^ "^- t it,
hut in the name general nuinner: im.I we nirn • .do
that tho rnreN of man have lM*en .ily pi I, (ho

nwditlentioni* 1hmii<^' either tlie dinvt n*iiuU of et|MNiun« lo
rt'iit i'oU'l , or liie iudiaK;t n^nult uf vomc fortu of

228

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Pabt I.

selection. But to this latter subject we shall presently re-
turn.

On the Extinction of the Hacea of Man. — The partial
and complete extinction of many races and sub-races of
man are historically known events. Humboldt saw in
South America a i)arrot which was the sole living creature
that could speak the language of a lost tribe. Ancient
monuments and stone implements found in all parts of the
world, of which no tradition is i)reserved by the present
inhabitants, indicate much extinction. Some small and
broken tribes, remnants of former races, still survive in
isolated and generally mountainous districts. In Europe
the ancient races were all, according to Schaaffhausen,'"
" lower in the scale than the rudest living savages ; " they
must therefore have ditlcred, to a certain extent, from any
existing race. The remains described by Prof. Broca"
from Les Eyzies, though they unfortunately appear to
have belonged to a single family, indicate a race with a
most singular combination of low or simious and high
characteristics, and is " entirely diiferent from any other
race, ancient or modern, that we have ever heard of." It
differed, therefore, from the quaternary race of the caverns
of Belgium.

Unfavorable physical conditions appear to have had
Imt little effect in the extinction of races." Man has long
lived in the extreme regions of the Korth, with no wood
wherewith to make his canoes or other implements, and
with blubber alone for burning and giving him warmth,
but more especially for melting the snow. In the South-

" Translation in 'Anthropological Review,' Oct. 1868, p. 431.

" 'Transact. Intcruat. Congress of rrchistoric Arch.' 1808, pp. 1'72-
175. Sec also IJroca (translation) iu * Anthropological Kevicw,' Oct.
1868, p. 410.

Dr. Ccrlaud, ' Ucbcr das Aussterben dcr Xaturviilkcr/ 1808, 8. 82

Cux?. VIL]

THE RACES OF MAN

229

crn extremity of America the Fuegiana survive without
tlie protection of clothes, or of any buiMing worthy to be
called a hovel. In South Africa the aborigines wander
over the most arid plains, where dangerous beasts abound.
3Ian can withstand the deadly intluence of the Terai at
the foot of the Himalaya, and the i>estilential shores of
tropical Africx

Extinction follows chiefly from tiie t ompt liliun ol iriln'
with tribe, and race with ra< e. Various cheeks are always
in action, as specified in a former chapter, which »er\'e l**
k< ep down the numlxrs of each savage trilx.' — sueh &a
periodical famines, the wandering of the parents and tho
consequent deaths of infants, prolonged suckling, the steal-
ing of women, wars, accidents, sickness, licentiousness, es-
pecially infanticide, and, perhap'i, lessened fertility from
eM nutritious foo<l, and many hardships. If fmm any
cause any one of these checks is lessened, even in a slight
degree, the triln? thus favored will teiul to increase; and
when one of two adjoining tribcH iM-conies more numerous
and powerful than the other, the contest U s<N)n S4>ttled
by war, slaughtiT, cannibalism, slavery, and absorption.
Kven when a weaker trilio is not thus abruptly swept
a way, if it once begins to decrease, it generally g<K.*s on
d' rig until it is extinct."

\\ hen civiliml nations come into • i with bsrba*
rians th< - is short, e\< r|it \s li< i < k <!• i i!\ o

givi'S ilh .it>i t.* lie- ii i'lvr r.icf. l>f ill. .41 I
to tho victory of ru jU/« d I ■ i
very otiscurtv We cm nr. I
will lio (atal in many wn\ n {*>

will not, rhnniffMlieir habits. N . .

highly d ; and it np|H*ari that in evrrj' nation a

uvw >\ i > li, until tho*e %ih<i turn i

SUM?« ; to ll« tleiitru« ti\ r i c titV .

tm beta la M|i>oH of tkki •lakmmL

230

TUE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part I.

cJ out ; " and so it may be with the evil cflects from spir-
ituous liquors, as well as with the unconquerably strong
taste for tliera shown by so many savages. It further ap-
pears, mysterious as is the fact, that tlie first meeting of
<listinct and separated i)eoplc generates disease." JMr.
Sproat, wlio in Vancouver Island closely attended to the
subject of extinction, believes that changed habits of life,
which always follow from the advent of Europeans, in-
duces much ill-liealtli. He lays, also, great stress on so tri-
fling a cause as that the natives become "bewildered and
dull by the new life around them; they lose the motives
for exertion, and get no new ones in their place." "

The grade of civilization seems a most important ele-
ment in the success of nations which come in competition.
A few centuries ago Europe feared the inroads of Eastern
barbarians ; now, any such fear would be ridiculous. It
is a more curious fact that savages did not formerly waste
away, as Mr. Bagehot has remarked, before the classical
nations, as they now do before modern civilized nations ;
had they done so, the old moralists would have mused
over the event ; but there is no lament in any writer of
that period over the perishing barbarians."

Although the gradual decrease and iinal extinction of
the races of man is an obscure problem, we can sec that
it depends on many causes, dittering in dilVcrent places
and at different times. It is the same ditVicult problem as
tliat presented by the extinction of one of the higlier ani-

" Sec remarks to this cnTect in Sir II. Holland's * Medical Notes and
Reflections,' 1839, p. 390.

" I have collected (* Journal of Researches, Voyftf»c of the " Beagle," '
p. 435) a good many cases bearing on this subject : see also Gerlnnd,
ibid. 8. 8. Pocppig speaks of the " breath of civilization as poisonous
to savages."

" Sproat, 'Scenes and Studies of Savage Life,' 18G8, p. 284.
*^ Bagehot, "Physics and Politics," 'Fortnightly Review,' April 1,
1808, p. 455.

Chak VI I. J

TOE RACES OF WAN.

iual-( — (jf the fossil horse, for instance, which disappeared
from South America, soon afterward to he replaced, with-
in the same dii^tricts, by countless troops of the Spanioli
Jiorse. The New-Zealauder seems conscious of this paral-
li lism, for he compares his future fate with that of tin*
native rat almost* exterminated by the Euro|»ean ral.
The difficulty, tlum^h ^rcat to uur iniaj^ination, and real-
ly great if we wi.^li to itscertain the precise causes, oiiglii
not to Ikj so to our reason, as h^ng as we keep hteatlily in
mind that the increase of each hpi-eies and each race is
eonstantly hinderetl by various checks ; so that if any new
check, or cauM of destruction, even a slight one, Ix^ hujKT-
added, the nice will surely decrease in number ; ami an it
has everywhere bei-n obst-rved that savages are much oj»-
I>osed to any change of habits, by which means injurious
checks could l>e counterbalanced, decreasing numln'rs will
K04»ner pr later lead to extinction ; the end, in ii: ' ,
iH'ing promptly detenniued by the inroad- I"
rifid corK jtu rif)'/ t riln-x.

On the J'ornuUion of the llace* of Man. — It may Ik*
premised that when we find tiie same mc4% though broken
up into distinct trilx'S, ranging over a great urea, as over
America, we may attnbut4< tlieir general resen>'
deM'ent from a Ifi - •

ing of raccfi ill l(<lit» tin

new raoi'S. 'lln- ♦ I* • • ilm-

d • who bidong ;

iago f»n«lamentn!!v i'
|>ranii»er, while K>. , little fnmi Jewn, \v

iM'tiiiiK to tho S'milic iit«M k an<l siH'ak tpiito another !

• , has lH*en arcounted f«»r by llnn^a** thmti^'h •
Aryna bt ii largely (Ttmked dii

I IS

232

THE DKSrKNT OF MAX.

[Paut T.

witlc tliffusion by various indigenous tribes. When two
races in close contact cross, the first result is a heterogene-
ous mixture: thus Mr. Hunter, in describing the Santali
or hill-tribes of India, says that hundreds of imperceiv.
tiblc gradations may be traced "from the black, squat
tribes of the mountains to the tall olive-colored Brainin,
with his intellectual brow, calm eyes, and high but nar-
row liead ; " so that it is necessary in courts of justice to
ask the witnesses whether they are Santalis or Hindoos."
Whether a heterogeneous people, such as the inhabitants
of some of the Polynesian islands, formed by the cross-
ing of two distinct races, with few or no pure members
left, would ever become homogeneous, is not known from
direct evidence. But, as with our domesticated animals,
a crossed breed can certainly, in the course of a few gen-
erations, be fixed and made uniform by careful selection,"
we may infer that the free and prolonged intercrossing
during many generations of a heterogeneous mixture
would supply the place of selection, and overcome any
tendency to reversion, so that a crossed race would ulti-
mately become homogeneous, though it might not par-
take in an equal degree of the characters of the two par-
ent-races.

Of all the ditlercnces between the races of man, the
color of the skin is the most conspicuous and one of the
best marked. Differences of this kind, it was formerly
thouglit, could be accounted for by long exposure under
diflercnt climates ; but Pallas first showed that this view
is not tenable, and he has been followed by almost all an-
thropologists." The view has been rejected chiefly be-

" 'The Annalfl of Rural Bengal,' 18C8, p. 131.

' The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' voL
li. p. 95.

•» Pallas, 'Act. Acad. St. Petersburg,' 17S0, part ii. p. C9. lie was
followed by Rudolpbi, in his * Beytriige zur Anthropologic,' 1812. An

CiLlF. VIL]

THE RACES Ok MAN.

233

cause the distribution of the variously-colored ncofl, most
of whom must have long inhabited their present home«,
docs not coincide with correspond ini^ diflVrences of cli-
|iiate. Weight must also be given to such cases as that
of the Dutch families, who, as we hear on excellent au-
thority,** have not undergone the least change of color,
after residing for tliro© centurirs in South Africx The
unifonn appearance in various ]>arts uf tlic world of gyp-
^ifs and Jews, though tr.- uniforniity of thi* laltrr has
I>een somwhat czaggt is like-wise an argument on

the same side. A very damp or a very dry atmosphere
has been supposed to be morv intluintiul in modifying the
color of the skin than mere heat ; but as D^Orbigny in
S<iuth America, and Livingstone in Africa, arrived at di-
ariH-trically op|>osite conclusions with n-sjK'ct to dampness
riiid dryness, any conclusiun on this head must W* c<»nsid-
« r« »1 liH vcrv doubtful.*'

0

Various facts, which I have elsewhere giv« ii, prove
tliat the color of the skin and hair is sometimes corrts
lat<*4l in a iuqirising manner with a complete immimity
from the action of certain vegetable poisons and from the
attacks of certain pani^i Ilencu it occurred to roe,
tli.it negroes and other dark races might have acquire**!
t heir dark tints by the darker individ ^during
•I !• ril •» ..f • ' ' 'onH from the .i naluctioe of

I ; . • III . . • : I . ' I >i I . . . ; , . . ; i ve Com ' • • ' — .

I at i« I M ani fouft ! tV »» t' .• !- \ l -^*! \ong ago oo«

•urr» d to Dr. >\ vcn maUttoea,

r Codraa. *D« TKsp^'
* r Aadrvw MaiiK M . • Kmm orHaa,* 1 MO. m

• • lMa,|i V!

rwkm la R. AMm,* IMT. ^ UA.

c • i^^t UlM« Um Um/«I IW la Isll, aa4 yil liiiii I l«
II

234

THE DESCENT OF MAN.

[Part L

are almost completely exempt from the yellow fever, which
is so destructive in tropical America, has long been known.**
They likewise escape to a large extent the fatal intermit-
tent fevers that prevail along, at least, 2,600 miles of the
shores of Africa, and which annually cause one-fifth of thf
white settlers to die, and another fifth to return home in-
valided.** This immunity in the negro seems to he partly
inherent, depending on some unknown peculiarity of con-
stitution, and partly the result of acclimatization. Pou-
chet ** states that the negro regiments, borrowed from the
Viceroy of Egypt for the Mexican War, which had been
recruited near the Soudan, escaped the yellow fever al-
most equally well with the negroes originally brought
from various parts of Africa, and accustomed to the cli-
mate of the West Indies. That acclimatization plays a
j>art is shown by the many cases in which negroes, af-
ter having resided for some time in a colder climate,
have become to a certain extent liable to tropical fevers.*'
The nature of the climate under which the white races
have long resided, likewise has some influence on them ;
for, during the fearful epidemic of yellow fever in Deme-
rara during 1837, Dr. Blair found that the death-rate of
the immigrants was proportional to the latitude of 'the
country whence they had come. With the negro the im-
munity, as far as it is the result of acclimatization, implies

his Essays in 1818. I have given an account of Dr. Wells's views in tho
Historical Sketch (p. xvi.) to my ' Origin of Species.' Various cases of
color correlated with constitutional peculiarities arc given in my * Va-
riation of Animals under Domestication/ vol. ii. pp. 227, 835.

** Sec, for instance, Nott and Gliddon, 'Types of Mankind,' p. C8.

*• Major Tulloch, in a paper read before the Statistical Society, April
20, 1840, and given in tho ' Athenscum,' 1840, p. 353.

** ♦ Tlie Plurality of the Human Race ' (translat.), 18C4, p. 60.

*' Quatrcfages, ' Unit6 dc TEspecc Humainc,' 1861, p. 205. Waitz,
' Introduct. to Anthropology,' translat. vol. i. 1803, p. 121. Livingstone
gives analogous cases in bis ' Travels.*

Caxr. VII.]

THE RACES OF MAN'.

235

exposure during a j»r<><lit^iuu- !■ ; .:ih uuie; f«<r Uie
aborigines of tropical Ameriea, iio have resiJetl there
frorn time irameinorial, are not exempt from yellow fever;
an<l the liev. 15. Tristram states that there arc distrii ts in
Northern Africa which the native inhabitants are eom-
I>el!vd annually to leave, thougli the uegroc-s can remain
with safety.

That the immunity of the negro is in any degree cor-
related with the color of his skin is a mcro conjecture :
it may be correlated with some difTerence iii his blood,
nervous sy»tem, or other tissues. Nevertheless, from the
facts above alluded to, and from some connection appar>
ently existing Wtween complexitm and a tendency t < row
sumption, the conjecture seemed to mo not ini]
Consequently I endeavored, with but little suooeta,** to

** In tb« sprlnr of IMS I obtoliMd pennlMkm from ths IHrw<or-
(ieoend of Uk- I Department of tbe Armr, to trsaamil to th« tmt-

fUrom of tb« Tarioni ragtaMOls on furdfB im^ies a blank tablr, wiUi iIm
CoBovkif ippilsil iwiiiiii, bot I have racrirtd do rvCaras : ** As ••rerml
wdUMrM SMSt hart b««a roeordod wlik oar domwtlB 1111111 of a re*
lailoa bolVMB lbs color of tlia lUnaal appoadsfM and tbo toMititHlna ;
and U balof noiorioo* that tWs U iomt Hmtlad dafroo of raktlon bo-
tvoaa Iho color of iIm raoas of maa and tho eUaalo Inhahhod hj Ikami,
tha foOowIn:' T' v«t%alkm aaomi worth ooaaldaralkw, aaawlf, vkatW
thrra U a> « la Baropaaaa bHvaaa IIm color of tkab bair a»d

tb«lr HabUUj to tbo dhiMti of tha tropical covatriaa. If tba aaigWM
of tlM sfrmal n^jmrnU, whm alaltoaed la wakmhkj tioptoal dlalfkia»
woald bo r^vf as tfol lo oomM, aa a •^t'^ Sr^f of compaHaoa, bow
maoj HMO. 'rra vbaaco Ibo akk * 4ark aad Hubl

colofod baIr, aad balr of lolefoillala or doabllW llau ; aad If a iWlar
aooom wora kopi bj ibo aamo msdtoal fMlMMi of al ibo moa wbo
t iTnrMi fhim malaHoaa aad yiHow favors, or ftom djoaalary. It wwald
•Pt>armi, aAor aooia tbaamod caaos bad baaa Uboblad, wbilbrr
• aof rrUiUw bHaaaa tba color of iba balr aad coaalllollaodi
ui tffopiaal diaaaaoa. fotbapa ao soob rakUoa wawM ba dboov»
< iKa ln«r«<i.'«te b wai woftb makb^. la aoao oay poilitto
t MAffbi hm at umm p»a#tkial mo la tOlaiMog
fm tmf partk^Uf ..^n^f tba tmmk wmM bo of

230

THE DKSCENT OF MAN

ascertain how far it huKl good. Tlic late Dr. Daniell,
y,ho had long lived on the West Coast of Africa, told me
that he did not believe in any such relation, lie was
himself unusually fair, and had witlistood the climate in
a wonderful manner. When he first arrived as a boy on
the coast, an old and experienced negro chief predicti'd
from his djjpearance that this would prove the case. Dr.
Nicholson, of Antigua, after having attended to this sub-
ject, wrote to me that he did not think that dark-colored
Europeans escaped the yellow fever better than those that
were light-colored. Mr. J. M. Harris altogether denies**
that Europeans with dark hair withstand a hot climate
better than other men ; on the contrary, experience lias
taught him, in makinc: a selection of men for serv ice on
tlie coast of Africa, to choose those with red hair. As far,
therefore, as these slight indications serve, there seems no
foundation for the hypothesis, which has been accepted by
several writers, that the color of the black races may have
resulted from darker and darker mdividuals having sur-
vived in greater numbers, during their exposure to the
fever-generating miasmas of their native countries.

Although with our present knowledge we cannot ac-
count for the strongly-marked ditferences in color between
the races of man, either through correlation with consti-
tutional peculiarities, or through the direct action of cli-
mate; yet we must not quite ignore the latter agency, for
there is good reason to believe that pomo iulwrited elTert
is thus produced."

interest, as indicating one means by wliicti a race of men inhabiting from
a remote period an unhealthy tropical climate, might have become dark-
colored by the better preservation of dark-haired or dark-complexioned
individuals during a long suoce.Hsion of general '
*• 'Anthropological Keview,' Jan. 1800, p. .\ vi.

Sec, for instance, Quatrefages (* Revue des Cours Scicntifiquea,'
Oct. 10, 1808, p. V24) on the effects of residence in Abyssinia and Arabia,
and other analogous cases. Dr. RoUe (Der Mensch, iieine Abstamnmng,

Cuxr. VILJ

THE RACES OF MAN.

397

Wc have seen iii our third chapter that the eooditsoiif
of life, such M abuudaiit fuo«] and geueral cuinfurt, mflcci
in a direct manner the devchiinncnt of the boilily frame,
the effects being transmitted. Tlirou^h the c«jnjhined in*
fluences of climate and changed habits of life, Karu|)ean
settlers in the United Statics undergo, as is generally ad-
mitted, a slight but cxtra< ' id cliange of a|>-
I Tliere ij<, aUn, a ■ i j 'dence
^ >. tlirit in the SMitluiit •••of

If, however, we look to the nn « -» tii n ,-d
over the world, wc mui»t infer that their v) 'io
A cannot be accounted for by the dirvct a* t i
<•! .iiilcn iit con<litions of life, even af\er ex|H»tiure to them
f«»r an riod of time. Tlie K I-

ilu»i\<., uii aiiiiiiul foot]; thev uri' c]< \ I iit u>u k lur.
and Ai • ' '' ^Hiod to ill'* ' c-old and t«> I'ToIongi**! dark*
n« »» 1 V d<» Ti"' in ;i"v « \ ♦ •■• "n* di':»nt» frum

the ill . » , M> entirely on

^ev fiMMl and are ei|ioM-<l ahu<>«< I to a hoi,

■ unrh'tlMil F on tbo

I ] I II. t of their ii the \U>-

. . of Hfsuui wandi r aUitit ii : tho io-

' \ •> ehi« '* \ • g* ' ■

Mc ra< . ...if »<• • . .iH
Ih ' " M . •. r i .;ui*..uni

<MMa» la ilM A»4m • la hi iiilat iIm

./lU '4almi1

II- »« ^ II'

888

TRR DB9CEKT OF MAX

(Pa»t I.

iiihabiunti of tropi* - tl Amcrici, are wholly diflfercnt (rora
the Negroes who ^ . ii the opposite nhores of the At-
lantiCf are exposed to a nearly similar cUiuato, aud follow
nearly the same habits of life.

Nor can tho diflercnces between the races of man be
aooounteil for, except to a quite insigiiificant degree, by
the inherited efTeets of the increased or decreased use of
parts. Men who habittmlly live in canoes may have their
le^A K4>mewhat Stunted ; those who inhabit lofty re^ionH
have their chests enlarged; and those who constantly ime
certain sense-orjj^ans have the cavities in which they are
lo«l^ed somewhat increased in size, and their features con-
}»iM|uently a little modified. With civilized nations, the
reduced size of the jaws from lesi^eued uhc, the habitual
play of different moselcs serving to express different emo-
tions, and the increased size of tho brain from greater in-
tellectual activity, have together prodooed a considerable
I iV<'ct on their general appearance, in cmnparison with
savages.** It is also possible that increased bodily stature,
with no corresponding increase in tho size of tho brain,
may have given to some nice.s (judging from the pre-
viously adduced rn^fs of tho ral»blf»j) an e1onirnto<l sknll
of the dolichoci ^ ^XP*'-

Lastly, tho little-understood principle of com'latiou
will almost certainly have come into action, as in tho caso
of great muscular development and strongly-projecting
supra-orbital ridges. It is not improbable that the texture
of the hair, which differs much in the different races, may
stand in some kind of correlation with tho structure of
the skin; for the color of the hair and skin an' certainly
correlated, as is its color and texttm* w'ti, the Mandans.^

"8m Prof. SchasffbsuMn, IraiMkt in 'Anthn-; \\ Ilcriev,*
Oct 18f.^ 9.

••Mr . . lUlM (* Sortli AneHan ladUiM,* 3d edit lS4S,roL L p.
49) thai, in Um whole tribe of the MAodAOS, sboat ooo in t«o or twrlve

< «4r Til l rat KAOHI Of MXS ttt

>i «| i)»e nunbrr of bjuxv « tiiim a ^'
. J- r o{ il>e e%emorj pom fUod i
. ^ h ..th^r.** If w« Buy j«<*g« »^ •"Hry ^ ^
ilmniliftnil aoaaMk, SMajr OKidiiaMioM of tCrsctafv is

grovlk

We luiTO mom tm that t) - ^ I 'V • •

u • « rro Um ram oC man
Mi^iactory twf bir
oCU<»orbylJMt*r

ft.r«»t?9i the pHf»«^f»'^

• Ki<-k HMMI b rti'.'

4

(aHlMcli thnyt IMU to omr on >
iIm otUfWil Mbivtt'^ l«rf «rf^ nk-v am of

anv ASri^ or tfoclft «^ •'•4

Ikto IMMrb t ^ IMinillll bl tiM tMlllM «MI

t v! or to lotfoooco oo ••irrtMl rboro TV»

iu> roM, Mar* M*ff«4 la, liwlw bHwUM Uwi
Imp of Mrb boMf ao<^ f « Ut

1l«0 iftAi kaii «• t—^m tm4 *****

240

THE descp:xt of man.

[Part I.

been important, they would long acjo have been either
fixed and preserved, or eliminated. In tliis respect man
resembles those forms, called by naturalists j)rotean or
polymorj)hic, which have remained extremely variable,
owing, as it seems, to their variations being of an indif-
ferent nature, and consequently to their having escaped
the action of natural selection.

We have thus far been baffled in all our attempts to
account for the diflerences between the races of man ; but
there remains one important agency, namely. Sexual Selec-
tion, which appears to have acted as powerfully on man
as on many other animals. I do not intend to assert that
sexual selection will account for all the diflerences be-
tween the races. An unexplained residuum is left, about
which we can in our ignorance only say that, as individ-
uals arc continually born with, for instance, heads a little
rounder or narrower, and with noses a little longer or
shorter, such slight diflerences might become fixed and
iiiiifonn, if the unknown agencies which induced them
were to act in a more constant manner, aided by long-con-
tinued intercrossing. Such modifications come under the
jH'ovisional class, alluded to in our fourth chapter, which
for the want of a better term have been called sponta-
neous variations. Nor do I pretend that the eflects of
sexual selection can be indicated with scientific precision ;
but it can be shown that it would be an inexplicable fact
if man had not been modified by this agency, which has
acted so powerfully on innumerable animals, both high
and low in the scale. It can further be shown that the
diflerences between tlie races of man, as in color, hairi-
ness, form of features, etc., are of the nature which it
might have been expected would have been acted on by
sexual selection. But in order to treat this subject in a
fitting manner, I liave found it necessary to pass the
whole animal kingdom in review ; I have therefore dc-

Caxr. VII]

THE RACES Oi MAN.

241

votc'J to it the Second Part of thin work. At Ihc close I
hIiuII return to man, and, after atteuijiting to show bow
far ho has bi'eu modified through sexual selection, will
give a brief Huinmary of the chapters in this First Part

I

I

i

I'AKT II.

:SEXUAL SELECT / o y.

SEXUAL SELECTIOISr.

CIIAPTKU VIII.

1 l.l.N' li i J.s OF BLaLAL !^k.l.Li H":*.

Sceondarjr SoxujU C'luirart«r«. — 8«xu«1 8« lectioiL.— Maimer of A«(ioo.—

K.x <"•-•*• of 3f

t)>u JkUl*.— <
Natand Scbctioo.^ I
('»rrc«poodinf 8«a*
» • • wc«n the Bcrrrml
YooBir ^

•• Male alone g«s< •dUkd
■M of th« lUlo.— \ .iitj of
Fenuk.— 45«xiial coapttrvd with
■jpooding Period* a
i • ar, ui. i M Umltod bj 8«x.— .^u >!!•
•f InhrriUaee. — CeiuM vhj om Sex mmI
Aejraal Selection.— Supplemmt oa
«*« Uiroof hottt the AaUanl
.(oben of the two Bciee

With nnimalM which h:ivf ihvW t,-\> < <> i \r \Xit\^ iho
iiiah" Tw .1 •••arilv <liirrr frMin thi> ' "T ^mib

0

tt( T' on; nn<l tht-**- ntV-.rl t ^ . tr^

nulrm. Hut thi* »4 \« H ..Mill .litl'.r in whal lluntrr h.\ii

• <1 NCC'

with (ho act ul r

I 1 \
I' •

..f ,

in« of
r uM<n ran

1 f I

I ATP not tlirt rtljf
; for ins! \n

»».

n

I

h

246

THE PRIXCirLES OF

[Part II.

arc commouly raiikt d as primary, fiiich as the compK x ap-
]K'ii(lagc9 at the apex of the abdomen in male insects.
Unless indeeil we confine the term " primary " to the re-
productive ghinds, it is scarcely possible to decide, as far
as the organs of prehension are concerned, which ought
to be called primary and which secondary.

The female often differs from the male in liaviug or-
gans for the nourishment or protection of her young, as
the mammary glands of mammals, and the abdominal
sacks of the marsupials. The male, also, in some few
cases differs from the female in possessing analogous or-
gans, as the receptacles for the ova possessed by the
males of certain lishes, and those temj)orarily developed
in certain male frogs. Female bees have a special appa-
ratus for collecting and carrying pollen, and their oviposi-
tor is modified into a sting for the defence of their larvie
and the community. In the females of many msccts the
ovipositor is modified in the most complex manner for the
safe placing of the eggs. Numerous similar cases could
be given, but they do not liere concern us. There are,
liowever, other sexual differences quite disconnected with
the primary organs with which we are more especially
concerned — such as the greater size, strength, and pug-
nacity of the male, Ins weapons of offence or means of
defence against rivals, his gaudy coloring and various
ornaments, )iis power of song, and other such charac-
ters.

Besides the foregoing primary and secondary sexual
differences, the male and female sometimes differ in struct-
ures connected with difterent habits of life, and not at all,
or only indirectly, related to the reproductive functions.
Thus the females of certain flies (Culicidie and Tabanida})
are blood-suckers, while the males live on flowers and
have their mouths destitute of mandibles.' The males

» Westwood, 'Modem CUas. of Insccta,' vol ii. 1840, p. 641. In

cw. vni 1

8EXCAL SKLECTIOX.

217

uloiic of certain motliH aii«l ««r Home crustaoemns (v. g., Ta-
iiaiit) liavo in: t, cIo5«(<l mouths, and cmnnot ff !.
The compIem( lualen of certain Cirripedet live 1 •
ipiphytic planta citLcr on the female or bermn! Vr 1 i
form, and mr« destitute of a mouth and preh<ni ~

In thcso cases it is the male which han been i

has lost certain important or-rans, which the other w-
Ix'ni of the same group ih>*)*>< «>!<. In otlter «
female which has lost such parts ; for inntancc, t
glowworm is destitute of wing«, arc many
motlis, some of which nerer leave their <
female parasitic cmstaccans liavc lo^t th*
In some wocvil-bcetles (Curculioni<lif) tl. .
diifi^rcnco between the male an<l female in i . ^
the rostrum or inout; * htit the nu aning of thi^. nn<l
of many analogous in n<»t at all undi-i

I)ifl*errncfii of ntmrturc Utwein the two ik x«*n in rt'lation
to diflVTfnt hahitM of life y cnnfiucd to the

lov il« ; but with lutitiu Kw lit! Ix'ak of the

mule from that of the femal< tibt in ni*»*(,

bn* • l in all thcM' ea*** , ; iilference!* ar»'

in ! St !♦'! t' . t • ! i^ati'-ii of the nj"

th>. 1 a multitu«le • . »

will t fo«>«l than the mnh*. and roiiMtiueiitly

will r« |t.ir«- "j.' . i.»l meanii for pn»«Miriii;; »t. A male xtu-
mal whicii live<l for a very »hort time mi^'ht witliuut drt-
riiBaot luso through (li»«iMf its organ* fur | 4 ;

but he would his lor<mt«-' rgau^ m a |

»tat«, M tliat I '.t rra« ' i. uiaie. Ttx

tbe otiier han-i . m< her organ* !••(

swimming, or - -rii i.**v . "n'r. !

wbleli mmlsrsd i

sL itii^f^ isa

248

THE rillXCirLES OF

[Part II.

We arc, however, here concerned only >vitli that kind
of selection which I have called Bcxnal geleclion. This
dej)ends on the advantage which certain individuals have
over other individuals ot* the same sex and species, in ex-
clusive relation to rejiroduction. When the two sexes
difter in structure in relation to different habits of life, as
in the cases above mentioned, they have no doubt been
modified through natural selection, accompanied by inher-
itance limited to one and the same sex. So, again, the
primary sexual organs, and those for nourishing or pro-
tecting the young, come under this same head ; for those
individuals which generated or nourished their offspring
best, would leave, cceter is paribus , the greatest number to
inherit their superiority ; while those w hich generated or
nourished their offspring badly, would leave but few to
inlierit their weaker powers. As the male has to search
for the female, he requires for this purpose organs of sens^
and locomotion, l)ut if these organs are necessary for the
other purposes of life, as is generally the case, they will
have been developed through natural selection. When
the male has found the female he sometimes absolutely
requires prehensile organs to hold her; thus Dr. AVallacc
informs mc that the males of certain moths cannot unite
with the females if their tarsi or feet arc broken. The
males of many oceanic crustaceans have their legs and
antenna; modified in an extraordinary manner for the pre-
hension of the female ; hence wc may suspect that owing
to these animals being washed about by the waves of the
open sea, they absolutely require these organs in order to
proj)agatc their kind, and if so their development will
have been the result of ordinary or natural selection.

When the two sexes follow exactly the same habits

m

of life, and the male has more highly-developed sense or
locomotive organs than the female, it may be that these
in their perfected state are indispensable to the male for

rjiAf. VIII.)

SEXUAL ?ELECTIOK.

i49

tifi«linj^ the feimile ; but in the va*t ' rity of casc«, they

MT\f only to "iv<' one male an a .. ij^e ov«r t^.•r,
for the le«H Wt i ^wed inale<*, if time were all a,
would Buccced in pairing with the females; and they
would in all other re?<j>ectii, judj^ing from the Btructuro
of the female, Ik? equally well adapted for their ordinary
hahittf of life. In Buch eaneH sexual B<.-li>ction must have
ronie into action, for the mah*H have arquinsl their pre**
ent structure, not fr«»ni In-ing Ik'IUt fitted to Burvive in
tl»e Btniggle for exif*U n< «', hut from having gained an ad-
\ iri» 'I over other mal<^, and fr- Mi !: i\in«r traniiinittttl
I .tagc to their male otl ^ i*. It wa« tho

im[H>rt:inee of thiH dUtinction which led mo to devigiiate
thin form of BelcH'tion aji sexual Bele<*tioii. So, again, if the
* hief service rendered to the male hy his prehen^ilc organs
to prevent tho e«ca|>e of the finiale before the arrival
of otiier males, or when a»> ! by them, these organs
will have IxM-n |K?rffetetl • lal s<'lection, that is,

by ihe advantage ac<|uir< i i . . ...in males over their
riNals. Hut in most eas<*s it is ware<lv l o^-iMo to di'tiM-
guisli b('tween tho effects of natural u I «*elcH :

Whole chapters could eauily \h3 filled with ^ on the
dilferencca In'tween the sexen in their S4*n»4>ry, h>oomoLivc\
and prehensile organs. An, however, the«4* sir
not more interc^' . ! for tl

puqiosea of \\'' 4.-<« u.

a few inalam t >

Tliero are m • sn«l ii

must liavo been . ^«lals«.

as tho weapons of • and t ^ of d< «•

Sft<M«*il by tho niAlt^ for i

thoir rivals- irage an«l | . ibeir •

rornia of many > orgm <Ha|| vnral

or Instntntrtiial iitu*i I t' ^
o«lum{ UHiai of Uieso Ulicr •itu iwug x^ut) al*

250

THE PRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

lure or excite llie female. That these cliaracters are the
result of sexual and not of ordinary selection is clear, as
unarmed', uuornamented, or unattractive males would suc-
ceed equally well in the battle for life and in leaving a
numerous ])rogeny, if better-endowed males were not
present. We may infer that this would be the case, for
the females, which are unarmed and unornamented, are
able to survive and procreate their kind. Secondary sex-
ual characters of the kind just referred to, will be fully
discussed in the following chapters, as they are in many
respects interesting, but more especially as they depend
on the will, choice, and rivalry of the individuals of either
sex. AVhen we behold two males figliting for the posses-
sion of the female ; or several male birds dis]>laying their
gorgeous plumage, and performing the strangest antics
before an assembled body of females, wc cannot doubt
that, though led by instinct, they know what they are
about, and consciously exert their mental and bodily
powers.

In the same manner as man can improve the breed of
his game-cocks by the selection of those birds which are
victorious in the cockpit, so it appears that the strongest
and most vigorous males, or those provided with the best
weapons, have prevailed under Nature, and have led to the
improvement of the natural breed or species. Through
repeated deadly contests, a slight degree of variability,
if it led to some advantage, however slight, would suffice
for the work of sexual selection ; and it is certain that
secondary sexual characters are eminently variable. In
tlie same manner as man can give beauty, according to
his standard of taste, to his male poultry — can give to the
Sebright bantam a new and elegant plumage, an erect and
peculiar carriage — so it appears that in a state of nature
ft male birds, by having long selected the more attractive
males, have added to their beauty. No doubt this ini-

CHAr VIIL] SEXCAL SKLEfTION. 1>51

jilics powers of discrimination and ta«tc on the part of the
female which will at first appear extremely improbable;
but I hope hereafter to show that thii» is not the ea«e.

From our ignorance on several points, the j*recise man-
ner in which sexual selection acts Ib to a certain extent
uncertain. Nevertheless if those natuniUsts \»^o already
lielicve in the mutability of species, will read the following
chapters, they will, I think, agree with me that sexual se-
lection has jilayed an important part in the history of the
organic world. It is certain that with almoi^t all animals
there is a struggle between tlie males for the {>o8se^^ion of
the female. This fact is so notorious that it would be su-
|H*rfluous to give instances. Hence the females, sup{K>fiing
that their mental capacity sufliced fur the exertion of a
choice, could select one out of several males. But in nu-
merous cases it ap|>ears as if it had been s{>ecially arranged
that there should l>e a st i ' ■ 1)etween many males.
Thus with migratory binls, n.. males generally arrive W--
fore the females at their place of breeding, so that many
males are ready to contend for each female. The bird-
eatchors assert that this is invariably the caj»o with the
nightingale and blackcap, as I am infonuetl by Mr. Jennor
Weir, who confinns the statement with res|H>ct to the Ut-
ter speelM.

Mr. Swa} ulitiid, ot itn^hton, who has btvu lu t
' ' t' lajii flirty yean«, of rat«'hi' r Uu^falor)

i t "It itf ir rir«»t arri\al, writ< r to m<- i ho has never
known the ft-males of aity i>|h rics to arrive before their
nialvs. l)uring one itpni) / ) ^^ 't (hirty'iiiiM males uf
lUy*s waf^taU (//i«/yr«j ^ .< ho saw a single fe-

male. Mr. (Mmid ha« u by dUsection, as be in-

fMriiis mn, that mule iiiii|M-ii .advo in this etiuntry bi-forvi
the frnialr*. Ill the « :iki of flsh, Si tho |M*ni»<l « hrn iIm)

252

THE TRINCIPLES OF

[Part 11.

with frogs and loads. Tliroiigbout llie great class of iii-
Bccts tlie males almost always emerge from the pupal state
before the other sex, so that thoy generally swarm for a
time before any females can bo seen.' The cause of this
difference between the males and females in their periods
of arrival and maturity is sufliciently obvious. Those males
wliicli annually first migrated into any country, or which
in the spring were first ready to breed, or were the most
eager, would leave the largest number of offspring ; and
these would tend to inherit similar instincts and constitu-
tions. On the whole, there can be no doubt that with al-
most all animals, in which tlie sexes are separate, there is a
constantly recurrent struggle between the malys for the
possession of the females.

Our dilliculty in regard to sexual selection lies in un-
derstanding liow it is that the males which conquer other
males, or those which prove the most attractive to the fe-
males, leave a greater number of offspring to inherit their
superiority than the beaten and less attractive males.
Unless this result followed, the characters which gave to
certain males an advantage over others, could not be per-
fected and augmented tli rough sexual selection. Wiien
tlie sexes exist in exactly equal numbers, the worst-endowed
males will ultimately find females (excepting where polyg-
amy prevails), and leave as many offspring, equally well
fitted for their general habits of life, as the best-endowed
males. From various facts and considerations, I former-
ly inferred that with most animals, in which secondary

» Even with those of plants in which the sexes are separate, the male
flowers arc gencnilly mature before the female. Many hermaphrodite
plants«irc, as Brst ubown by C. K. Sprengcl, dichogamous ; that is, their
male and female organs are not ready at the same time, so that they can-
not be self-fertilized. Now with such plant,s the pollen is generally ma-
ture in the same flower before the 8tigm.a, though there are some excep-
tional .species in which the female orgami arc mature before the male.

