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diff --git a/2922-h/2922-h.htm b/2922-h/2922-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a22167d --- /dev/null +++ b/2922-h/2922-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,1133 @@ +<?xml version="1.0" encoding="us-ascii"?> + +<!DOCTYPE html + PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" > + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en"> + <head> + <title> + Lecture to Working Men, No. 2 (of 6), The Past Condition of Organic + Nature, by Thomas H. Huxley + </title> + <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin:5%; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + div.middle { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 70%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + +Project Gutenberg's The Past Condition of Organic Nature, by Thomas H. Huxley + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Past Condition of Organic Nature + Lecture II. (of VI.), Lectures To Working Men, at the + Museum of Practical Geology, 1863, On Darwin's work: "Origin + of Species". + +Author: Thomas H. Huxley + +Release Date: January 4, 2009 [EBook #2922] +Last Updated: January 22, 2013 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CONDITION OF ORGANIC NATURE *** + + + + +Produced by Amy E. Zelmer, and David Widger + + + + + + +</pre> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h1> + THE PAST CONDITION <br /> OF ORGANIC NATURE + </h1> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + Lecture II. (of VI.), "Lectures To Working Men", at the Museum of + Practical Geology, 1863, On Darwin's work: "Origin of Species". + </h3> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h2> + By Thomas H. Huxley + </h2> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <h3> + List of Illustrations + </h3> + <table summary="" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto"> + <tr> + <td> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0001"> Fig.4. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#linkimage-0002"> Fig. 5. </a> + </p> + </td> + </tr> + </table> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN the lecture which I delivered last Monday evening, I endeavoured to + sketch in a very brief manner, but as well as the time at my disposal + would permit, the present condition of organic nature, meaning by that + large title simply an indication of the great, broad, and general + principles which are to be discovered by those who look attentively at the + phenomena of organic nature as at present displayed. The general result of + our investigations might be summed up thus: we found that the multiplicity + of the forms of animal life, great as that may be, may be reduced to a + comparatively few primitive plans or types of construction; that a further + study of the development of those different forms revealed to us that they + were again reducible, until we at last brought the infinite diversity of + animal, and even vegetable life, down to the primordial form of a single + cell. + </p> + <p> + We found that our analysis of the organic world, whether animals or + plants, showed, in the long run, that they might both be reduced into, and + were, in fact, composed of, the same constituents. And we saw that the + plant obtained the materials constituting its substance by a peculiar + combination of matters belonging entirely to the inorganic world; that, + then, the animal was constantly appropriating the nitrogenous matters of + the plant to its own nourishment, and returning them back to the inorganic + world, in what we spoke of as its waste; and that finally, when the animal + ceased to exist, the constituents of its body were dissolved and + transmitted to that inorganic world whence they had been at first + abstracted. Thus we saw in both the blade of grass and the horse but the + same elements differently combined and arranged. We discovered a continual + circulation going on,—the plant drawing in the elements of inorganic + nature and combining them into food for the animal creation; the animal + borrowing from the plant the matter for its own support, giving off during + its life products which returned immediately to the inorganic world; and + that, eventually, the constituent materials of the whole structure of both + animals and plants were thus returned to their original source: there was + a constant passage from one state of existence to another, and a returning + back again. + </p> + <p> + Lastly, when we endeavoured to form some notion of the nature of the + forces exercised by living beings, we discovered that they—if not + capable of being subjected to the same minute analysis as the constituents + of those beings themselves—that they were correlative with—that + they were the equivalents of the forces of inorganic nature—that + they were, in the sense in which the term is now used, convertible with + them. That was our general result. + </p> + <p> + And now, leaving the Present, I must endeavour in the same manner to put + before you the facts that are to be discovered in the Past history of the + living world, in the past conditions of organic nature. We have, to-night, + to deal with the facts of that history—a history involving periods + of time before which our mere human records sink into utter insignificance—a + history the variety and physical magnitude of whose events cannot even be + foreshadowed by the history of human life and human phenomena—a + history of the most varied and complex character. + </p> + <p> + We must deal with the history, then, in the first