New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-06-07
segments behind its head being dilatable at VIII
while ON each side is large black pupiiated spot

segnents behind its head being dilatabe at VIII
while ON each side ia large black pupil'ated spot
like the snakes eye. In tropical America tnere IN
genus of venomous snakes ornamented with brilliant
coors disposed in peculiar manner and III the same
country we find several genera of harmless snakes
having no relation whatever with the above but
marked exactly the same. In Australia and the
Moluccas there is a genus OF honeysuckers
called Tropldorhynchus, rather formidable birds,
strong and active, with powerful grasping
claws. long curved, sharp beaks, and great
courage and pugnacity. In the same countries
there is group of orioles (Mimeta), much weaker
birds who have lost the gay coorng of their allies
and put on Us if for safety the dull pumage of the
honeysuckers Near Rio Janciro is found insecteat-
inc hawk lHarpagus diodOn) and in the same district
is Indicating hawk tAccpiter pileatus resembngit
so closely that on the wing and from below the
two are undistingushabe. The Accipiter is enabled
more easily to approach its prey by being mistaken
for the nsect-eater which the birds are not AFRAID
Of The most curious point is, however, that the Ac
cipiter has much wider range than the Harpagus,
and in districts where the nsect-eaer Is not found
it no longer resembles it,
Mr. Wallace argues very clearly and we think con-
clusively that these extraordinary phenomena can
only be explained the principle OF natural seiec-
ton, and that they have for their purpose the pre-
seryation of the species. Ills views are cohinou" w
the analogous phenomena of differences of color be-
tween the sexes as well as by the fact that In some
cases of protective resemblance it is only the
female that mimics another genus. Among
the lower animals the female is not only much
more important for the preservation OF the
species than the male but is generally less capable
of defense and more exposed to attack, particularly
ON the nest She consequently stands IN especlai
need of concealment. In q large majority OF the
cases in which male birds of gaudy plumage the
females are quite plain. Sometimes the case is just
the reverse but then we find that 1t is the male
which sits on the nest and performs the dangerous
function of Matching the young. When both sexes
are bright-colored like the kng-iishers, parrots
wood peckers and some Others, the nest is either
made in some dark hole, or covered with dome
Thus in the process of natural weeding-out 1t has
come to pass that, where one sex is exposed to es-
pecial danger only those individuals which by their
dull color are most readily concealed have survived
and dull color for that has become an estaD-
lished characteristic
We have no space at presentito examine Mr.. wal
lace's two essays on The Development of Human
Races under the Law of Natural Selection" and
"The Limits of Natural Selection as applied TO Man."
The subject to which they refer is beset with too
many difficulties to be adequately treated in the few
pages he has been able to devote to it, but ne brings
forward ingenious arguments to show that while
natural selection may account for diversity OF
races il is utterly inadequate to develop man from
| the lower animals