Ciixp. VIILJ

SEXUAL SELECTION'.

S58

sexual chamctfire were well developed, the males considem*
My exceeded the females in nuriiWr ; and this does hold
^ood in some few cases. If the males were to the fcmali-*
an two to one, or as three to two, or even in a somewhat
lower ratio, the whole aflair would be simple: for the bet-
ttT-armed or more attractive males would leave the lar-
^'••^t !iunil>er of oflipring. liut after inv as far

as jw>h}»ihle, the numerical proportions oi i n, I do

not believe that any ^reat inequality in numL- > nimonly
exists. In mo«t ca-W'H sexual seleelion apj» n'--' ♦ } r. ■
!M*<'n effective in the f«jll«jwin'^ ni:iijnrr:

Let us take any ii[h ( it a binl for i
vide the fcmalea inhabiting a district into two e«pial
bixiieN: thte one con^ - of the more vigorous and lH*t-
tiT-nourinhed individuals, and the other of the IcM Yigor>
ous and healthy. The former, there can be little doubt,
would \tc ready to bree«l in the spring UToro the othen;
and this is the opinion of Mr. Jenner Weir, who h '
ing many yearn carefully attemled to the liabitA oi
'nicro can aliM> )k* no doubt that the moKt %
healthy, and bc4t-nouri»he<l feuiali « uould on an a
soceecd in n>aring the largest number of otT-prin^'
males, as wo have M-<*n, are gmarally rea<Iy to bre<>«l bo-
foro tbo females; of tl»e malra the strongest, and with
•»'»me s|>oei«*« the Ih-kI annrd, drive away liua '
males; and ihv fonner would then unitr with tl>-
vigorotts and lM*«t nouri*h< •! it tnnh >, a« thcwo arv t)
to breed. Huch vi^ornti* p iit« \« <"il>l »ur«ly rw a i-»r>^'<r
numf>er of ofT-t rif» • t!..Mi r. • i» ! I f(*fiial«a,
wotiM }tt* ron> i be i

ru to unites with lhr> I anil Ir** |v

tn ii< - « all thai It ^ I to add. in *

lif fit , i r ii-i , i"\cnMtf»

n of ti.< fi> t

hut III a tiiu.;4lu i* laAi* i4»t u*^**^* «

254

THE PRIN'CIPLES OF

[Vxm II.

other males do not obtain possession of the females, in-
dependently of choice on the part of the latter. The
courtship of animals is by no means so simple and short
an affair as might be thought. Tlie females arc most ex-
cited by, or prefer pairing with, the more ornamented
males, or those which are the best songsters, or play the
best antics; but it is obviously probable, as has been
actually observed in some cases, that they would at the
same time prefer the more vigorous and lively males.*
Thus the more vigorous females, which are the first to
breed, will have the choice of many males ; and though
they may not always select the strongest or best armed,
they will select those whicli are vigorous and well armed,
and in other respects the most attractive. Such early
pairs would liavc the same advantage in rearing offspring
on the female side as above exphiined, and nearly the
same advantage on the male side. And this apparently
has sufficed during a long course of generations to add not
only to the strength and fighting-powers of the males, but
likewise to their various ornaments or otlier attractions.

In the converse and mucli rarer case of tlie males se-
lecting particular females, it is plain that those which were
the most vigorous and had conquered others, would liave
the freest choice ; and it is almost certain that they would
select vigorous as well as attractive females.- Such pairs
would have an advantage in rearing offspring, more es-
pecially if the male had the power to defend the female
during the pairing-season, as occurs with some of the
higher animals, or aided in providing for the young. The
same principles would api)ly if botli sexes mutually pre-
ferred and selected certain individuals of the opposite sex;

* I liave received information, bcreaflor to be given, to this effect with
respect to poultry. Even with birds, such as pipeons, which pair for life,
the female, as I hear from Mr. Jonncr Weir, will desert her mate if he in
injured or grows weak.

CiiAr. VIIL]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

IS5

Bupp 'n ' that they selected not only the more Attractive,

].iif tlw m<»rf vi'/or**'!** i!i<livi']u:il>^.

Numerical Proportion of the Two Sx^s. — I have ro-
marked that sexual selection would bo a ftimiile affair if
tlie males considerably exceeded in numWr tho females.
Ilenee I was led to inve«ti<;ate, aa far as I could, the pro-
]>ortioiis Ix'tween the two Kexes of as many animals an
I>ossible ; but the materialn are scanty. I will here j^ivo
only a brief abHlract <»f the results, retainin ' . ! • ils

for a supplementary tliricussion, • i-' r\<<r to h

the courso of my argument. I> ■ cd animals a'

afford tho opjKirtunity of ancertaininj^ the proport
numl>ers at birth ; but no records have been K|>ecially kept
for this pur{>ose. liy indirect mcaaa, however, I liavo col-
lected a considerable body of statistical data, fn»m which
it apiH'ars that with most of our d' lals the

• H are nearly cqiuil at birth. Thu^ wiih i c-horsi*s,
•io biriliH hnvo Ixjon recorded duriti ' • -v . • • •. -lo yearn,
and tlie male biri I <•! ive been t<> till . i .. ias00.7
to 100. With i;; anda the . y is |;reater than

with any other animal, for during twelve years, out of
o,h7H births, the male births liavo bt^'u as 110.1 to liHi
f«-mal» bir It is, however, in some dejjrtH* .1 .1
wbetlu'r it u safe to infer that the same p
Ik'H* ' ' . ' ' ' ml ecu r

doni , 1 i lit I he

<ond.: ' ' f ''lO

srim. 1 . . 1
an* fia 101.5, in Uunnia as Iom o, and with t* f
I > a« ItfO to loo fcnii l*h« p al*«
i> • t-' . d bv ill. of the I

Ih0

256

THE PRINCIPLES OF

[Paut II.

this adds another clement of doubt ; for it is a well-ascer-
tained fact that with man a considerably larger proportion
of males than of females die before or during birth, and
during the first few years of infancy. So it almost cer-
tainly is with male lambs, and so it may be with the males
of other animals. The males of some animals kill each
other by fighting ; or they drive each other about until
they become greatly emaciated. They must, also, while
wandering about in eager search for the females, be often
exposed to various dangers. With many kinds of fish the
males are much smaller than the females, and they arc be-
lieved often to be devoured by the latter or by other fishes.
With some birds the females appear to die in larger pro-
portion than the males : they are also liable to be de-
stroyed on their nests, or while in charge of their young.
With insects the female larva) are often larger than those
of the males, and would consequently be more likely to
be devoured : in some cases the mature females are less
active and less rapid in their movements than the males,
and would not be so well able to escape from danger.
Hence, with animals in a state of nature, in order to judge
of the proportions of the sexes at maturity, we must rely
on mere estimation ; and this, except perhaps when the
inequality is strongly marked, is but little trustworthy.
Nevertheless, as far as a judgment can be formed, we may
conclude, from the facts given in the 8U])plemcjit, that tho
males of some few mammals, of many birds, of some fish
and insects, considerably exceed in number the females.

The proportion between the sexes fluctuates slightly
during successive years : thus with race-horses, for every
loo females born, the males varied from 107.1 in one year
to 92.G in another year, and with greyhounds from 110.3
to 05.3. But had larger numbers been tabulated through-
out a more extensive area than England, these fluctuations
would probably have disappeared ; and such as they are,

CuAF. VIII.] SEXUAL SELECTION. 257

they wouM hardly suffice to lead under a state mI nut .r<'
to the efl'^'ctive action of sexual selection. Nevertlu 1« ^.s
with §ome few wild animals, the pro|>ortions seem, as
Hhown in the KU|)plein( nt, to fluctuate either duriny^ differ-
ent seasons or in ditlerent localities in a sufficient dejxrcf
to lead to such action. For it should l>c ohser\*e<l that
any advantage gained durin^j certain years or in certain
localities hy those males which were able to conquer other
males, or were the most attractive to the females, would
jirohably )h» trari ■ d to the offitpring and would not
subsequently l>e » i.;;..iiated. Duritii; the surceedifii; sea-
Koim, when from the etiuality of the e\« ry ni:»U* wuj*

everywhere able to procure a feniah-, llir ^tr. 'Hj^er or mort*
attractive maUm previously pro<luctHl would still have at
least as goo<l a chance of leaving oflVpring as the less
strong or li»ss attractive.

p..i,! f'fi, -/. — The praetir<» of |»olygamy leads to the
in would follow fnjMi an aetual in' -iMHlity in
the iiumlMT of the sexes ; for if each male h* two or

iiioro fenmlen, many males will not W able to pair; and
the latter aiMured I y will l>e the weaker or less attnicti\e
individuals. Many mammals an«l tome few binls are
p but with aniniaU Im ' lower

rlaiM •» 1 h.i ' lud n«» ' of u. !
h-rtuni } • 1 SU' ^

(<* lead I ■ ' to ci'i.
That somo relati"?' • >

\elopmentof ' y
certain; and this Nup|MirlM iIm* \ i«'W that a i> al prt^

p lire of maleN VmuM I tently fax to ihr

!i<-tioii of M'sual IM ' !e«« inniiy n

• %» \\u ii 111

!• «i<uh afv ^t^^aiuvu^i Ait. >

258

THE PULN'CirLES OF

[Vxiix II.

Wc will first briefly run throu'^h the class of inamin:ils,
and then turn to birds. Tho gorilla seems to be a polyg-
uuiist, and the male difl'ers considerably from the female ;
BO it is with some baboons which live in herds containing
twice as many adult females as males. In South America
the Mycctes carat/a presents well-marked sexual diflVr-
ences in color, beard, and vocal organs, and the male geii-
erally lives with two or three wives: the male of the
Cdnts capucinus dilVers somewhat from tlie female, an<l
appears to be polygamous.' Little is known on this head
with respect to most other monkeys, but some sjK'cies are
strictly monogamous. The ruminants are eminently polyg-
amous, and they more frequently present sexual difler-
cnces than almost any other group of mammals, especially
in their weapons, but likewise in other characters. Most
deer, cattle, and sheep, are polygamous; as are most ante-
lopes, though some of the latter are monogamous. Sir
Andrew Smith, in speaking of the antelo{)es of South
Africa, says that iii herds of about a dozen there was
rarely more than one mature male." The Asiatic AutUope
8(iiga appears to be the most inordinate i>olygamist in tin'
worhl ; for Pallas * states that the male drives away all
rivals, and collects a herd of about a hundred, consisting
of females and kids : the female is hornless and has softer
hair, but does not otherwise differ much from the male.
The horse is polygamous, but, except in his greater size
and in the proportions of his. body, differs but little from

• On the Gorilla, Savage and Wyman, • IJoston Journal of Xai. Ilist.'
vol. V. 1845-1817, p. 423. On Cynoccphalus, Brohm, ♦Illust Thicrlcbcn,*
n. L 18G4, 8. 77. On Mycetoa, Rongger, ' Xaturpcsch. : Siagethicro too
ParaRuay,' 1830, b. 11, 20. On Ccbus, Hrchm, ibid. s. 108.

•Pallas, * SpioilcKia Zoolog., Faac. xiL 1777, p. 29. Sir Andrew
Smith, 'Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa,* 1849, pi. 29, on the
Kobus. Owen, in his 'Anatomy of Vertebrates ' (vol iii. 1868, p. 633),
gives a t.abic incidentally showing which species of Antelopes pair and
which are gregarious. . »

CuAr VIII.]

SEXUAL SKKKCTI

S59

t lie mare. The lu Li- _ t . ^ I »oinc

other charactom, j>r» hrni«^ w< 11 in i! I - \ . .. . .- i. •

in Kuroj)C and in Iu«iia lu- Ira 1« a ^..llt

ing the bree<lin;^-«eaHoii ; l>i.' at this -

in India H'ilh Bevcrul ftin.il< aa Sir W. j

had large cxpcriincc in oKiicrvin;^ thi-i animal, IkUcmh :

whi ther thia holdn g^Kxl in Kuropc ia doubtful, but ia

|Kirtod by some Mtat* menta. The adult male Indian <

|>hant, like the War, |>aatet much of hii time in ai*

but wlu'u a*** ^' with otht-m, ^it u r ' iu^

l>r. ^' ' " "{.kU ^morc tbao one male a uliol«

hird .1 Tlic lan^r mn! » •> ^ ^ ' " rV.

Knialler and weaker onen. 'l*bc mai<

male by hia imnu it»e ttiaki and greater

endurance; to gnat ia the difTtTence in tb<

it|»i*cta, that the malea whi n c:iu;;ht an* vabic*! at twr' ■

IK'r c«*nt. al*ovethe frmaN ««/ Wjili odi. r ;

aiiimala the tesca diflfer very littir <*r not at

an* not, aa lar aa known, : ' '

»>pi*<-ica among the ( ' ur

*• < • ! T rail

tilid I I T-

in'/, f ;iM'
ra ral fell

'1 1 I in South Afncs, aa I hrar fr

lira IWra with A ain;. . I'Ut

uiiy with u> in one, bii«I, in onr ca

aa many aa ' nalra,
aa ikr aa I < ui. •i.tro^

"f thr !• f •

l( 1 •

260

THE PRINCirLES OF

[I'art II.

the marine. Carnivora, the case is widely different ; for
many species of seals offer, as wc shall hereafter see, ex-
traordinary sexual differences, and they are eminently
polygamous. Thus the male sea-elephant of the Southern
Ocean always possesses, according to Peron, several fe-
males, and the sea-lion of Forster is said to be surrounded
by from twenty to thirty females. In the North, the
male sea-bear of Steller is accompanied by even a greater
number of females.

With respect to birds, many species, the sexes of which
differ greatly from each other, are certainly monogamous.
In Great Britain we see well-marked sexual differences in,
for instance, the wild-duck, which pairs vvith a single fe-
male, with the common blackbird, and with the bullfinch,
which is said to pair for life. So it is, as I am informed
by Mr. Wallace, with the Chatterers or Cotingidse of South
America, and numerous other birds. In several groups I
have not been able to discover whether the species are
polygamous or monogamous. Lesson says that birds of
paradise, so remarkable for their sexual differences, arc
polygamous, but Mr. Wallace doubts whether he had suf-
ficient evidence. Mr. Salvin informs me that he has been
led to believe that humming-birds are polygamous. The
male widow-bird, remarkable for his caudal plumes, cer-
tainly seems to be a polygamist.® I have been assured, by
Mr. Jenner Weir and by others, that three starlings not
rarely frequent the same nest ; but whether this is a case
of polygamy or polyandry has not been ascertained.

The Gallinacese present almost as strongly-marked
sexual differences as birds of paradise or humming-birds,

8 ' The Ibis,' vol. iii. 1861, p. 133, on the Progne Widow-bird. See
also on the Vidua axillaris, ibid. vol. ii. 18G0, p. 211. On the polygamy
of the Capercailzie and Great Bustard, see L. Lloyd, ' Game Birds of
Sweden,' 1867, pp. 19, 128. Montagu and Selby speak of the Black
Grouse as polygamous, and of the Red Grouse as monogamous.

ClIAP. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

261

and many of the species are, as is well known, polyga-
mous ; others being strictly monogamous. What a con-
trast is j)resented between the sexes by the polygamous
peacock or pheasant, and the monogamous guinea-fowl
or partridge ! Many similar cases could be given, as in
the grouse-tribe, in which the males of the polygamous
capercailzie and black-cock differ greatly from the fe-
males; while the sexes of the monogamous red grouse
and ptarmigan differ very little. Among the Cursores, no
great number of species offer strongly-marked sexual
diflferences, except the bustards, and the great bustard
( Otis tarda) is said to be polygamous. With the Gralla-
tores, extremely few species differ sexually, but the ruff
(Machetes pugnax) affords a strong exception, and this
species is believed by Montagu to be a polygamist. Hence
it appears that with birds there often exists a close rela-
tion between polygamy and the development of strongly-
marked sexual differences. On asking Mr. Bartlett, at
the Zoological Gardens, who has had such large experi-
ence with birds, whether the male tragopan (one of the
Gallinaceae) was polygamous, I was struck by his answer-
ing, " I do not know, but should think so from his splen-
did colors."

It deserves notice that the instinct of pairing with
a single female is easily lost under domestication. The
wild-duck is strictly monogamous, the domestic duck
highly polygamous. The Kev. W. D. Fox informs mc
that with some half-tamed wild-ducks, kept on a large
pond in his neighborhood, so many mallards were shot by
the gamekeeper that only one was left for every seven or
eight females ; yet unusually large broods were reared.
The guinea-fowl is strictly monogamous; but Mr. Fox
finds that his birds succeed best when he keeps one cock
to two or three hens.® Canary-birds pair in a state of na-

' The llcv, E. S. Dixou, however, speaks positively (' Ornaracutal

262

THE PRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

ture, but the breeders in England successfully put one
male to four or five females ; nevertheless the first female,
as Mr. Fox has been assured, is alone treated as the wife,
she and her young ones being fed by him ; the others are
treated as concubines. I have noticed these cases, as it
renders it in some degree probable that monogamous spe-
cifes, in a state of nature, might readily become either tem-
porarily or permanently polygamous.

With respect to reptiles and fishes, too little is known
of their habits to enable us to speak of their marriage-
arrangements. The stickle-back (Gasterosteus), however,
is said to be a polygamist ; " and the male during the
breeding-season difiers conspicuously from the female.

To sum up on the means through which, as far as we
can judge, sexual selection has led to the development of
secondary sexual characters. It has been shown that the
largest number of vigorous offspring will be reared from
the pairing of the strongest and best-armed males, which
have conquered other males, with the most vigorous and
best-nourished females, which are the first to breed in the
spring. Such females, if they select the more attractive,
and at the same time vigorous, males, will rear a larger
number of offspring than the retarded females, which
must pair with the less vigorous and less attractive males.
So it will be if the more vigorous males select the more
attractive and at the same time healthy and vigorous fe-
males ; and this will especially hold good if the male de-
fends the female, and aids in providing food for the young.
The advantage thus gained by the more vigorous pairs in
rearing a larger number of offspring has apparently suf-
ficed to render sexual selection efficient. But a large pre-
ponderance in number of the males over the females would

Poultry,' 1848, p. 76) about the eggs of the guinea-fowl being infertile
when more than one female is kept with the same male.
Noel Humphreys, ' River Gardens,' 1857.

CUAP. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

2G3

be still more efficient ; whether the preponderance was
only occasional and local, or permanent ; whether it oc-
curred at birth, or subsequently from the greater destruc-
tion of the females ; or whether it indirectly followed from
the practice of polygamy.

The Male gemrally more modified than the Female. —
Throughout the animal kingdom, when the sexes differ
from each other in external appearance, it is the male
which, with rare exceptions, has been chiefly modified ;
for the female still remains more like the young of her
own species, and more like the other members of the same
group. The cause of this seems to lie in the males of
almost all animals having stronger passions than the fe-
males. Hence it is the males that fight together and sedu-
lously display their charms before the females ; and those
which are victorious transmit their superiority to their
male offspring. Why the males do not transmit their
characters to both sexes will hereafter be considered.
That tlie males of all mammals eagerly pursue the females
is notorious to every one. So it is with birds ; but many
male birds do not so much pursue the female, as display
tlieir plumage, perform strange antics, and pour fortli
their song, in her presence. With tlie few fish whicli have
})een ol>served, tlic male seems much more eager than the
female; and so it is with alligators, and api)arently with
Datrachians. Throughout the enormous class of insects,
as Kirby remarks," "the law is, that the male shall seek
the female." With spiders and crustaceans, as I hear
Irom two great authorities, Mr. ]>lackwall and iNfr. C.
Spencc Bate, the males are more active and more erratic
in tlicir liabits than the females. With insects and crus-
taceans, when the organs of sense or lo('<iim>tion are jtres-

" Kirhy und Spt'iicc, ' Introdiu tion to Kiitonjology,' vol. iii. 182f»,

264

THE PRINCirLES OF

[Part II.

ent in the one sex and absent in the other, or when, as is
frequently the case, they are more highly developed in the
one than the other, it is almost invariably the male, as far
as I can discover, which retains such organs, or has them
most devoloped ; and this shows that the male is the more
active member in the courtship of the sexes."

The female, on the other hand, with the rarest excep-
tion, is less eager than the male. As the illustrious Hun-
ter " long ago observed, she generally " requires to bo
courted ; " she is coy, and may often be seen endeavoring
for a long time to escape from the male. Every one who
has attended to the habits of animals will be able to call
to mind instances of this kind. Judging from various
facts, hereafter to be given, and from the results which
may fairly be attributed to sexual selection, the female,
though comparatively passive, generally exerts some
choice and accepts one male in preference to others. Or
she may accept, as appearances would sometimes lead us
to believe, not the male which is the most attractive to
her, but the one which is the least distasteful. The ex-
ertion of some choice on the part of the female seems
almost as general a law as the eagerness of the male.

We are naturally led to inquire why the male in so
many and such widely-distinct classes has been rendered
more eager than the female, so that he searches for her
and plays the more active part in courtship. It would be

^2 One parasitic Hymenopterous insect (Westwood, ' Modem Class,
of Insects,' vol. ii. p. 160) forms an exception to the rule, as the male
has rudimentary wings, and never quits the cell in which it is bom,
while the female has well-developed wings. Audouin believes that the
females are impregnated by the males which are born in the same cells
with them ; but it is much more probable that the females visit other
cells,, and thus avoid close interbreeding. We shall hereafter meet with
a few exceptional cases,. in various classes, in which the female, instead
of the male, is the seeker and wooer.

^3 'Essays and Observations,' edited by Owen, vol. i. 1861, p. 194.

Chap. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

265

no advantage and some loss of power if both sexes were
mutually to searcli for each other ; but why shoukl the
male almost always be the seeker? With plants, the
ovules after fertilization have to be nourished for a time ;
hence the pollen is necessarily brought to the female or-
gans— being placed on the stigma, through the agency of
insects or of the wind, or by the spontaneous movements
of the stamens ; and with the Alga?, etc., by the locomo-
tive power of the antherozooids. With lowly-organized
animals permanently affixed to the same spot and having
their sexes separate, the male element is invariably
brought to the female ; and we can see the reason ; for
the ova, even if detached before being fertilized and not
requiring subsequent nourishment or protection, wouhl
be, from their larger relative size, less easily transjiorted
than the male element. Hence plants and many of tlie
lower animals are, in this respect, analogous. In the case
of animals not affixed to the same spot, but enclosed
within a shell with no power of protruding any part of
tlit'ir bodies, and in the case of animals liaving little
})Ower of locomotion, the males must trust the fertilizing
element to the risk of at least a short transit through t he-
waters of the sea. It would, therefore, be a great advan-
tage to such animals, as their organization became jut-
fected, if the males when ready to emit the fertilizing eU^
inent, were to acquire the habit of apprt)aehing the female
as closely as po8sil)le. 'J'hc males of various lowly-organ-
ized animals having thus aboriginally acquired tlie liabit
of aj>proaehing :iiid seeking the females, tlie same habit
would nattu'ally be transmitted to their more highly-«K'-
veloped male descendants; ami in order tlint they should

I'rof. Such* (•Lehrlmch dcr Hotiinlk/ 1870, n. flSa) in i«i»o«kln« of
the male mid r«*iiia1u n'proiluctivt? itIIm, rciimrkit : " Vorliull pU'Ii tlio «
bri (I<T Vrn'iniguug ftiliv, (lio iituKru craohciut lu-i dor \ -!. ; i

gtlllg puriAiv."

2GG

THE rRLVCIl LES OF

[Part II.

become efficient seekers, they would have to be endowed
with strong j>assions. The acquirement of such passions
would naturally follow from the more eager males leaving
a larger number of otrsi)ring tlian the less eager.

Tlic great eagerness of the male has thus indirectly
led to the much more frequent development of secondary
sexual characters in the male than in the female. But
the development of such characters will have been much
aided, if the conclusion at which I arrived, after studying
domesticated animals, can be trusted, namely, that the
male is more liable to vary than the female. 1 am aware
Iiow diflicult it is to verify a conclusion of this kind.
Some slight evidence, however, can be gained by compar-
ing the two sexes in mankind, as man has been more care-
fully observed than any other animal. During the No-
vara Expedition " a vast nnmber of measurements of va-
rious parts of the body in different races were made, and
the men were found in almost every case to present a
greater range of variation than the women ; but I shall
liavc to recur to this subject in a future chapter. Mr. J.
Wood,*' who has carefully attended to the variation of the
muscles in man, puts in italics the conclusion that " the
greatest nnmber of abnormalities in each subject is found
in tlic males." He had previously remarked that " alto-
gether in 102 subjects the varieties of redundancy were
found to be half as many again as in females, contrasting
widely with the greater frequency of deficiency in females
before described." Prof. INIacalister likewise remarks "

'"Rcise (ler Novara: Anthropolog. Tbeil,' 18G7, b. 210-269. The
results were calculated by Dr. Wcisbacli from mcasurcmeuts made by
Drs. K. Scherzer and Schwarz. On the greater variability of tlie males
of domesticated animals, see my ' Variation of Animals and Plants under
Domestication,' vol. ii. 1868, p. 75.

»• Troceedings Royal Soc' vol. xvi. July, 1868, pp. C19, C24.

>' Troc. Royal Iriah Academy,' vol. x. 1808, p. 123.

Ciur. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELHTinv

that variutioDH in the muscles are probably more com*
men in malcfl than femalefi.*' Certain miuiclcii which aro
not nonnally present in mankind arc al!»o more frequently
cleveIoi)ed in the male than in the female sex, aIthoii«;h
excei)tion8 to this rule are said to occur. Dr. Jiurt Wild-
er" lias tabulated the cases of 152 individuals with hu-
jK'niumerary di«;its,of which h«J were males, and 39, or less
tlian half, females ; the rcmaininrr 27 bein^^ of unknown
sex. It should not, however, Ik? overlooked that women
would more frequently endeavor to conceal a deformity
of this kind than men. Whether the lar^^e proiK>rtional
numl>er of deaths of the male of]j»prin^ of man and appar-
riitly of sheep, compared with the female ofl" be>
fore, durin)^, and shortly after birlh (se** - ' , haa

any relation to a stron^^er tendency in li.. ■ r_,.»i.- - i tho
in t!-' f'l vary and thus to become abnonital in structur. nr
II, I will not pretend to conjecture.
In various classcn of ajiimals a few exceptional • . >
<»<*cur, in wliich the female instead of the male t*^
quired well-pronounccd secondary sexual characters, such
im brij^hter <nlor«, px'ater size, strength, or pugnacity.
With binls, as we shall hereafter »«'0, there has ft<»metimi'«
Inhmi a complete tranop^iHit ioii of the «ir ' rt
pro|»cr to e:irli thi* f* in il« ■» !i i uura

eaj»er in con m il. ^ r< : . !y

pajii»iv<-. bii» , ' ' J

tho :

birds havM thuji iM-^n n

i»therwis«* ornaniriit«sl, as well as morv powerful and

I) , than tho niAlio, iti« •<«- • bcinf^ tmn^nni-

t» d l« the * • ;il..ni .

It 11 ».

> MmUmI Hue* «a

208

THE rRINCIl'LFS OF

[Vavlt II.

selected the more attractive females, and the laUei the
more attractive males. This process, however, though it
mij^lit lead to the modification of both sexes, would not
make the one sex ditlerent from the other, unless indeed
their taste for the beautiful diflered; but this is a Buppo-
sition too improbable in the case of any animal, excepting
man, to be worth considerini;. Tlu re are, however, many
animals, in which the sexes resemble each other, both
being furnished with the same ornaments, which analogy
would lead us to attribute to the agency of sexual selec-
tion. In such cases it may be suggested with more
])lausibility, that there has been a double or mutual pro-
cess of sexual selection ; the more vigorous and precocious
females having selected the more attractive and vigorous
males, the latter having rejected all except the more at-
tr.ictive females. But, from what we know of the habits
of animals, this view is hanlly probable, the male being
generally eager to pair with any female. It is more
probable that the ornaments common to both sexes were
acquired by one sex, generally the male, and then trans-
mitted to the offspring of both sexes. If, indeed, during
a lengthened period the males of any species were greatly
to exceed the femaU s in number, and then during auothci
lengthened ]>eriod under ditlerent conditions the reverse
were to occur, a double, but not simultaneous, process of
sexual selection might easily be carried on, by which the
two sexes might be rendered widely ditlerent.

We shall hereafter see that many animals exist, of
which neither sex is brilliantly colored or provided with
special ornaments, and yet the members of both sexes or
of one alone have probably been modified through sexual
selection. The absence of bright tints or other ornaments
may be the result of variations of the right kind never
Iiaving occurred, or of the animals themselves preferring
simple colors, such as plain black or white. Obscure

Clur VIII.)

SEXUAL SBLECnOK.

2G9

colnrM have often licen acquire<l through natural M;lecti >n
for tlio sako of prr>te<*tion, antl the accjuirement thr<»i
sexual ^ II of couHpictiouB colors, may bavo b< • •
checked Iruin the dani^er thus incurriMl. Hut in ot
cases the mules have probably Bt-- ' * ' ■ r dun; _'

lonj:^ ftg^**> through brute force, oi u, ih» <ii'j>.uy of ll - r
charms, or by Ixith means combin* ] : 'i.l yt-t no cfl'« • :
will have Wen jmxlured ii"'. n I 'iMib. r »'f ■

spring were left by the n.

their 8ui>erionty, than by the b ful malet; and

this, as prcvioufily shown, d< on varioiu complex

contingencies.

Sexual ^ 0 in a less rigorous manner than

natural seKcUun. i he latter produces its eflects by tbo
bff or death at all ages of the more or less sudx-ssful
individuals. Death, indeed, not rarely ensues from thu
ronnicts of rival niakit. Hut generally the less successful
male merely fuils to obtain a fi-male, or obtains later in
the season a retanleil and less \ igorous female, or, if :
amoul, obtains fewer females; so that they leave
or less vigorous, or no oflspring. In reirnrd to stm
acquireil through onlinary or i la
most • as t' IS ul hlu riuuuu iho

• r^US TOO ' •* loo

I ' r ■

di ! n;

Ml that as lont; an the |>r<>|M i \ of

I will go ••II ftaft-

ly the 1 vWt «ry amtmal

» J . . . ;

2V0 TIIK PUIXCirLES OF

LPaut II.

•legree, eitlR-r l.y expeiuling too mucli oi iht'ir vital
powers, or by exposing them to any grout danger. The
development, however, of certain structures— of the horns,
for instance, in certain stags— lias been carried to a won-
<lerful extreme; and in some instances to an extreme
whicli, as far as the general conditions of life are con-
cerned, must be sliglitly injurious to the male. From this
fact we learn that the advantages which favored males
have derived from conquering other males in battle or
courtship, and tlius leaving a numerous progeny, have
been in the long-run greater than those derived from
rather more perfect adaptation to the external conditions
of life. We shall further see, and this could never have
been anticipated, that the power to charm the female has
been in some few instances more important than the
power to conquer other males in battle.

LAWS OF INIIEUITANCE.

In order to understand how sexual selection has acted,
and ni the course of ages has produced cons,)icuous re-
suits with many animals of many classes, it is necessary
to bear in mind the laws of inheritance, as far as they are
known. Two distinct elements are included under the
term "inheritance," namely, the transmission and the
development of characters; but as these generally go to-
gether, the distinction is often overlooked. We see this
distinction in those characters which are transmitted
through the early years of life, but are developed only at
maturity or during old age. We see the same distmction
more clearly with secondary sexual characters, for these
are transmitted through both sexes, though developed in
one alone. That they are present in both sexes, is mani-
fest when two species, having strongly-marked sexual
characters, are crossed, for each transmits the characters

6EXUAL SELBCTIOX.

271

projRT to its own male and female box to tbc liybri«l off-
t-i'nu'^ of both Acxes. The same fact U likewiM ma;
when cliaractcn pro|>cr to the male are occaflionallj tlc-
velo{>ed in the female when slie grows old or Uecomes
•liM4»ai^MI; and bo conversely with the male. Again, char*
oocasionally appear, as if tranKfrrred from the male
I ' iii- female, m when, in ce rtain bniil« of the fowl, ftpunt
r "Ml ir!v Mp{»ear in the young and healtliy females; hut
t. .1. li yarebimply derelopod in the female; for in
• \ < r>' breed each detail in tho structure of the fptir is
r r:iii«iiiitted tlirt)ugh the female to her male oflspr hi
(11 cases of rereriion, characters are transmitted through
fu o^ three, or many gefn r;itions, and are tlu-n under cer-
tain unknown ! ^le comlitiniiH •! Tliis im*
'. "tant ilirttinctioii i» ' tran^iini"- mcnt
ii. .il Ik* ea«tif»»t \ • " . uiiii i by tho i . i li\ jH>th(*!«i!t

- >>r u< f \* }•> ^ • • 1 a* tnie. Ac*
:.. -1-, ' I! .'f t! .• b.-lv

- "fT ^ or nt i . '.V i . . . .

tr I > d In t ' of lM»th sexea, and an' mMlii-

d by SI .T n*main uml d

tho early yenrs f>f life or •! uccrssive grnera*

thi-ir di- ur cells, like th«MM«

•II whi' ' • ' ty

//•/ <<v rff ' / t$ of I 1 U

••r U V If A nrw «

II an u it ell it

iifr or laats only f(»r a

III ih

272

TnE PRINCIPLES OF

[Part IL

from this rule occur, the transmitted characters much of-
tener appear before than aft'er tlie corresponding age. As
I liave discussed this subject at sufficient length in another
work," I will here merely give two or three instances, for
the sake of recalling the subject to the reader's mind. In
several breeds of the Fowl, the chickens while covered
Avith down, in their first true plumage, and in their adult
plumage, differ greatly from eaph other, as well as from
their common parent-form, the G alius hankiva j and these
characters are faithfully transmitted by each l>reed to their
offs^^ring at the corresponding period of life. For instance,
the chickens of spangled llamburgs, while covered with
down, have a few dark spots on the head and rump, but
are not longitudinally striped, as in many other breeds ; in
their first true plumage, " they are beautifully pencilled."
that is, each feather is transversely marked by numerous
dark bars ; but in their second plumage the feathers all
become spangled or tijiped with a dark round spot.'"
Hence in this breed variations have occurred and liave
been transmitted at three distinct periods of life. The
Pigeon offers a more remarkable case, because the abori-
ginal parent-species does not undergo with advancing age
any change of plumage, excepting that at maturity the
breast becomes more iridescent ; yet there are breeds which
do not acquire their characteristic colors until they have
moulted two, three, or four times ; and these modifications
of plumage are regularly transmitted.

' The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication,' vol ii.
18G8, p, 75. In the last chapter but one, the provisional hypothesis of
[tanjjcncsis, above alluded to, is fully explained.

These facts are given on the high authority of a great breeder, Mr.
Teebay, in Tegetmeier's ' Poultry Book,' 1868, p. 158. On the characters
of chickens of different breeds, and on the breeds of the pigeon, alluded
to in the above paragraph, see ' Variation of Animals,' etc. vol. i. pp. 160,
249 ; vol ii. p. 77.

CllAP. VIII.]

SEXUAL .SELECTION*.

273

lnh»:rUance cU Corresponding Seasons of the Year. —
With animals in a statu of nature innumerable instances
occur of characters i>criodically appearing at ditlerent sea-
sons. We sec this with the horns of the stag, and with
tlic fur of arctic animals which becomes thick and white
during the whiter. Xumerous birds acquire bright colors
and other decorations duruig the breeding-season alone. I
can throw but little light on this form of inheritance from
facts obsen'ed under domestication. I'allas states " that, in
Siberia, domestic cattle and horses periodically become
lighter-c^jlored during the winter; and I have observed a
similar marked change of color in certain ponies in Eng-
land. Although I do not know that this tendency to
Hume a dillerently-colored coat during different seasons of
the year is transmitted, yet it probably is so, as all shades
of color are strongly inherited by the horse. Nor is this
form of inheritance, as limited by seastin, more remarkable
than inheritance as limited by age or sex.

Itiii' i il'i/,' . <i.i J^iniitt'l by Scjc. — The ctjual transmis-
hion of clmracu rs to both sexes is the commonost form of
inlu-ritance, at least with those animals which ilo not pre-
M«Mit strongly-marked sexual ilillVrences, and indifd with
many of these. IJut characters are not ran ly lran!*ferrvd
exclusively to that sex, in which they firwt np|»oanHl.
Ample evidence on this he.ad lias bt m advanci-d in my
work on Variatitm under Donu stication ; but a few in-
ntances may here Imj given. TIhto un» breedn of the i»hr« p
and f(<»at, in which thn Imrns of the ninlo dilTcr greatly in
Hlia|M« frt)m tliofu* of the female; and theRo dilTerenceM,
• piired under domcMtieation, are n»gulnrly tninf«mit(< i '

|Hvl.-« ' • !liic,' p. 7. <•

»'•'•••«. ' > of AiiiiuaU, rlr , till .. r

274

THE TRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

tlic same sex. With tortoise-shell cats the females alone,
as a general rule, are tlius colored, the males being nisty-
i-ed. With most breeds of the fowl, the characters proper
to each sex are transmitted to the same sex alone. So
general is this form of transmission that it is an anomaly
when we see in certain breeds variations transmitted equal-
ly to both sexes. There are also certain sub-breeds of the
fowl in which the males can hardly be distinguished from
each other, while the females difter considerably in color.
With the pigeon the sexes of the parent-species do not
differ in any external character; nevertheless in certain
domesticated breeds the male is differently colored from
the female.'^* The wattle in the English Carrier-pigeon
and the crop in the Pouter are more highly developed in
the male than in the female ; and although these characters
have been gained through long-continued selection by man,
the difference between the two sexes is wholly due to tlie
form of inheritance which has prevailed ; for it has arisen,
not from, but rather in opposition to, the wishes of the
breeder.

Most of our domestic races have been formed by the
accumulation of many slight variations ; and as some of
the successive steps have been transmitted to one sex
alone, and some to both sexes, we find in the different
breeds of the same species all gradations between great
sexual dissimilarity and complete similarity. Instances
have already been given with the breeds of the fowl and
pigeon ; and under Nature analogous cases are of fre-
quent occurrence. With animals under domestication, but
whether under Nature I will not venture to say, one sex
may lose characters proper to it, and may thus come to
resemble to a certain extent the opposite sex ; for in-
stance, the males of some breeds of the fowl have lost

Dr. Chapuis, *Lc Pigeon Voyagcur Bclgc,' 18G5, p. 87. Boitard
ct Corbie, ' Les Pigeons dc Volierc,' etc., 1824, p. 173.