place, as we should deal + with all other histories. The historical student knows that his first + business should be to inquire into the validity of his evidence, and the + nature of the record in which the evidence is contained, that he may be + able to form a proper estimate of the correctness of the conclusions which + have been drawn from that evidence. So, here, we must pass, in the first + place, to the consideration of a matter which may seem foreign to the + question under discussion. We must dwell upon the nature of the records, + and the credibility of the evidence they contain; we must look to the + completeness or incompleteness of those records themselves, before we turn + to that which they contain and reveal. The question of the credibility of + the history, happily for us, will not require much consideration, for, in + this history, unlike those of human origin, there can be no cavilling, no + differences as to the reality and truth of the facts of which it is made + up; the facts state themselves, and are laid out clearly before us. + </p> + <p> + But, although one of the greatest difficulties of the historical student + is cleared out of our path, there are other difficulties—difficulties + in rightly interpreting the facts as they are presented to us—which + may be compared with the greatest difficulties of any other kinds of + historical study. + </p> + <p> + What is this record of the past history of the globe, and what are the + questions which are involved in an inquiry into its completeness or + incompleteness? That record is composed of mud; and the question which we + have to investigate this evening resolves itself into a question of the + formation of mud. You may think, perhaps, that this is a vast step—of + almost from the sublime to the ridiculous—from the contemplation of + the history of the past ages of the world's existence to the consideration + of the history of the formation of mud! But, in nature, there is nothing + mean and unworthy of attention; there is nothing ridiculous or + contemptible in any of her works; and this inquiry, you will soon see, I + hope, takes us to the very root and foundations of our subject. + </p> + <p> + How, then, is mud formed? Always, with some trifling exception, which I + need not consider now—always, as the result of the action of water, + wearing down and disintegrating the surface of the earth and rocks with + which it comes in contact—pounding and grinding it down, and + carrying the particles away to places where they cease to be disturbed by + this mechanical action, and where they can subside and rest. For the + ocean, urged by winds, washes, as we know, a long extent of coast, and + every wave, loaded as it is with particles of sand and gravel as it breaks + upon the shore, does something towards the disintegrating process. And + thus, slowly but surely, the hardest rocks are gradually ground down to a + powdery substance; and the mud thus formed, coarser or finer, as the case + may be, is carried by the rush of the tides, or currents, till it reaches + the comparatively deeper parts of the ocean, in which it can sink to the + bottom, that is, to parts where there is a depth of about fourteen or + fifteen fathoms, a depth at which the water is, usually, nearly + motionless, and in which, of course, the finer particles of this detritus, + or mud as we call it, sinks to the bottom. + </p> + <p> + Or, again, if you take a river, rushing down from its mountain sources, + brawling over the stones and rocks that intersect its path, loosening, + removing, and carrying with it in its downward course the pebbles and + lighter matters from its banks, it crushes and pounds down the rocks and + earths in precisely the same way as the wearing action of the sea waves. + The matters forming the deposit are torn from the mountain-side and + whirled impetuously into the valley, more slowly over the plain, thence + into the estuary, and from the estuary they are swept into the sea. The + coarser and heavier fragments are obviously deposited first, that is, as + soon as the current begins to lose its force by becoming amalgamated with + the stiller depths of the ocean, but the finer and lighter particles are + carried further on, and eventually deposited in a deeper and stiller + portion of the ocean. + </p> + <p> + It clearly follows from this that mud gives us a chronology; for it is + evident that supposing this, which I now sketch, to be the sea bottom, and + supposing this to be a coast-line; from the washing action of the sea upon + the rock, wearing and grinding it down into a sediment of mud, the mud + will be carried down, and at length, deposited in the deeper parts of this + sea bottom, where it will form a layer; and then, while that first layer + is hardening, other mud which is coming from the same source will, of + course, be carried to the same place; and, as it is quite impossible for + it to get beneath the layer already there, it deposits itself above it, + and forms another layer, and in that way you gradually have layers of mud + constantly forming and hardening one above the other, and conveying a + record of time. + </p> + <p> + It is a necessary result of the operation of the law of gravitation that + the uppermost layer shall be the youngest and the lowest the oldest, and + that the different beds shall be older at any particular point or spot in + exactly the ratio of their depth from the surface. So that if they were + upheaved afterwards, and you had a series of these different layers of + mud, converted into sandstone, or limestone, as