The New York herald., 1868-02-09
BOOK NOTICES.

BOOK NOTICES.
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The DARwnIAN THEORY or THE TRANSPORTATION
OF SPECIES. Examined by Graduate of the
University of Cambridge. London. James
Nisbet q Co. 1867.
There Is no fool completely lost in the concsit Of
his own powers as the tool who fances that he is
scientific scholar Such . man Ii the author Of this
pompous /" Examination" He exhibits on every page
hs incapacity 70 grasp the ideas that Darwn's argu
ment reas upon, and he through his three hundred
pages never onoo touching the argumen-barely brush
ing the outer lines and posts Of Darwins poguonand
frothng himself away in sophomorcal snarl certain
Of the words and phrases Of which Darwin from the
very necessities OF language makes use. Our graduate
10 happy when he drag into his small
arena OF verbal criticism distinguished name He
thus marshas Fourens his ally battling against that
terrible metaphor, "natural ssoconn Either, says
Flourens, this is nethng or II IL nature personed
nature psrsonfed cannot be admted--for sths nine
teenth century has done with porsoni6caonsn This Ia
saying that the nineteenth century has with figures
Of speech; which Is to say that 1t has done with
speechor neither Flourens the graduate ever con-
sttuted ten sentences that did not involve ten gures
But cte this only to show what ptfn efforts can be
made against great theory in science by people who
understand neither science speech. This carpng
narrowness Of objection degree the peculiar.
y Of the class that opposes Darwin 1t will not permit
the advocate Of the development theory to
use word or phrase whose heiehth, depth
and breadth Of significance is not fixed with
mathematical precision, and by this ltteness
would discussion its very threshold; and it is
noteworthy that this school, requiring rigorous demon
straon from all others expects it's own system
received with the agnincensly unuqulring Gre
duIityin fact on the authority Of Hoses and on wha,
Hal.
in its place. but Its appearance in recalls the old
woman who was quite ready to believe that The anchor
of her boys ship had caught golden wheel ct the
bottom Of she Red Sea, for that, doubt was wheel
Of one Of Pharaohs old chariots but she would by no
means permit the same son TO say that he had seen
nsh that could ty. She was the first opponent TO the
transmutaion theory, and fish that seemed in the
remotest degree allied TO q bird be believed in
No argument seems too poor for tho graduate and he
thus illustrates how assault may sometimes strengthen
that at which he strikes, He quotes Darwin against
Darwin's own thsorythat s he quotes earlier utter.
ancss of Darwin that to commit him against IT, He
also quotes the words OF Lyell against this theory
printed in the years before Lyon became convinced OF
It's truth Nov. what Is there ia thss As Darwin
must bs supposed to have known his own previous
thoughts and Lye also his it follows that these great
naturaiss were convinced with all these arguments in
full view and did not in them the weight to coun.
erval the greater thought The Examination there
great nalurasts we're convinced os The truth Of the
tansmuta0n theory despite the best points against it
ina, ina; are ,,,rx presented IN this encouragement.
when their own authors have cast them away
as worthless. There other ways besides this
IN which the graduates objections negatively good
arguments IN favor OF tue theory when he quotes BAR
win's words, refusing 70 understand thcm while wno
they quite destroy the point that is attempted TO be
made in quoting them. Again. this engineer il hoist
by his own pstard in the he or the in
relation to ecundy. lie shows that steriliiy
between distinct species; bat this nothing that
there should be fertility between these is necessary
to me theory. No naturalist least OF all bir. Darwin,
ever supposed that Nature a stride from the
form that we nov recognize distinct species
that we recognize rs another distinct species Between
species tnare may originally have been thousands OF
Sradations, and IN tie short steps thus taken
sterile with hybrds but this s only natures REQUIRE.
ment that change soa not 60 forward too rapidly II
may indeed be natures barrier to the loss OF
ground already gained Shorter steps than those be-
tween disncs forms are not only possible as every
eresdsr knows, but are also advantageous
Ihe graduate takes the strong stand for his the
question OF the honey bce its its
aud noids that certain in cerain way
thoir own benefit not because sequence OF events
has brought thcm 10 act in that way uut because they
have beeu brought into existence and have
mixture In which our author supposes denying
Darwin, yet Ia the main admits theory. He will
knowledge that the bee acts from superior sssity
only viii not assent thai this necessity shall called
the sequence OF events-ihat IS the man kestaton OF
law He Will not call the bees comb building the re-
suit OF a law, but OF q mystery, emanang from the
supreme geometricsn tho suprome intellect; certain
animals are instruments for executing certain plan
assigned TO them, and that is ali we can gay on the
subjeci'-and OF course pretend to inquire
further. AZ Tor how the bees work. s.ths plan
prlted IN tneir mnds, 50 TO speak; tho pattern is in
mysterious vision before thcm and 80 on the author
beng ready 10 explain his mystery in any possible
RIDICULOUS way rather than leave bo accounted for
himself Wow this matter from the side on winch IL rs
capable Of giving tue most efficient SUI port to
MS case In Tact, this mystery OF the bees house
is not Auch wonder ~ II las beon mado 10 appear.
The geometry IS indeed In tho bee but not as the
gradis,e would argue, 10 bis mind. Il is 10 the bees
efo hs Cell has ITS present form because
10 most adapted to its purpose but because from the
eessiiy OF tho bees VISION It have no other rue bee
has compound eye and toe various facets Of that
ave scrdgoadi ~ fora Hence looks a the world
under peculiar circumstances. II had q net thrown
over our eyes, whose mcshes were hexagonai IL would
affect orr vision correspondngy AS the rctiua or the
human eye - round to us the most perfect
iorh, sno euTvng lines ara ticited always with our
uea OF the oeauiiuii tut slcct enables 10 vary
all this 30 that by OF aues we bring out more ex
qulsitey the beauty Of ino As the circle s
TO US, so Tor the same tno TO the bee
bat no has not the intellect that enables him 10 vary
forms, and 20 sticks to bis monotonous original This
the wnoe mystery Of the bees geometry for the nrst
hexagon made tue rost lt and secure economy OF
space and material aud Just here rs the Immensely
strong argument that the bee affords to Darwin theory
Bees once varied oxtensy civ than now and the
powers OF nature, the cold the storm the long winter,
snd starvation made vigorous selection Of thsm, and
tney were mainly preserved whose eyes approxmated
the form Of those Of the honey Tor those with the
least wax could lay up The most honey and Withstand
adversity better THAN all others
The theory OF ransmuation IL tho grandest general
izaon ever made in the study OF animal iie aud IL Ia
im very magnitude, lifting II out OF The circle OF SIN all
thoughts that startes and apparently oonds small
thinkers such wouidbe Jack the Giant KtSrs "a the
sathor of this "Esamnaton.n they call IL = wild |
by ypothesls aud suppose they have Killed IL entirely
with Newton's phrase that natural philosophy should
.arguo from phenomena without feigning hypohesesn
But greater reasoner than Newton mad another idea OF
hypothesis regarding " Justly an tho scanold on
which thought must stand in building M the great
sdlce Of knovledge II viii require many Cambridge
graduates to weaken the frame that Darwin has set up
TBs LrrE OF ST. FRANCIS or A<,.s AND A
appreciation Of the Most Rev. john MeCloskey.
y. ID. New York, y. o'Shsa.
This 10 book which some will read 70 laugh st,
which some will read with Devotion which many moro