CilAl'. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

275

their masculine plumes and hackles. On the other haml,
the (lifTercnces between the sexes may be increased under
domestication, as with merino sheej), in which the ewes
liave lost their horns. Again, characters proper to one
se.v may suddenly appear in the other sex ; as with those
Kub-breeds of the fowl in which the hens while young ac-
quire spurs ; or, as in certain Polish sub-breeds, in whicli
llie females, as tliere is reason to believe, originally ac-
quired a crest, and subsequently transferred it to the
males. All these cases are intelligible on the hypothesis
of pangenesis ; for they depend on the gemmules of certain
units of the body, although present in both sexes, becoming
through the influence of domestication dormant in tlie one
sex ; or, if naturally dormant, becoming developed.

There is one difficult question which it will be conven-
ient to defer to a future chapter; namely, whether a char-
acter, at first deveh)j)ed in both sexes, can be rendered
through selection limited in its developnu'ut to one sex
alone. If, for instance, a breeder observed that some of
liis pigeons (in whicli species cliaracters are usually trans-
ferred in an equal degree to botli sexes) varied into pale
l»lue; could he by long-continued selection make a bree«l,
ill which the males alone should be of this tint wliile the
leiiialeH remained unehaiiged ? I will here only say thai
this, thougli perhaps not imp<»>vil»K>^ would be extremely
diflieult; for the natural result of. breeding from the pale-
blue nmles would be to change Ids whole stock, ineluding
both sexes, into this tint. If, however, variati»»ns of the
dehireil lint appeared, which were from the lin*t limited
in their development to the male box, thoro wouM not l»e
the least diflieult y in nuiking a breed charucterireil by the
two nexi*» being of II dilVereut color, nii indeeil has Im'cii
elleeted with a IWh^'ian bnetl, in whicli the nialen alone
are Htreaked with bla< k. In ti hintilar manner, if any \uri*
Mlion appeared in a female pigeon, which was fruiu tliu

270

THE miNCIPLES OF

[Part II.

first sexually limited in its development, it would be easy
to make a breed with tlie females alone thus character-
ized ; but if the variation was not thus originally limited,
tlie process would be extremely difficult, perhaps impos-
sible.

0)1 the Relation between the period of Development of
a Character and its transmission to one sex or to hoth
sexes. — Why certain characters should bo inherited by
both sexes, and other characters by one sex alone, namely,
by that sex in which the character first appeared, is in
most cases quite unknown. We cannot even conjecture
why with certain sub-breeds of the pigeon, black stria?,
tliough transmitted through the female, should be de-
vclo2)ed in the male alone, while every other character is
equally transferred to both sexes. Why, again, with cats,
tlie tortoise-shell color should, with rare exceptions, be
developed in the female alone. The very same characters,
such as deficient or supernumerary digits, color-blindness,
etc., may with mankind be inherited by the males alone
of one family, and in another family by the females alone,
though in both cases transmitted through the opposite as
well as the same sex." Although we are thus ignorant,
two rules often hold good, namely, that variations which
first appear in either sex at a late period of life, tend to
be developed in the same sex alone ; while variations
which first appear early in life in either sex tend to be
developed in both sexes. I am, however, far from sujv
posing that this is the sole determining cause. As I have
not elsewhere discussed this subject, and as it has an im-
portant bearing on sexual selection, I must liere enter
into lengthy and somewhat intricate details.

It is in itself probable that any character a])pcaring at

References are given in my ' Variation of Animals under Domasti-
cation,* vol. ii. p. 72.

CUAP. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELF.CTIO.V.

277

an early age would tend to be inherited equally by both
sexes, for the sexes do not ditfer much in constitution, be-
fore the power of reproduction is gained. On the other
hand, after this power lias been gained and the sexes have
c(>nie to ditfer in constitution, the gemniules (if I may
again use the language of pangenesis) wiru h are cast oil*
Irom each varying part in the one sex would be much
more likely to possess the proper affinities for uniting
with the tissues of the same sex, and thus bocomiii'^^ de-
veloped, than with those of the opposite sex.

I was first led to infer that a relation of this kind ex-
ists, from the fact that whenever and in whatever manner
the adult male has come to differ from the adult female,
he differs in the same manner from the young of lK»th
sexes. The generality of this fact is quite remarkable : it
holds good with almost all mammals, binls, amphibians,
and fishes ; also with many crustaceans, spiders, and some
few insects, namely, certain orthoptera and libelhihe. In
all these cases the variations, through the accumulation of
which the male acquired his proj>er masculine characters,
must have occurred at a somewhat late iM?riod of life ;
otherwise the young males would have been similarly
eharacterizcd ; and confonnably with our rule, they are
transmitted to and developtd in the adult males alone.
When, on the other hand^ the adult niah* closely resem-
bh s the young of Inith sexes (thes<», with rare exc*'pti<»ns,
bring alike), ho generally resembles the adult fern
and in most of these cuhvh the variations thh)U«:h \s\
the young and old arrpiired their present charaoten*, pi
ably occurn'd in <'onformity with our nile during yt>uth.
r»ut ihero in here rtHmx for doubt, an ehanictem are sonu^
tinw« trnni«ferred to the oflVpring At «n earlier ajf«' th:ni
that at which they fin«t np|M ared in the panMila, lo t
the pariMitM niny have varied when ndull, nnd h.tve trun^
f»'rrrd their charaetern to rlieir ofTupriiig while n-<.ii'.

278

THE rRINCIPLES OF

[Paut II.

There are, moreover, many animals, in whicli tlie two
sexes closely resemble each other, and yet both difler
from tht'ir young ; and lu re tlie characters of the adults
must liave been acquired late in life ; nevertheless, these
characters in apparent contradiction to our rule, are trans-
ferred to both sexes. We must ^not, however, overlook
the possibility or even probability of successive variations
of the same nature sometimes occurring, under exposure
to similar conditions, simultaneously in both sexes at a
rather late period of life ; and iu this case the variations
would be transferred to the offs2)ring of both sexes at a
corresponding late age ; and there would be no real con-
tradiction to our rule of the variations which occur late in
life being transferred exclusively to the sex in which they
first appeared. This latter rule seems to hold true more
generally than the second nde, namely, that variations
which occur in either sex early in life tend to be trans-
ferred to both sexes. As it was obviously impossible even
to estimate in how large a number of cases throughout the
animal kingdom these two propositions hold good, it oc-
curred to me to investigate some striking: or crucial in-
stances, and to rely on the result.

An excellent case for investigation is afforded by the
Deer Family. In all the species, excepting one, the horns
are developed in the male alone, though certainly trans-
mitted through the female, and* capable of occasional ab-
normal development in her. In the reindeer, on the other
hand, the female is provided with bonis ; so that in this
species, the horns ought, according to our rub', to appear
early in life, long before the two sexes hacf arrived at
maturity and had come to differ much in constitution. In
all the other species of deer the horns ought to appear
later in life, leading to their development in that sex
alone, in which they first a]>peared in the progenitor of
the whole Family. Now, in seven species, belonging to

Chap. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTIoy.

279

distinct 8<*ction» of the family an<l inhabiting; (liflV-n-nr
n-'^ioiiH, in which tlic stags alone bear horni*, 1 fin«l t
the homs tirst ajtpear at perioiifl varying from ninemon
after birth in the roebuck to ten or twelve more months
ill the BtJigs of the nix other larger Bix^cies.** liut with
tlie reindeer the case w widely diften-nt, for sla I hear from
Prof. XiliMon, who kindly made H|>ecial inquiries for me
in Lapland, the horns appear in the lU within

four or five wi*eks after birth, aiul .ii Ui< -.ime time in
ImiiIi Hexes. So that Iutc we have a •*tru«'ture, dfv< ' ; • !
at a niOHt unusually early age in one ..f t' • •

and common to Ixjth Hexes in this

In sevenil kinds of antc*lo|>e]i ih. i . i ilone are pn»-
viilcd with homH, while in the gn-ater numl>er both »<
have honw. With rei*|>ecl to the |M'ri(Kl of development,
Mr. niyth infonns me that there lived at one time in the
/. ' d (tarilens a young koo<Ioo {Ant, '
III wi.iiii ii|>ecies the maleM alone arc honi<'i, .m i
y-Ming of m clonely-allicil fi|M-. ir««, vit, the elaml (.1.'.

' ». iti wM«'li l>olli M'xeji ar»' horned. Now in »tri« t
. Ii our rule, in the young nuilo kiHxI«K», al-
'h arrive<I at the age of ten months, the hi>rn< ^«
> • "ly Kmall considering the nizA' ultiinut«*ly a'

by them: whilo in the young mule eland, a
thn'<* months oM, the hornn were already \« ry niucit
than in tho ko<Mlo«). It is al»<> Wiirth notice tliat in u.>

»* 1 ftm m i li , I ■. M ' .

f», • in f. ! \ > iUc II ' ; « . I i; : 1' • ^'

•ji, -wf II. . ■ • • \' In

t' i%r^ lo t «>r, 1 •< 'vir lolonM*

I. I

J. J. ..... <.

MOM MMHUmI, M J. D

ti I .« UMot V ^« Umi. «k« mmt.*

|tS7, (k. .iii. «

280

THE rRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

prong-liorncd antelope," in which species the liorns, thous^h
])resent in both sexes, are almost rudimentary in the
female, they do not appear until about five or six months
after birth. With sheep, goats, and cattle, in which the
liorus are well developed in both sexes, though not quite
equal in size, they can be felt, or even seen, at birth, or
soon afterward." Our mle, however, fails in regard to
some breeds of sheep, for instance, merinos, in which the
rams alone arc homed; for I cannot find on inquiry," that
the horns are developed later in life in this breed than in
ordinary sheep in which both sexes are horned. But with
domesticated sheep the presence or absence of horns is
not a firmly-fixed character; a certain proportion of the
merino ewes bearing small horns, and some of the rams
being hornless ; while with ordinary slu-ep hornless ewes
are occasionally produced.

In most of the species of the splendid family of the
l*heasants, the males difter conspicuously from the females,
and they acquire their ornaments at a rather late period of
life. The eared pheasant (Cross opt ilo7i auritum)^ how-
ever, offers a remarkable exception, for both sexes possess

" Antilocapra Americana. Owen, ' Anatomy of Vertebrates,' vol.
^ • iii. p. 627.

I have been assured that the horns of the sheep in North Wales
can always be felt, and are sometimes even an inch in length, at birth.
With cattle Youutt says (' Cattle,' 1834, p. 277) that the prominence of
the frontal bone penetrates the cutis at birth, and that the homy matter
is soon formed over it.

I am greatly indebted to Prof. Victor Cams for having made in-
quiries for me, from the highest authorities, with respect to the merino
pheep of Saxony. On the Guinea coast of Africa there is a breed of
sheep in which, as with merinos, the rams alone bear horns; and Mr.
Winwood Reade informs me that in the one case observed, a young ram
bom on February 10th first showed homs on March Gth, so that in this
/iistance the development of the horns occurred at a later period of life,
conformably with our rule, than in the Webh sheep, in which both gcxca
are homed. *

Chat. VIIL]

8BXCAL SELECTION.

281

the fine caudal iilumes, the large ear-tuft.s and the crinuiou
vi'lvi't about the head; and I tind on inquiry in the Z^^-
olo^ical Gardens that all those characters, in accordance
with our rule, ajipar very early in life. The adult male
can, liowever, be di»tingui«hed from the adult female by
one character, namely, by the j»re»ence of Bpuni; and
conformably with our rule, thcfte do not Wpn t** be dt»-
velf)|K?d, an I am a.H«ured by Mr. Hartlett, before the age
ot hix monthn, and even at this age, can hardly be dii»-
liiit^uiAhed in tho two eexcA.** llie malu and female
IVacook difTer conHjiicuounly from each other in almost
every part of their plumage, except in the elegant head-
creiit, which is common to both sexes ; and this is de-
velojK'd very early in life, long b«fore the other onia-
rii« ntM which arc confine*! to the n l*lic wild-duck

• •tlrnt an analogous caKc, for the lieauuiui gnen ff|M-culuni
on tho wings is common to l>oth sexen, though tlulh r and
' ..rill what smaller in the f. :\ut\ it is d« velo|H d early

1 i , u the curled t . . n* and t»ther ornan»» nls
fH-culiar to the male are develojMjd later."* IWtwivn such

'* In iIm eooHBOO pssoock (/^m« erutmhu) tho iuaIc akmr pnM«>Mr«
in, whUm boUi Miss of the Jara p««rock (/'. mmitrus) uflTcr thr unu-
•11*1 rwMoCbtlaf AmritlMd with vpura. II«t»e« I IVUIj «X|>rrtr«l lh*t la
ku«r iptoiiS II1S7 wottkl hare basa dcvalopad «srlUr la ikuk km
liii^ MMM pMconk i ImI U, ll««t, of l—iinlaa. laCanM m ikH,
w ah jro«a( birdi of Ibo prwloos jmt, \ i lrwult to boUi ■yigitj, coa»>
l«r»(l 00 Aprfl SI, 1»£9. ilm vm m dUbraaeo la Um ilgyrfn|WMl of
tlir apvti. TIm •p«f«, bovevvr, vrrr aa f»t fOpTMBlod BOfllj bf S%kl
kbob* or oloraUoML I ftrtmmm UmI 1 tbooU Wro htm lalbnatd If
•nj dlAMOMO la Um rsi« of tWrviofiaMiM kad wib»<«q<Mlty Imc« ob<
•«r»»d.

** la MMM oUkT flK^ir* i.f ti.> t> . t > . ' .

f k«, ihMi la Um maim oT iko caoHMa dacit, m ooglit la U Uw

• . I.! "

282

TUE FRLNCIPLES OF

[Fart II.

extreme cases of close sexual rcsomblimcc and wide dis-
similarity, as those of the Crossoptiloii and peacock, many
intermediate ones could l>c given, in which the characters
follow in their order of development our two rules.

As most insects emeri^e from their ]>upal state in a
mature condition, it is doubtful wliether the period of de-
velopment determines the transference of their characters
to one or both sexes. But we do not know that the col-
ored scales, for instance, in two species of butterflies, in
one of which the sexes differ in color, while in the other
they are alike, are developed at the same relative age in
the cocoon. Nor do we know whether all the scales are
simultaneously developed on the wings of the same spe-
cies of butterfly, in which certain colored marks are con-
fined to one sex, while other marks are common to both
sexes. A ditfereftce of this kind in the period of develoj>-
ment is not so improbable as it may at first appear ; for,
with the Orthoptrra, which assume their adult state, not
by a single metamorphosis, but by a succession of moults,
the young males of some species at first resemble the fe-
males, and acquire their distinctive masculine characters
only during a later moult. Strictly analogous cases occur
during the successive moults of certain male crustaceans.

We have as yet only considered the transference of
characters, relatively to their period of development, with
species in a natural state ; we will now turn to domesti-
cated animals; first touching on monstrosities and dis-
eases. The ])resence of supernumerary digits, and the

mage, and to a considerable degree in the speculum, which is pure white
in the male and grayish-white in the female. Now the young males at
first resemble, in all respects, the female, and have a grayish-white spec-
ulum, but this becomes pure white at an earlier age than that at which
the adult mule acquires his other more Htron^^ly-niarkcd sexual dilTer-
enccs in plumage: see Audubon, * Oniilhological Biography,' rol. iiL
1835, pp. 249, 250.

Chap. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION'.

289

absence of certain phalan^cfl, mtist be determiocd at an
early cnibryunic period — I lie tcn<lc ncy to profuse bleeding
in at least congenital, as is probably color- blindness — yet
tliese peculiaritie.*4, and other similar onen, are often limit-
ed in their tranKmi^Hion to one sex ; so that the rule that
characters which arc develojK'd at an early period t4'nd to
be truiisniitted to both sext*s, here wholly fails. 15ut ihi.s
rule, a.s before remarked, d«K-s not appe ar to be nearly so
;;« iu rally true as the converse proJ>o^ilion, namely, that
cljaructer?* whirh ap{><-ar late in life in one sex are trans-
niittvd exclusively to t!i«- itji-- '^••v. From the fact of the
above abnormal |>ecul. mint; attached to one

M X, long before the sixual function- ar. :i< live, wc may
infer that th<-re mubt be a dilTeren* e of lome kind between
the sexes at an extremely early a-.,'*'. With renpect to
H< xually-limited diseases, we know too little of the |M.'nod
at which they originate, to draw any fair < -i<*ii.

< I'lut, however, sc'cnis to fall uinli r our rule ; for a i>

• t iilly rauM'<I by inteti: - < •- inre aft»-r early youth, an<i
t r.iiiHiiiitteil fr«>m the i . , . to his hoji-i in a nuirli in. r.-
iiiarkf*d manner than to his daughters.

In the various domestic brettls of Hlu-ep, gontK, and

< uitle, the mules differ from their rei*|K>cttve femah s in
the shajie or development of their bonis, fu: ,
di'wlnp, toil, and hump on the shoulders; and iheM* \
liarilies, in arrordance with our not fully d«

i iitil rather late in lii«'. \\ ^ tlio toxo* «!•

! • r, except that in < < rtain Vi , ofpeeUUj in

. •li^T-hound, the n»;il« i* !mm - 'rr nnd h** %
than thi' fctiiali* ; and, as ^)t.k . .

the male ^<m>« on lncrra«ih(; in 'tisi* to an «i
|M'n(Ml of lifi\ whit h will n« < ••urtl,
T'r hU ! tixc iMitt^' tran^Mnttcd t<> hia ti

P] u'. l>n lh«' othir Imii'I, tin- l..rt. !•». r

oi I ' li ta i«iiiiiti. .1 Iviaalo cali*, ■'^ i ••'•< -•

284

THE PRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

tinct at birtli, and this case violates our rule. There is a
breed of pigeons in which the males alone are streaked
with black, and the streaks can be detected even in the
nestlings ; but they become more conspicuous at each suc-
cessive moult, so that this case partly opposes and partly
supports the rule. With the English Carrier and Pouter
pigeon the full development of the wattle and the crop
occurs rather late in life, and these characters, conform-
ably with our rule, are transmitted in full perfection to
the males alone. The following cases perhaps come with-
in the class previously alluded to, in w^hich the two sexes
have varied in the same manner at a rather late period of
life, and have consequently transferred their new charac-
ters to both sexes at a corresponding late period ; and if
80, such cases are not opposed to our rule. Thus there
are sub-breeds of the pigeon, described by Neumeister,"
both sexes of which change color after moulting twice or
thrice, as does likewise the Almond Tumbler ; neverthe-
less these changes, though occurring rather late in life,
are common to both sexes. One variety of the Canary-bird,
namely, the London Prize, offers a nearly analogous case.

With the breeds of the Fowl the inheritance of various
characters by one sex or by both sexes seems generally
determined by the period at which such characters are
developed. Thus, in all the many breeds in which the
adult male differs greatly in color from the female and
from the adult male parent-species, he differs from the
young male, so that the newly-acquired characters must
have appeared at a rather late period of life. On the
other hand, with most of the breeds in which the two
sexes resemble each other, the young are colored in nearly
the same manner as their parents, and this renders it proba-

'Das Ganze dcr Taubcnzucht,' 1837, s. 21, 24. For the case of the
Btreaked pigeons, sec Dr. Chapuis, 'Le Pigeon Voyagcur Beige,' 1865,
p. 87

CiiAr. Vlll.J

SEXUAL SELECTION'.

285

l>le that their colors first appeared early in litV*. We have
instances of this fact in all black and white breeds, in
which the young and old of both sexes are alike ; nor can
it be maintained that there is something peculiar in a
black or white jdumage, leading to its transference to
both sexes ; for the males alone of many natural species
are either black or white, the females being very diflef-
cntly colored. With the 80-calle<l Cuckoo 8ul>-breeds of
the fowl, in which the f athers are transversely jK-ncilled
with dark stripes, both sexes and the chirkens are colored
in nearly the same manner. The laced plumage of the
Sebright bantam is the same in lK>th sexes, and in the
chickens the feathers are tipped with black, which makes
a near approach to lacing. Spangled llamburgs, however,
uffer a j)artial exception, for the two sexes, though not
quite alike, resemble each other more closely than do the
sexes of the aboriginal parent-species, yet they acquire
their characteristic plumai^e late in life, for the chickens
are distinctly p('ncille<l. Turning to other characters Ik>
sides color: the males alone of the wiM parent-s|»ccies aiul
of most domestic bree<ls possess a fairly wt ll-*k'Velo|K'd
comb, but in the young of the Spanish fowl it is largely
dcvclojK'd at a very early age, and apparently in oomo-
pieneo of this it is of unusual hikc m th«' adult fonudos.
Ill the (lame breeds pugnacity is develo|>cd at a wonder-
fully early age, of which curi<)UH pr(M>fri could Im) given ;
and this character is tnin<4mitted to Inith sexes, so that
the hens, from their extn iuc ptii^'nacity, are now generally
exhibited in s«'|>arate jmmih. With the Polish brcicds the
bony protuberance of the skull which S'n.t>'>rtn the rr>
partially develo|MMl even before the t h.. arv h .
un«l the rrwit itself so«in begin* to grow, though at liml
feebly;** and in this briHMl a ^Tiut iMiuy protulH'rancH)

For full |t«rli(-iiUr« rrr<rri... i ..u «1| t).. po|»U rM^SStklK
Um MTttal hrvcMU oC iIm KuvI, • \ . oC AbIomU uwl l*kau •!».

28G

THE rilLN'CirLES OF

[Part II.

and an immense crest cliaracterize the adults of botli
Bcxes.

Finally, from what we have now seen of the relation
which exists in many natural species and domesticated
races, between the period of the development of their
characters and the manner of their transmission — for ex-
ample, the striking fact of the early growth of the horns
in the reindeer, in wliich Loth sexes have horns, in com-
parison with their much later growth in the other species
in which the male alone bears horns — w^e may conclude
that one cause, though not the sole cause, of characters
being exclusively inherited by one sex, is their develop-
ment at a late age. And secondly, that one, though ap-
l)arently a less efficient, cause of characters being in-
herited by both sexes is their development at an early
age, while the sexes differ but little in constitution. It
appears, however, that some difierence must exist between
the sexes even during an early embryonic period, for char-
acters developed at this age not rarely become attached
to one sex.

Sumniary and concludhig remarlcs. — From the fore-
going discussion on the various laws of inheritance, we
learn that characters often or even generally tend to be-
come developed in the same sex, at the same age, and pe-
riodically at the same season of the year, in which they
first appeared in the parents. But these laws, from un-
known causes, are very liable to change. Hence the suc-
cessive steps in the modification of a species might readily
be transmitted in difterent ways ; some of the steps being
transmitted to one sex, and some to both ; some to the
ofispring at one age, and some at all ages. Not only are

dor Domestication,' vol. i. pp. 250, 256. In regard to the higher ani.
rnaL-^, the sexual diflcrcnces which have arisen under domestication are
described in the same work under the head of each tpecies.

CiiAP. viri.]

SEXl'AL SELECTION.

297

the biH'8 of inheritance extremely complex, but 80 are the
ca^iscs which induce and govern variability. Tlie varia-
tions thus caused are jireserved and accumulated by sexuiil
selection, which is in itself an extremely complex affair,
de[>ending, as it does, on ardor in love, courage, and the
rivalry of the males, and on the powers of perception,
taste, and will, of the female. Sexual selection will also
be dominated by natural selection fur the general welfare
of the 8|)ecie.<t. Hence the manner in which the individu-
als of cither Bex or of both sexes are affected through
strxual selection cannot fail to be complex in the highe^t
<1( jnc.

When \ .irialiwij.-i occur laic in lih in one sex, and are
transmitted to the same sex at the same age, tlie other w x
an<l the young arc necessarily left unmodified. Wlun
they (K'cur late in life, but arc transmitted to l>oth h \i s
at tlie same age, the young alone are left unmrnlifu 1.
\'ariations, however, may occur at any |»eriod of life in
one BOX or in Ixjth, and bo transmitted to both sexes at
all agen, and then all ihr indiriduaU of the tpecies will
l>e similarly mollified. In the following chapters it will
be HVi'U that all iheM.' cases frequently cHX*ur under natf-

Si'xual selection can never act on anv animal
young, iK'fore the age for repnxbietion has arrive«l. Ki
the great e-i"- niots of tV** innlt- it )»as gi-nerally art. I .11
this wx -t on the : The ntales have thus 1h*-

eonie prtividitl with wea|K>n« for fighting with their ri^
or with organ* fur disrovering and M'Oun*ly holding tho
orfor« t a»d churniiiig h« r. Win 11 the wim

ditlt-r in thuBc t '1, it is also, as wo have scfn, an ex-
tremely gviierul ♦ >t tho adult male ' •
le»« from tlMM' 1 we mav con . . . ;i .

0 m

faet that thr • i , 1. . m ' • V » » . . '

mall* lN<<'anir n.

the agt* for re|»r«^ u. llow, then, arr wr t»

288

TOE PRINCIPLES OF

[Paut II.

for this gcncnil and remarkable coincidence between tlio
jieriod of varial>iHty and tliat of sexnal selection — princi-
j)les which arc quite independent of each other? 1 tliink
we can see the cause: it is not that the males have never
varied at an early age, but that such variations have com-
monly been lost, while those occurring at a later age Lave
been preserved.

All animals produce more offspring than can survive
to maturity; and we have every reason to believe that
death falls heavily on the weak and inexperienced young.
If, then, a certain proportion of the offspring were to vary
at birth or soon afterward, in some manner which at this
age was of no service to them, the chance of the preser-
A'ation of such variations would be small. We have good
evidence under domestication how soon variations of all
kinds are lost, if not selected. But variations which oc-
curred at or near maturity, and which were of immediate
service to either sex, would probably be preserved; ajf
would similar variations occurring at an earlier period in
any individuals which haj>pened to survive. As this prin-
ciple has an important bearing on sexual selection, it may
be advisable to give an imaginary illustration. We will
take a pair of animals, neither very fertile nor the reverse,
and assume that after an'iving at maturity they live on an
average for five years, producing each year live young.
They would thus produce 25 oflspring; and it would not,
I tliink, be an unfair estimate to assume that 18 or 20 out
of the 25 Avould perish before maturity, while still young
and inexperienced ; the remaining seven or five suflicing
to keep up the stock of mature individuals. If so, wc can
see that variations which occurred during youth, for in-
stance, in brightness, and which were not of the least ser-
vice to the young, would run a good chance of being
utterly lost. While similar variations, which occurring
at or near maturity in the comparatively few individuals

rjiu' VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTION.

389

Hurviving to thii$ a«^i', ami which iiiimedUtC'ly gave an
vantage to certain inalcii, by rendering tliem more attrac-
tive to the females, would be likely to be j>re«er\'ed. No
doubt gome of the variations in brightncM which occurred
ut an earlier age M'ould by chance bo prc0cr\'ed, and
eventually give to the male the fiame advantage as thoso
\vlii< h aj»|Kared later; and this \\ ill account for the young
iii.il- •> t Miiunonly partakiip^ to a o-rtain extent (aa may Ik*
< l»-« rved with many birdn) of the briglit colors of tl»» ir
a lult malo parents. If only a few of the successive varia-
tions in brightness were to occur at a late age, the adulfc
male would l>o only a little brighter than the young male;
and such cases arc common.

In this illustration I have assumed tiiat tiio young
\»ried in a inaimrr which was of no service to them; but
ninny rhanieters j»ro|H r to the adult male wouM 1h? actu-
ally injurious to th»* young — as br' d t oolors from making
til* til eonH|iieuoUN, or horns of l.i \te from expending
much vital force. Smh variations in the young would
promptly lie eliminated through natund s«dection. With
the a^lult and exiM'riciireil niai<'S, on the other hand, the
advantage thus derive<l in their rivalry with otlx r mah-it
\<.'.iild ofii II iiiMr<' t' >' to somo

• ! •• ' ' ■ . 'i 1. V l! 1- \}^:^^

\ . It must • • ' ■ ■. it.
aloiM or in

• t of SMOIKi '

marl looce ) Is of vai

and of S4'xual ■4 lertion is int«

\ '■ 'Hs which give to tbo malo an advantacr in

I ' wilii other ti ' of in r '

I ' •, Until 1 Im .f fi.. <r . i

i> • I H . u pri-M-r \ I I I ii 1 1. « -

ni 4 ( ' . . , ni. I»

trrm an I \

200 TIIK PRIXCirLES OF

[Pabi ir.

( huractcrs are conceriicd, would be left unmoailiea, cxoqit-
iiig ill 8o far as »he may have received tliem by transference
from tlie male. No doubt if t!ic female varied and trans-
ferred serviceable characters to her male offspring, these
would be favored through sexual selection; and then both
sexes would thus far be modified in the same manner. But
I shall hereafter liave to recur to these more intricate con-
tingencies.

In the following cha])ters, I shall treat of the secondary
sexual characters in animals of all classes, and shall en-
deavor in each case to apply the principles exjilained in
the present chapter. The lowest classes will detain us for
a very short time, but the higher animals, especially birds,
must be treated at considerable length. It should be borne
in mind that, for reasons already assigned, I intend to give
only a few illustnitive instances of the innumerable struct-
ures by the aid of which the male finds the female, or,
when found, holds her. On the other hand, all structures
and instincts l)y which the male conquers other males,
and by which he allures or excites the female, will be fully
discussed, as these are in many ways the most interesting.

i>itjyjyltment on tJie proportional numbers of tJic ttco sexes
in animals belonging to various classes.

As no one, as far as I can discover, lias paid attention
to the relative numbers of the two sexes throughout the
animal kingdom, I will here give such materials as I have
]>cen able to collect, although they arc extremely imper-
feet. They consist in only a few instances of actual enu-
meration, and the numbers arc not very large. As the
l>roportions are known with certainty on a large scale in
the case of man alone, I will first give them, as'^a standard
of comparisou.

Chat VIII |

fSEXVAL SBIJXTION.

201

Man. — In Kn^lauii ilunug ten ycmn (from laoi lo
707,120 cliiMrt'Q on an annual av< ' ' '
Ix.ni alive, in lljc pro|Kjrlion of 104.5 in
iiialtrt. But in 1H57 the male births ihroi.^ . i I

w« rc- an 105.2, and 1HG5 as 104.0 lo 100. T.
•M'li.iralo dijJtrictii, in Huckinj^hanmhirc (whcr
u-^ts 5,000 children arc annually 1x>ni) tlio i
tion of male to female hirthfi, during tho whole period of
the al>oTO ten year*, waa aa 1 » 100; while in North

■ ^-ht rr the averai^e . birthi* are 12,h73) it wm

I : lOrt.2 lo lOu. la/ ' .1 utill smaller dintr'

lltilland-l *•'• ' . ' . i! 1.tr?hfi aver3j»e »•....

.•j)/in u ; ".• 1 \ a-

97.0 to 100; but evtn in tl. . . . ipo of

the 7,:)85 birtbii during tin \t !. !o ten y<>ani wxh at 1
to 100; that if(, in tho »anie ratio ajithi it Kngland.**

Tho pn>|Hirtioni are trlnxl by un-

fi ri . thu« I'rol. i'^y ftul*** lltal "in »ome

tfi' I of N" ^aJ» Im • • a de«*'

a ateady d^ ) ' ' '

tho fi
but tl

pirtment, and ait timet in another, tliat the !
have I the mih«. In UuMia th<' B\«-ra'.;e )

tion i* aa hiKh m» ** It ia a niu)*

with Jew* »'

than wi»' < !
n '

292

THE PRlNCirLES OF

[Part II.

for instance, in Livonia as 104 to 100." It is a still more
sinj^ular fact that iii (liffcren^ nations, under (lillV rent con-
ditions and climates, in Naples, IVussia, Westjihalia,
France, and England, the excess of male over female
births \s less when they are illegitimate than when legiti-
mate."

In various parts of Europe, according to Prof. Faye
and otlier authors, "a still greater preponderance of males
•would be met with, if death stnick both sexes in equal
proportion in the womb and during birth. liut tho.fact
is that, for every 100 still-born females, we have in sev-
eral countries from 134.0 to 144.9 still-bom males." More-
over during the first four or five years of life more male
children die tlian females; for cxamj)le, in England, dur-
ing the first year, 120 boys die for every 100 girls — a pro-
portion which in France is still more unfavorable.*"* A»
a consequence of this excess in the death-rate of malt?
children, and of the exposure of men when adult to vari-
ous dangers, and of their tendency to emigrate, the fe-
males? in all old-settled countries, where statistical records
have been kept," arc found to preponderate considerably
over the males.

In n^rd to tbc Jcwg, see M. TLurj, *La Ix>t de rruduction dc:«
Sexes,' 18G3, p. 25.

•* Babbapp, ' Edinburpb Juiirnal of Science/ 1829, vol i. p. 88; also
p. 90, on etill-bom cbildren. On illegitimate children in KngUnd, see
'Ucport of Registrar-General for 1806,' p. xt.

'Ilrilihh and Foreign Medico-Chirurg. Kcview,' April, 18fi7, p. 813.
Dr. Stark uho remarks ('TenlL Annual lloport of liirtlio, Deatbn, etc., in
Scotland,' 1807, p. xxviii.) that "Uiese exaiuplos may gutTice to bbow that,
at almost crcrj stage of life, the males in Scotland have a greater liabil-
itj to death and a higlicr death-rate than the females. The fact, how.
over, of thi.4 peculiarity being nMMi strongly developed at that infantile
period of Ufo when the dress, food, and gcncnd treatment of both sexes
arc alike, seems to prove that llic higher male death-rate in an impressed,
natural, and cnn.otitutionaI peculiarity due to sex alom . '

With the savage Guaranys of Paraguay, according to the accurate

Clur VIII. J

SEXLAL SKI.ECTIUN.

It has often been sapi>ofM U that the rvlativc of
the parents determine the fK^x of the oflTKpring ; and I'roC
Ixuckart** has advanced what ho contiiders Kufficient evi-
dence, with respect to man and certain domesticated ani-
mals, to show that this ia one im[>ortant factor in the
result. So, again, the period of iiiiprtgnation has been
thouj^ht to be the efficient cause; but recent obtenratiooa
«li*cr. • • ince this KlieC Aj^ain, with mankind polyt?-
ar?iv : . t»n suj'T" 1 lead to the birth of a pn-at« r '
[ 'H of f. r but Dr. J. CamplK'H** cari'-

t ili V -it' in the harcma of Siam, and

hr (includes that the prcjjwrtion of male to female births
in the Mine as from monorrarnonH iii/i..ti!i. Ilanlly any
•ir.iirial haa been rendered ko hi;;hly ! iH t>ur

i ' ^ HHi, and wo shall inr 'liiit

i! 1 icmalc offspring aro almu^i cxuiuj i'|ual

111 iiuiiil>cr.

//(ffMi.— Ifr. T«c«iiB«ler has bm so ktod as to lahdal« for
tM from th« * lUriag Calsodar * tl»« births of rM>»>borBM dnrinK
^ fx tI'm! of tn I ntyoM ye' ''>tol0' <ABff

utmUcd,Mi ou roiaraawsTc u.ui ^«u;'«i»li«iL loi^ uirlhs
haT« *n MO,* eoiMttlntr of 1? 7Umal«« «n l 1? ?«»7 Um^m,
Of la - tioaof lOOfrtt «« Dsm-

•omrrt hi pmpmikm to Um mum ar* »

- iHrW Um ImI alvvMi ? iW mmNv

«f mmtm whkk ksv* ^vowd tem* or yiiiMt^wly alffa^ Ihilr teak i
••4 II <«tnM w>«l««, M •tevbtf Im« liAttl* Um

fUhm •toi>ly laHftiri< MMb katv li UaI Ml Ibr frm
ikw4 W Ih* ^ti4 to f|»«4<*r« lM«f Ib^ TWi. isaa^ •>§

flAff4i«. iMMMV laat. sM Mkt «i4 tof IbwlM «^ md

294

TIIK rRlXCIl»LES OF

[Part II

hers aro tolerably lurge, and as tlioy are drawn from all purta of
Kii;rland, durinf; several years, wo may with much conlideuco
conclude that with the domestic horse, or at least with the race-
horse, the two sexes aro produced in almost Oijual numbers. The
lluctuations in the proportions during? successive years are closely
like those which occur with mankind, when a small and thinly -
populated area is considered : thus in 1856 the male horses were
lis 107.1, and in 18G7 as only 92.0 to 100 females. In the tabu-
lated returns the proportions vary in cycles, for the males ex-
ceeded the females during six successive years; and tho females
exceeded the males during two periods each of four years ; this,
however, may be accidental ; at least I can detect nothing of tho
kind with man in tho decennial table in the Registrar's Report for
1800. I may add that certain marcs, and this holds pood with
certain cows and witii women, tend to produce more of one sex
than of tho other; Mr. Wright, of Yeldersley House, informs mo
that ono of his Arab mares, though put seven times to different
horses, produced seven fillies.

/)<7<7*.— During a period of twelve years, from 1807 to ISOS,
the births of a large number of greyhounds, throughout England,
have been sent to tho 'Field' now6j)aper; and 1 am again in-
debted to Mr. Tegctmeier for carefully tabulating the results.
The recorded births have been 6,878, consisting of 3,605 males
and 3,273 feniiUes, that is, in tho proportion of 110.1 males to 100
femidos. The greatest fluctuations occurred 'in 1804, when tho
proportion was as 95.3 males, and in 1807, as 110.3 males to 100
females. Tho above average proportion of 110.1 to 100 is prob-
ably nearly correct in the case of tho greyhound, but whether it
would hold witli other domesticated breeds is in some degree
•lotibtful. Mr. Cupples has inquired from several great brooders
of dogs, and finds that all without exception believe that females
aro produced in excess ; ho suggests that this belief may Imvo
arisen from females being less valued and tho consequent disap-
pointment producing a stronger impression on the mind.

Sheep. — Tho sexes of sheep are not asccrtaine<l by agricultur-
ists until several months after birth, at tho period when the males
are castrated; so that tho following returns do not give tho pro-
portions at birth. Moreover, I find that several great breeders
in Scotland, who annually raise some thousand sheep, are firmly

CuAr. VIII.)

SEX I* A L SEI^CTION.

206

• rivinoed Uiat * Urgcr |>roi>orUoo of malm than of (ecnaUs Uio
.:,u'ji the flnt one or two jeain; thereibre the proportion of
! : t!' ■) would b« somewhat greater at birth than at the age of ca»-
trstion. Thia b a remarkahle coincidence with what ocean, aa
wu have fteen^ with ma: and both caaca probably depcn '
iMjiuo common cauae. i ha.o received retorna from Ibar gexiU*.-
mcn in England who hare bred lowland ibaepi, chiefly Lelceeten^
during the last ten or sixteen years; tlicy amount altogether to
8,0Go births, onnrfittng of 4,407 males and 4,568 females; that t^
- n of M.7 males to 100 females. With reape-
>: uU'i u.4»ck-faoed sheep bred la Sootland, I hava reoci • > i
ris tnm six braadefi, two of them oa a large s<<^I<*. cfilrff r
for the years 1807-1 M9, but some of the returns «
to 1803. The total number reeorded amoonts to 50,686, cunsist
int: of 2^,071 male* antl 23,614 females, or in the pruportioa of
iC '.i males to 100 fcmalt-a. If we taka the English aad Seolch
• —Ml to{rf>t* cr, the toul number amoonts to 69,650^ eon«1*t1n^
and ao,173 females, or as 97.7 to 100.
with aheep at the age of cajttraticn the fi'inolcs are certainly m
••»ce» • ■ ther tl

i* dou 'lAti,^ itt ^^»vatcr lia^...',i iu i'j K^i j

( ' <' I hare recelvod rrtuma frtmi nine irrutlrmen of
Kirtha, too few to be truatrd ; thr*« conaiatcd of 477
•'*"*• ; L e., In the pr(»portion of t>l It:.