the case might be, you + might be sure that the bottom layer was deposited first, and that the + upper layers were formed afterwards. Here, you see, is the first step in + the history—these layers of mud give us an idea of time. + </p> + <p> + The whole surface of the earth,—I speak broadly, and leave out minor + qualifications,—is made up of such layers of mud, so hard, the + majority of them, that we call them rock whether limestone or sandstone, + or other varieties of rock. And, seeing that every part of the crust of + the earth is made up in this way, you might think that the determination + of the chronology, the fixing of the time which it has taken to form this + crust is a comparatively simple matter. Take a broad average, ascertain + how fast the mud is deposited upon the bottom of the sea, or in the + estuary of rivers; take it to be an inch, or two, or three inches a year, + or whatever you may roughly estimate it at; then take the total thickness + of the whole series of stratified rocks, which geologists estimate at + twelve or thirteen miles, or about seventy thousand feet, make a sum in + short division, divide the total thickness by that of the quantity + deposited in one year, and the result will, of course, give you the number + of years which the crust has taken to form. + </p> + <p> + Truly, that looks a very simple process! It would be so except for certain + difficulties, the very first of which is that of finding how rapidly + sediments are deposited; but the main difficulty—a difficulty which + renders any certain calculations of such a matter out of the question—is + this, the sea-bottom on which the deposit takes place is continually + shifting. + </p> + <p> + Instead of the surface of the earth being that stable, fixed thing that it + is popularly believed to be, being, in common parlance, the very emblem of + fixity itself, it is incessantly moving, and is, in fact, as unstable as + the surface of the sea, except that its undulations are infinitely slower + and enormously higher and deeper. + </p> + <p> + Now, what is the effect of this oscillation? Take the case to which I have + previously referred. The finer or coarser sediments that are carried down + by the current of the river, will only be carried out a certain distance, + and eventually, as we have already seen, on reaching the stiller part of + the ocean, will be deposited at the bottom. + </p> + <p> + Let C y (Fig. 4) be the sea-bottom, y D the shore, x y the sea-level, then + the coarser deposit will subside over the region B, the finer over A, + while beyond A there will be no deposit at all; and, consequently, no + record will be kept, simply because no deposit is going on. Now, suppose + that the whole land, C, D, which we have regarded as stationary, goes + down, as it does so, both A and B go further out from the shore, which + will be at y1; x1, y1, being the new sea-level. The consequence will be + that the layer of mud (A), being now, for the most part, further than the + force of the current is strong enough to convey even the finest 'debris', + will, of course, receive no more deposits, and having attained a certain + thickness will now grow no thicker. + </p> + <p> + We should be misled in taking the thickness of that layer, whenever it may + be exposed to our view, as a record of time in the manner in which we are + now regarding this subject, as it would give us only an imperfect and + partial record: it would seem to represent too short a period of time. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0001" id="linkimage-0001"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/fig04.jpg" alt="Fig.4. " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + Suppose, on the other hand, that the land (C D) had gone on rising slowly + and gradually—say an inch or two inches in the course of a century,—what + would be the practical effect of that movement? Why, that the sediment A + and B which has been already deposited, would eventually be brought nearer + to the shore-level, and again subjected to the wear and tear of the sea; + and directly the sea begins to act upon it, it would of course soon cut up + and carry it away, to a greater or less extent, to be re-deposited further + out. + </p> + <p> + Well, as there is, in all probability, not one single spot on the whole + surface of the earth, which has not been up and down in this way a great + many times, it follows that the thickness of the deposits formed at any + particular spot cannot be taken (even supposing we had at first obtained + correct data as to the rate at which they took place) as affording + reliable information as to the period of time occupied in its deposit. So + that you see it is absolutely necessary from these facts, seeing that our + record entirely consists of accumulations of mud, superimposed one on the + other; seeing in the next place that any particular spots on which + accumulations have occurred, have been constantly moving up and down, and + sometimes out of the reach of a deposit, and at other times its own + deposit broken up and carried away, it follows that our record must be in + the highest degree imperfect, and we have hardly a trace left of thick + deposits, or any definite knowledge of the area that they occupied, in a + great many cases. And mark this! That supposing even that the whole + surface of the earth had been accessible to the geologist,—that man + had had access to every part of the earth, and had made sections of the + whole, and put them all together,—even then his record must of + necessity be imperfect. + </p> + <p> + But