Uiuaict. iu( i.t>. W. I> y ' - ' tits me that in l''<>7 u..; . ; . i
ralve* Krvrn on a f^nn In o only one was a boIT. Vr.

llarTi I he has ln«)ulred from 1

breeders of /^fa, and r ' imala the male t<-

inaloMr' *ioot 7 ' tl«maa ha* '

f'if* f'lf uiui4j J vara, an<i u- . . ^ ... ^ imr grtaler u ^ : > :
I i< V« are prodored than df»c«.

•* I urn MMh InddMad u> Vr < ^(^4^ IW hating p«wr«ie4 Ibr ma the
(Was lisadi «a «f the Mfowlag nHarwa a«

tnial, el i >. --i, ur«l salad my alliaiiia la the
(•fr«Mi«r« <4 th« WW W a Hatiiai'm mhtm^itmtiy mm^rmmt ^

Mr. All«4ili«i aad eci itiiB-ir. ir 1 • ^

I owe mj iheahs M Um i«#g*« <«4««m mm ihnfk

296

THE nilNCIPLES OF

[Part II.

Of inainmalia in a state of nature I Lave been able to learn
very little. In regard to tlie common rat, I have received con-
flicting statements. Mr. R. Elliot, of Laigliwood, informs me that
a rat-catcher assured him that he had always found the males in
great excess, even with the young in the nest. In consequence
of this, Mr. Elliot himself subsequently examined some hundred
old ones, and found the statement true. Mr. F. Buckland has
bred a large number of white rats, and he also believes that the
males greatly exceed the females. In regard to Moles, it is said
that " the males are much more numerous than the females ; " *^
and as the catching of these animals is a special occupation, the
statement may perhaps be trusted. Sir A. Smith, in describing
an antelope of South Africa *' {Eolus elUpBiprymnus)^ remarks,
that in the herds of this and other species, the males are few in
number compared with the females: the natives believe that they
are born in this proportion ; others believe that the younger males
are expelled from the herds, and Sir A. Smith says, that though
he has himself never seen herds consisting of young males alone,
others affirm that this docs occur. It ai)pears probable that the
young males, when expelled from the herd, would be likely to fall
a prey to the many beasts of prey of the country.

BIRDS.

With respect to the Fowl, I have received only one account,
namely, that out of 1,001 chickens of a highly-bred stock of Co-
chins, reared during eight years by Mr. Stretch, 487 proved males
and 514 females: i. c., as 94.7 to 100. In regard to domestic pig-
eons there is good evidence that the males are produced in excess,
or that their lives are longer ; for these birds invariably pair, and
single males, as Mr. Tegctmeier informs me, can alway be pur-
chased cheaper than females. Usually the two birds reared from
the two eggs laid in the same nest consist of a male and female ;
but Mr. Harrison Weir, who has been so large a breeder, says tliat
he has often bred two cocks from the same nest, and seldom two
hens; moreover, the hen is generally the weaker of the two, and
more liable to perish.

*' Bell, 'Ilistory of British Quadruped?,' p. 100.

* Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa,' 1849, pi. 29.

CllAV. VIII.]

SEXUAL .SELECTION.

297

With respect to birds in a Htate of nature, Mr. Gould and
otlicrs*^ are convinced that the males are generally the more
numeroQs; and as the roung males of many species resemble the
females, the latter would naturally a[»i)ear to be the most numer-
ou.s. Lar^ro numbers of pheasants are reared by^r. Baker, of
jA-.Kh.nliall, from eggs laid by wild bird.-*, and he informs Mr. Jtn-
ner Weir that four or five males to one female are generally pro-
duced. An experienced observer remarks *' that in Scandinaria
the broods of the capercailzie and black-cock contain more males
than females; and that with the Dal-ripa (a kind of ptarmigan)
more males than females attend tlio hi* or places of courtship ;
but this latter circumstance is accounted fur by some observers
by a greater number of hen-birds being killed by vermin. From
various facts given by White of Selboume,** it seems clear that the
males of the partridge must be in con.si ! • ^ ' • excess in the south
of England ; and I have been assured th i: i . is the case in Scot-
land. Mr. Weir, on inquiring from the dealers who receive at
rertain seasons large numbers of rtilfs (MachtUt pugnaz\ was told
that the males are much the most numerous. This same natural-
i-' ' ' • ■ • d for mo from the bird-cntchert, w^ My
< • ' ntimber of various small «p©clea ji . . . •«

London mri id ho was unhesitatingly answere<I by an old

and trustworthy man, that with the chaHlnrh the males are in
Lirgo excess; ho thought as high as 3 males to 1 female, or at
ka«t as high M S Ui The males of Iho bl;i > ' ' ' m>
maiotained, were by far the moHt nuiiuTouii, .. . * y
tra|i<i or by Dotting at niglit. Thone slatt nunts : y
Ih) tniMtodf btcaoM tiio sanio man said that tlio sex* t
cjual with tho Urk, the twito (Linaria monto i.

^ Ilrchm ('inujt. ThIrrirlK-n.' R. It. MO) eooM lo t!
clujilon.

^ On litu a'liii 'i .'. J) ).: 1 .'^
IS, lit.

* NaL Ilkt. orKrItM.umr,' I. tt. r iili. . . vtiL L |v 199.

" Mr. Jnonrr Wctr rc<'< l> « .| •iiii.t tr i;..' t u*' lag lw|«lrlas

tJuHiiK U)0 fijIluwitiK tr«r. 1 r^i^M, I

tiuiy HMallon iltai In \mv th< '<t an I

o«M BMUi rauKtil la a dmy Af. • hmW .

gnalotl tutmhet rrw cAu^Mit hj >*%c tamm la a aii^tfe '

203

THE TRINCIPLES OF

[Part If.

On tlio other hand, he is certain tliat with the common linnet, the
lonuries preponderate greatly, hut unequidly during dillerent years;
during some years he has found the females to the males as four
to one. It should, however, he borne in mind, that the chief sea-
son for catching birds does not begin till September, so that with
Borae species partial migrations may have begun, and the flocks
at this period often consist of hens alone. Mr. Salvin paid par-
ticular attention to the sexes of the humming-birds in Central
America, and he is convinced that with most of the species the
males are in excess ; thus, one year ho procured 204 specimens
belonging to ten species, and these consisted of 1G6 males and of
38 females. AVith two other species the females were in excess :
but the proportions apparently vary either during different sea-
sons or in different localities ; for on one occasion the males of
Campylopterus hemileucurus were to the females as five to two,
and on another occasion *® in exactly the reversed ratio. As bear-
ing on this latter point, I may add that Mr. Powys found in Corfu
and Epirus the sexes of the chaffinch keeping apart, and " the fe-
males by fur the most numerous;" Avhile in Palestine Mr. Tris-
tram found " the male flocks appearing greatly to exceed the fe-
male in number." So again with the Quiscalus major^ Mr. G.
Taylor " says that in Florida there were " very few females in
proportion to the males," while in Honduras the proportion was
the other way, the species there having the character of a po-
lygamist.

Fisn.

"With fish the proportional numbers of the sexes can be ascer-
tained only by catching them in the adult or nearly adult state ;
and there are many difficulties in arriving at any just conclusion.'*
Infertile females might readily be mistaken for males, as Dr. Giin-
ther has remarked to me in regard to trout. "With some species

« » Ibis,' vol ii. p. 260, as quoted in Gould's * Trochilidir,' 18G1, p. 52.
For the foregoing proportions, I am indebted to Mr. Salvin for a table of
his results.

« 'Ibi?,' I860, p. 137; and 18C7, p. SCO

w 'Ibis,' 1SG2, p. 137.

Leuckart quotes Blocli (Wagner, ' Ilundwortcrbuch der Phys.' B.
ir. 1853, s. 775), that with fish there are twice as many males as females.

ClIAP. VIII.]

FEXUAL SELECTION'.

299

the males are believed to die soon after ferlilizing the ova. With
many species the males are of much smaller size than the fcmaleA,
HO that a large number of males would escape from the same net
by which the females were caught. H. Curbonnier," who has
eHpecially attended to the natural history of the pike {JKsax lueius)
states that many males, owing to their small size, arc devoured by
the larger females; and he believes that the males of almost all
tifch are exposed from the same cause to greater danger than the
females. Nevertheless, in tlie few ca^es in which the jiroportional
numbers have been actually observed, the male« appear to bo
largely in excess. Thuf, Mr. I{. liuist, the superintendent of the
Htonnontfield experiments, says that in 18C5, out of 70 salmon
lirst landed for the purpose of obtaining the ova, upward of GU
were males. In 1807 he again "calls attention to the vast dispro-
portion of the males to the females. "Wo had at the out.^et at
)ea«t ten males to one female." Afterward sufficient females for
obtaining ova were procured. IIo adds, " From the great propor-
tion of the males, they are constantly fighting and tearing each
other on the spawning-beds." " This disproportion, no d.
can be accounted for in part, but whether wholly is very doul ; . .
by the males ascending the rivers before the females. Mr. F.
Huckland remarks in regard to trout, that ^*it is a curious fart
tliat the males preponderate very largely in number over the fe-
males. It inrarinfily 1; i - that when the first rush of fihh is
made to the net, there w . ; at least sevm (»r< ' ' * t ,1. - t.t one
ri iii.'ilo found captive. I cannot quite aecunnM' . tho

iiialeH arc moro numerous than tho females, or tho Utter s^'ck
Hiifetj by concoAlment rather than flight." IIu then adds that, by
< iirefully Bcarrliing tliu bunkfl. iK sforob* ova

• all bo found.** Mr. II. I.< • at out of . •,

taken for this purponi- in I - park, IT.O wi r n

and 02 females.

With tho ('yi>rinidn^ tho malen likew ino iH>em tu l>o in cxi < ;
but Hwornl metiiborM of tlils family, vix., the CAr]i, tench, br«

giii.irtl In tho * Karmcr,' Marrh 18, I«fl9, p. n69.
M^TIifi HlontMitilAcld rUrlruUunil K\|N r|iur1lU,' IHAA, |i. U. TIm

300

THE PRINCITLES OF

[rAKT II.

ftnd minnow, apj)car regularly to follow the practice, rare in tho
animal kingdom, of polyandry; for the female while spawning is
always attended by two males, one on each side, and in tho caso
of tho bream by three or four males. This fact is so well known,
that it is always recommended to stock a pond with two malo
tenches to one female, or at least with three males to two females.
With tho minnow, an excellent observer states that on the spawn-
ing-beds the males are ten times as numerous as tho females;
when a female comes among the males, "she is immediately
j)rcssed closely by a male on each side; and when they have been
in that situation for a time, are superseded by other two males." ''^

INSECTS.

In this class, the Lepidoptera alone afford the means of judg-
ing of the proportional numbers of tho sexes ; for they have been
collected with special care by many good observers, and have
been largely bred from tho egg or caterpillar state. I had hoped
that some breeders of silk-moths might have kept an exact record,
but after writing to France and Italy, and consulting various
treatises, I cannot fmd that this has ever been done. Tlio gen-
eral opinion appears to be that the sexes are nearly ecjual, but
in Italy, as I hear from Prof. Canestrini, many breeders aro
convinced that the females are produced in excess. Tho same
naturalist, however, informs me, that in the two yearly broods
of tho Ailantus silk-moth {Bomhyx eynthia), tho males greatly
preponderate in the first, while in the second tho two sexes aro
nearly equal, or the females rather in excess.

In regard to Butterflies in a state of nature, several observers
have been much struck by the apparently enormous preponder-
ance of the males." Thus Mr. Bates," in speaking of the species,

" Yarrcll, ' Hist. British Fishes,' vol i. 1836, p. 307 ; on the Ci/primu
tnrpio, p. 331 ; on the T7nca vulgaris^ p. 331 ; on the Ahramis hrarna^ p.
336. See, for the minnow {Lcuciscus phoximis), *Loudon'a Mag. of Nat.
Hist.' vol. V. 1832, p. 682.

Leuckart quotes Meinocke (Wagner, * Ilandworterbuch dcr Phys.*
B. iv. 1853, 8. 775) that with Butterflies the males arc three or foui
times as niimerous as the feraalos,

" • Tlic Naturalist on the Amazons,' vol. ii. 1803, pp. 228, 347.

Chap. Mil. J

SEXLAL SELECTION.

301

no \<iM than about a hundred in uuinUer, which inhabit tho
Ui>per Ainazona, b&jb that the males are much more nameroof
thnn tho females, even in tlie proportion of a hundred to one.
In Xorth America, E ' ^ who had ^'^reat experience, eati-
mates in tho genuii 1'^^ ... • tho maleii to the females M four to
one; and Mr. WaLsh, who iuturmed mc of this •tatement, aaji
that with P. tumiu this io certainly tho cams. In South Africa,
Mr. li. Trimen found tho inulvA in oxceM in nineteen apeciet;**
und in one of these, which swarmt in open placea, be fwtitnatftil
the numl>er of males m fifty to one female. With Bn<Hl»»r fpe-
cieH, in which tbu maleft are nuuierouii in certain looalitiea, he
collected! durinf? seven years only five females. In the island of
Hourbon, M. Maillard states tiiat tho males of one species of
I'Mpilio aro twenty timoe as ni: as tho females.** Mr.

1 riinen infunns me that as far as i^c i^.ut himself seen, or heard
from others, it is rare fur the females of any butterfly to exceed
in mimber tho males; but this is {K'Hiaps the caso with tlirvo
South AfVican species. Mr. Wallace ** states that the females of
f friathoptera erannsy in the Malay ar ' aro more common

.if.'l iiioro ea-Hily can. ' • t' m tho r- ' is a rare butter-

i!v. I may h«-ro n . .»t in 1- , s * Rcnus of mot?:-*,

(tiii ii^o Hayn, that from four to fivo females aro Si'nt in col',
from India for one mai<

When this n • ! tf.. ■ ■%
of insects was br«"i r. j m.as

(Ti'nerally admitted i<* in.J> n . . i. in the

ailult or Imaico state, are cauirht in frrater i t than tho

r-malcs ; but this fart was att. ! by various observers to the
iMoro ret' '«of the fvUiiiit nnd I" '

t ttfliifr fr- . i>oo. Tills laltrr -

to r»rcur .'Hit T «'y'1>!"f>S r m

H«> that, as M. V the mal<« of the d<

liomh^fM ifMM'Mai arc lust at tho bi^ifinninK of tho * and

** I'udf of these easM are irt«M bv Mr THtum In KU ' i %
Afrl.* ' lie*

" ' iw gsiiwpi t Mm.* it, im

J02

THE TRINCIPLES OF

[Paut II.

tl»o females at the end, from the want of mates." I cannot, how-
ever, persuade myself that these causes suffice to explain the great
excess of males in the cases, ahove given, of butterflies which are
extremely common in tlieir native countries. Mr. Stainton, who
has paid such close attention during many years to the smalkr
moths, informs mo that when ho collected them in the imago
state, he thought that the males were ten times as numerous as
the females, but that, since ho has reared tliem on a largo scale
from the caterpillar state, he is convinced that the females are
the most numerous. Several entomologists concur in this view.
Mr. Doubleday, however, and some others, take an opposite view,
and are convinced that they have reared from the egg and cater-
pillar states a larger proportion of males than of females.

Besides the more active habits of the males, their earlier
emergence from the cocoon, and their frequenting in some cases
more open stations, other causes may be assigned fur an aj)j)arent
or real difference in the proportional numbers of the sexes of
Lepidoptera, when captured in the imago state, and when reared
from the egg or caterpillar state. It is believed by many breeders
in Italy, as I .hear from Prof. Canestrini, that the female cater-
])illar of the silk-moth sutlers more from the recent disease than
the male; and Dr. Staudinger informs me that in rearing Lepi-
doptera more females die in the cocoon than males. "With many
species the female caterpillar is larger than the male, and a col-
lector would naturally choose the finest specimens, and thus un-
intentionally collect a larger number of females. Three collect-
ors have told mo that this was their practice ; but Dr. "Wallace
is sure that most collectors take all the specimens which they can
find of tho rarer kinds, which alone are worth the trouble of
rearing. Birds, when surrounded by caterpillars, would prol)-
ably devour the largest; and Prof. Canestrini informs mo that in
Italy some breeders believe, though on insufficient evidence, that
in the first brood of tho Ailantus silk-moth, the wasps destroy a
larger number of tho female than of tho male cateri)i liars. Dr.
Wallace further remarks that female caterpillars, from being
larger than the males, require more time for their development,

Quoted by Dr. "Wallace in Troc. E:it. Soc' 3'1 scric?, vol. v.
p. 487.

Cnxr. VIII ]

SEXUAL SELECTIOK.

303

nnd consume more food and moistnre ; and thus they woold be
exposed during a longer tiiiio to dun;,'cr from ichucumuns, birdji,
etr., and in times of scarcitv would perish in greater numbers.
IFenoe it apf>ear8 quite poAsible that, in a state of nature, fewer
t'. til l) • T.4 |>iduptera maj reach inaturitr than malea; an ' ur
- ' i ll oljcct we are concerned witli tlie number* at i. . -'-y,

a the sexc-H are ready to propa^'ato their kind.

Tlie manner in which the malea of certain mothii con^rregat«
in extraordinary numbers round a sickle fvmali^ appari-ntly indi-
cates a gr> ' eat of malea, though thiH fact may pcrhupt be
accoanied 1 ''i-- fir^'.-r rMu''t'. n • f the mole* frum tlioir
cocoona. Mr. rom Iwclvo to lumty

malea may oAcn I <.<d round a female SlaeMisfa

ru/ocinerea. It is well knuwu iliui if a virgin Laaioemmpm quereuM
or StUurnia earpini bo exposed in a cage, Tast nombert of maiea
roll. < ♦ r,,.ind her, and if coiifir ■ ' -n !\ ro.»m will eren eome down
tli*< y to her. Mr. 1 loves that he has »evn

iroiii fil\y to a hundred maUs of ixith theae apedai attractcil in
the course of a single day by a female under ctmfinemont, Mr.
'I'riiiirn expose«I in the lale <>' ^^ \ a female of

tli< I^iocam pa hail been ooii. u- . . 'lay, and Ave

iiiiiK-« s«Kin endcarored to gain a M. Verreaux, in

Australia, having place«l the female of a small Uombyz in a Ims
in hi* pocket, was followed by a crowd of nialrii, *o that abiMit
two bin ' • . • ' . ' xtc wil'

Mr. t., T»r <•

list of ] ptera, « and

fptnalca of 8<iO sfieriee or well marked var -a)

' ' ea. T -aforl cm

ar> mI conroe lite »aine ; Imt h/ :. ;i ; ••y

rage Of

itmlr> to that of the f«NBnle b aa 100 to 149 : and this apparMitly
• « that Invvrsrly tho male* exr* • In nmnbcr

'inn. .\lNMit " ' «a of

.1 U.t t'.f ill 1

301

THE rUINCIPLES OF

[Part 11.

being hero excluded on account of the difference in habits of tbo
two sexes: of these 2,000 species, 141 differ in price according to
sex, the males of 130 being cheaper, and the males of onljr 11
being dearer than the females. The average price of the males
of the 130 species, to that of the females, is as 100 to 143. "With
respect to the butterflies in this priced list, Mr. Doubleday thinks
(and no man in England has had more experience) that there is
nothing in the habits of the species which can account for the
difference in the prices of the two sexes, and that it can be ac-
counted for only by an excess in the numbers of the males. But
I am bound to add that Dr. Staudinger himself, as he informs mo,
is of a different opinion, lie thinks that the less active habits of
the females and the earlier emergence of the males will account
for his collectors securing a larger number of males than of
females, and consequently for tlio lower prices of the former.
"With respect to specimens reared from the caterpillar-state, Dr.
Staudinger believes, as previously stated, that a greater number
of females than of males die under confinement in the cocoons,
lie adds that with certain species one sex seems to prei)onderato
over tlie other during certain years.

Of direct observations on tlio sexes of Lepidoptera, reared
either from eggs or caterpillars, I have received only the few fol-
lowing cases :

The Rov. J. ITf llinfl.«» of Exotor, reared, daring 1868, imajii^oB of 73

pj)pcio8. which rnnHistc(i of 153 137

Mr. AllxTt joncH, of Klllmm, reared, during 1868, images of 9 HpccieB,

which consiHtod of 159 126

DiirinL' l^«iy he reared imn^^fiR from 4 ppecies. conHiPling of 114 113

Mr. Huclvler, of Emuwortli. Haut)>, during 1869, reared iniagOB from

71 ppecieu, consinting of 180 169

Dr. Wallace, of Colchester, reared from ono brood of Bombyx

rvnihia 69 48

Dr. Wallace rained, from cocoons of Bombyx Pemyl sent from

China, during 1869 234 128

Dr. W.il'.noe rained, durini; 1668 and 1869, from two lots of cocoons

of Bombyx yaina-nini 82 46

Total.. 931 761

Po that in thc'^c eight lut.s of cocoons and eggs, males were
produced in excess. Taken together, the i>roportion of males is

•* Thi.s naturali.st lui.s been so kind a.'^ to send mc some rcJults from
former years, in which the female? pcomed to preponderate ; but so many
of the figures were estimates, that I found it impossible to tabulate them

Clup. VIII ]

SEXUAL SELECTION'.

305

an 122.7 to 100 females. But tho numbers are Uardlj Urg«

♦ noujrh to be troftworthr.

On the whole, from the above Tarioas soorcc* of eridcnee,
all pointing to the same direction^ I infer that, with most spedc*
of Lepidoptera, the males in the imago state generally exceed tho
females in number, whatever the proportions majr be at their fin>t
emergence from the egg. *

With referenoe to the other Ordors of insects, I have been
able to ooUect very little reliable infurmatiun. With tbe stag-
beetle (Lueamui eertut) **the males sppear to be much more
nuiix roufl than tLe females;" but when, as Comeliun remarked
durin^r 1H67, an unuxual number of thc<(c l>oetlc<t nppcved in one
|iurt of Germanj, the fcmslcfl r\' nre<\ to exceed the males M
h\x to one. With one of the 1 la*, the males are said to W
much more numerous than tho feinaK*«, and " two or three are
often found united with one female;"** so thst here |>olTandrT
seems to prevail. With Siagouium ' ' ' \ in which the
males are fbmiithed hom«, ■ m-. Tir moro

iiUMi« ruus than tho d; sex." Mr. . . at the

Kntomologieal Society that the females of the bark-fee<ling
7'>f/ti>tfs tilUtMM are so common as to be a plague, while the
iiiales are BO rare as to be bar '' ' 'wn. Inc^ • > ' fn»ni
nnknown canees. bat apparii. , u some in .; ^' to

I'.irthenofeBeela, the males of certain s|>ccieii havo i )K>cn
difloovered, or are cxceaaiwlr ran*, as with M>veral of the C\Tni-
I < '* In all tho ^ known to Mr. Wid^h,

tt. 7 .'11 1!. 1 nro f livv uuii* aji uuiueroQt M tbe melee; aMl

T< with the fell-makiBir OeeklomjUm
( ! ' ion siteciee of 8aw-fllee (TenUire*

• ! iM»Mr. K I hundreds of epeelmeae from Urv»
of ail sieee, but ha« uvwr r<v-\rid a single male: on the other
haod, Ottitie eeys,* tiiat with certain spedee f\thelie)| brvd by

OiellMf's * RMocd of Zoologicei Uicralets^* IMY. p. AMI On lU
'teem oftaUeUeeMi. Ibid. |kUO. On the mslie ef Ucwee la B^h*
bed, Wertveed, • Vodsm Ham aT fncerta.* v«4 t p is? 0« iW Ma.

1

I I

(bid. p m

300

THE TRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

him, the males to the females were as nix to one ; whilo exactly
the reverse occurred with the mature insects of the same species
caught in the fields. With the Nouroptera, Mr. Walsh states that
in many, but by no moans in all, the species of the Odonatous
groups (Kphemerinii), there is a great overplus of males; in the
genus Heticrina, alsn, the males are generally at least four times
as numerous as the females. In certain species in the genus
Gomphus the males ore equally. numerous, whilo in two other
species the females are twice or thrice as numerous as the males.
In some European species of Psocus thousands of females may bo
collected without a single male, whilo witli other species of the
same genus both sexes are common." In England, Mr. Mac-
Lachlan has captured hundreds of the female Apatania mulUhrU^
b*it has never seen the male ; and of 13oreu» hyemalis only four
or five males have boon here seen." With most of those species
(excepting, as I have heard, with the Tenth rod ina;), there is no
reason to suppose that the females are subject to parthenogeno-
Bis ; and thus we see how ignorant wo are on the causes of the
apparent discrepancy in the proportional numbers of the two
sexes.

In the other Classes of the Artioulatu I have been abl^ to col-
lect still less information. . With Spiders, Mr. Blackwall, who has
carefully attended to this class during many years, writ<.'S to mo
that the males, from their more erratic habits, are more com-
monly seen, and therefore appear to be the more numerous.
This is actually the case with a few species; but he mentions
several species in six genera, in which the females appear to bo
much more numerous than tho males.^' The small size of the
males in comparison with the females, which is sometimes car-
ried to an extremo degree, and their widely-different appearance,
may account in some instances for their rarity in collections."

•• ' Observations on N. American Neuroptcra,' by IT. Ilagan and B. D.
Walsh, 'Proc. Eat. See. Philadelphia,' Oct. 18ft3, pp. 1G8, 223, 239.
* 'Proa Ent. Soc. Ix)ndon,' Feb. 17, 1868.

" Another great authority in this class, Prof. ThoroU of Cpsahi (' On
European Spiders,' 1860-'70, part I p. 205) npcaks as if female spiders
were generally commoner ihan the males.

" Sec, on tWiA subject, Mr. Pickard-Canibridgc, as quolcil in ' Quar-
terly Journal of Science,' l^C'^, p.

( uxr. VIII.)

SEXUAL SKLKCTION.

307

Some of the lower CruntAOMmi are able to prop^faU llM;ir
kind Mexuallr, oad thui w ill •cconot fur tlie txtrtmt rarity of
the mile*. With boiuc other forms (as with Tank and CjrprU)
there b reason to believe, aa Fritz MQlIcr iofonni me, that the
nialo b mnoh •Ijorter-livvd than the futnale, which, sup^^oting
the two sexes to be at Hret e<iual in number, would explain the
scarcity of the males. On the other hand, this same naturalist
has invnri.'ihlj taken, nn tfif hhort-s of Hrazil, far more males
than : ^ of the 1' !ds and of Cjpridina; thus, with a

spedaa in the laiier g«uM, sixty-three sperimene ewght the
aame day, included rea males; ) ' nggests that this

proponderanoe nuiy . .. ic to aoao un.. > diflSmnoe in the
hsMta of the two sexes. With one ot u.c l.i^ .cr Bnudliaa erabi^
li kr!.. ly, a Gelasimua, Fritz HQIlcr found the males to be more
itHKK r<'(i« than the female*. The reverse seems to be the case,
ri • r largo • of Mr. C. Speaoe Bate, with six

• '•tiiiii li i . I crabs, i..< i.^ii.. i» of which be has given me.*

On the Power of Xatuntl Selection to rtguhtte tht pro-
fH/rtianai Numbers of the Srxes^ arul Otnerai J
III soiQo peculiar casit, an excess in tho numlKTui •
o%« r tho other mif^ht \m3 a ^^rcat advantaj^c to
as with th«' ' A'lnalm of imxhuI innoctM, or Uiiu
aiiiiuala in hi..- li mttrv than oix* mule is n^iuiiiito t<> f<
liao Um tauUoi, Ai ^«ifh «-< rtaiii ririiiK^lcs n't t t
certain fiahea. An i Iw-twrt n tho

ras4Mi miKht have Imm u u.itural
l>ut from thdr rarity ti ht-re (jc further <

sidrrp<i. In all ordinary • i tuci|uality

tidvantaf^o or df o io <

tl>:iii to otlicrs; ait l I
f r.u I f . ' .

'■•"1"' ; ■
II .

• •lh« r», of whirli f aii»< -
to dil'

808

THE PRINCIPLES OF

[Part II.

Let us now take the case of a species producing, from
the unknown causes just alhuled to, an excess of one sex
— we will say of maks — tliese being supei-fluous and use-
less, or nearly useless. Could the sexes be equalized
through natural selection ? We may feel sure, from all
characters being variable, that certain j)air8 would j)ro-
duce a somewhat less excess of males over females than
other pairs. The former, supposing the actual number of
the oll'spring to remain constant, would necessarily pro-
duce more females, and would therefore be more pro-
ductive. On the doctrine of chances a greater number of
the oflspring of the more productive pairs would survive;
and these would inherit a tendency to procreate fewer
males and more females. Thus a tendency toward equali-
zation of the sexes would be brought about. But our
supposed species would by this process be rendered, as
just remarked, more productive; and this would in many
cases be far from an advantage ; for, whenever the limit to
the numbers which exist depends, not on destruction by
enemies, but on the amount of food, increased fertility
will lead to severer competition and to most of the sur-
vivors being badly fed. In this case, if the sexes were
equalized by an increase in the number of the females, a
simultaneous de crease in the total number of the oflspring
would be beneficial, or even necessary, for the existence
of the species; and this, I believe, could be eftected through
natural selection in the manner hereafter to be described.
The same train of reasoning is applicable in the above, as
well as in the following case, if we assume that females
instead of males are produced in excess, for such females
from not uniting with males would bo superfluous and
useless. So it would be with polygamous species, if we
assume the excess of females to be inordinately great.

An excess of either sex, we will again say of the males,
could, liowever, apj>:ir< ntly be (HniinMt< d flii-'Mi',--!) Tintiirnl

Cnxr. VIII.]

SEXUAL SELECTIOX.

909

ficlcction in another and indirect manner, namely, by an
actual diminution of the males, without any increase of
the females, and consequently without any increase in the
j)roductivenes8 of the Pi)ecics. From the variability of all
characters, we may feci assured that some pairs, inhabit-
ing any locality, would produce a rather smaller excess of
superfluous males, but an equal numlxir of productive
females. When the offspring from the more and the less
male-pro<luctive parents were all mingled together, none
would have any direct advantage over the others; but
those that produced few superfluous males would have
one great indirect advantage, nann-ly, that their ova or
embryos would probably be lar^or and fini r, or tin ir
young belter nurture<l in the womb and afterward. Wo
Hcc this principle illustrated with j)lantH; as those which
bear a vast number of seed province small ones ; while
those which bear comparatively few setnls, often pro<luco
large ones well-stocked with nutriment for the use of the
jM'i dlings." Hence the offspring of the ])arent8 which
wasted least force in producing sui>erfluous males wouM
Ik) the most likely to survive, an<l wmihl iidu rit the same
t«'ndency not to produce suprrfbiou'' t while ret

iu'^ their full fertility in the pr«Mluriion ..i i. iw v ''^
would Im« with tip- < "vcrse ca^e of the frmal< h» \. Ai»y
n\] < xress, li , of eit!>. r r could hanlly Ihj

' I : in so . • t s n> . i«*>bMMl has s con>

Miderablo inequality In'twccn th< . always prt^

ventod, as we have se< n in some i>f the caiM*s given in the
pn'viotui disriisnion. In t! ^ the unknown caum*^

' i 'i 'I * fie the M*! of Mm- rnibrvo, and which un '
< • rtaiu iuudiliotiN lead to the prtnlurtion of one m \ hi

I haw* (il I Alrti. k villi Ilia CmtI IKaI. t" I a^lM of

romtit

frry ii<>.. . , 4

lulm.

310

THE PRINCIPLES OP

[Part II.

excess over the other, have not been mastered by the sur-
vival of those varieties which were subjected to the least
waste of organized matter and force by the production of
superfluous individuals of either sex. Nevertheless wc
may conclude that natural selection will always tend,
though sometimes inefficiently, to equalize the relative
numbers of the two sexes.

Having said this much on tlie equalization of the
sexes, it may be well to add a few remarks on the regula-
tion through natural selection of the ordinary fertility of
species. Mr. Herbert Spencer has shown in an able dis-
cussion'* that witli all organisms a ratio exists between
what lie calls individuation and genesis ; whence it follows
tliat beings wliicli consume much matter or force in tlieir
gro-ttlh, comi)licated structure, or activity, or which pro-
vince ova and embryos of large size, or which expend
much energy in nurturing their young, cannot be so pro-
ductive as beings of an opposite nature. Mr. Spencer
further shows that minor diflerences in fertility will bo
regulated through natural selection. Thus the fertility of
each species will tend to increase, from the more fertile
l)air8 producing a larger number of oflspring, and these
from their mere number will have the best chance of sur-
viving, and will transmit their tendency to greater fer-
tility. Tlie only check to a continued augmentation of
fertility in each organism seems to be either the expendi-
ture of more power and the greater risks run by the
parents that produce a more numerous progeny, or the
contingency of very numerous eggs and young being pro-
duced of smaller size, or less vigorous, or subsequently
not so w^ell nurtured. To strike a balance in any case be-
tween the disadvantages which follow from the production
of a numarous progeny, and the advantages (such as the

'Principles of liiology,' vol. ii. 1867, ch;»i)S. ii.-xL

CiiiP. VIII.J SEXUAL SFKECTION. SH

escfific of at leaiit Rome iu<livi<liials from variouM ilangcrh)
in quite beyond our |>ower of judgment.

When an organiKm ban once IxfU rendered-extreiu. . ,
li-rtile, bow its fertility can be reduced tbrou'j'i in'-.'-t!

ItM-tion w not ho clear as bow ibis capacity as .
quired. Yet it i» obviouB tbat if individuals of a h]><
from a decrease of tbeir natural coemiet, wero habitually
reurcil in larger numbers than could Ix: supiwrtiHl, all tho
niemliers would sufTer. Nevertheless the oflVpring frum
the less fertile parents would have no direct advantage
over the oflVpring from the more fertile parents, whi n all
were mingled t*- ' r in the i«ame district. All the in-
dividuals would Hi . iily tend U* starve eacli otbt r. Tlic
oflspring indei'd of the IcM fertile parents would lie uti l< r
one great disadvantage, for, from the simple fact of b< . ^
pro«luced in smaller numlK'rs, they would l>e the most lia-
ble to cxtenniuatiun. Indirectly, however, they would
partake of one great a«lvantage; for, uudiT the sup|H>sitl
(■^iiidilion of wvere rom|H'tition, when all were pret«M*d fiir
f<MKl, it is extremely probable that thoM' individuals which
from some variation in tli - u^(itutii*n phmIimhiI ffwcr
••vru'" young, wt»uM pi.» i . thi-m of gnaler siie or
\i'..f: irid tin- adults reared fmm ^uch eg.'- "r young
I bnvf the bt*sl cbaiict' «»f . iig, and

would inherit y toward l(*ii%4 iu*d fertility. 'Hu

pan-nts, moreover, which hod to nourish or provide for
ft wrr oflspring would thcnmdvca \ms ciposetl to a lc«a so-
\cn* strain iu th«« struggle for « and wtiuld lia>o

a U'tler ehancv* of iiur\i\r ! i \ty no

others OA far as I ran •« • , u i u, uiidt r

aImivo eondilioMN of »4-\«-rt« ' ■ ! %kouM

|< I I t«» tb«" f.irtnn' i' •»! >•( i ncW I ' f

312

SEXUAL SELECTION

[Vart II.

CHAPTER IX.

SECONDARY SEXUAL CHARACTERS IN TIIE LOWER CLASSES
OP TUB ANIMAL KINGDOM.

Tlicso Characters absent in the Lowest Classes. — Brilliant Colors. — Mol-
lusca. — Annelids. — Crustacea, Secondary Sexual Characters strouj^ly
developed ; Dimorphism ; Color ; Characters not acquired before
Maturity. — Spiders, Sexual Colors of ; Stridulation by the Males. —
Myriapoda.

In the lowest classes llie two sexes are not rarely
united in the same individual, and tlierefore secondary
sexual characters cannot be devcloi^cd. In many cases iu
which the two sexes are separate, botli are pennanently
attached to some support, and the one cannot search or
struggle for the other. Moreover, it is almost certain that
these animals have too imperfect senses and much too low
mental powers to feel mutual rivalry, or to appreciate eacli
other's beauty or other attractions.

Hence in these classes, such as the Protozoa, Coelen-
terata, Echinodermata, Scolecida, true secondary sexual
characters do not occur; and this fact agrees with the
belief that sucli characters in the higher classes have been
acquired through sexual selection, which depends on the
will, desires^and choice, oi either sex. Nevertheless some
few apparent exceptions occur ; thus, as I hear from Dr.
Baird, tlie males of certain Entozoa, or internal parasitic
worms, differ slightly in culor from the females ; but wo

Cnxr. IX.]

SEXUAL SELECTION'.

313

liavc no reason to suppose that such differences have lK*en
augmented through Hi-xual selection.

Many of the lower animal.«, whether hennajihrodites
or witli the sexes separate, are ornamented with the most
hriliiant tints, or are Hhade<l an<l striped in an elegant
manner. This is the case with many corals and sea-am ni-
ones (Actuiiu*), with some j« lly-tish (.Medusa?, Porpita,
etc.), with some Planaria", ^Vscidian'*, numerous Star-tishes,
Kchini, etc. ; hut we may conclude, from the reasons al-
ready indicated, namely, the union of the two sexes in
some of these animals, the permanently atfixed condition
of others, and the low mental powi rs of all, that such col-
ors do not serve as a sexual attniction, and have not In . ii
a<'quired through sexual selectioru With tiie higlier ani-
mals the case is very ditferent ; for with tlu m when o!u'
sex is much more brilliantly or <-.>iisj,icuou'«Iy c«»l«»ri'd than
tiic other, and there is no ditl •> in the hahits of tho
two sexes which will account f<»r this «lirterence, we havo
reason to l>elicvc in tlu* intlu< n<'t' of sexual selection ; and
-this iK'lief is strongly conlirm« d when the more ornament-
ed individuals, which are almost always tho maK-s, dis-
play their attractions before tin* other sex. We may :
extend this conclusion to Iwith s« \rs, when c<»h»rtHl ahk« ,
if their < ' • arc plainly an i' is to thos** of onr - v
alone in - ..u oiIht Hp«< i« H . , >ame v"" - :'

I f th<'r>, are wo lo a< !• • for the 1> .. .idoro>« n
IS of manv ^ ^ in tho lowcft cUui*><
It np|M ars very doubtful wht-ther such colom usually f(vr\ o
:iH u protection; but wo are extremely liable to err in ro*
gard to charactem of all kindn in n'latioii to prot
will \w admitted by every otw who hni road .Mr. \S .
1 I' < *« rxindlont e**.iv on ihi* n«i' I( would i

I ' ' 'irr, nl fif* iir to • • '

I ■ • of thr '>1 . ■ »• • •

• • f Ipin I- \ wr ..... ,

314

SEXUAL SELECTION.

IPart H.

ed by Iliickt'l that not only the medusa) but many float-
ing molhisca, crustaceans, and even small oceanic lishos
partake of this same glass-like structure, we can hardly
doubt that they thus escape the notice of pelagic birds and
other enemies.

Notwithstanding our ignorance liow far color in many
cases serv es as a protection, the most probable view in re-
gard to the splendid tints of many of the lowest animals
seems to be that their colors are the direct result either
of the chemical nature or the minute structure of their
tissues, independently of any benefit thus derived. Hard-
ly any color is liner than that of arterial blood ; but there
is no reason to suppose that the color of the blood is in
itself any advantage; and though it adds to tlie beauty
of the maiden's cheek, no one will pretend that it has been
acquired for this purpose. So again with many animals,
especially the lower ones, the bile is richly colored ; thus
the extreme beauty of the Eolida) (naked sea-slugs) is
chiefly due, as I am informed by Mr. Hancock, to the
biliary glands seen through the translucent integuments ; •
this beauty being probably of no service to these animals.
The tints of the decaying leaves in an American forest are
described by every one as gorgeous ; yet no one supposes
that these tints are of the least advantage to the trees,
l^earing in mind how many substances closely analogous
to natural organic compounds have been recently "formed
by chemists, and which exhibit the most splendid colors,
it Avould have been a strange fact if substances similarly
colored had not often originated, independently of any
useful end being thus gained, in the complex laboratory
of living organisms.

The suh-klngdom of the Mollmcn. — Tliroughout this
great division (taken in its largest acceptation) of the
animal kingdom, secondary sexual characters, such as we

Chap. IX,]

MOLLUSKS.

315

are here considering^, never, as far as I can discover, occur.
Xor could they l>e exjKxrted in tlic three lowest rlassfs^
namely, in the Ascidianf*, Polyzoa, and liracliiopjds (con-
Htituting the Molluscoida of iluxley), for most of these
animals are permanently affixed to a support or have thiir
• xes united in the same individual. In tlic Lamellihran-
chiata, or bivalve shells, hermaphroditism is not rare. lu
the next higlier class of the Clasteropod.!, or marine uni-
valve shells, the sexes are cither united or separate But
in this latter case the males never |K)ssi'SS S{>ecial or^^ans
for lindinj^, securing, or clmrming the females, or for fight-
ing with other males. The sole external difference be-
tween the sexes consists, as I am informe<l by Mr. (jwyn
Jeflreys, in the shell sometimes diflVring a little in form;
fur instance, the shell of the male |>eriwiiikle (Littorina
littorea) is narrower and has a more elongated spire than
that of the female. Hut diflereneea of this nature, it may
Im' presumed, arc directly connected with the act of repn>-
d net ion or with the development of the ova,

Tfie (iasteropiula, though capable of locomotion and
funiished with imperfect eyes, do not ap)K>ar to be » n-
dowed with suflieient mental powers for the memWrs of
the same sex to struggle together in rivalry, and thus to
a''<|uiro s<.>condary itvxual eharactem. Nevertheless with
the pulmoniferouM gast( ro|K>ds, or land-snails, the p.airing
i?* prec<*<b«<l by courtMhip; for tln He animals, though hiT-
maphroditi'S, are cnm|Hdled by tlx-ir structuro to pair to*
g« lher. Aganwi/. rrmarkt*,' " [Uc a cu roccasion

«l*obMerver les nin l. n ilin \«, . n. - rirait motlrv en
doutif la ii/' ri '' ' < li H niMuvements el Irs

all urrs qui J tit d«)ublo cmbram**-

Un iit «!«» r«»«» h' ^ l i,' rir\N nrT»« ir

«U«<'rptibl«* of annii* of |MTTt' i

arrurat*' ob , Mr. I -nu* i: I

81C

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Pakt IL

a pair of land-shells (Helix pomatia), one of which was
weakly, into a small and ill-provided garden. After a
short time the strong and healthy individual disappeared,
and was traced by its track of slime over a wall into an
adjoining well-stocked garden. Mr. Lonsdale concluded
tliat it had deserted its sickly mate ; but after an absence
of twenty-four hours it returned, and apparently commu-
nicated the result of its successful exploration, for both
then started along the same track and disappeared over
the wall.

Even in the highest class of the Mollusca, namely, the
Cephalopoda or cuttle-lishes, in which the sexes are sepa-
rate, secondary sexual characters of the kind which we
are here considering do not, as far as I can discover, oc-
cur. This is a surprising circumstance, as these animals
possess highly-developed sense-organs and have consider-
able mental powers, as will be admitted by every one
who has watched their artful endeavors to escape from an
enemy.* Certain Cephalopoda, however, are characterized
by one extraordinaiy sexual character, namely, that the
male clement collects within one of the arms or tentacles,
which is then cast off, and, clinging by its sucking-disk»
to the female, lives for a time an independent life. So
completely does the cast-off arm resemble a separate ani-
mal, that it was described by Cuvier as a parasitic worm
under the name of Ilectocotylc. But this marvellous
structure may be classed as a primary rather than as a
secondary sexual character.

Although with the Mollusca sexual selection does not
seem to have come into j^lay, yet many univalve and
bivalve shells, such as volutes, cones, scallops, etc., are
beautifully colored and shaped. Tlie colors do not ai)pear
in most cases to be of any use as a protection ; they are

' See, for instance, the account Avhich I have given in my * Journal
of Rcscarclies/ 1815, p. 7.

CiiAP. IX.J MOLLUSKS AND ANNELIDS. 317

•

j»nj1jably tliC direct rcKult, as m the luwcBt classes, of the
iKitiire of the tissues ; the jjattcrns aii<l the sculpture of the
hhell depending on its manner of growth. The amount
of light seems to a certain extent to be iullm nlial ; fur
althougli, as repeatedly stated by ^Ir. Gwyn Jeflreys,
tl»e shells of some species living at a profound dejtth
are brightly colored, yet we generally see the lower sur-
faces and the j)art8 covered by the mantle less highly
colored than the upper and cxjMised surfaces." In some
< as( s, as with shells living among corals or brightly-tinted
sea- weeds, the bright colors may serve as a protection.
l»ut 'many of the nudibranch mollusca, or sea-slugs, arc
as beautifully coloritl as any shells, as may be seen in
.Messrs. Alder an<l Hancock's magnilicent work; and from
information kindly given mc by Mr. Hancock, it is ex-
tremely doubtful whether these colors usually serve as a
protection. With some SfR'cies this may be the case, as
with ono whieli lives on the green leaves of aign?, and is
itself bright green. Hut many lirightly-colored, white or
«>thi rwiso conspicuous species, do not seek conceulment ;
whih* again some <'cpially conspicuous sjK'cies, as well »h
other dull-colored kinds, live under stones and in dark rt^
resses. So that, with thesi* nudibranch moUu.sks, cohir
app.'trently »bK*s not stand in anv <!..-.• r« hitji.n to tlx- tki-
tun* of the places which they ii

Thi HO nake^l S4'a-slugt are hennaphrotlites, yet they
pair together, IM do land-snuilM, many of which huvo ei-
t n ini ly pretty shells. It U conceivablo that two licniinph-
rodiles, attracted by each other*s greater lH*auty, mi^ht
unittt and leavo ofTspring wliieh would inherit their |utr>
etits* gTMier beauty. Ibit with HueJi lowly>orgams<*<|

' I havo (IvM (* («cMtl<tf;. <>t>«rr«Mili>tM on Volraitu' UU»U,' '
•lot, Md foniM tktfkk

318

SEXUAL SELECTIOX.

[Paut II.

creatures tliis is extremely improbable. Nor is it at all
obvious how the oftsprinuj from the more beautiful pairs
of hermapliroilites would have any advantage, so as to in-
crease in numbers, over the oft'spring of the less beautiful,
unless indeed vigor and beauty generally coincided. We
have not here a number of males becoming mature before
the females, and the more beautiful ones selected by the
more vigorous females. If, indeed, brilliant colors were
beneficial to an hermaphrodite animal in nlation to its
general habits of life, the more brightly-tinted individualR
would succeed best and would increase in number ; but
this would be a case of natural and not of sexual selection.

Sub-kingdom of the Vermes or Anyiulosa : Class, An-
nelida {or Sea-worms). — In this class, although the sexes
(when separate) sometimes differ from each other in char-
acters of such importance that they have been placed un-
der distinct genera or even families, yet the differences do
not seem of the kind which can be safely attributed to
sexual selection. These animals, like those in the preced-
ing classes, apparently stand too low in the scale for the
individuals of either sex to exert any choice in selecting
a partner, or for the individuals of the same sex to strug-
gle together in rivalry.

Sub-kingdom of the Arthrojwda : Class, Crustacea. —
In this great class we first meet with undoubted second-
ary sexual characters, often developed in a remarkable
manner. Unfortunately, the habits of crustaceans are
very imperfectly known, and wo cannot explain tlie uses
of many structures peculiar to one sex. With the lower
parasitic species the males are of small size, and they
alone are furnished with perfect swimming-legs, antenna)
and sense-organs ; the females being destitute of these or-
gans, with their bodies often consisting of a mere dis-

Chap. IX.]

CRCSTACEANSL

319

torttMl Iliads, iiiil lluse e\traur<iiiiary jlifTert iut Ix-twtvn
the two sexes are no doubt related to tlieir widcl y-dilVer-
nit habits of life, an<l eonse<iiiently do not concern uh.
In various cru.staceans, belon^^iiig to distinct fainilivs, the
anterior antenna) are funiislied with peculiar thread-like
boilies, which are Ijelieved to act a« smellinj^-organs, and
these arc much more numerous in the males than in the
ft niales. As the males, without any unusual development
of their olfactory organs, would almost certainly be able
H(xjner or later to fin«l Ihe females, the increased numlicr
of the smelling - threads lins probably been acquinnl
through sexual selection, by the Wtter provideil mali*M
having been the most successful in finding partners and
in leaving ofTspring. Fritz MQllcr has descril>ed a po-
markable dimorphic si>ccies of Tanais, in which the malo
is represented by two distinct forms, never gniduating
into each otlier. In the one fonn the malo is funiisheil
with more numerous smelling-threads, and in the other
form with more j>owerfid* and more elongate<l chelae or
piiicem which serve to hohl the female. Frilr. MQllcr
g<'Hts that these difTeri'nccs Ktwecn the two male I", riua
of the same sjR'ciiMt must have originated in cH'rtatn indi*
vi I'lnl"* li'u i'i" \ iric«l in t^io ti'mu'ht of tho fmeUin^
t : indix I in tbo ihape tnd

site of their cheln* ; so tliat of tho fonner, th«Hie which
wen* \)cni able to find the female, and of the Utt<*r, thi>M
which were Ixnt able to hold her when fouml, have left
iho greater nutnlM*r of progeny to inlirrit their rv-
advantngr*.*

In some of the loutr iiu M <:iii t*
ri- r nnlcnna of tho niiilc difl- lu

0

• • K. • f ■ !• ».

Mce II u I

Korvvftea cnMMMa, iIm /W

320

PEXUAL SELECTION'.

[Part II.

from iIr' left-hand 0110, the hwiw rescmblinir \n Us sim-
ple tapering joints the antennjij of the female, "in tlic male

the modified antemia is cither
swollen in the middle or ano-u-
larly l)ent, or converted (fig. 3)
into an elegant, and sometimes
wonderfully complex, prehensile
organ.' It serves, as I hear from
Sir J. Lubbock, to hold the fe-
male, and Ibr this same purpose
one of tho two i)Osterior legs
on the same side of the body Ih
converted into a forceps. In an-
other family the inferior or pos-
terior antenna? are " curiously zig-
zagged" in tlic males alone.

In the higher crustaceans the
anterior legs form a pair of chelai
or pincers, and these are gener-
ally larger in the male than in
the female. In many species the

""'^ ^TfrotJtSk?""''"' ^'^'^'^^ the opposite sides of the
a. Part of ri-rht-hand nntorior body are of Unequal sizc. the rin-ht-

nntoiina of male, formiii- a , *, i • -r •

prehcnHilo orimii. Jiaud ouc bciuff, as I am mformed

6. Posterior pair of tliC thoracic , t\ c ■r,

ctTflofmaie. oy Mr. U. bpcncc I5ate, erencrallv,

c. Ditto of female. ^, , . . , , ' .

tliough not mvanably, the largest.
This inequality is often much greater in the male than in
the female. The two cIicUt also often differ in stnicturc
(tigs. 4, 5 and G), the smaller one resembling those of the fe-
male. What advantage is gained by their inequality in size

' See Sir J. Lubbock in * Annals, ond Mag. of Nat. Hist.' vol. xi. 1853,
pis. i. and x. ; and vol. xii. (1853) pi. vii. Sec aUo Lubbock'in • Tran.sact.
Ent. Sf)c.' vol. iv. new gerica, 185C»-1858, p. 8. With respect to the zig-
zapged antennae mentioned below, Fee Fritz Miiller, ' Facts and Argu-
menta for Darwin,' 1869, p. 40, foot-note.

ClUF. IX. J

CnUSTACEAXS.

321

oil l\w op|)Ofiito BidcHof the IkkIv, ami by llie inequality 1m»-

iniL^ imirfi <_rr('rit«T in i1h* itml«- tliaiiiii the female ; an<l uliv.

Fio. 4.— Anirrior part of hndjr of C'alli.ii>a>*A ' ovtaf

ukc ha« n:TcrM.U Uic dnMiag, a«d BMlt the lefl-

u I.I II 111. y arr of ».ju ii .. . ' . are €>ftrn in ' ^ ' ''T
III tli. t' i' 'liaii ill ill* !' in il. , I- not known. i t»
nr. .f mil 1 1 Im-tli nn«l ^

I I, 1 Ik ir I iDiii .M ! ,

iviii^ \>»"\ in llir nioutli. In iIm- MtaU*« u(
«ttlvr |ini«iiiii (l*ahi iii*'ii) tlx n^'.^t U ,i i*

322

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

than the whole body." It is probable that the great size
of one leg with its chela) may aid the male in fighting
with his rivals ; but this use will not account for their in-
equality in the female on the opposite sides of the body.
In Gelasimus, according to a statement quoted by Milne-
Edwards,' the male and female live in the same burrow,
which is worth notice, as showing that they pair, and the
male closes the mouth of the burrow with one of its chelae,
which is enormously developed ; so that here it indirectly
serves as a means of defence. Their main use, however,
probably is to seize and to secure the female, and this in
some instances, as with Gammarus, is known to be the
case. The sexes, however, of the common shore-crab
( Carcinus mce?ias), as Mr. Spence Bate informs me, unite
directly after. the female has moulted her hard shell, and
when she is so soft that she would be injured if seized by
the strong pincers of the male ; but as she is caught and
carried about by the male previously to the act of moult-
ing, she could then be seized with impunity.

Fritz Miiller states that certain species of ^Melita are
distinguished from all other amphipods by the females
having "the coxal lamellae of the penultimate pair of feet
produced into hook-like processes, of which the males lay
hold with the hands of the first pair." The development
of these hook-like processes probably resulted from those
females which were the most securely held during the act
of reproduction having left the largest number of off-
spring. Another Brazilian amphipod (Orchestia Dar-
winil^ fig. V) is described, by Fritz Miiller, as presenting a
case of dimorphism, like that of Tanais ; for there are two

• Sec a paper by Mr. C. Spence Bate, with fif^ures, in * Proc. Zoolog.
Foe.' 1868, p. 303; and on the nomenclature of the genus, ibid. p. 585.
I am greatly indebted to Mr. Spence Bate for nearly all the above state-
ments with respect to the cheloe of the higher crustaceans.

' * Hist. Nat. dcs Crust.' torn. iL 1837, p. 50.

Chap. IX.J

CRL'STACEANS.

323

male forms, which dift'er in the structure of their chela».*
As chelic of either shape would certainly have sufticcd to
hold the female, for both are now used for this purpose,
tlie two male forms probably orii^inated, by some havini;
varied in one manner and some in anotlier; both forms
having derived certain special but nearly e<iual advan-
tages, from their ditlerently-shaped organs.

It is not known that male crustaceans fight together
for the possession of the females, but this is probable ; for
with most animals when the male is larger than tlie femaK',
lie seems to have acquired his greater size by having con-
fpiered during many generations other males. Now, Mr.
S])ence Bate infonns me that in most of the crustactan
orders, especially in the highest or the Hrachyura, the
male is larger than the female; the parasitic genera, how-
ever, in which the sexes folhjw dilUrent habits of life, ami
most of the Entomostraca must be excepted. The chehu
of many crustaceans are weapons well adapted for fight-
ing. Thus a Devil-crab {IWtumcs pubtr) was seen by a
son of Mr. Hate fighting with a Carcinu.t riuvna^fy and the
latter was soon thrown on its back, and had every limb
torn fnjin its body. Wki« n sevenil maks of a Brazilian
ttelasimus, a species furnishrd with immense pincers, were
phuu'd logetluT by Fritz MulU r in a gla!»s vi»}*svl, tiiey
mutilated and kilh-d eai'h other. Mr. Bate put a large
mal«! (!ttr<*inuA tmi tuts into a pan of water, inliab^ted by
a frmale paired with a nnijller male; the latter was s«H)n
diMjMjsiicfised, but, an .Mr. Bate addi«, ** if they fought, tho
victory was a blood!e»»H itm\ for I naw no wounds.** This
name natnniliMt Mcparatt'tl u male sand fikip|H*r (so comnioii
on our Roa whori's), (Sttmmarus truirinus^ fn>ni its ftMuale,
both of which wen' imprisomHl in tho Kanu* vi*iuMd wiUi
many individuaU of thr nrunr hikmmi'A. Tht* frniale, ^
thus divonMsl, joiiii d her r«tnira<b*<«. After an iiiUT\ai Uto

* KriU MoUcr, ' I'avU auU ArKuntriiU fut iMmta,* lt4f, p|v U-UL

324 . SEXUAL SELECTION. [Part IL

male was again put into the Bamc vessel and he then, after
swimming about for a time, dashed into the crowd, and
without any fighting at once took away his wife. This

'.-Orcbcstia Danvinli ffrom Fritz Mailer), Bliowing the diffurcntiy-i
Btructed cbelfl; of the two male forms.

fact shows that in the Amphipoda, an order low in the
scale, the males and females recognize each other, and are
mutually attached.

CUAP. IX.]

CRUSTACEAX&

325

TIic mental powers of the Crustacea are probably
higher than might have been expected. Any one who
liaH tried to catch one of the shore-crabs, so numerous on
iiKiny tropical coasts, will have p<Tceived how wary and
alert tlicy are. Tliere is a large crab (liirffus Uitro)^ found
on coral islands, which makes at the bottom of a deep
burrow a thick bod of the picked fibres of the cocoa-nut.
It feeds on the fallen fruit of this tree by tearing ofl* the
liusk, libre by fibre; and it always begins at that end
where the three eye-like de pressions are situated. It then
])roak8 througli one of these eyes by hammering with its
heavy front pincers, and, turning round, extracts the al-
buminous core with its narrow posterior pincers. Hut these
actions are pro})ably instinctive, so that they would l>o
pe rformed as well by a young as by an old animal. The
following case, however, can hardly be so considered: A
trustworthy naturalist, Mr. (iardner,* while watching a
hhore-crab ((Jelasimus) making its burrow, throw some
hhells toward the liolo. One rolled in, and three other
shells remained within a few inches of the moutli. In
about five minutes the crab brought out the shell wiiieh
h.'id fallen in, and carried it away to the distance of a
foot; it then saw the three other shells lying near, and
evidently thinking that they mi^ht lik»'ui«*«' roll in, carried
ihi ni to the HjHit where it liad laid the first. It would, I
think, hi* diflicult to distingui**!! this a- t rr"n on.- p« r-
formed by man by the aid of reanon.

With n*s|»oct to color which so ofton diflfern in the
two sexes of animals bel ; to the higher chis«4»ii, Mr.
S|M>nc« Hate does not know of any well-mnrktHl iniit.in<H'«
with our Hritinh crtisiaeeans. In some eases, how<*vrr,
the male and female dilVer somewhat in tint, but Mr. lUto

* 'TravrU In lh« Ini. rior of llnua/ 1S4S. p. 111. I hav« g(f««, la
I 'Journal of l(t«<«r. l.r«,* 44a, Ml Aotmtti of lb« h*b4ls of Iks

326

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part II,

thinks not more than may be accounted for by their dif-
ferent habits of life, such as by the male wandering
more about and being thus more exposed to the light.
In a curious Bornean crab, wliich inhabits sponges, Mr.
Bate could always distinguish the sexes by the male not
having the epidermis so much rubbed off. Dr. Power
tried to distinguish by color the sexes of the species
which inhabit the Mauritius, but always failed, except
with one species of Squilla, proably the JS. stylifera^ the
male of which is described as being " of a beautiful blu-
ish-green," with some of the appendages cherry-red, while
the female is clouded with brown and gray, " with the
red about her much less vivid than in the male.'"' In this
case, we may suspect the agency of sexual selection. With
Saphirina (an oceanic genus of Entomostraca, and there-
fore low in the scale) the males arc furnished with minute
shields or cell-like bodies, which exhibit beautiful chan-
ging colors ; these being absent in the females, and in the
case of one species in both sexes." It would, however, be
extremely rash to conclude that these curious organs serve
merely to attract the females. In the female of a Brazil-
ian species of Gelasimus, the whole body, as I am informed
by Fritz Miiller, is of a nearly uniform grayish-brown.
In the male the posterior part of the cephalo-thorax is
pure white, with the anterior part of a rich green, shading
into dark brown ; and it is remarkable that these colors
are liable to change in the course of a few minutes — the
white becoming dirty-gray or even black, the green " los-
ing much of its brilliancy." The males apparently are
much more numerous than the females. It deserves es-
pecial notice that they do not acquire their bright colors
until they become mature. They differ also from the fe-

>o Mr. Ch. Eraser, in *Proc. Zoolog. Soc' 18G9, p. 3. I am indebted
to Mr. Bate for tlie statement from Dr. Power.

" Claus, 'Die frcik'benden Copepodcn,' 1863, s. 8r).

Chap. IX.]

SPIDERS.

327

males in the larger size of th'-ir chelaj. In some 8i)eeie8
of the genus, probably in all, the se.xes pair and inhabit
the Hame burro\s'. They are also, as we have seen, higiily-
intelligent animals. From the various considerations it
seems highly probable that the male in this species ha.s be-
come gayly oniamented in order to attract or excite the
f«*male.

It has just been stated that the male Gelasimus doi's
not acquire his conspicuous colors until mature and nearly
ready to breed. This seems the general rule in the whole
class with the many remarkable differences in structure
lictween the two sexes. We shall hereafter find the same
law prevailing throughout the great sub-king<l«>m of the
Vertebrata, and in all cases it is eminently di.stinctive of
(rharacters which have been acquired through sexual se-
lection, Fritz MUller " gives some striding instances of
this law; tims the male saml-hopper (Orchestia) does not
acquire his large claspers, which are very differently con-
structed from those of the female, until nearly full grown ;
while young his claspenj resemble those of the female.
Thus, again, the male Hrachyscelus possesses, like all ollu r
auiphipods, a pair of jjosterior antmmu ; the female, and
liiirt is a mo.^t extra«»rdinary circumstance, is di'stiiiitr of
them, and bo is tlie male as long as he remains immaturi*.

Cluflii, Arachnids (Spitlfrn). — The nialot are often
darker, but Honietimes lighter than the females, at may Im)
"••■•-n in Mr. niarkwalTH magnitit-i-nt work." In some iip4^
« i" H the Hi'ices di!V<T from each other in col-

"»r; thuM the frmalu «»l .^y / . *m*ir'' • ' ' /j iit tlulli^li
irr< «'ii, while the adult male has the ai> i ii of u fine
•''I'.u', w\\\\ tliT' |. 'idin d •.frijM's i«f rl-h n-<! In

•» • \ It x\u* m-M • - I >

323

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Paet IL

some species of Tliomisus the two sexes closely resemble
each other; in others they (litter much; thus in T, citreus
the legs and body of the female are pale yellow or green,
while the front legs of the male are reddish-brown : in T.
JforicolenSy the legs of the female are pale-green, those of
the male being ringed in a conspicuous manner with vari-
ous tints. Numerous analogous cases could be given in the
genera Epeira, Nephila, I'hilodromus, Theridion, Liny-
phia, etc. It is often difficult to say which of the two
sexes departs most from the ordinary coloration of the
genus to which the species belong; but Mr. Hlackwall
thinks that, as a general rule, it is the male. Both sexes
while young, as I am informed by the same author, usu-
ally resemble each other; and both often undergo great
changes in color during their successive moults before ar-
riving at maturity. In other cases the male alone appears
to change color. Thus the male of the above-mentioned
brightly-colored Sparassus at first resembles the female
and acquires his peculiar tints only when nearly adult.
Spiders are possessed of acute senses, and exhibit much
intelligence. The females often.show, as is well known,
the strongest attection for their eggs, which they carry
about envefo])cd in a silken web. On the whole, it aj)-
]>ears ])robable that well-marked diflerences in color be-
tween the sexes have generally resulted from sexual se-
lection, either on the male or female side. But doubts
may be entertained on this head from the extreme varia-
bility in color of some species, for instance, of T/ieriiiion
lineatum, the sexes of which ditt'cr when adult; this great
variability indicates that their colors have not l>een sub-
jected to any form of selection.

Mr. Blackwall does not remember to have seen the
males of any species fighting together for the possession
of the female. Nor, judging from analogy, is this proba-
ble; for the males are generally much smaller than the

Clur. IX.]

sniNDKa

fcrnaU-rt, Bomctimet to an cxtrnonliiiary d^ree.** Had
tilt* maleH been iu the habit of fighting together, they
wouM, it in prohablf, have ^ra<lually acquired greater
hiiA! and KtruDgth. Mr. lilackwall hat fometiroefl seen
two or more malen on the Kinio web with a aingle female;
but their courtship u too tedious and prolonged an aflair
to l>e eaiiily observed. The male i* extremely cautiouit in
niakin;( bin advanced, an the female carries her coyneta to
a *langerouji pitch. Do (ieer »aw a male that ^ in th«
nii'Ut of hifl preparator}' careMUMi wan tiiaed by the o)»j<>ct
of hiH attention^ enveKj|M'd by her in a web and th* n de-
Muired. •» ^i"ht which, ai* hi* JuhU, lille<i liim with horror
and in.i on.*' "

W. !. I' :iia4lo the inter« -tin^' .li-. uvery that the

mal«^ of . . r I, ii|>ocioa of Theridion ** have the power of
lii.iL iri'^' a iktridulating sound (like that made by many
)h. tleM and other iniK'ctD, but fiHrbler), while the femalet
an Timtei The apparatus confiHtN of a fterr *«

.i«e of the a' ! n, againitt winch tl
I the thorax . . . .. .1 v f , f rl,;.

' ould Ik* dt-tiH le<l iii . i .

of the Orthoptera and llonioptera, to W d« o
m xt chapter, we may f « < 1 alnnnit nun* that tl.< ;>
M \\ ^ n mark*, < ither to mil or to . v is

"4 mm Um »<v<^4»

10 yMlBUlllfl/ ««i

15

330

SEXUAL SELFXTION.

[Part II.

the female ; and tliis is tlic first case in the ascending scale
of the animal kingdom, known to me, of sounds emitted
for this purpose.

Class, Myriapoda. — In neither of the two orders in
this class, including the millipedes and centipedes, can I
find any well-marked instances of sexual differences such
as more particularly concern us. In Glomeris limhata^
however, and perhaps in some few other species, the males
differ slightly in color from the females ; but this Glomeris
is a highly-variable species. In the males of the Diplo-
poda, the legs belonging to one of the anterior segments
of the body, or to the posterior segment, arc modified into
prehensile hooks which serve to secure the female. In
some species of lulus the tarsi of the male arc furnished
with membranous suckers for the same purpose. It is a
much more unusual circumstance, as we shall see when wo
treat of Insects, that it is the female in Lithobius which is
furnished with pr(?licnsile appendages at the extremity of
the body for holding the male."

Walckcnacr ct P. Gcrvais, ' Iliat Xat dcs lasectcs ; Apturcs, torn,
iv. 1817, pp. 17, 19, 08.

Cuxr. X. 1

331

ClIAPTKU X.

8BCX>M)ARY 8BXUAL CIIAUACTBRS OF IXSKCTS,

In bHwewn th. >. \ . •

.... It >. ■ . . '.wC Ma1o«

—IlcnupCerm.— U' ' , i

•lona,-OitliO|iUrm,Ma..a. 1.. u.: . M ! •. i '^J];^

fledlBStnetnrt; PofniKrlty; Oolof».- N r. i ur . - x . l»ilfcfuu»
In Oolor.-Hjin«iopur*, l^ifniM^ity .t> I « .Ior«.-Col»pU«,Coto«;
fureUlMd wilk QiMl Uorni^ •pp««nUjr m •!> OroMnwa; Battka;
SCrUlttlatiof Or.»mn« {ff^cmlV'' emnmon to Both 6«xw.

Iv the immniM' ola-n of iiiM-rtf* the •cxe« sonit i
.lirtVr in tht ir or^jaii* for l.»ooinotion, and often in th. ir
M iiM H.r^^'ans an in tho jMM linat. .1 U-aulifully plunioM*
.Mt. nme of ll.o ni.V ' ' i"^- 1" "'"^ ^^"^

1,.!,. .,,. ' ' imrly « 1 ^

. ..1 . tV. f ' -nioorolU

, |„ , n* in tlM)

, an* liki-wi««" »l« -t >iulo of wi two
, urm )>¥ which uuo male k

I , . , in ImiUIc or * ' !S

Mr namct.'

S32

SEXUAL SELECTION.

IVxuT II.

abdomen, wliicli ouixht pcrlmps to be ranked as primary
organs,' "it is astonisliing," as Mr. B. D. Walsh* has re-
marked, "how many different organs are worked in by
Nature, for tlie seemingly insignititant object of enabling
the male to grasp the female iinnly." The mandibles or
jaws are sometimes used for this purpose; thus the male
Corydalis cornutus (a neuropterous insect in some degree
allied to the Dragon-flies, etc.) has immense curved jaws,
many times longer than those of the female; and they are
smooth instead of being toothed, by which means he is
enabled to seize her without injury.* One of the stag-
beetles of North America (Z/Ucanus elap/ius) uses his jaws,
which arc much larger than those of the female, for the
same purpose, but probably likewise for fighting. In one
of the sand-wasps (Ainmophila) the jaws in the two sexes
arc closely alike, but are used for widely-difterent pur-
]>oses ; the males, as Prof. Westwood observes, " are ex-
ceedingly ardent, seizing their partners round the neck
with their sickle-shaped jaws;"' while the females use

' These organs in the male often differ in closoly-allied specief, and
nflbrd excellent specific characters. But their importance under a finic-
tional point of view, as Mr. R. Macliachlan has remarked to me, has
prohably been overrated. It has been suggested, that slight diflcrences
in these organs would sufTicc to prevent the intercrossing of well-marked
varieties or incipient species, and would thus aid in their development.
Tliat this can hardly be thft case, we may infer from the many recorded
cases (see, for instance, Bronn, •Geschichte der Xatur,' B. ii. #643, a.
104; and Westwood, 'Transact. Ent. Soc' vol. iii. 1842, p. 196)ofdis.
tinct species having been oteerved in union. Mr. MacLachlan informs
me (vide *Stctt. Ent. Zeitung,' 1867, s. 155) that when several species of
rhryganidw, which present strongly-pronounced diflerences of this kind,
were confined together by Dr. Aug. Meyer, thft/ coHjiUd, and one pair
produced fertile ova.

' ' The Practical Entomologist,' Philadelphia, vol. ii. May, 1807, p. BS.

* Mr. Walsh, ibid. p. 107.

' ' Modem Classification of Insects,' vol. ii. 1840, pp. 20fi, 205. Mr.
Walsh, who called my attention to this double use of the jaws, says that
he has repeatedly ob.'Jcrvcd this fact.

C'llAl". X.]

IX SECTS.

333

these organfi for burrowing in sand-bank-s and making
tiicir nesU.

Tlie tar«i of the front-legs arc dilate<l in many malo
beetlen, or arc fumi.shed with }>roa«l cuhIuouh of liairs;
and in many genera of water-beetles they are armed with
a round tlat KUcker, so that the male may adhere to tho
Hli|)|>ery Ixwly of the f*niale.
it !-> amueh more uiuisual cir-
( UMiHtanc'C that the fc-inaies of
.-Mme water-lxxtles (Dyti-t ufij
have their elytra deeply
grooved, and in Ac Hi us aui-
ra/iiJt thickly set with hairn,
as an aid to the male. The
females of some other watc r-
Ix'etles (nydro|>oniH) have
their elytra punctured for the
-anir *»bjfet.* In the male <>f
f 'nihro rrif/rariuji (fiir. h)^ it in
the tibia whieh i^ dilate«l into
a broa*! horny plnte, with mi-
nute membranei)us dntx, giv-
ing to it a singular ap|M ar .
like that of a riddle/ In tl» >
mall* tif IVnthe (a genus « '
!• I a few of the middh* joints (*f the a
dilahil and fumi<«)i«'4l on the infi-rinr •< with •

of hair, exactly like thtHH.* on tlie tarm oi tho Cai .ii i

* We ha*0 brre a ntrioac ftiMj ahW e—0 ot dti— tpiibi. far

-.rive of Ihr r««MlM of ftNir BMUIMAtt »(NaM« oC DjTtlPCWi, uA of CVfUki

an*

I'

'. i»r ftmv

»h<t »>■» lnfrrmr-tUl#

331

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Paut TI.

" and obviously for the same end." Li male dra-on-flies
Hhc appendages at the tip of the tail are modiM in an'
almost infinite variety of curious patterns
to enable them to embrace the neck of the
female." Lastly, in the males of many in-
sects, the legs are furnished with i)eculiar
spines, knobs, or 8j)urs; or the whole leg is
bowed or thickened, but this is by no means
invariably a sexual character; or one pair,
or all three i)air8 are elongated, somet inn s'
to an extravagant length.'

In all the orders, the sexeg of many
species j)resent difl'erences, of which the
meaning is not understood. One curious
case is that of a beetle (fig. 9), the male of
which has the left mandible much enlarged ;
so that the mouth is greatly distorted. In
another Carabidous beetle, the Eurygna-
thus," wc have the unique case, as far as
known to Mr. Wollaston, of the head of the
female being much broader and larger,
though in a variable degree, than that of
the male. Any number of such cases could
be given, l^hey abound in the Lepidoptera :
one of the most extraordinary- is that ccr-
•' ' ' tain male butterflies have their fore-legs
Fio. n. -Tnphro- '"^re or less atrophied, with the tibia and

(lunvh ciilari,'c(l(.

tarsi reduced to mere rudimentary knobs.
innirriuwcrXr: "^^^^ wings, also, in the two sexes often differ
urc, female. ncuration,'" and sometimes considerably

about Penthc, and others in inverted comroa*, arc taken from Mr. Walsh,
' Pnictical Entomologist,' Philadelphia, vol. ii. p. 88.

" Kirby and Sponce, ' Introduct.' etc., vol. iii. pp. 332-336.

• 'In-socta Madercnm,' ISni, p. 20.
E. Doublcday, • AmiuU and Mag. of Nat. Ilist.' vol i. 1848, p. 37y.

CllAP. X.]

IKSECTSL

335

in outline, as in the Aricon's rjtUuA^ wliich was shown to
ine in the liriti>h Museum by 3Ir. -V. lJutler. The maleti
of certain South American buttc rtliej* liave lufta of Lair on
the margins of the wini^s, and homy excresconces on the
ilinks of the posterior pair.'* In «k.'veral British butterllles,
the malen alone, as ehown by 31 r. Wonfor, are in part«
clothed with peculiar Bcales.

The pur|K>.se of the luminosity in the female glow-
worm is likewijie not undcr8too<i; for it is very doubtful
whether the primary uinc of the li^'ht is to guide the male
to the female. It U no serious objection to this latter be-
lii'f that the males emit a feeble li:;ht; fur hecondary S4*xu-
al characters proper to one sex are often develop-*! \n a
Hlight degree in the other sex. It is a more valid o' u
that the larvie shine, and in some fpiririi brilliantly: Fritx
Mdller infonns me that the most luminous insect which he
« ver Wheld in Brazil was the larva of some Ixi'tle. I' 'h
« H of certain luminous ipecics of Klater emit 1.
Ktrby and S|H>ncc NUM{M'ct tliat the pbotpboreioeoco scxvca
to frighten and drive away enemiei.

jnfi'.nn.. , . ■ ' i Sixct, — Willi HI r

llV 1 !. Ihr ■ •• 'v " .

Ii ' -tv-l \ . •! it|

I . . . I

the male aiid f(*mali« roroont of tho silk-moih (/
f/ion), that in Fr y an« sc|»anit«M ^' J * P*^

m<Hle of wi i^'Ki ' III tbo lower cUmwi uf the animal

4liW to a— fthi ■tnwiHn <
•> Ii. W. btm, to •jMffMl «r rnm. IJaa.
Mr W— Ibf^a tbmrtUinm art qwoHad to * INyLi i-

. - !■»

330

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

kingdom, the greater size of the females seems generally
to depend on their developing an enormous number of ova ;
and tliis may to a eertain extent liold good witli insects.
But Dr. Walhice has suggested a much more probable ex-
planation. He finds, after carefully attending to the de-
velopment of the caterpillars of Bomhyx cynthia and
yama-mai, and especially of some dwarfed caterpillars
reared from a second brood on unnatural food, " tliat in
proportion as the individual moth is finer, so is the timo
required for its metamorphosis longer ; and for this reason
the female, which is the larger and heavier insect, from
having to carry her numerous eggs, will be preceded by
the male, which is smaller and has less to mature." ** Now,
as most insects are short-lived, and as they are exposed to
many dangers, it would manifestly be advantageous to the
female to be impregnated as soon as possible. Tliis end
•would be gained by the males being first matured in large
numbers ready for the advent of the females; and this
again would naturally follow, as Mr. A. R. Wallace has
remarked,** through natural selection ; for tlie smaller
males would be first matured, and thus would procreate a
large number of olTspring which would inherit the reduced
size of .their male parents, while the larger males from be-
ing matured later would leave fewer offspring.

There are, however, exceptions to the rule of male in-
sects being smaller than the females ; and some of these
excej)tions are intelligible. Size and strength would bo
an advantage to the males, whicli fight for the possession
of the female ; and in these cases the males, as with the
stag-beetle (Lucanus), are larger than the females. There
are, however, other beetles which are not known to fight
together, of which the males exceed the females in size •
and the meaning of this fact is not known ; but in some

" ' Transact Ent. Soc' 3d scricf, vol. v. p. 486.
» * Journal of Proc. Eut. Soc' Feb. 4, 1867, p. IxxL

Cuxr. X-]

INSECTS.

337

of these cases, as with tlie huge DyiiuMes and Megasoma,
we can at least see that tht re would be no necessity for
the males to be smaller than the females, in ordir to Ix-
matured before them, for these beetles are not short-lived,
and there would l>eamj»le time for the {lairin;^ of the si'Xefs.
So, again, male dragon-flies (Li)K'llulida') arc sometimes
sensibly larger, and never hmalhr, than the females:'* and
they do not, as Mr. MacLachlan believes, generally pair
witli the female**, until a week or fortnight has elapst d, and
uiilil they have as^^umed their jirojKT masrtiline colors.
JJiit the moKt curious caw*, showing on what complex ami
• :i'<ily-overlooked relations ko trilling a charaeter a
diir« rencc in Bi»« l>etween the »en*s may depend, i.s that of
the aculeate Ilymenoptera; for Mr. F. Smith infonns mo
that throughout nearly the whole of this large group the
mah s, in accordance with the general rule, are smaller
than the females and emerge alniut a week before thcni ;
but among the lU-c*, the males of Ajiin tm/Ii/ica^ Authi-
tllutii tiHtfticuiuin and .l/<//i*»y*/ior»/ rr«»r(///i, and :i • •
ihi! Koi»*ores, the males of iIm th<HH ir/,nf nut".-
arv larger than the females. i . ext lmit" n of i-
anomaly is that a marriag«'-t1iglit is ah i>«:trv
with tKese sjKi'ies, and the males nH|uirf gnat streii.
and size in order to carry the ft males thr«»u^h the air. In-
cn^aMil n'tw ha* here iMfn ac4piin*d in <•] •n to the

ni»ual relation 1 ii t^tw and the |tcritMl ul d« \ •

for the DiaU*s, tliou^h larger, emerge In^forp the *■

\Vc will no%» n \ \\ . . . rnl Onler*. ' ''ti • .m. !>
facts nion* j . n H

(Itntt. and Moih") \« . ^ .i.

p SH.

338 SEXUAL SELECTION. [Paet Ii

Order, T/ii/sanura.—Thc iiuMiibcrs of ihU Order arc
lowly orgjuii/A'd for their class. They are wingless, dull-
colored, minute insects, with ugly, ahn'ost niisshaiKjn heads
and bodies. The sexes do not differ; but they offer ouc
interesting fact, by showing that the males pay sedulous
court to their females even low down in the animal scale.
Sir J. Lubbock," in describing the Smynthurus lutcus,
says: "It is very amusing to see these little creatures co-'
quetting together. The male, which is much smaller than
the female, runs round her, and they butt one another,
Ftanding face to face, and moving backward and forward
like two playful lambs. Then the female pretends to run
away and the male runs after her with a queer api^aranco
of angor, gets in front and stands facing her again ; then
she turns coyly round, but he, quicker and more active,
scuttles round too, and seems to wliip her with his anU'nna);
then for a bit they stand face to face, play with their an-
tenna?, and seem to be all in all to one another.**

Order, JJijXera (Flies).— Tlie sexes differ little in color.
The greatest difference, known to Mr. F. ^Valk^ r, is in tho
genus liibio, in which the males arc blackish or quite
black, and the females obscure brownish orange. The
genus Elaphomyw, discovered by Mr. Wallace "in New
Guinea, is highly remarkable, as the males are furnished
with bonis, of which the females are quite destitute. The
horns spring frum l)eneath the eyes, and curiously res* inblc
tliDSc of stags, being either branched or palmattnL They
equal in length the whole of the bo<ly in one of tho 8po-
cics. They might be thought to serve for lighting, but, as
in one species they arc of a beautiful pink-<(»lor, e<lged
with black, with a pale central stri|)e, and as these insects
have altogether a very elegant nppenrance, it is perhaps

" 'Traiwact. Linne«ii Soc.' rol. w . .. 1S68, p. 206.
>• « The Mala J Arcbipclftgo,' toL ii. 18C», \k 313.

rtiAf. X.] DirTERA AND Ui-MIPTEUA. ZZ9

more proUblc that t' - hnrvn ^rrt as omMmmU, That
tlH male, of •ome 1 i together U certain; fur

I . Wc«twooa" ha« several limes teen thia with ^>m*'
. i,^ ofTipula or llurry^on^-li-^. Many olm r

that when piatn e la) dance in the air in a
b.,.1 y, alti-mauly riMii- uu.i UiiiML', the maka arc courting
th* fcrnali i*. TIm- xiu ui A faniUiin of tb« I> • ' ' i arv
,.r.il.aMv fairlv well .lo. ' ' f-r ihiir nenr.
in more highly aeVilo|H^i ' r ^>^>*

Order. Ifrmipt^ Bug*).— Mr. J. W. Doogb^

who haa par y atl4 iidea to the llriii*h »pcrie«, haa

I I lly given mo an aA-eount of their M?xual difliBreoec^
l i . male* of mie speolca are funii.hed with wbga,
v^hile the femalea are wingleaa; lha differ in the

„„fll ' ' ' • ; in the lec*.!. 1 J mU of lh* ir

y ' i> f Vi- MtirnUkation of
IT l»e hero

1 i.. tnalea are gi
the male*, Wilh llr»li-h. an l, a* l:ir Mr.
Wt, with eiotii' *!«« « i« *, I'i'- V. •
murh in coUir; Imt in i»» ui
the male ia con«i<lrr

lU

t an A

• I in a

■Ill I lUi^^^ u>ia»

340

SEXUAL sp:lection.

[Part 1L

ami, ill tlie case of l^iratcs stridulus^ this is said " to lie
cllected by the movement of tlie neck within the pro-
thoracic cavity. According to Westring, Jieduvius ^>er-
sonatus also stridiilates. But I have not Leeii uhle to
learn any particulars about these insects ; nor have I any
reason to suppose that they ditter sexually in this respect.

Order, Ilomoptera. — Every one who has wandered in
a tropical forest must have been astonished at the din
made by the male Cicada?. The females are mute ; as tlie
Grecian poet Xenarchus says, "llapj)y the Cicadas live,
since they all have voiceless wives." The noise thus made
could be plainly heard on board the " Beagle," when
anchored at a quarter of a mile from the shore of Brazil ;
and Captain Hancock says it can be heard at the distance
of a mile. The Greeks formerly kept, and the Chinese
now keep, these insects in cages for the sake of their song,
so that it must be pleasing to the ears of some men."
The Cicadidae usually sing during the day; wiiile the
Fulgorida) appear to be night-songsters. The sound, ac-
cording to Landois," who has recently studied the subject,
is produced by the vibration of the lips of the spiracles,
which are set into motion by a current of air emitted from
the trachea?. It is increased by a wonderfully complex
resounding apparatus, consisting of two cavities covered
by scales. Hence the sound may truly be called a voice.
In the female the musical apparatus is present, but very
much less developed than in the male, and is never used
for j>roducing sound.

AV'ith respect to the object of the music. Dr. Ilartmaii,

Wcstwood, ' Modern Class, of Insects,' vol, ii. p. 4T3.

"These particulars are taken from Westwood't* 'Modern Class, of
Insects,' vol ii. 1840, p. 422. See, also, on the Fulgorida;, Kirby and
Spence, ♦ Introduct.' vol. ii. p. 401.

«•■' 'Zeitschrift fur wissenschaft. Zoolog.' H. xvii. 18G7, 8. 152-158.

ClIAP. X.]

nOMOPTEKA.

341

in speaking of tlie cicada aejytcmdtcim of llic Lnite<l
States, says:** "The drums are now (June Cth and 7th,
1^51) heard in all dirc( lions. This I believe to be the
marital summons from tl»e nuiles. Standing in thick
chestnut-sprouts alK)ut as high as my hea*], where hun-
dreds were around me, I observed the females coming
around the drumming males." lie adds: "This sea.-^on
(August, 18CH) a dwarf jK'ar-tree in my garden produced
about fifty larvie of Cic, pruinosa ; an<l I t^everal times
noticed the females to alight near a male while ho was ut-
tering his clanging imtc**." Fritz MQller writes to mo
from Southern Hrazil that he has often listened to a musi-
cal contest between two or three males of a Cicada, hav-
iiit; a particularly loud voice, and s«*aled at a consi«lerablo
<li.->lance from each other. As soon as the first had lin-
ished his song, a second immediately began ; an«l after ho
)iad couclude<l, another iK'gan, and so on. As there is so
much rivalry between the males, it is probable that tho
females not only discover them by the sounds emitted, but
tliat, like female birds, they are cxcitetl or alluriHl by tho
male with the nioMt attractive voice.

I have not found any well-marked r:iH« s of urn:iin« nVil
ditTerenccH between the sexen of the llomoptrni. ^'
i)ou^;las inrTfi-* mo that then* are three Hritl-'i ,^
in which t ilu bhick or marked \\ iri| \.
while the I ^ are pah*-oobiroi| or «•

Order, Or' -a, — Tho malen in the thn*o sal' d

1 ' ' Onler art* • sable for iheir

) . \ ' , ■

1 : i .\ ,)

J ,1 f1... \

1 .

1 ■ • ; ' .....

r VM li. t.t,««ii lo Mr Wftkh fur b«*: t f**" •

342

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

it can ho hoard during the night at the distance of a
mile;" and tliat made by certain species is not umnusical
even to the human ear, so that the Indians on the Ama-
zons keep them in wicker cages. All observers agree that
the sounds serve either to call or excite tiie mute females.
But it has been noticed " that the male migratory locust
of Russia (one of the Acridiidaj), while coupled with the
female, stridulates from anger or jealousy when ap-
proached by another male. The house-cricket when sur-
prised at night uses its voice to warn its fellows." In
North America the Katy-did {Platyphyllum concavum^

one of the Locustidie) is
described" as mountinu;
on the upper branches of a
tree, and in the evening be-
ginning his noisy babble,
while rival notes issue from
the neighboring trees, and
the groves resound with the
call of Katy-did-she-did
the live-long night." ]\[r.
Bates, in speaking of the

F.o.ia-Gryllus carnpos.rl.s (fro:n I^n- ^'"'^P^''^" field-Cricket (onc

Ritth. 1. ^ of tlie Achetidie), says:

RiLht-hand n-uro, under Kido of part or « rp, , , /' \

tic «M,--norvun., much maniined "^"^ "^•'^'C haS been ob-

^'howui- the teeth, /f/;. «.-,'""ta, ^^ . . ,

Left-hand fiirure, upper Hurfaceof win-- Served tO plaCC itsolf m thc

v^o^ja^^r^lS^ fvening at the entrance of

■ it« burrow, and stridulate

until a female approaches, when the louder notes are
succeeded l)y a more subdued tone, while thc success-
lid musician caresses with his antenna3 the male lie has

" L. GuildinfT, ' Transact. Linn. Soc' vol. xv. n

Koppcn, as quotcul in the 'Zoological Record,' for 1867 p 460
' Gilbert White, 'Nat. Hist, of Sclbome,' vol. ii. 1825, p. 262.
" Harris, 'Insects of Xcw England,' 1842, p. 128.

Caxp. X.]

ORTUOPTERA.

343

won." ** Dr. .^cu«l»k r w:i8 alile to excite one of lh^^e in-
Hects to answer him, l>y rubbing on a tile with a <juiil.**
In bolli sexes a reniarkal>le au<litory apjjaratus has bt-vn
discovered by Von Siebold, ^ituated in the front legs.*'

In the three Families the Hounds are ditt'erently j>ro-
duced. In the males of the Achetifliu both win«;-covers
iiave the same structure; and this in the field-cricket
(Grylius carnjKstris^ lig. 10) couhlsts, as descrilxd by
J.andois," of from 131 to 138 sharp, transverse ridges or
teeth (at) on the under side of one of the uervures of the
wing-cover. This toothed nervure is rapidly scrajied
acrusK a projecting, smrxfth, hard nervure (r) on the U|»|K.r
surface of the opposite wing. First one
wing is rublicd over the other, and then
the movement is reversed, Hoth winirs
are raised a little at the same time, so
as to increase the resonance. In some
s|K*cie« the wing-coveni of the nudim are
funiished at the base with a talc-lik«*
plate." I have here given a dniwing (
11) of the teeth on the under sid«' of the ,| _nwih m
nervure of another s|»ecii»s of (J ry 11 us, vir. IJ

In the l«4H-u^itda' flu* wing-<*o\ its tlitUr in

^tni« ture (fig. 1.'), ami the la>t ' 'v, iJc in-

diiV.nntly in a i... .d manner, 'li.. ». ll wiii>»,

ul.i. h acts nM the Imiw of the fiddle, llin «i\ r . r* -hi

RtTM a tvry i

ntiM of the litroo Ian iIm) \\ r«|wooii

pp. 4M.

■ Wr

344

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Pakt 11.

wing which serves as the fiddle itself. One of the ner-
vures (a) on the under surface of the former is finely ser-
rated, and is scraped across the prominent nervures on the
upper surface of the opposite or right wing. In our Bril-
ish I'hasgonura virldUsima it appeared to me that the
serrated nervure is rubbed agamst the rounded^ hind
corner of the opposite wing, the edge of which is thick-
ened, colored brown, and very sharp. In the rio-ht wino-
but not in the left, there is a little plate, as transparent as
talc, surrounded by nervures, and called the speculum,
In Ephippicjer vitium, a member of this same family, we
have a curious subordinate modification; for the wing-
covers are greatly reduced in size, but " the posterior part
of the pro-thorax is elevated into a kind of dome over the

Fio. 12.-C'lilorocffilQ8 Tanana (from Bates), a. b. Lobes of oppodte Tvlnj^-coycis.

ClIAP. X.]

ORTnOPTERA.

345

wing-covers, and which has prohably the effect of increas-
ing the sound." "

We thus see that the musical apparatus is more difll-r-
entiated or specialized in the Locustidie, which includes,
I believe, the most powe rful performers in the Order, thau
in the Achetidte, in which both wing-covers have the
same structure and the same function," Landois, however,
detected in one of the Locustidie, namely, in Decticus,
a short and narrow row of small teeth, mere rudiments, on
the ijiferior surface of the right wing-cover, whiih under-
lies tlie other and is never used as the b<jw. I observed
the same rudimentary structure on the under side of tho
right wing-cover in Pfaisfjonura viridissima. Hence wc
may witli confidence infer that the Locustidje are de-
scended from a form, in which, as in the existing Ache-
tida^both wing-covers had serrated ncrvures on the under
surface, and could be indifferently used as tlje bow; but
that in the Locustithc the two wing-covers gnidually bo-
< :imt! differentiated and perfected, on the principle of tho
divi.-ion of labor, the one to act exclusively as the bow
and the other as the fiddh'. IJy what steps the njoro
simple apparatus in the Aehetidiu originated, wu do not
know, but it is probable that the basal portions of tho
u ing-covern overlappetl eaeh other fonnerly as at pre^ent^
and that tho friction of the ncrvures produred a gnitin^
Htiiind, as I find is now the cnsu with tho wing-covers of
the femuleii.'* A grating sound thus oci ;IIy and lu^
eidentally made by the males, if it servvd liiem ever
little an a lovt* rail to llie femalei*, might readily have bifn
iiiteii-'f*' 1 through nexual Heleetion by fitting v.ir* J* • in
X\\i) 1 iH of th"' ru r\ urt -i hax iti ' bn ij v
pr«-rrve»l.

« 'W.mI. n, «; • I 'rot ! v

I ... IbM. «. Ill, I
** Mr. WaUh aJmi InforiM mo Ibal i. rti iltai llw fi m»Us of

34G

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

In the last and third Family, namely, the Acridiida)
or grasshoj^pers, the stridulation is produced in a very
different manner, and is not so shrill, according to Dr.
Scudder, as in the preceding Families. The inner surface
of the femur (fig. 13, r) is furnished with a longitudinal
row of minute, elegant, lancet-shaped, elastic teeth, from
85 to 93 in number;" and these are scraped across the
sharp, projecting nervures on the wing-covers, which are
thus made to vibrate and resound. Harris'® says that

when one of the males
begins to play, he first
"bends the shank of
the hind-leg beneath the
thigh, where it is lodged
in a furrow designed to
receive it, and then draws
the leg briskly up and
down. He does not play
both fiddles together, but
^1 alternately first upon one
and then on the other."

Fio. 13.— Uind-lo£jofStcnol)otlini«< nratornm- T • xi

r, tlio Htriduhitiii- rid-o- l()\ver fl. "ire' many SpCClCS tllC baSG

ime^ oJU'3Ss^ """'^ of the abdomen is hoi-

. lowed out into a great
cavity which is believed to act as a resounding-board. In
Pneumora (fig. 14), a South African genus belonging to this
same family, we meet with a new and remarkable modili-
cation : in the males a small notched ridge projects ob-
liquely from each side of tha abdomen, against which the
hind femora are rubbed." As the male is furnished with

the Flat i/phi/Il urn concavum, when captured, makes a feeble grating
noise by shuffling her wing-covers together."

2'' Landois, ibid. a. 113.

^ * Insects of New England,' 1812, p. 133.

Wcstwood, « Modern Classification,' vol. i. p. 4G2.

CllAP. X.]

ORTIIurTEUA.

347

wings, the female being wingless, it is remarku])le tliat
the thighs are not rubbed in the usual manner against the
wing-eovers; but this may perhaps be aeeounteJ for by
the unusually small size of the hind-legs. I have not been
able to examine the inner surface of the thighs, which,
judging from analogy, would be linely serrated. Tlie
species of Pneumora have been more profoundly modilied
for the sake of slridulalion than any other orlhopterous
insect ; for in the male the wl^ole body has been couverled

348

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Pakt IL

into a musical instrument, being distended with air, like a
great pellucid bladder, so as to increase the resonance.
Mr. Trimen informs me that at the Cape of Good Hope
these insects make a wonderful noise during the night.

There is one exception to the rule that the females in
these three Families are destitute of an efficient musical
apparatus ; for both sexes of Ephippiger (Locustida?) arc
said *° to be thus provided. This case may be compared
with that of the reindeer, in which species alone both
sexes possess horns. Although the female orthoptera are
thus almost invariably mute, yet Landois " found rudi-
ments of the stridulatinc: organs on the femora of the fc-
male Acridiida), and similar rudiments on the under sur-
face of the wing-covers of the female Achetidoe ; but he
failed to find any rudiments in the females of Decticus,
one of the Locustida?. In the Homoptera, the mute fe-
males of Cicada have the proper musical apparatus in an
undevclo23ed state ; and we shall hereafter meet, in other
divisions of the animal kingdom, with innumerable in-
stances of structures proper to the male being present in
a rudimentary condition in the female. Such cases appear
at first sight to indicate that both sexes were primordially
constructed in the same manner, but that certain organs
were subsequently lost by the females. It is, however, a
more probable view, as previously explained, that the or-
gans in question were acquired by the males and partially
transferred to the females.

Landois has observed another interesting fact, namely,
that, in the females of the Acridiida}, the stridulating teeth
on the femora remain throughout life in the same condition
in which they first appear in both sexes duiing the larval
state. In the males, on the other hand, they become
fully developed and acquire their perfect structure at

Wcstwood, ibid. vol. i. p. 453.
*' Laudoid, ibid. s. 115, 110, 120, 122.

Chap. X.]

ORTHOrTERA.

349

tlie last moult, when the insect is mature and ready to
breed.

From the facts now given, we see that the means hy
wliich the males produce their sounds are extremely di-
versified in the Ortlioptera, and are altoj^ether dilVerent
from those employed ])y the lIumoj)tera. But tlirougliout
tlie animal kingd(jm we incessantly find tlie same object
trained by tlie most diversified means ; this being due to
the whole organization undergoing in the course of ages
muUifarious changes; and, as part after part varies, difler-
ent variations arc taken advantage of for the same gen-
eral purpose. Tlie diversifi<'ation of the means for j)ro-
ducing sound, in the three families of the Orthoptera and
in the Ilomoptera, impresses the mind witli the high im-
jtortance of lliese structures to the males, for the sake of
railing or alluring the females. We need feel no surprise
at the amount of modification which the Orthoptera have
undirgone in this respect, as we now know, fnim Dr.
Scudder's remarkable discoverv," that there has been
more than ample time. This naturalist has lately found a
fossil insect in the Devonian formation of New Hruns-
wiek, which is furnished with " the well-known tympanum
or stridulatin'^ apparatus of the male Locust id:e." This
insect, though in most respects relatetl to tlio NeurtiptORi,
apjH'arH to connect, as is so often the case with very an-
i 'u nl forms, the two Orders of the Xeuropteni and Or-
thoptera whieh ar<» now generally nink«'d nH»piiie di.Htinct.

I have but little more to say on the Orthopter i 'Uie
of the upci'ies arc very pn<'naciouii : when two ni.. Id-
erickotH ((irytlmi cui, aro confiniHl tojjol her, they

li;dit till one kills the other; and tlie s|H><'ieii of Nantiii aro
rilxul hm innntpuvriiii^' v illi tlwir iiwonldiko fron(diiiib«,
like liuKMnm with their naht Tlie CliiiieM« kivp thciw

«* 'TraAMcl. YmX, Hoc * Id Mrk«, vol U. (' JouniAl uf Pnicwwdtiy^*

P 117.)

350

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

insects in little bamboo cages and match them like game-
cocks." With respect to color, some exotic locusts are
beautifully ornamented ; the posterior wings being marked
with red, blue, and black ; but, as throughout the Order
the two sexes rarely differ much in color, it is doubtful
whether they owe these bright tints to sexual selection.
Conspicuous colors may be of use to these insects as a
protection, on the principle to be explained in the next
chapter, by giving notice to their enemies that they are
unpalatable. Thus it has been observed ** that an Indian
brightly-colored locust was invariably rejected when of-
fered to birds and lizards. Some cases, however, of sex-
ual differences in color in this Order are known. The
male of an American cricket*' is described as being as
white as ivory, while the female varies from almost white
to greenish yellow or dusky. Mr. Walsh informs me
that the adult male of Spcctnim femoratum (one of
the Phasmidse) "is of a shining brownish-yellow color;
the adult female being of a dull, opaque, cinereous brown;
the young of both sexes being green." Lastly, I may
mention that the male of one curious kind of cricket" is
furnished with "a long membranous appendage, which
falls over the face like a veil ; " but whether this serves
as an ornament is not known.

Order, ITeuroptera. — Little need here be said, except
in regard to color. In the Ephemeridai the sexes often
differ slightly in their obscure tints ;*^ but it is not prob-

*3 "Westwood, ' Modern Class, of Insects,' vol. i. p. 427 ; for crickets,
p. 445.

♦* Mr. Ch. Home, in 'Proc. Ent. Soc' May 3, 1869, p. xii.

The Oecanlhtis nivalis. Harris, ' Insects of New England,' 1842,
p. 124.

*® riatyblcmnus : "Westwood, * Jlodem Class.' vol. i. p. 447.
B. D. Walsh, the Pseudo-ncuroptera of Illinois, in ' Proc. Ent. Soc.
of Philadelphia,' 1862, p. 361.

CUAP. X.]

XEUROPTERA.

351

al)lc that the males are tlius rendered attraetive to the
females. The Libellulidai or dragon-flies are ornamented
with splendid green, blue, yellow, and vermilion metallic
tints ; and the sexes often differ. Thus, the males of some
of the Agrionida?, as Prof. Westwood remarks," " are of
a rich blue with black wings, while the females are fine
green with colorless wings." But in Agrion lianihurii
these colors are exactly reversed in the two sexes.** In the
extensive North American genus of Iletierina, the males
alone have a beautiful carmine spot at the base of each
wing. In A7iax Junius the basal part of the abdomen in
the male is a vivid ultra-marine blue, and in the female
grass-green. In the allied genus Gomphus, on the other
liand, and in some other genera, the sexes differ but little
in color. Throughout the animal kingdom, similar cases
of the sexes of closely-allied fonns either differing greatly,
or very little, or not at all, are of frequent occurrence,
iUthough with many Libellulidre there is so wide a differ-
<'nce in color between the sexes, it is often difficult to say
whicli is tlie most brilliant ; and the ordinary coloration
of the two sexes is exactly reversed, as we liave just seen,
in one species of Agrion. It is not probable that their
rolors in any case have been gained as a j»n)tection. As
Mr. MacLachlan, who has closely attended to this family,
writes to me, dragon-Hies — the tyrants of the insect-world
— are the least liable of any insect to ]>e attacked by binls
or other enemies. He believes that their bright colom
herve as a sexual attraction. It deserves notice, as bearing
on tljis HubjiTt, that certain dnigoii-llieH appear to l>c at-
inieteil \iy parti« ular colors : .Mr. Patterson oliserved tliat
the HpecicH of A"ri"?ii'be, of wlii. li tlic ni:ih •< iin- bbi<'.

*• ' M 1. ... J..

N\ ... 1. I aiii ln.It.l>l««.t t., t!,!^ t ;t • »M I r.r I

lug filOUl ritt I 4, Alut, »nil (]oiii|

' Tr»ii»act. Kilt. Hoc.* foL I. USA, p. U&il

352

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IT.

settled in numbers on tlie blue float of a fishing-line; while
two other species were attracted by shining white colors.

It is an interesting fact, first observed by Schelver,
that the males, in several genera belonging to two sub-
fatnilies, when they first emerge from the pupal state are
colored exactly like the females ; but that their bodies in
a short time assume a conspicuous milky-blue tint, owing
to the exudation of a kind of oil, soluble in ether and alco-
hol. Mr. MacLachlan believes that in the male of Libel-
lula depressa this change of color does not occur until
nearly a fortnight after the metamorphosis, when the sexes
are ready to pair.

Certain species of Neurothemis present, according to
Brauer," a curious case of dimorphism, some of the females
having their wings netted in the usual manner; while
other females have them " very richly netted as in the
males of the same species." Brauer " explains the phe-
nomenon on Darwinian principles by the supposition that
the close netting of the veins is a secondary sexual char-
acter in the males." This latter character is generally de-
veloped in the males alone, but being, like every other
masculine character, latent in the female, is occasionally
developed in them. We have here an illustration of the
manner in which the two sexes of many animals have
probably come to resemble each other, namely, by varia-
tions first appearing in the males, being preserved in
them, and then transmitted to and developed in the fe-
males ; but in this particular genus a comj)lete transference
is occasionally and abruptly effected. Mr. MacLachlan
informs me of another case of dimorphism occurring in
several species of Agrion in which a certain number of
individuals are found of an orange-color, and these arc in-
variably females. This is probably a case of reversion,
for in the true Libellulaj, when the sexes differ in color,

" See abstract in the 'Zoological Record' for 1867, p. 450

Chap. X.]

nVMENOPTEliA.

353

the females are always orange or yellow, so that, supposing
Agrion to be descended from some primordial form hav-
ing the characteristic sexual colors of the tyi)ical Libelluhe,
it would not be surprising that a tendency to v:irv in tliis
manner should occur in the females alone.

Although many dragon-Hies are such large, powerful,
and fierce insects, the males have not been observed by
]Mr. MacLachlan to fight together, except, as he believes,
in the case of some of the smaller species of Agrion. In
anotlier very distinct group in this Order, namely, in the
Termites or white ants, both sexis at the time of swarm-
ing may be seen running about, " the male after the fe-
male, sometimes two chasing one female, and contending
>\itli great eagerness who shall win the prize.""

Order, Ilymcnoptcra. — That inimitable observer M.
Fabrc,** in describing the haljits of Ccrceris, a wasj>-likc
insect, remarks that "fights frecpuntly ensue between tlio
males for the possession of some particular female, who
sits an apparently unconcerned behuhh r of the struggle
for Bujiremacy, and, when the victory is decided, (juietly
flies away in company with the conqueror." Westwi>o<l**
says that tlie males of one of the saw-tlies (TfHthredina*)
"have been foun<l fighting togctlur, with thoir m:^''l''•^»«
locked," Ah M. Fabre spraks of the males of ( : is
striving to obtain a particular fi malo, it may l>o well to
bear in mind that inserts belonging to this Order have tho
I»ower of recognizing each otlu r after long iuton'als of
time, and are dtM ply attaclied. For instance, l*iem» lIuU r,
wIh>mo accuracy no one doubts, sepanited some ants, and
when after an interval of four months they met others

" Klrhy Mid H|>me«, ' Introduct. to Kiil»m<tt<vT.' toL iL ISII^ fk. BA.
" S . !.., •' Tlw WrlUiig* of K.brr," tai • K«L llUk

»* • J«. ...iloir K • 7. ISA3, p

10

354 SEXUAL SELECTION. [Part II.

wliich liad formerly belonged to the same community,
they mutually recognized and caressed each other witli
their antennte. Had they been strangers they would have
fought together. Again, when two communities engage
in a battle, the ants on the same side in the general confu-
sion sometimes attack each other, but they soon perceive
their mistake, and the one ant soothes the other."

In this order slight ditVerences in color, according to
sex, are common, but conspicuous diflerences are rare ex-
cept in the family of Bees; yet both sexes of certain
groups arc so brilliantly colored — for instance, in Chrysis,
in which vermilion and metallic greens prevail — that we
are tempted to attribute the result to sexual selection. In
the Ichneunionida^, according to Mr. Walsh," the males
are almost universally lighter colored than the females.
On the other hand, in the Tenthredinida) the males are
generally darker than the females. In the Siricida) the
sexes frequently difter: thus the male of Sircxjiivcncus is
banded with orange, while the female is dark purple ; but
it is difficult to say which sex is the most ornamented.
In IVemex colximhm the female is much brighter colored
than the male. With ants, as I am informed by Mr. F.
Smith, the males of several species are black, the females
being testaceous. In the family of Bees, especially in
the solitary species, as I hear from the same distinguished
entomologist, the sexes often differ in color. The males
are generally the brightest, and, in Bombus as well as in
Apathus, much more variable in color than the females.
In AnthopJiora rctusa the male is of a rich fulvous brown,
while the female is quite black : so are the females of sev-
eral species of Xylocopa, the males being bright yellow.
In an Australian bee (Lcstis hombylaus)^ the female is of

'5 P. Uubcr, 'Rechcrchcs sur Ics Mceurs des Fourmis,* 1810, pjn
160, 165.

»• 'Proc. Entomolog. Soc. of Phihidelphia,' 1806, pp. 288, 289.

Caxp. X.]

II Y M E N 0 FT E R A .— CO LEO r TE R A.

355

an extremely brilliant s^teel-blue, Bometimcs tinted with
vivi«l green ; the male l)eing of a brit^ht brassy color
clothed with rich fulvous |»ubescence. As in tliis group
the females are provided with excellent defensive weai>-
ons in their stings, it is not probable that they Jiave come
to differ in color frojn the males for the sake of protection.

MutiUa JuirojKPa emits a stridulating noise; and ac-
cording to Goureau " both sexes have this |)Ower. He
attributes the souftd to the friction of the third and pro-
ce<ling abdominal segments; and I find that these sur-
faces are marked with very fine concentric ridges, but so
is the pr«>jecting thoracic c<jllar, on which the hea<l artic-
ulates; and this collar, when scratched with the |M)iiit of
a needle, emits the proper sound. It is rather surprising
that both sexes should have the power of stritlulating, as
the male is winged an<l the fmiale wingless. It is notori-
ous that IJi'cs express certain emotions, as of anger, by the
tone of their liumming, as do some dipterous insects ; but
I have not referred to these sounds, as thev are not known
to Ik; in any way connected with the act of courtsliip.

Order, CoUoptera (Beetles). — .Many IkmIIcs are r<A-
ored HO OS to resemble the surfaces which they habitti
fretpient. Other H|H'cie« ore ornameiiti d uith gorgeous
lie ' tilic tints — for instance, ninny Cambidn*, which live
on the ground and have the |K>wer of <lefending them*
1\ .H by an i ly acrid neeretion — the iitl dia-

III are J • ' by an ex ' I

« ■ H ol i 1, 1 ' il .»a ( .

.k i 'Ifully ii I \ • ■

nf, 'in<l I f I tlf \' iri« h..

.1 . . . . i.p:

li an* tttxttx nrr in sti cr I

oiht I can harilly Ihi

taood, • Moa«r> i is tl4.

856

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part II,

tection, except in the case of some flower-feeding species ;
and we cannot believe that they are purposeless. Hence
the suspicion arises that they serve as a sexual attrac-
tion; but we have no evidence on this head, for the sexes
rarely differ in color. Blind beetles, which cannot of
course behold each other's beauty, ne^er exhibit, as I hear
from Mr. Waterhouse, Jr., bright colors, though they
often have polished coats : but the explanation of their
obscurity may be that blind insects inhabit caves and
other obscure stations.

Some Longicorns, however, especially certain Prioni-
dj3e, offer an exception to the common rule that the sexes
of beetles do not differ in color. Most of these insects arc
large and splendidly colored. The males in the genus
Pyrodes,^® as I saw in Mr. Bates's collection, are generally
redder but rather duller than the females, the latter being
colored of a more or less splendid golden green. On the
other hand, in one species the male is golden green, the
female being richly tinted with red and purj^le. In the
genus Esmeralda the sexes differ so greatly in color that
they have been ranked as distinct species : in one species
both are of a beautiful shining green, but the male has a

68 Pyrodes pulcherrimus, in which the sexes differ conspicuously, has
been described by Mr. Bates in ' Transact. Ent. Soc' 1869, p. 50. I will
specify the few other cases in which I have heard of a difference in color
between the sexes of beetles. Kirby and Spence (' Introduct. to Ento-
mology,' vol. iii. p. 301) mention a Cantharis, Meloe, Rhagium, and the
Leptura tesiacea ; the male of the latter being testaceous, with a black
thorax, and the female of a dull red all over. These two latter beetles
belong to the Order of Longicorns. Messrs. R. Trimen and Waterhouse,
Jr., inform me of two Lamellicorns, viz., a Peritrichia and Trichius, the
male of the latter being more obscurely colored than the female. In
Tillus elongaius the male is black, and the female always, as it is believed,
of & dark-blue color with a red thorax. Tlie male, also, of Orsodacna
itra^ as I hear from Mr. Walsh, is black, the female (the so-called
0. ruficollis) having a rufous thorax.

Chap. X.]

COLEOPTERA.

35/

red thorax. On the whole, as far as I could judge, the
females of those Prionida), in which tlic sexes difler, are
colored more richly than the males ; and this does not ac-
cord with the common rule in regard to color when ac-
<|uh"ed through sexual selection.

Fio. 15.— C'halco3oma atlau. l'|>p<'r flL'iirf. tnalo (reduced) ; lower fl^'uri", fciiialo

(uaturul eize).

A most remarkahle distinction hctwcon the sexes of
Tiiany beetles is j)re8ented hy the great liorns which rise
from tlic head, thorax, or clypeus of the males; an<l in
some few cases from the under surface of the body. Tlu se
liorns, in tlie great family of the Lanjcllicorns, reseiiddc
lliose of various (piadnijuMls, nnch as stags, rhimuTroscs,
etc., and arr WfUKh rliil botii from thiir si/.r and diversi-
fud shapes. Instead of describing them, I have jjivcu
liirnrcs of the mahs and femaUs of some i»f tiie more nv
markalMe forms. (Figs. 15 to n>.) Tlie fiinalcM gen-

358

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Pakt II.

Fio. 17.— Phanaeus faunus.

Fig. 18.— Dipelicus cantori.

fiG. 19.— Onthopha^as rangifcr, enlarged.

Chap. X.]

COLEOPTERA.

359

t rally exhibit riiJiments of the horns in tlie form of small
knobo or ridges ; but some are destitute of even a rudi-
ment. On the other hand, the horns are nearly as well
developed in the female as in the male of Phanceus lan-
cifer j and only a little less well developed in the females
of some other species of the same genus and of Copris.
In the several subdivisions of the family, the dilierences
in structure of the horns do not run parallel, as I am in-
formed by Mr. Bates, with their more important and
characteristic ditterences ; thus, within the same natural
section of the genus Ontiiophagus, there are species which
have either a single cephalic horn, or two distinct horns.

In almost all cases, the horns arc remarkable from
their excessive variability ; so that a graduated series
can be formed, from the most highly-developed males to
others so degenerate that they can barely be distinguished
from the females. IVIr. Walsh " found that in Phana us
atniifcx the horns were thrice as long in some males as
in others. Mr. Bales, after examining above a hundred
males of OidJutjtlmijns ramjifcr (lig. 19), thought that he
had at last discovered a species in which the horns til l
not vary; but further research proved the contrary.

The extraordinary size of the Iiorns, an<l tlu ir widi ly-
dilUrent structure in (•K>sely-anietl forms, indicate that
they liavo been formed for Bome important pur|K)se ; but
their exceHsivu variability in tlii< males of the Hamu 8)M.'cie8
leads to tlic inference that this purpose cannot bo of a
definite nature. The liorns do not hIiow marku of frio-
lion, aH if us<m1 for any ordinary wt)rk. Some authom
HuppoM** that as the males wan<ler much more tJian the
females, tliey require honiH us a «lefeneo pgain^t th« ir
enemicfi ; Imt in many caneM the liorns du not Keent \^« ll
utbipted for !• iiee, an they are not nhrirp. The nioni

»» 'IW Kiii<.i.. .l.r Soc. of riiiU.I. I| ».l:v' 1 1 s

• KIrli/ •ml ' liitrvUucI, fill |. ...m.

coo

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

obvious conjecture is that tliey are used by the males for
tigliting togetlier; but they liave never been observed to
liglit ; nor could 3Ir. Bates, after a careful examination of
numerous ei)ecies, lind any suflieient evidence, in tlieir
mulihited or broken condition, of tlieir having been thus
used. If the males had been habitual iighters, their size
would probably have been increased through sexual selec-
tion, so as to have exceeded that of the female ; but Mr.
Bates, after comparing the two sexes in above a hundred
species of the Copridoe, does not find in well-developed in-
dividuals any marked dittcrence in this respect. There is,
moreover, one beetle, belonging to the same great divis-
ion of the Lamellicorns, namely, Lethrus, the males of
wliich are known to fight, but they are not provided with
horns, though their mandibles are much larger than those
of the female.

Tlio conclusion, which best acjrces with the fact of the
horns having been so immensely yet not fixedly devel-
oped— as shown by their extreme variability in the same
species and by their extreme diversity in closely-allied
species — is that they have been acquired as ornaments.

Tills view will at first appear extremely
improbable ; but we shall hereafter find
with many animals, standing much higher
in the scale, namely, fishes, amphibians,
reptiles, and birds, that various kinds of
crests, knobs, horns, and combs, have
been developed apparently for this sole
purpose.

Fin. 20. -oniiifl fiir- The malcs of Onitis furcifer (fig. 20)
from beueath. are lumished With Singular projections
on their anterior femora, and with a great
fork or pair of horns on tlie lower surface of the tliorax.
This situation seems extremely ill-adapted for tlie display
of these projections, and they may be of some real service ;

Chap. X.J

COLEOITKRA. S«l

but no UBC can at pre sent \>v assicrnea to them, li is a
liighly-remarkaM.' lart, that alth<.ug!» llic malt* d.i not ex-
hibit eviii a trace of horns on the upi>cr hurface of the
)>o«l y, yet in the females a ru<Ument of a hingle horn on the
hi ad (tig. I'l, (/), and of a crest (A) on the thorax, an- phiinly
visible. That the blightest thoracic crcbt in the feniale

\* . ru.lim. nl ..f a ,,r..jc*'i".. J.ropor to tl»- nmlo, tbonsh
.Mtlrcly aW-nt in tlu- male ..f tl.i.< particular *\>i-<.H*, ui

c Uar : f.-r tl... f.maU- «f !<•''"" (" f"""
.K it to OnitiK) ha» a Mu.ilar i-li^l.t crf.t on tl.o thorni,
a„.l tl.- n.al- l.an in tl.r k.mu- .ituation a .mat ,.roj.Tl,..n
So aKuin th.-rt. ran \^ no doul.t that tl,. lull.- l-..nt ..)
„„ l.o».l of tl... f. n.alc 0„i,!. <" ./-r. a. «xll of .b.-
f..„.«l.-,of two or tl.r..- air..,l , « » n.a."..ntar>

. „iv.. ..f ll.i- .-1 ' >"'"'.

...of .u. M.„,vt on. iHCtU*. a. m I

,. , l.of *omo i....>an...l _

.1... Ilri.i.l. M ......«' ■■'• • •'•.'"»"> "

.hI Willi a

honi. Tl.e re.. ' ^•^^^ " '

I by an ' '

mil I* ' with th« l.>

. M II I

h:t

SEXUAL SELECTION

[Part 11.

with Lamcllicorns), or in having none at all. Now, if a
new species of deer or sheep were iliscovered with the
female bearing distinct rudinientn of horns, while the
head of the male was absolutely smooth, we should have
a case like that of 0 nit is furcifer.

In this case the old belief of rudiments having been
created to complete the scheme of Nature is so far from
holding good, that all ordinnry niles are comj»letely
broken through. The view which seems the most proba-
ble is that some early })ro[;enitor of Ouitis acquired, like
other Lamellicorns, horns on the head and thorax, and then
transferred them, in a rudimentary condition, as with so
many existing species, to the female, by whom tliey have
ever since been retained. The subse(|uent loss of the
horns by the male may have resulted through the prin-
ciple of compensation from the development of the pro-
jections on the lower surface, while the female has not
been thus affected, as she is not funiished with these pro-
jections, and consequently has retained the rudiments of
the horns on the upper surface. Although this view is
supported by the case of Bledius immediately to be given,
yet the projections on the lower surface differ greatly in
slructure and develoj)ment in the males of the several spe-
cies of Onitis, and are even rudimentary in some; never-
theless the upper surface in all these species is quite desti-
tute of bonis. As secondary sexual characters are so emi-
nently variable, it is possible that the projections on the
lower surface may have been first acquired by some pro-
genitor of Onitis and i)roduced their effect through com
|K'nsation, and then have been in certain cases almost
completely lost.

All the cases hitherto ;;lvi a i\h i lu ihc J.aim llicorns,
but the n mains of some few other beetles, In-Ionising to
two widely-<listinct groups, namely, the Curculioni<he and
ytaphyliiii'be, nn* fnnii^liod with h<»rn«— in th'' fornur on

Cifir. X.)

COLEOlTK

sea

the lower surface of ll.c b ' " in th.- Utf r . n i),. mt t-^
Murfac of ' i.Unaih In !».. -

h. f ill* laaAc* in -| . . - ir

vu: . . , jiwt fioeii wilh ihc

y

- i /rtm»im wo hare a rtiic of •
I into two icU, J
of their b^. I . an.l in llic J*
without any iiil**nii'-«Iialo gr»'

CAU In? f ' i'. I •
• it«-*, ** III

for th« maka

illy in ■ «
I of llirir honi*.
In a Piiccif* of
iiiiiUr, male
a« I'n f.

* on t .«l art* Ion;*.'***
an ii of ei»ni|»» n»»-

thr«*w« li^Ht on ll
. of the lo«» of th. u|.i^ r Uonu b> li»wtt*A*** ul

r *^ fHO mak) l»rr»!t-*. wMr^ w<em HI

Mr

I (II ft m

Oa Ik

304

SEXUAL SELFXTIOX.

[Pakt 11.

elongated rostrum, " figlitin;^ for a female, who stood clone
by biiny nt her b«>ring. They punhed at eaeh other with
their rostra, and clawed and thumprd apparently in tho
jjreatest rage." The smaller male, however, "soon ran
away, acknowledging himself vanciuished." In some few
• eases the males are well adapt eiV for fighting, by ]>o88ess-
ing great toothed mandibles, much larger than thorn; of the
females. This is the case with the common stag-bectlo
(Lucanns i\rvm), the males of which emerge from tho
pupal state about a week before the other sex, so tha*
several may oflen Ik» seen pursuing the same female. At
this iK'riod they engage in firrce conflicts. When Mr. A.
H. Davis** enclosed two males with one female in a box,
the larger male severely pinched the smaller one, until ho
resigned his pretensions. A friend informs me that when
a boy he oflen put the males together to see tliera fight,
and he noticed tliat they were much lx)ldcr and fiercer
than the females, as is well known to be the case with the
higher animals. Tlic males would seize liold of his finger,
if held in front, but not so the females. With many
of the Lueanida% as well as with the above-mentione<l
Leptorhynehus, the males are larger and more |>owerfid
insects than the females. The two ^exes of JMhriis
cfphalotes (one of the Lamellicoms) inhaV)it the same bur-
row ; and the male has larger mandibles than the female
If, during the breeding-season, a strange male attempts to
enter the burrow, he is attacked ; the female docs not re-
main [»assive, but closes the mouth of the burrow, and en
courages her mate by contimially pushing him on from
iM'hind. Tlie action does not cease until the aggressor ii
killed or nms away.** 'Hie two sexes of anotlu r lainelli^

*' ' Rntomologicd Magazine,' rol. i. 1833, p. 82. Sec also, on Ihc con-
flicU of thi.H species, Kirbj and Sponcc, ibid. toI. iii. p. 814 ; and West-
wood, il»i<l. vol. I. p. 187.

•* yuuu.! from Fischer, In • Diet. Claw. d lli*t. Kat* tern. x. p. 324.

COLEOPTCBJL

• • 'Til beede, the Atewhu* Hcatricotus^ live in psin, and
fMi*m mooh attaclnHl to emch other; the male eicitrs '

- lit* to roll x\w \i'A\n of (lurv^ in which the ots arc tJi*>
|M/%ite<l; and, if »he i.i r Im* U-conm much a:: ' ^

t«-<L Jf thf nialo in r< : the fumala ceair< all work,

uikI, aa M. HniK r' would mnain on the spot

until Rhc dii-^l.

The ^-at man'libU'a of the male Lof nidt are rx*
trvmi'lj variaM*- U»(h iu aixc and •tnicturr, and in t!
rMficci rra4'ml»I<- the boms on the brad and thorax of
tti my male Lann lii(H>n>a and h' A perfbc't

-4 Tu % ran lie furnx d from tbe b* d to tlic

|>r><\ i.liil or d»-;;«'nrrati' mal<*«. Aii.'i 'U^h the mai.
of ih«- i«»niMion fcla'^ lH-* tir, :\U'\ j r ' uMy of many t'l:.« f
*•]' an* tucd aa cfllrirtit \\<a]^ r.<^ : >r figbtiiig, it U

• 1 . wlieiher tbcir 'an ihua b« Mooonlcd
f'»r. Wc have MCll th . li . f.umnuM rfnp^HS ft(
N'-rih Amerira they arv tt#*-«l for

they are io ron*|iirooaa and ao • '

ftuji|ii«*t«m liaa aouietimet eroMr«l my nund that

lie fti*rYicrablo to tbe male* aa an omanirnt, in the aaae

rii • bead a

'n mi».»

ijf'tn' '«lJe U .

■.if» • •f««^l m-

mii\v be far. irrrat Ja d at ih«t

•amr tbe mat

t»« my inger to to

a« '

T»»*«' ••••••

SKXLAL SELKCTIUX

(Part II.

with any otlici laiuily of the Colcoptora or bectleH. With

some spt'cicH the males are j>rovi»le(l
with weaj)oii.s lor light in ; Home live
in i>airs uud hhow mutual aHection ;
many have the pow^r of striilulating
uhen exeitetl ; many are furnished
witli the most extra<»r<iinary honiH,
ai)i)arently for the sake of ornament ;
some wliieh are diurnal in their hab-
its arc gorgeously colored ; and, last-
ly, several of the largest beetles in
the world belong to this family, which
was jdaced by Limiieus and Fabri-
cius at the head of the Order of the
Coleoptera."

Striduhtttng organs. — Beetles
belonging to many and widely-dis-
tinet families possess these organs.
The sound can sometimes be heard
at the distance of several feet or even
yards," but is not comparable with
that ])roduced by the Orthoptera.
The j»art which may })c called the
rasp generally consists of a narrow
slightly-raised surface, crossed by
very fine, parallel ribs, sometimes so
fine as to cause iridescent colors, and
having a very elegant apj>earancc
under the microscope. In some cases,
for instance, with Ty|)ha'us, it could
!•<• I'ImIiiU <«•( m tliat extremely n:i-

Fio. M. — rhUiitnfmiilhnN

r<'.

" • M.mIcTU i vol I. J.. Kvl.

\\ . . .1 t, On certain muDical CurcuHonidtr,
Nat. Ilwt.' vol. vi. I860, p. 1 1.

Ann.ii.- i ..r

tujtr. X.J

nute, brwtlv. •»ra1«-Iik»* |»roi. » rover tli«-

whole ftuiT> ^cc* ill a|>|*n*&iinaU-ly jjamlK-l Ii

j(ive n*v to the nl«i of the ni'»|i by Un^^jmin^ n r •• . i i
au<l Htraight, and at the »ame tiine more |iruuiinetit ami
KiiKXilh. A lianl riilgo oii any ailjoiiiing pari of the h
which in aome caMi» i* njn-t ially ni.^ljtietl for tbo j

. M'r\'ca aa the *cra|ier for ihr r.i*j.. The wr •
ily uiovetl a<'r«»'- " tonxiriely ihi

- the MTa|»i'r.

i ! • orgaiut ^ri- ►•tm iT« -1 in w j»U*ly-4|if^« f m»
In th< « -ir rion-lH'« j -) two

fi'.'. 'J4) ■taiul on the dorsal aurfocc of

mall

In

* I •

568

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Takt II.

is seatod on the dorsal apox uf the ahdonien, on tho py-
gidiiiin or propygiilium, and is scraped an above by the
elytra. In lleterocerus, which bclongu to another family,
tho rasps arc placed on the Hides of the fintt abdominal
segment, and ore Berai>ed by ridges on the femora." In
certain Curculionidas and Carabidn?," Uie parts arc com-
ph'tely reversed in position, for the ranps are seated on tlie
inferior surface of the elytra, near their apices, or along
their outer margins, and the edges of the abdominal seg-
ments serve as the scrajwrs. In Pelobius hennanni (one
of Dytiscida' or water-lH'etles) a strong ridge runs parallel
and near to the sutural margin of the elytra, and is
crossed by ribs, coarse in the middle part, but becoming
gradually finer at both ends, especially at the upper end ;
when this insect is held un<ler water or in the air, a strid-
ulating noise is protluced by scraping the extreme homy
margin of the abdomen against the rasp. In a great num-
ber of long-honied beetles (r^)ngicornia) the organs arc
altogether dirterently situated, the rasp being on the
meso-thorax, which is ruljbed against the pro-thorax ;
Landois counted 238 very fine ribs on the rasp of Ceram-
hyx tier 08.

Many Lamellirorns have tftc power of stridulating,
and the organs differ greatly in position. Some species
Btridulate very loudly, so that when ^Ir. F. Smith caught

that J)crmr9t€» murinu* stridulates, but he Searched in Tain for the ap|ia
ratus. ScolrtuB has lately boen 4escribcU hj Mr. Algcn u a fitritiulator
in the * I-Minburgh Monthly Magmzlne,* 1869, Nor., p. 180.

^1 Schiudte, transUted in 'Annals and Mag. of Nat. Ilbt.* vol. \\.
1867, p. 37.

w Wostring haa dencribcd (Krojrcr, 'NaturliisL Tidi«krift,' R it 184»-
M9, p. 884) the ttridulating organi in thc«c two, aaircll a» in other fani-
iWc^. In the Carabida I hare examined EUtphruM uU^'tHotutmsA BUifiivt
tnuUipuHcinta^ sent to me by Mr. Crotch. In lilcthiaa the tr i" ^ r-o
ridges on the furrowed border of the abdominal segment do . .,u
into pUjr, as far as I could judge, in scraping the ra^ps on tho elytra.

Ctur, X.]

<irj;tin3 in Uii« b. In GcotmiKH ami Tyfliwii s ii»r-

now rid^tJ nun • (»•» H >

i-arh liiml-lc},', liav»n«; in (/. Bicrrontrius tight j-four r

. art' HcniiMil by mfpccially i
|*arl of one <»f tin-
Ih.' I. '

l1 til". lii

lutnt, nil i'XCC»-

.

till* ft 'I In O Kb

thv pro-] . nntl in -

•'i ltll'^ to

xi, «ju thu un«U*r ' ot I

I ly, Wc«trinK . •
I thr ra»|» I
, an<l t)i

U|f|>rr

of thr» UmIv, I

• MO Ihat xUo *

ripun in (I)

1 '

K
ft

tfrft4iMUl;

»4

370

SEXUAL SELECTION.

iTAUT 11.

Vflopc'J into regular stridulating organs. Some beetles, as
tliey move, now produce, either intentionally or uninten-
tionally, a BhutTling noise, without possessing any proper
organs for the purpose. Mr. Wallace informs me that the
Kuchirm longimantis (a Lamellicorn, with the anterior
legs wonderfully elongated in the male) "makes, while
moving, a low hissing sound by the protrusion and con-
traction of the abdomen; and when seized it produces a
grating sound by rubbing its hind-legs against the edges
of the elytra." The hissing sound is clearly due to a
narrow rasp running along the sutural margin of each *
elytron; and I could likewise make the grating sound by
rubbing the shagreened surface of the femur against the
granulated margin of the corresponding elytron; but I
could not hero detect any proper rasp; nor is it likely
that I could have overlooked it in so large an insect.
After examining Cychrus and reading what Westring has
written in his two papers about this beetle, it seems very
doubtful whether it possesses any true rasp, though it has
the j)0wer of emitting a sound.

From the analogy of the Ortho])tera and Ilomoptera,
I exj)ected to find that the stritlulaling organs in the
Coleoptera diflered according to sex; but Landois, who
has carefully examined several species, observed no such
difference ; nor did Westring ; nor did Mr. G. U. Crotch
in ])reparing the numerous specimens which Jic had the
kindness to send me for examination. Any slight sexual
difference, liowever, would be ditlicuit to detect, on ac-
count of the great variability of these organs. Thus, in
the first pair of the JVecrop/iorus humator and of the
Pvlobiiis which I examined, the rasp was considerably
larger in the male than in the female ; but not so with
succeeding specimens. In GcotrujKS atcrcorarius the rasp
appeared to me thicker, opaquer, and more prominent in
three males than in the same number of females; conse-

CiiAT. X.J KOITERJL 3:1

•ly iny Bon, Mr. l\ Dan* in, in orJiT to .IW. -vfr
. r .1 .. w. x, y*^' rcil ill t' . ir |h.u-<t of
.. iiir J»| • ^» hcM'|arui»'l

into two loU, accor . t; ;. • in the

sillier, a j^rtaUT or IcMcr n lie iIkii cxamin« l
their . but found lliat the idaUss were very nearly in
rime |iro|Xirtion to the fimnalri in both ' Mr. K.
- luih ha* ke|ii alivi- nn iicetment of M y '

^ -ri (C'urculi'Mii.i i ut §MthfM thai U>lh ikaih

find appan 111.; .in < ^ 'tre.
. - r'. |K#w»rof ^ i^iicrrtainlya

. ,xu.-.!< -fi. f. w C ^ i rx Mr. i huM

.i alone of two »»|Kt i» •» of lUlio-

pnthiK (Ti : 1) poeMM »• «'rj::il»«. I l \•

i . : I > oi J/, 'jil'f'us^ and m all iheM.* there

1 r- J or ih. •*->fm«?nt; ^

,11 i|„ ► 1 . r : n<'t c%en a n .

»n. ».i .1 I r.» j , I • i^-Knuni I..

two 1

: thta ofKao ; but in a
tion tlio m » on r »l ' mi* of

> And ' • ibo t

872

SKXUAL SELECTION.

[Pa«t II.

Hurf;ico of tliis segment, when lu-hl in the proper liglit, in
Heen to be clothed with hain*, which are absent or arc re|»-
resented by excessively fine down in the males. It shoulil
bo noticed that, in all C'oleopteni, the etli etivo i)art of tin*
rasp is destitute of hairs. In O. sencgiUensia the dilVcr-
ence between the sexes is more strongly marked, and this
is best seen when the proper st'i^ineiit is cleaned antl
viewed as a transparent object. In the female the whole
surface is covered with little separate crests, bearing
spines ; while in the male these crests become, in proceetl-
ing toward the apex, more and more confluent, regular,
and naked ; so that three-fourths of the segment is covered
with extremely fine parallel ribs, which arc quite absent
in the female. In the females, however, of all three sikj-
cies of Oryctes, when the abdomen of a softened sin cimen
is pushed backward and forward, a slight grating or strid-
ulating sound can be produced.

In the ease of the Ilcliopathes and Oryctes there can
hardly be a doubt that the males stridulate in order to
call or to excite the females ; but with most beetles the
stridulation apparently serves both sexes as a mutual call.
This view is not rendered improbable from beetles stridu-
lating under various emotions ; we know that birds use
llieir voices for many purposes besides singing to their
mates. The great Chiasognathus stri<lulates in anger of
defiance ; many species do the same from distress or fear
when held so that they cannot escape: Messrs. Wollaston
and Crotch were able, by striking the hollow stems of
trees in the Canary Islands, to discover the presence of
beetles belonging to the genus Ac.alles ])y their stridula-
tion. Lastly, the male Atcuchus stridul.ites to encovjrage
the female in her work, and from distress when she is re-
moved.'* Some naturalists believe that beetles make this

M. r. dc la Ilrulcrio, quotcU in * JounuU of TrtTcl,' A. Murray,
Tol. L 18C8, p. 136.

CUAT. X.]

OOLIOITERJL

373

nouie to • n away their encinig*; but I cmnnot i\
that the <|i. "<U mnil birJji whioh arc able to dt\
the larger biseUea, with their ext- . lianl coat% w<
)h} frightened by fto alight a gr.i The W... i

that the itr ' ' • - ,1 aa a ... I

l»y the (act 1 . M f

known to auji.>

^-if obaencd, a t _ 4 ikmm ai . and M .

l><iublcday iofonna me that b« baa twic« or thrice ol>>
ierved a fraiAlo ticking/* and in the couno of an boor or
two baa foun*! her united with a mAle, and 00 one ooe^
iioQ I d by teveral malcc Finally, it aecma

prubaii.c u two ■exea of many kindi of beetle* werv

at firat enah.< i i i find each other by the tligbt '
n«>'* T r<M|nce<l by the rubbing together of the
th« ir }^ir>\ }*<*-\\i^ : nTv! ihnt aa the
f* •uccihhKnI biMit ill

finding | variooa part* of thctr

iMxliea V i by mcana of t^ iual ft<^

lection into tn:

*Mr. 1 fli MM thai aob* b pfo^Ml hv tVr s

Mc« fihhn llMir • M klfk M i« raa, ImI aOikk^t It

Upmmem^ ' |»if«4«c«.* t«l. tk*i tlM> («W

a»J iWf ^tr **

374

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

ClIAPTEll XI.

INSECTS, continued. — okdkii LKriDOi»'rKnA.

Courtsliip of ButtcrflieB. — Battles. — Ticking Noise. — Colors common to
Both Sexes, or more brilliant in the Males. — Examples.— Not duo to
the Direct Action of the Conditions of Life. — Colors adapted for Pro-
tection.— Colors of Moths. — Display. — Perceptive Powers of the Lej»i-
doptern. — Variability. — Causes of the DifTcrenco in Color between
the Males and Females. — Mimicrj', Eeniale Butterflies more brilliantly
colored than the Males. — Bright Colors of Caterjiillars. — Summary
and Concluding Remarks on the Secondary Sexual Characters of In-
sects.— Birds and Insects conipared.

Ix this great Oriler the most interesting })oint for us is
the (lifTerence in color between tlic sexes ol' tlie same spe-
cies, and between the distinct species of tlic same genus.
Kearly tlic whole of the following chapter will be devoted
to this subject ; but I will first make a few remarks on one
or two other points. Several males may often be seen
pursuing and crowding round the same female. Their
courtship appears to be a prolonged aflair, for I have fre-
quently watched one or more males pirouetting round a
female until I became tired, without seeing the end of the
courtship. Although butterflies are such weak and fragile
creatures, they are pugnacious, and an Emperor butterfly'
has been captured with the tips of its wings broken from

' Apatura Iris: * The Entomologist's Weekly IntelUgcnccr,' 1859, j).
1 39. For the Bomcan Butterflies, sec C. CoUlDgwood, * Rambles of a
Naturalist,' 18G8, p. 183.

Ciur XI.]

ni'TTERFLIES AND MOTII.^.

375

I conflict with another malt*. Mr. CoUinijwoA.1 in fi|>cak-
inj; of the frfquent battles between the bnti of Ik>r-

neo, Hays, "They whirl roun«l each otiier witl^ the j^rcate«t
rapiiiily, and aj)|>ear to be incited by the greatest feroi'ity/'
(ine ca»o is known of a butterfly, namely, the Agtronia
frronut, which makes a noifH} like tliat produce«l by a
l«M)thed wheel pashin-^ nndcr a Hprin ' h, and which
cotihl be lieard at the distance of Kcvenn . .. Is. At Kio do
Janeiro thin tmund was noticcHl by ni< , only when two
wt re cliaj<ing each other in an irrei^ularcourHt^ that it in
probably made during the eourt^ihip of the ibexes ; but I
neirlectod to attend to this point.*

Kvery one ban admired the extreme beauty of many
butterflies and of stmie moths ; and wc are led to ask, II<>u'
has this lM>auty licen acquired? Have their colors ami

I ' ThilitHl patterns simply r- 1 from the direct action
Ml the physical conditions to w m a thi^e insect** ' Ihnmi
<\f»<»m'd, without any bi'netit Wing thus ilen^i i. Or
. .■ •«u« <M Ssive vari.itions Ix-en aci-u' i ^ /i tl and dcler-
I I. m i • r Iter as a proti'ction or for Bom "nti iiun-

• r that one sex might 1»o n nd« n'4l atti

And, again, what is the nt : of th< > .g wid(>-

ly difTerent in the males and 1« ^ ' ^ of certain s
I ko in th«» two Si xes of olhiT -

ig to answer theno questions A iKniy ol LacI* i
n.

"... !• V >

r • • ,

■1

l.dv (\ . . t

'r»»wns (Hip]
I > ' with tli«* m I '

370

8EXUAL SELECTION.

[Paui II.

Danaulzc of the tropics. But in certain other tropical
groups, and with Bomo of our Knglish butterflies, as tho
pur]>lo emperor, orange-tip, etc. (Aputura IrU and An-
thocharis canhunines)^ the sexes differ either greatly or
slightly in color. No language KufficcH to deHcrilx? tho
splendor of the males of some tropical Hpecics. Even
within the same genus we often find species presenting an
extraordinary diflerence between the sexes, while others
have their sexes closely alike. Thus in the South Ameri-
can genus Kpicalia, ^Ir. I^atos, to whom I am much in-
debte«l for most of the following facts and for looking over
this whole discussion, informs mc that ho knows twelve
H|K'cie8, the two sexes of which haunt tho same stations
(and this is jiot always the case with liutterflics), and
therefore cannot have been differently affected by external
conditions.* In nine of these species the males rank among
tho most brilliant of all buttertlies, an»l differ so greatly
from the comparatively plain females that they were for-
merly ])laced in distinct genera. — The females of these
nine species resemble each other in their general type of
coloration, and likewise resemble both sexes in several
allied genera, found in various parts of tho worKL Hence,
in accordance with the descent-theory, we may infer that
these nine species, and probably all the others of tin? genus,
are descended from an ancestral form which was colored
in nearly the same manner. In the tenth species the fe-
male still retains the same general coloring, but the male
resembles her, so that he is colored in a much less gaudy
and contrasted manner than the males' of the prr\i..'m
8|)ecies. In the eleventh and twelfth species, the ; — j
depart from the ty|)C of coloring which is usual with
their sex in this genus, for they are gayly decorated in

* Sc« al«o Mr. lUtcs't paper in ' Proo. KdU Soc of riiilAdclphiA,'
ISTiS, p. 206. Abo Mr. Wallace on the Karnc subject, in regard to Dia>
Ucma, in 'Transact Entoinok)g. Soc. of Loudun,* 1809, p. 378.

Cuxf.XL] DCTTBErUBS x>u MOTllK.

911

!.. .r •am*' mAnm r M th«* male*, but in a

li J . llfK* in two »|ircir« the bni;lil eolot*
of the malM mmb to hmTr Im-« n tmii»f< m •! to the Imui'
while thr male of the trtitb
r- «l the plain colori of t

l> the gcnos ; Ibc t

.1. . » rafCfl, tlKNIg^ *

ftlikr. la the allied grtiM*
tin- •['« <-?«^ "ir** vHin--^ '

the ^ ftro • with benati-

ful met , in a • ^ied manner, A-r mach

frrwn thnr finuUet. Tlir imi nm ir-

tame groeral »' . i^^^

itKJci, . moiv cloavlj li^au umj

rmet

I . tperiea of the .Ft "

it of <lift*rraee !>•
I In a m P.^

itak* • >aale«

• r- ■ •

878

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Paht II.

upper surface of the female is of a dull uniform brown.
Our common little English l)lue butterflies, of the genus
Lyctcna, illustrate tlie various diftcrences in color between
the sexes, almost as well, though not in so striking a man-
ner, as the above exotic genera. In Lyc(Pna agcsiU both
sexes have wings of a brown color, bordered with small
ocellated orange spots, and aix* consequently alike. In X.
m/on the wings of tlie male are of a fnie blue, bordered
with black ; while the Avings of the female are brown, with
a similar border, and closely resemble those of X. agestis.
Lastly, in X. arion both sexes are of a blue color and
nearly alike, though in the female the edges of the wings
are rather duskier,, with the black spots j»lainer; and in a
bright-blue Indian species both sexes are still more closely
alike.

I liave given the foregoing cases in some detail, in
order to show, in the first place, that, when the sexes of
butterflies ditVcr, the male as a general nde is the most
beautiful, and departs most from the usual tyi>c of color-
ing of the group to which the sjiccies In-longs. Hence in
most groups the females of the several s|>ecies resemble
each other much more closely than do the males. In
Home exceptional cases, liowever, to which I shall here-
after allude, the females are colored more splendidly than
the males. In the second place, these cases have been
given to bring clearly Wfore the mind that, within the
same genus, the two sexes frequently ]>re8ent every gra-
dation from no difference in color to so great a difference
that it was long Ix'fore the two were j)laced by entomolo-
gists in the same genus. In the third place, we have seen
that, when the sexes nearly resemble each other, this ajn
j>areutly may be due either to the male having transferred
his colors to the female, or to the male having retained,
or i)erhaps recovered, the primordial colors of the genus
to which the species belongs. It also deserves notice that

Liixr, XI.J

BrTTERFLIES \SU MOTH&

379

ill those groups in which the Mxet present any differeooe
'>f color, the females usually resemble the males to a cer-
tuiii extent, so that, w hen the maled are In^autiful to an ex-
tmordinary degree, the females almost invariahly exhibit
rec of Ix'auly. From the numeroujt cases of gra-
in the amount of difTi-rence In tween the lexca, and
: :ii ilie preval< • f the ^ami* ;;t m nil tyj>e of coloration
•! '■.. ; ' lit the \v . . of the name group, we may coo-
the cnM"! -i. whnt« v« r they may Ik», which have
•letermine«l the ^f tb<-* niali>s alone of

M>tiie «i|K>(-ie^, and of \hA\ in a ni<»re or lest eqwd

dc^'n-e of other s ha\ • uiHy U-i n the same.

Ah ko many buttertlit^n inliabit the tr , it

hun often Ijcen ftu|i|H*hi«i that tht y owe tlit-ir (-<>l<ir» to the
• it heat and m<Hitture of tlienc /^in«s; but Mr. Ilat4*s*
hhown, 1 • roniparinon of varioun clou*' " d
' 'im the t« r< r-ite and tr> • '

•1 mah^ and

femaliii of i il tho name

on the I, and ft»lluW y thr

' I the iM*xi*s resemble earh

< r, wu can bardiy • that thrir 1 t and lirau*

' ttfv • f the

liJMiui", and ^ «.i iiti 1 Mg

•it-tN "f tY! \ Yv ^« ^ ' <*<>^if bis been

' n. Hi far a«
t or as an at^

•pseWs of bu' « llie

*^ of ' . ami

HI ail pt • If wr

380

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[PxKT ir.

mo«t nil llio kintls when rcBtinjj raiso llii ir winp^ Tcrti-
cally over their backn, so that the lower Bides alono arc
ex|>osiHl to view. Ileneo it is this niilc whieh in many
eafteH ifl ohviou»ly eolored so as to imitate tho surfaces on
whith these insects commonly rest. Dr. ROssler, I
licve, fir»t noticed the similarity of the closcil wings of
certain Vanessaj and other Lutterflies to the hark of trees,
i^fany analogous and striking facts could be given* Tho
most interesting one is that recorde<l by Mr. Wallace*
of a common Indian and Sumatran hutterily (Kallima),
which disnp|>ears like magic when it settles in a bush ;
for it hiiles its head and antennas between its clo8c<l
wings, and these, in form, color, and reining, cannot }>o
distinguished from a withered leaf together with ^he i
stalk. In some other cases the lower surfaces of the
wings are brilliantly colore<l, and yet are ]»rotcclivc; thus
in Thecia ruhi the wings when closed arc of an emerald
green and resemble the young leaves of the bramble, on
which this butterfly in the spring may often be seen
seated.

Althi^ii^ii liiv <'i-.-> dl liic i^'i'i- 1' oi' Wii-n r

face of many butterflies no doubt serve to conceal th lu,
yet we cannot possibly extend this view to the br'11i-na
and conspicuous colors of many kinds, such as our a . \\
and peacock Vanes8», our white cabbage-butterflies (I -
rb), or the great swallow-tail I'apilio which haunts iJh*
open fens — ^for these butterflies are thus rendered vi-
to every living creature. With these species l>oth S'
arc alike; but in the common brimstone butterfly (»
nrpteryx rhamni) the male is of an intense yellow, whil.
the female is much paler; and in the orange-tip (.1/'''
cJiaris cardamines) tlif males Alone have tlie bn

* Sco the intrmUof; the * Wcvtminttcr 1 ' Julr, I

p. 10. A voodi-utof th«- KaIUiiu b girea bjr Mr '

..rXlJ .^MuTItt SSI

onBgt tSpt U> ihrir • i: 1" U>«« '^'^
f. rt n» • nrt. equally . ana ii to crrdiw

••rmca in color tUBdi in any r
a. XeTcrthckit, it i* [>o^^^^ i
n of many »|»ccir« may '
,1, M will bcraiWr be cx^i
reeognlao Uh

ochrr rMnari
•r iIh* take of |>r *•
.«i»r be- tiicctoa, ^

. 4^

f an i

>fiM> mantii-r. \V
thai It i* 0
idi b

'•r

ruiacvd in

* . bo4li U lb»«

• mnI Ibr *

14m, a* |>iial«l "•t tn Mr. A

••r Kagb ^ ^

I

382

8IXUAL SELECTION.

ll'Aur 11.

I>owcr which conii»olH nn to Wliovo that tlic lowiT surfacoH
have here bei'ii coloivd for the nakf of proti'ctioii, lca*lH us
to deny that the wiiij^ have been tipiKtl, edpecially when
thin character ia confiiietl to the males, with bright orange
for the Haine |»urj»oKe.

Tuniing now to Moths: most of ihene rent motion -
wilh their wings depn'sscd during the whole or greater
part of the day; and the U|)|Kr surfacen of their wings
are often shaded and colored in an admirable manner, as
Mr. Wallace luis remarked, for escaping detection. Willi
most of the llon»bycid:e and Xtwtuidw/ when at rest, the
front-wings overlap and conceal the hind-wings; so that
the latter might be brightly colored without much i
and they are thus colored in many Hjunriesof Ixjlh fiiinilii H.
During the act of flight, moths would often l>e : ' '
ca|H; from their enemies; neverthelesj*, as the lun.i u iii-^.
arc then fully exponed to view, tlieir bright colors must
generally have been acquired at the cost of some little
risk. I5ut the following fact shows us how cautious we
ought to be in drawing conclusions on this hea«l. The
common yellow under-wings (Triphaena) often fly about
during the day or early evening, and are then conspicuous
from the color of their hind- wings. It would naturally
bethought that this would be a source of danger; but
Mr. J, Jenner Weir believes that it actually senes tlu ni
as a means of escape, for birds strike at these bright ly-
colore«l and fragile surfaces, instead of at the Ixxly. F«»r
instance, Mr. Weir turned into his aviary a vigorous sjk*-
cimen of Triphaena jironuba^ which was instantly pur-
sued by a robin ; but, the bird's attention being caught
by the colorctl wings, the moth w.-is not captured until
after alnnit fifty attempts, and sm.iU fnirtions of the wings
were reiK^atinlly broken off. He tried the same ex[»eri-

' Mr. Wallace in ' llanlwickc'ii S k-ncc (JoMip/ HrpU 1M7, p. 19^

Cm^.Xl] iiLlTEEFUW a.W 1I0T1!« IM

n the open air. wilh » T. /mbri't ••allow ;

We »nj ihM mnindca uf • •UUmiwui u.
I.v Mr. WalUrr/ namrlT, lb.i, in « fow«U au.i

many common an- 1 <«ofml«J bni-

i«l bvm ninHi
V, it •crttM |>n>lMUn tlmi
hmx9 brm •inarV

|4rrml In n ^

I

. r of i»»»4

r

r

in nrt

•n.1 m

•nnlUnikL A Mr

il« n«w «

384 . SEXUAL SELLl I iu:N. [Paut II.

Hiitttrflies, as before romarkiMl, elevate tlicir wings wlien
at rest, and while l)asking in the Hunsliine often ulternately
raise and depress them, thus exposing to full view both
surfaces ; and, altliough the lower surface is often colored
in an obscure manner as a protection, yet in many species
it is as highly colored as the upper surface, and sometimes
in a very difterent manner. In some tropical 8i>ecie8 the
lower surface is even more brilliantly colored than the
ui»per." In one English fritillary, the Arr/>/,mis ufjlaia,
tlu^ lower suHiicc alone is ornamented with shininir silver
disks. Nevertheless, as a general rule, the upper surface,
which is probably the most fully exposed, is colored more
bi ightly and in a more diversilied manner than the lower.
Hence the lower surface generally allbrds to entomologists
the most useful character for detecting the allinities of-
the various species.

Now if we turn to the enormous group of moths, which
do not habitually expose to full view the under surface of
their wings, this side is very rarely, as I hear from 3Ir.
Stainton, colored more brightly than the upper side, or
even with equal brightness. Some exceptions to the rule,
either real or apparent, must be noticed, as that of llypo-
j)yra, specified by Mr. WormaUl.*' 3lr. K. Trimen informs
me that, in Guenee's great work, three moths are figured,
in which the under surface is much the most brilliant.
For instance, in the Australian Gastrophora the upper
surface of the fore-wing is pale grayish-ochreous, while
the lower surface is magnificently ornamented by an ocel-
lus of cobalt-blue, j)laced in the midst of a black mark,
surrounded by orange-yellow, and this by bluish-white.

" Such difTercncc.'* between the upper and lower surfuccs of the wind's
of -evcral species of Papilio may be necn in the beautiful platen to Mr.
Wallui-c'a Memoir on the Papilionidjo of the Malayan Ilcgion, in * Trann
act. Linn, Soc' vol. xxv. part i. 1805.

" • Proe. Ent. Soc' March 2, 1808.

Clur. XI.]

niTTKIIKLIiy AND MOTn&

S85

But the habil-iol iIu-m- ihr. v are unknown; so that

no explanation can W / \ of llit ir unusual ^t v^ ..f col-
<»rin|^. 3Ir. Trimcn al riiiH m«- tlmt the sur-

ftice of the win{^ in certain ollu r (A oinelra: " an«l MMa lri-
lid Noctuaj is either more varie^jated or more y
colored than tlio upper i»urfacc ; but some of ihemj f |K eie*
have the hahit of hoMin^; their win^s quite erect over
ir hacks, r them in this fMniition for a considci^

ahle time," and thus ■ to view the under surface.

Other sfK-cies, when h^iut l on the pround or herbage,
have the hahit of now and then sti ' ! • ttid i»li);htljr
' • ' MO their winps. Ilenc* . • f u e of the

• ' TTiMre bri^;hlly col.. •urfrto-,
in i , U not so anomn it

nt : The Satun ido soilie oi the

most beautiful of all moths, their winj;s bein^j decorate*!,
as in our ' i KniiK-n*r moth, with fine ocelli ; and Mr.
T. W. W.HMi • ' . rilii-s in

I 'I mT I

do|.

It is a •inifiilar fa4't that »o Hriti*h w«»lh«. n..- - far
•« I ran . er, h.trdly any f«»n-itfii ' -^f*»

%m Iho CAM- %t

»• II

386

SKXI AL SKLECTIOy.

[Part II.

blown, or variouH tints of dull vellow, or nearly wliite.
In several Hj)ec!f8 the males arc much darker than the
females," and these belong to f^roups which genenilly fly
about during the afternoon. On the other hand, in many
genera, as 3Ir. Stainton infonns me, the males have the
hind-wings whiter than those of the female — of which fact
Af/roth exclamation is offers a good instance. Tlic males
are thus rendered more conspicuous than the females,
while flying about in the dusk. In the Ghost Moth (J/t-
pialus humuli) the difference is more strongly marked ;
the males being white, and the females yellow, with
darker markings. It is difficult to conjecture what the
meaning can be of these diffi renccs Wtween the sexes in
the shades of darkness or lightness; but we can hanlly
suppose that they are the result of mere variability with
sexually-limited inheritance, indej>endently of any benefit
thus derived.

From the foregoing statements it is impossible to ad-
mit that the brilliant colors of butterflies and of some few
moths have commonly l>een acquired for the sake of pro-
tection. We have seen that their colors and elegant pat-
tenis are arranged and exhibited as if ft>r display. Hence
T nni led to suppose tlirit ilu' females generally j»refer, or

For instance, I ob^crro in my son's cmbinct lliol the males are
darker than the females in the LaMiocantjta qurrcua^ Odontwtit potaioria^
I/ypo^ymna dixpar, /' ' ' 'otuthi, and Cynua mmdica. In tliis

latter Hpccies the di: ... . lor between the two sexes b pf-^' > V

marked ; and Mr. Wallace informs me that we hero have, as he b<
an instance of protectiTo mimicnr confineil to one sex, as wDl bereaher
be more fullj o\' ' ' Tho white female of the Cvcnia resemble* the
rery common Sj>> i virnthraMi, both sexes of which arc white; and
Mr. Stainton observed that thin latter moth was rejected with utter dis-
gust by a whole brood of young turkeys, which were fond of eating other
moths ; so that; if tho Crrnia was commonly mi.<takcr. by Britii^h birds
for the Spilosoma, it would escape being devoured, and its white decep-
live color would thu^i be highly beneficial.

BlTTKRrUES AND UOTU?.

991

are mo«t cxcilM by the m^rv bruiia i rr» iL • \ '
..•!.. r .tipiH^-iliMn the malt-* ! - :*iucuua, a. Ur

I, w f .r no puriH.-4.. \\ - a- xhU UU •nd

. . ♦ . lIi. Mrn Ut tli* are iMe of Ming an »l-

J . : r r v h ot!.. r, an l ih • rv<v»*rnU« ihcir fil-

|,, , - J., ;. r^ i! "f »k«-\« r.il iii'-iitht. IleiMW UmTO »

no a »n I>« |.i'l"ft' r:*, mhicb piob-

' ' in.! nearly or <jaiie a* hi^'h in xhm Male tliwe
i t-. ha% ing faflkteot mental cai«irily Xo ^ ' bright
. n. They crrtainly aUc ' ' .^u\.:x4

I t .. ahovn, the |>t^i>i'» Hi.uii af ' 'I

" ' -w© a cooapicu"u->i; ^ "I*
Sfi'i^nr miT oftrn be

i.^ ifio wind n'

) y a fntnd Uuil t *

. ■ ■ I on tho valU uf u
I rommon w!

.: . , • • -

do

I I hare

t in iba atMilii ul Ki
. I hear from Mr. Doable-
' paper oa the gnmmd^ m
; iia own aprciriL Mr. Col-
lilBcttlty . ■ r^r
vrchhwlsf
a con* ilW*

IMTtally

Ol b- »" .

3S8

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

1)0011 roiidoreJ briglitcr by degreos, and will have been
transmitted to both Boxes or to one Bex, according to
which law of inheritance prevailed. The process of sexual
selection will have been much facilitated, if the conclu-
Bions arrived at from various kinds of evidence in the su\y-
plomont to the ninth chapter can be trusted ; namely, that
the males of many Lopidoptera, at least in the imago
state, greatly exceed in number the females.

Some facts, however, are opj)osed to the belief that
female butterflies prefer the more beautiful males; thus,
as I have been assured by several observers, fresh femalos
may frequently be seen paired with battered, faded, or
dingy males; but this is a circumstance whicli could hard-
ly fail often to follow from the males emerging from their
cocoons earlier than the females. ^Vith moths of the
family of the Bombycidro, the sexes pair immediately after
ar^suming the imago state; for they cannot feed, owing to
the rudimentary condition of their mouths. The females,
as several entomologists have remarked to mo, lie in an
almost torpid state, and appear not to evince the least
choice in regard to their partners. This is tlie case with
the common silk-moth (JJ. mori)^ as I have In^on told by
some Continental and English breedoi-s. Dr. Wallace,
who has had such immense exj>erionce in brooding Jiom-
hi/x ci/nthia, is convinced that the females evince no choice
or j)reforence. He has kept above 300 of these moths liv-
ing together, and has often found the most vigorous fe-
males mated with stunted males. The reverse aj»parontly
Bcldom occurs ; for, as ho believes, the more vigorous
males pass over the weakly females, being attracted 1»y
those endowed with most vitality. Although we have
]>eon indirectly induced to believe that the females of
many species prefer the more beautiful males, 1 have no
reason to Rus|>ect, e'.ther with moths or butterflies, that
the mnles are Mt tract ed by tlu> beauty of the females. If

CHAf. XI.]

DUTTERFLIF.S AND MOTHS.

389

Uin more beautiful females ha l < u f- v*'- • n^'- t f. r*-" T.
it in almost certain, from the • . .
frequently transmitted to one sex alone, that the :
would often have been rendered more beautiful than tlu-ir
male partners. Hut this doc^s not occur except in a few
instances ; and tlicMS can be explained, as we shall pres*
<Mitly see, on the principle of mimicry and protection.

As sexual selection primarily <!• t- '1^ . n variability. . .»
few words must riMed ou tl. \n r- -!•• < ! ? •

color there is no < Ity, as any n

ble I^'pidoptera could W naiiu .I. « ><mI iimtanco will

Kuffico: Mr. Hates hhmvi d me :i whole •»
of Papilio Mesostris and cI i?/ in lii< • the males

varied much in the < \tenl ul the Ix 1
jjreen p i" ' n the fore-w injjH, and in t
in - \v<ii as of the splen<lid • ■
hi;. . that then* wa»» a pi- .

tli<' leant " I'l'lv T?t i'« •.. The i . , ^

>>;h a 1 ct, is mu < so i

>■/ .f. It lil. a little in the P>ir«* of lh«>

fn^t-n |»atch on the fon*-\ and in the •
p' of a small • o on t

ruwe«l, AS it would H < 111, !i<>iu its own 1« '
malea of this and of ni:if ^ lu t

y

r\

I \w> no •!
of II, llir '

U Mr. W

and Mr. li«(«« I \Uo I : ^

390 SEXUAL SKl.hL l luN. [Pakt II.

other species arc cxt namely variable, the males beiiiir
nearly constant. Ah I have before mentioned the Ghost
Moth (Ilvpialus humuli) as one of the be«t instances in
iiritain of a difference in color between the sexes of
moths, it may be worth adding" that, in the Shethiiul
Islands, males are frequently found which closely resem-
ble the females. In a future chapter I shall have occasion
to show that the beautiful eye-like spots or ocelli, so com-
mon on the wings of many Lepidoptera, arc eminently

On tlie whole, althougo many serious objections may
be urged, it seems probable that most of the species of
Lepidoptera which are brilliantly colored, owe their col-
ors to sexual selection, excei>ting in certain cases, pres-
ently to be mentioned, in which conspicuous colors are
beneficial as a j)rotection. From the ardor of the male
throughout the animal kingdom, he is generally willing to
accept any female; and it is the female which usually ex-
erts a choice. Hence, if sexual selection has here acted,
the male, when the sexes ditTer, ought to be the most
brilliantly colored ; and this undoubtedly is the ordinary
rule. When the sexes are brilliantly colored and resem-
ble each other, the characters acquired by the males ai>-
l)ear to have been transmitted to both sexes. 15ut will
this explanation of the similarity and dissimilarity in
color between the sexes suflice?

The males and females of the same species of butterfly
are knnwn " h\ . \ . r.d cases to inhabit different stations,

airit tiv int. n two othrr wtll-mnrkod fcmalo Tarictio*, if

pivcn hy .Mr. abo Mr. Ilaton, in • Troc. Entomolog. 8oa

Nor. 19, 1800, p. xL

Mr. R. MacUchlan, ' Transact Knt. Soc.' roL ii. part f.th, 3d Mriot,
1866, p.

n. W. Ratci«, ♦The Naturuli-i on the .\niaznim,' vol. ii. IS'..",, p.
228. A. R. Wallace, in ' Trnn^ (. I/mn. Sov.' vol. xxr. 18C5, p. 10.

CuAT.Xl.) BLTTKBI'UEii AND 1I0TI1& 3tl

If,, f.-rm. r . • in •• • - latter

t( thai
Ir oo tho

ther are eipoic-d during a Tery •hort |»eri*>J to diiTcmit
. r' litMini; and the bn» of bolh arc exi«m-d to the
til. Mr. WallaM bclierei that tho U-m br

I in A^i "(

( the Cemala bare Wn
-t all ra#ca for the ■aha of proUviiou. '^o coin
• • . .it leenH to me more probable tbn* 'nr

• . ! »r<."' m-i'.»n»r of CMca, have n

I »

I

t

lint to

%n do the malea of i
( ' rule. Tho female* thu* ai

•how I

i|i to « hit ii i: -^^ii' ^

Iff U»« "u- ' • -'*i\r »• • f ^ariati.'ii. •

tiim uf Whirh tl. • ^

lirm traaffTt' •! •

ffiotich dh'-

irinfftho it cw

tia, ami may '

J4*

302 SEXUAL SELECTION. [Part I L

In all casi'R >vlien the more common form of equal in-
lu'ritance by both sexes has prevailed, the selection of
bright-colored males would tend to make the females
bright-colored ; and the selection of dull-eolortnl females
would tend to make the males dull. If both ' proces^s
were carried on simultaneously, they would tend to neu-
tral iz.e each other. As far as I can see, it would be ex-
trt nu'ly difVioult to change through selection the one fonn
of inheritance into the other, liut, by the selection of suc-
cessive variations, which were from the lirst sexually lim-
ited in their transmission, there would not be the sli«jhtest
difficulty in giving bright colors to the males alone, and
at the same lime, or subsequently, dull colors to the fe-
males alone. In this latter manner female butterflies and
moths may, as I fully admit, have been rendered incon-
spicuous for the sake of protection, and widely diflereni
from their males.

y\v. AVallace " has argued with much force in favor of
his view that, when the sexes difler, the female has been
specially modifu'd for the sake of protection; and that
has been effected by one form of inheritance, namely, the
transmission of characters to both sexes, having been
changed through the agency of natural selection into the
other form, namely, transmission to one sex. I was at
first strongly inclined to accept this view; but, the more I
have studied the various classes throuEfliQut the animal
kingdom, the less probable it has appeared. ^\r. Wallace
urges that both sexes of the Jldiconida?^ Da?iaidiP, Acra-
eUloe^ are equally brilliant because both are protected
from the attacks of birds ami other enemies, by their of-
fensive odor; but that in other groups, which do not
possess this innnunity, the females have been rendered

•* A. R Wallace, in •The Journal of Travel/ vol i. 18f.R, p. 88.
•Westminster Koviow,' July, 1867, p. 37. See also Messn*. Wallace and

Bates in ' V\o'\ F»it S«)c.' Nov. 19. 1666, p. rxxtx.

,ur XI.) i ASD MC «••

► . ... . 1 ,.r ^. "..»,■ ••*..»? tVtiTi

!•

t ' 1 ; n -

.M. It U obviwuji liiat l'ri;;l»il. »•

, iiuiU « or fptnali"!*, wotiM »

and oUctm-ly-colort-a in »U i-«iually »

I. liiioii of iht-tr enemks. Uul we an- i-onc nu.i uu lU:
rtr c uof t m or |»rwM r » of cvrtain. iiiOi.

%i.|uulsof eahcr^i,oiit^ • v Willi

• lie hai» 1 ^

n* tli« tvc I*

M-r fuT . if tl;. . I in tM^* '

.11 I ;! ' ' V I (all oih» r -

ll„. . ,\ tl,. |.r. . . i- II of Iho lualva a*i«4 Uuu»av^
^..ul.llio rtanl f r iho « -c of T

r t^c . 'rr of lliO o;l'| liJ»jJ. i'* '-

, lo W • a»e wilh U»«-

rv\ " IWO or •

I w

thai of ' »n

Dr. NN

. •.h'oihI or lliinl !i !• »|H lo

.»n« WouUl nol Ua%o •
.,l \\ h. ii tnaU't • ^ ' '

1 •

4 A

394 SEXUAL isELECTION. [Taut II.

<lttuils. On the wliole, I cannot jKTceivc tliat an inc-
(iuality in the numbers of llic two Hexej* wouM influence
in any marked manner the effects of ordinary selection on
tlie character of the offsprini^.

Female Lej>idoj)tera require, as Mr. Wallace insists,
some days to deposit their fertilized ova and to search
for a proper place ; during this period (while the life of
the male was of no importance) the brighter-colored fe-
males would be exposed to danger and would be liable to
be destroyed. The diUler-colored females, on the other
hand, would survive, and thus would influence, it might be
Ihuught, in a marked manner the character of the 8]»ecies
— either of both sexes or of one sex, according to which
form of inheritance prevailed. But it must not be for-
gotten that the males emerge -from the cocoon-state some
days before the females, and during this period, while
the unborn females were safe, the brighter-colored males
would be exposed to danger; so that ultimately both
sexes would j»robably be exposed during a nearly equal
length of time to danger, and the elimination of conspici*-
ous colors would not be much more eftectivc in the one
than the other sex.

It is a more important consideration that female Le-
pidoptera, as Mr. WaUace remarks, and as is known to
every collector, arc generally slower flyers than the males.
Consequently the latter, if exposed to greater danger
from being conspicuously colored, might be able to escape
from their enemies, while the simiiarly-colored females
would be destroyed; and thus the females would have the
most influence in modifying the color of their i)rogeny.

There is one other consideration: bright colors, as far
as sexual selection is concerned, are commonly of no ser-
vice to the females ; so that if the latter varied in bright-
ness, and the variations were sexually limited in their
transmission, it w.miM depend on mere chance whether

9

\ I
II

riur XI ] BLTTEWXIH'; AND ' 305

Ihe 1 hiiJ lli' ir colors i 1 ^

would uiA Ihroii 1 r totli

of HjifcieH with I _ . i ftiiKiU-H in r

with iIh' m . i'-^ V ivii,/ ^rl-hlly-colort-.l m . Onllu-
,1} rli . arv »ui.|H>m.-*l to Imj highly

to thv maiin in their love »lrui:K'U s the Ir
I Mse in the chaiiler on llir.l*) al
I x|H.M^l to rather j^m-alir ilan^'er, woaKl on an :
|,rocreatc a pn-atcr r of oflVprin^? than lh» ..

InlhiHcaM*, II • ' mi: :

-;..n tot' •
..!!•'■' "'■

H »K|Hnd on whrthrr nioro evil
I to the hi by the female* beinj: r I
H, thnn p«JO«l to llie maUn hy certain i aai»

An there ran hanliy U> u a^ui.t lii.n inali ^ f

ami m.ith* ' i ' ' 1-

I:
tf
I •
>\

« >1

1

1 thus : '
I. \Vi* Ahall itnii

t of ti. •i^«»' ^

Uf |.T '"^

r» 1 f »

390

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

cially modified for ilie sake of sexual attraction, the fe-
male liaving retained her primordial colorini^ only slightly
cliangcd ,tlirough the agencies before alluded to; or
whether again both sexes have been modified, the fe-
male for protection and the male for sexual attraction, can
only be definitely decided when we know the life-hislory
of each species.

Without distinct evidence, I am unwilling to admit
that a double process of selection has long been going on
with a multitude of species — the males having been ren-
dered more brilliant by beating their rivals ; and the fe-
males more dull-colored by having escaped from their
enemies. We may take as an instance the common brim-
stone butterfly (Gonepteryx), which appears early in the
spring before any other kind. The male of this species is
of a far more intense yellow than the female, though she
is almost equally conspicuous ; and in this case it does
not seem probable that she sj^ecially acquired her pale
tints as a protection, though it is probable that the male
acquired his bright colors as a sexual attraction. The fe-
male oi Anthocaris cardamincs docs not possess the beau-
tiful orange tips to her wings with which the male is or-
namented ; consequently she closely resembles the white
butterflies (Pieris) so common in our gardens ; but we
have no evidence that this resemblance is beneficial. On
the contrary, as she resembles both sexes of several spe-
cies of the same genus inhabiting various quarters of the
world, it is more probable that she has simi)ly retained to
a large extent her primordial colors.

Various facts support the conclusion that, with the
greater number of brilliantly-colored Lepidoptera, it is the
male which has been modified; the two sexes having
come to differ from each other, or to resemble each other,
according to which form of inheritance lias prevailed. In-
heritance is governed by so many unknown laws or con-

Chap. XI.] BUTTERFLIES AND MOTH?. 397

(lilioiiR, that they Beem to us to be most cajirieious in their
action and we can so far understand how it ia that with
elosely-allied species the sexes of some dilVcr to an aston-
ishing degree, while tlie sexes of others are identical in
color. As the successive steps in the process of variation
arc necessarily all transmitted through the female, a
■greater or less number of such steps might readily l>ecomc
developed in her; and thus we can ufidersland the fre-
quent gradations from an extreme diflerence to no difl\ r-
ence at all between the sexes of the s|K*cie8 within the
same group. These cases of gradation are much too com-
mon to favor the supposition that we here see females ac-
tually undergoing the process of transition and lo>in^
their brightness for the sake of protection; for we liave
every reason to conclude that at any one time the greater
iiuml>er of species are in a fixed condition. With resjH'ct
to the difference* between the femah-s of the species in
the same genus or family, we can iK-rceivo that they de-
])end, at least in part, on the females partaking of the < '
ors of their respective males. This is wrll illustrated m
those grou|»s in which the males are onianiented to an ex-
traonlinary degree; for the females in the^«• "r. iipH gi-tu r-
ally partake to a certain extent <»f the n r of il. .
male jiartners. JjiMtly, wq continually find, n< nlrfady
r« marked, that the females of almost all the in tho

same gennn, or even family, renemblo each other mu> li
more cloMrly in color than do the malen; and thif indi-
cateM that the ma! .0 undergone a greater amount of
nio<liticatii>n tlian lin i< tti l^ .

J/mi/<vy.— Till* prln' wnt flrnt mad- • ^ tr ni tM \

inir iMi' |>i|.« r bv Mr 1 uli.» tli'i - • »

rbap. »U. p 17.

M • Tr«iM«rt. l.n. . IMS,pc4M.

398 SKXT'AL SKLKrTION'. fpAiiT II.

li^ht on many obscure problems. It bad jjreviously been
observed tliat certain butterflies in Soutb America, belonjj-
incj to quite distinct families, resembled tbc Ilelieoni-
da3 80 closely, in every stripe and shade of color, that
they could not bo distin^uislied except by . an experi-
enced entomoloji^ist. As the 1 leliconitlai are colored in
llieir usual manner, wliile the others dej>art from the usual
coloring of the groups to which they belong, it is clear
that the latter are the imitators, and the Ileliconida; tlie
imitated. Mr. ]5ates further observed that the imitating
species are comparatively rare, while the imitated swarm
in large numbers; the two sets living mingled togeth-
er. From the fact of the Ileliconida) being con8j)icuous
and I)eautiful insects, yet so numerous in individuals and
species, ho concluded that they must be protected from
the attacks of birds by some secretion or odor; and this
hypothesis has now been confirmed by a considerable
bo<ly of curious evidence." From these considerations
^Ir. Bates inferred that the butterllies which imitate the
protected species had acquired their present marvellously
deceptive appearance through variation and natural se-
lection, in order to be mistaken for the protected kinds
and thus to escape being devoured. No explanation is
luTc attempted of the brilliant colors of the imitated, but
only of the imitating butterflies. We must account for the
colors of the former in the same general manner as in
the cases previously discussed in this chapter. Since
the publication of Mr. Bates's paper, similar and equally
striking facts have been observed by Mr. Wallace" in the
Malayan region, and by Mr. Trimen in South Africa.
As some writ cr^ 'M rivo frit thik Ii <Hf1i«'iiltv iu iind^r-

' Troc. Ent. »Soc.' Dec. H, 1866, p. xiv
•••Transact. Linn. Soc' voL xxv. 1805, |». 1; ul.vo ' Tr;iii>atl. Ent.
Soc.' vol. iv. .«5t'rii'n), 1867, p.* 301.

" See an ingenious article entitled " Difliculties of the Theory of Nat-

CuAT. XI ) BLTTERFLIES AND U(mi&. 8W»

Mi ll- ' how the first »Up« in the proc*-** of mimicry
t been cflfectcd ihruu^'li natural ni, it may

l>c well to n iuark that the prcKi ^n i.rwbii.ly ihmt
ciiininencea with forniH widely ilihMmilar in c
with two specie* mmlerately like each other, i
nsemhlance, ifl ial to either form, could r.

tiiuA gained; and, ii UiC imital«d form wa« ^ j

and ^;radually mollified ihrou^'h m xual m.l» . u u or any
otla r mcana, . i - ' f rTu wwuld be led along the
,»ame trn. V. r, I to almost any extent, u»

that it 1 an appearmnoc or •

uhullv unlike tliat of the oth. r meuiberi of the grtiup to
whif- h' it Ulonj^cd. Am extrem hi variati.mt in col-

or woul.l ntit in many caM suIIum to render a speeic* to
l.l. another i "cirt ai to lead to its | - -vv

lion, it should oc rcmuubCTod that nvr mn it-s i-
• . IV fahle an«l t vari m

hut under thin |». • vU-w Mr. L d paper

MM mimfrrk'. as well an Mr. W.iilaee * i d Iw

In the for isea both »« ice of the in.

c\m r- 1*"^ *'

alone ^ a U I . . ^

saute iii

u <

400

SEXUAL SKLECTION.

[Part 11.

as I am informed by ^Ir. Wallace, some f rotcctecl species
inhabiting the same region. The female of JJiadema
anomala is rich purple-brown with almost the whole
surface glossed with satiny blue, and she closely imitates
the J'Jiiphea vndamus ^ oi\q of the commonest butter-
Hies of the East;" while the male is bronzy or olive-
brown, WMth only a slight blue gloss on the outer parts
of the wings." Both sexes of this Diadema and of D,
boUna follow the same habits of life, so that the differ-
ences in color between the sexes cannot be accounted
for by exposure to different conditions even if this ex-
jilanation were admissible in other instances.**

The above cases, of female butterflies which are More
brightly-colored than the males, show us, firstly, that
variations have arisen in a state of nature in the female
sex, and have been transmitted exclusively, or almost ex-
clusively, to the same sex ; and, secondly, that this form
of inheritance has not been determined through natural
selection. For, if we assume that the females, before they
became brightly colored in imitation of some protected
kind, \\'ere exposed during each season for a longer period
to danger than the males, or if we assume that thoy
could not escape so swiftly from their enemies, we can
understand how they alone might originally have acquired
through natural selection and sexually-limited inheritance
their j)resent protective colors. But, except on the prin-
(•il)le of these variations .having been transmitted exclu-
sively to the fen^ale offspring, we cannot understand why
the males should have remained dull-colored ; for it would

« Wallace, " Notes on Eastern Butterflies," ♦ Transact. Ent Sec'
1869, p. 287.

"Wallace, in •Westminster lUvi.w,' July, l.^''<7, p. 37; and in
•Journal of Travel and Nat. Ilist.^ vol. i. ISCS, p. 88.

** Sec remarks, by Messrs. Bttes and Wallace, in * Proc. Ent See.'
Nov. 19, 18GC, p. xxxix.

ruxr. XI.)

nCTTERFLIES AND MOTILS.

401

irely not have 1>ecii in any way injurious to each indi-
vidual male to have partaken by inheritance of the pr<>*
tectivc colors of the female, and thus to have had a b-
chance of cAcaping detitruction. In a group in which
brilliant colon arc so common as with butterflies, it cao«
not be supposed that the males have l>een kept '
on-d through sexual selection by the femn' - •

individuals which ^v. • r>-' !• --.'d a« Ikm^

M Ives. We mav, I idudc that in t

inheritaucc by one sex in not due to the m u
through natural selection of a tendency to e<(ual inherit*
ancc by both nexcfi.

It may be well here to give an aii .« caio in an*
otlier Order, of charaett'm acquired only by the fen
tluiugh not in the least injurious, as far a« we can ju
to th«' I' i' Among the IMi:i*^mid:e, or spectrc-iniki
Mr. W • i'' ^ f' !♦ !♦ is oflrn ll»e fm :i' >^ i' "

^f . kVtH, w 111''- t'i<' •

ti ru«; , II.*' Now, \s

it< of theno ins4*ctii, it is highly improbable that i'

Im* disadvantageous to the mah*t to esca|M) dit .M u

Miii^' leaven.*' Hence we may conclude that the

I < - tir

•« • pt . -m Um (rttaJc , umI be >

|.UIa t on Um pHaelpla UiaI om mt tkm bM vmrM umI k**

UBMnuiua iU vatkilQM wimktwkj le lk« mmr ibovt Um oT

• CwmIw of tpry mutj jyck* b^*l t«r^
r.i^irrr.l ' t ibrwiib pt^Hrrth* ■iwlrrj, b«t iWl Uib bM t

mmU, (t to A twiMH aUMiy. Um MmlMf
• I • mUI; tUkc* f r ftlr < «^

•tr lb* ittf »■ «•! Ums

nnliiil -^^ la lb«

402

SKXUAL SELECTION.

[I'AUT II.

fi'males alone iu this hitter as in the previous cases origi-
nally varied in certain characters; these characters hav-
ing been preserved and augmented through ordinary se-
lection for the Bake of jirotection, and from the first trans-
mitted to the female otVspring alone.

Jh'lyht Colors of CakTpillars. — While relli riuj;; on
the beauty of jnany butterflies, it occurred to me that
some caterpillars were splendiilly colored, and as sexual
selection could not possibly have here acted, it appeared
rash to attribute the beauty of the mature insect to this
agency, unless the bright colors of their larvai could be in
some manner explained. In the first place, it may be ob-
served that the colors of caterpillars do not stand in any
close correlation with those of the mature insect. Sec-
ondly, their bright colors do not servo in any ordinary
manner as a protection. As an instance of this, ]SIr. Bates
informs me that the most conspicuous caterpillar which he
ever beheld (that of a Sphinx) lived on the large green
h aves of a tree on the open llanos of South America ; it
was about four inches in length, transversely banded with
black and yellow, and with its head, legs, and tail of a
bright red. Ilencc it caught the eye of any man who

hcrltance from the female.'?. In the second place, it ia probable that
sexual selection would actually tend to prevent a beautiful male from
becoming obscure, for the less brilliant individuals would be less attrac-
tive to the females. Supposing that the beauty of the male of any sp-
had been mainly acquired through scxu >1 ^ -tion, yet if this bca .i \
likewi.^e served as a protection, the ac(i . i w ould have been aidc<l
by natural selection. Hut it would be quite beyond our power to dis-
tinguish bctwctn the two processes of sexual and ordinary scle< •
Hence it is not likely that we should be able to adduce cases of tlv <
having been rendered brilliant exclusively through protcetiro i.
though this is comparatively easy with the females, which hare rarely or
never been rendered beautiful, as fur as we can judge, for the sake of
sexual attraction, although they Imve often received -beauty through in-
heritance from their male parents.

C«AF. XI J ' UtTTKHJLIJ:-* AM) ' <03

,,as«cHl by at i' 'i h-^";

l' then . * % ^ mini

;,..niu.for.nlIin .' r »ome coum-U r.

I., r. t.lM .l: "M-

1,. , i frttin ^oOlc•

or irriUlin , and from many i

the leaves on whi« h ll I, «>r <

iif iho treca on 1» tl" > ^

iinttaiicc of pr i! a «m'

, ; / 1 ^l ..,..1 W . , . • t o«

an I am ml i , , t,

^, . ! ^ for lUelf a

iiO); tliom«.

, Mr \N »l I

were pr- ' • 'i by

l.nvin- a . e ; but aa ibcir tUo ia ext r m ly

ai,a '»ca rcaaily

i, a iili^bl I**-* i'"' ^»^'«*^''^ » ' "

' x\nm a* if ll ' '-"^^n '^^ ^

r Miarku, ri!iic»n a» ..

. f ^ , ileM aome outm :«

thai iia prry waa a Jia-
I amatant^ ii would

.lUr lo bo InataiilA'

1

Lir.U an.| oti.rr n: • »oai ijau^O « -r.

liav^ bM g»u»oa by
, . V . 1 i.» moat • fTIv rr<^:rt»ltrt|

1 I

wl»« •»
it

«1 Hoi

104

SEXUAL SELECTION.

has mjulc, as lie inrornis inc, nuimrouw trials, and linds no
exooj.lion to tlie rule, that all catorj.illars of nocturnal ami
rt'tiring habits with smooth pkins, all of a ^rvvii color, and
all which imitate twigs, are greedily devoured by his liinls.
The liairy and Bpinosc kinds are invaria))ly rejected, as
were four conspicuously-colored 8i>ecie8. AVhen the birds
rejected a caterj.illar, they i)lainly showed, by shaking
their licads and cleansing their beaks, that they were dit*-
gusted by the taste." Three conspicuous kinds of caterjiil-
lars and moths were also given by Mr. A. I5utler to somo
lizards and frogs, and were rejected ; though other kinds
were eagerly eaten. Thus the probable truth of Air. Wal-
lace's view is confirmed, namely, that certain caterpillars
have been made conspicuous for their own good, bo as to
l>c easily recognized by their enemies, on nearly the same
jirinciplc that certain poisons arc colored by druggists for
the good of man. This view will, it is j)robable, be here-
after extended to many aniuKils, which are colored in a
conspicuous manner.

^^n.iiiiKirj and Coududuuj Banarks on Insects. —
Looking back to the sevend Orders, we have seen that
the sexes often differ in various characters, the meaning
of wliich is not understood. The sexes, also, often differ
in their organs of sense or locomotion, so that the males
may quickly discover or reach the females, and still oftener
in the males posse5sing diversified contrivances for retain-
ing the females when found. But we arc not here much
concerned with sexual differences of these kinds.

In almost all the Orders, the males of some siKJcies,
even of weak and delicate kinds, are known to be highly
pugnacious; and some few are furnished with special weaj»-
ons for fighting with their rivals, liut the law of battle

** fcr Mr. J. Jmnor Wi-ir'» paper on uii-octi* and in.-'
in 'Tran.tatt Knl. So*.' I80'.», p. 21 ; aI>o Mr. Dulkr's p..^ . ,1.1.

( 1141 XL]

fTTMH ARY OS 1^ W

ihn-n nol pn rail ih arly »o %\My wiib iiiM ot. a-
41*. n* n''o ; ly il i* that ih. m ..

uluu Uren nua. n .1 ..Ui-cr and »lrungvr Uiau •
maltii. On the coiitr. ' a«u"v •^^''"'"^ " ^

ihal lh<*v may W d« \ ^ i • th ^

n-a.K i'. Ur-.- nMt,,)- r. i r ibc rmergroce of Uic

lnlwofami!icM.of Ulcll ; a ihe m«k« aJooe
HAMS in an cffirimi iUUr, oiv»n* which m»y be eall
cal ; ana in thrr, fai.iili.ii of ihr ( > nuitM ^uc

liUMCM ► ^" ^'K*'"

arc Inctmm^ U^aiof^^ ■oi oiay

mmm*

f figUu:Kiua*i -, i'u. ; ,rcb«nnbigorrTritmt;iba«

i„n rtih Other BuUr*. V .oor,who«ai. mgoi^

., „i ,,^;arml •-Wt^nn. v ptttf thai

,. • 'Mmrni* h I ' ^

I r« the ncaihen of ooe

of iMHb •rieii, »ro prorhW with •
.« tond*, which eppami'
ji« r a. Kvm when ' •<•»«-•

iIk *h weiv

'UUMouu* i»t»iie wotthi n-*
^u^u wefwl«i»oi-y.- '^*^»-^'"

r

r

bee. giM U»o«|rh ^ « ^'JliT'"

\

^ il uMjyieri. m of eti kmfot^
•Ve iMifim AMlfi*^^ <^

^\ 'hr ••^pnf h»*^«

.1

406

SEXUAL SELECTION.

( I'aut H.

finvd to the mule sex. From the small nizc ol insects, wc
are apt to undervalue their appearance. If we could im-
agine a male Chalcosoma (tig. 15) with its polished, bronzed
coat-of-mail, and vast complex liorns, maLrnilied to the
size of a horse or even of a dog, it wouKl he one of tlie
most imposing animals in the world.

Tlie coloring of insects is a complex and obscure 8ul>-
ject. AVhen the male ditlers sliglitly from the female,
and neither is brilliantly colored, it is probable that the
two sexes have varied in a slightly ditlerent manner, with
the variations transmitted to the same sex, without any
benefit having been thus derived or evil sufTered. When
the male is brilliantly colored and difters conspicuously
from the female, as with some dragon-flies and many bul-
terllics, it is jjrobablc that lie alone has been modified, and
that he owes his colors to sexual selection; while the fe-
male has retained a primordial or very ancient type of
coloring, slightly modified by the agencies before exj)lained,
and has therefore not been rendered obscure, at least in
most cases, for the sake of protection. ]>ut the female
alone has sometimes been colored brilliantly so as to imi-
tate other protected species inhabiting the same district.
When the sexes resemble each other and both are obscure-
ly colored, there is no doubt that they have been in a
multitude of cases colored for the sake of protection. So
it is in some instances when both are brightly colored,
causing them to resemble surrounding objects such as
flowers, or other protected species, or iivlirectly by giving
notice to their enemies that they arc of an unpalatabl(>
nature. In many other cases in wliich the sexes resemble
each other and are brilliantly colored, especially when the
colors are arranged for display, we may conclude that they
have been gained by the male sex as an attraction, and
have been transferred to both sexes. We arc more es-
pecially led to this conclusion whenever the same tyi>e of

I'm , • \I \

pruMAnY ON ixstn-

407

ration jirt vailrt ihr »l a jjrou|», ami iiml liuit

lUv niali-« of some n|itvu » diffe r widely iu color fn»m the
while Ik»iIi M?xes of otiu r !»|»ecieft a' ' Ve,

Willi iiilennctliale gradatioiiH coum-ctiiig i..- . ^
-tate»».

Ill the haine manner a« bright colon liave
••rirtiallv transferred from the males to the U it
I. Ih-i-u with the extraordinary bonii of many ni
uhl Homo other b«eUac So, Bgmin, the vocal or inntni-
iiH utal orgmnA proper to the males of the II«»ni<»plera and
< »i ■' 'j.lera have generally been tr I in a r '

I ary, or even in a I "-feet coi*viiU< u lo the huiu*!-;

* safiiri •' . bo uaed ft»r prtnluoing »ounJ.

[ [ > an Hi i V, li bemnng on M-xual M-lee-

• M, that ' ^r^ns of certain mil** Orthop*

nr.- I tl tho but Di .ind tliat

< of certain male tl t arc not fully devel*

I until - r ." little lim ence from tho

|.ii|»al iitate, and when thry are r« a.i\ to brtt-*!.

^ ual mrleclion ii that ' i»-

\ I'luaU ar '
•M-4-tii, wh r« v» ■» •.

mu»l

ly or •

in in

' -1 i . - I . > . o IIm ;

infrr In'iii I
In II

408

SEXUAL SELECTION.

[Part IL

tlic femiilc must liavc been a consenting party. Judging
from wliat we know of the perceptive powers and aftec-
tions of various insects, there is no antecedent improba*
bility in sexual selection having come largely into action ;
but we have as yet no direct evidence on this head, and
some facts are opposed to the belief. Nevertheless, when
we see many males pursuing the same female, we can
hardly believe that the pairing is left to blind chance —
that the female exerts no choice, and is not influenced by
the gorgeous colors or other ornaments with which the
male alone is decorated.

If we admit that the females of the Homoptcra and
Ortlioptera appreciate the musical tones emitted by their
male partners, and that the various instruments for this
purpose have been perfected through sexual selection,
there is little improbability in the females of other insects
appreciating beauty in form or color, and consequently in
such characters having been thus gained by the males.
But, from the circumstance of color being so variable, and
from its having been so often modified for the sake of pro-
tection, it is extremely difiicult to decide in how large a
]>roportion of cases sexual selection has come into play.
Tliis is more especially difficult in those Orders such as tlie
Orthoptera, Hymenoptera, and Coleoptera, in which the
two sexes rarely differ much in color ; for we are thus cut
off" from our best evidence of some relation between the
reproduction of the species and color. With the Coleop-
tera, however, as before remarked, it is in the great lamel-
licorn group, placed by some authors at the head of the
Order, and in which we sometimes see a mutual attach-
ment between the sexes, tliat we find the males of some
species possessing weapons for sexual strife, others fur-
nished with wonderful horns, many with stridulating or-
gans, and others ornamented with splendid metallic tints.
Hence it seems probable that all these characters have

CUAP. XI.]

SUMMARY OX INSECTS.

409

lioen gained though the same means, namely, sexual selec-
tion.

When wc treat of Birds, we shall see that they pre-
sent in their secondary sexual characters the closest anal-
ogy with insects. Thus, many male birds are highly pug-
nacious, and some are furnished with special weaiK>ns for
lighting with their rivals. They possess organs which arc
used during the breeding-season for producing vocal and
iFistrumental music. They arc frequently ornamented
witli combs, horns, wattles, and plumes, of the mostdiver-
silic'd kinds, and are decorated with beautiful colors, all
« \ idt iitly for the sake of display. We shall find that, as
with insects, both sexes, in certain groups, are erpially
))c:iutirul, and are equally provided with ornaments which
are usually confined to the male sex. In other groups
Ijotli sexes arc e(iually plain-colored and unornameuled.
Lastly, in Bome few anomalous casrs, the females are moru
luautiful than the males. ^Ve shall often fuul, in the
name group of birds, every gradati«)n from no dirtlrinco
In tween the sexes to an extreme tlitVrrence. In the latter
rase we shall sec that the femali-s, like female insects, nfton
possosH more or less plain trac«-s of the charartfrs which
pr<»|H rIy bi-long to the males. The analogy, intliitl, in all
llii'se n'S|MH*tj», between binls antl insi'ds, in curituudy
close. W hatever explanation applirs to the one claiut
probably applies to the other; and tliiit explanation, as wo
hall hereafter attempt to show, is almost certainly Mexiial
Hilection.

KlfO or VOL L

57 00 4

DUE DATE

MAR j 4 iqpy

MAR 1 3 1987

Mar 2 fl iQft7

MAR 2 8 1937

VAN ^ 0 I^yg

A Hf o A 4rvio

N 2 0 T9oo

5gN 7

P 9 0 Of>f)r)

.D2
V.l

20110

3 3300 00225 3859

Darwin, Charles

Tt\% Descent of Han

tAirw t wcx