to how much has man really access? If you will look at this Map you + will see that it represents the proportion of the sea to the earth: this + coloured part indicates all the dry land, and this other portion is the + water. You will notice at once that the water covers three-fifths of the + whole surface of the globe, and has covered it in the same manner ever + since man has kept any record of his own observations, to say nothing of + the minute period during which he has cultivated geological inquiry. So + that three-fifths of the surface of the earth is shut out from us because + it is under the sea. Let us look at the other two-fifths, and see what are + the countries in which anything that may be termed searching geological + inquiry has been carried out: a good deal of France, Germany, and Great + Britain and Ireland, bits of Spain, of Italy, and of Russia, have been + examined, but of the whole great mass of Africa, except parts of the + southern extremity, we know next to nothing; little bits of India, but of + the greater part of the Asiatic continent nothing; bits of the Northern + American States and of Canada, but of the greater part of the continent of + North America, and in still larger proportion, of South America, nothing! + </p> + <p> + Under these circumstances, it follows that even with reference to that + kind of imperfect information which we can possess, it is only of about + the ten-thousandth part of the accessible parts of the earth that has been + examined properly. Therefore, it is with justice that the most thoughtful + of those who are concerned in these inquiries insist continually upon the + imperfection of the geological record; for, I repeat, it is absolutely + necessary, from the nature of things, that that record should be of the + most fragmentary and imperfect character. Unfortunately this circumstance + has been constantly forgotten. Men of science, like young colts in a fresh + pasture, are apt to be exhilarated on being turned into a new field of + inquiry, to go off at a hand-gallop, in total disregard of hedges and + ditches, losing sight of the real limitation of their inquiries, and to + forget the extreme imperfection of what is really known. Geologists have + imagined that they could tell us what was going on at all parts of the + earth's surface during a given epoch; they have talked of this deposit + being contemporaneous with that deposit, until, from our little local + histories of the changes at limited spots of the earth's surface, they + have constructed a universal history of the globe as full of wonders and + portents as any other story of antiquity. + </p> + <p> + But what does this attempt to construct a universal history of the globe + imply? It implies that we shall not only have a precise knowledge of the + events which have occurred at any particular point, but that we shall be + able to say what events, at any one spot, took place at the same time with + those at other spots. + </p> + <p> + Let us see how far that is in the nature of things practicable. Suppose + that here I make a section of the Lake of Killarney, and here the section + of another lake—that of Loch Lomond in Scotland for instance. The + rivers that flow into them are constantly carrying down deposits of mud, + and beds, or strata, are being as constantly formed, one above the other, + at the bottom of those lakes. Now, there is not a shadow of doubt that in + these two lakes the lower beds are all older than the upper—there is + no doubt about that; but what does 'this' tell us about the age of any + given bed in Loch Lomond, as compared with that of any given bed in the + Lake of Killarney? It is, indeed, obvious that if any two sets of deposits + are separated and discontinuous, there is absolutely no means whatever + given you by the nature of the deposit of saying whether one is much + younger or older than the other; but you may say, as many have said and + think, that the case is very much altered if the beds which we are + comparing are continuous. Suppose two beds of mud hardened into rock,—A + and B-are seen in section. (Fig. 5.) + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0002" id="linkimage-0002"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/fig05.jpg" alt="Fig. 5. " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + Well, you say, it is admitted that the lowermost bed is always the older. + Very well; B, therefore, is older than A. No doubt, 'as a whole', it is + so; or if any parts of the two beds which are in the same vertical line + are compared, it is so. But suppose you take what seems a very natural + step further, and say that the part 'a' of the bed A is younger than the + part 'b' of the bed B. Is this sound reasoning? If you find any record of + changes taking place at 'b', did they occur before any events which took + place while 'a' was being deposited? It looks all very plain sailing, + indeed, to say that they did; and yet there is no proof of anything of the + kind. As the former Director of this Institution, Sir H. De la Beche, long + ago showed, this reasoning may involve an entire fallacy. It is extremely + possible that 'a' may have been deposited ages before 'b'. It is very easy + to understand how that can be. To return to Fig. 4; when A and B were + deposited, they were 'substantially' contemporaneous; A being simply the + finer deposit, and B the coarser of the same detritus or waste of land. + Now suppose that that sea-bottom goes down (as shown in Fig. 4), so that + the first deposit is carried no farther than 'a', forming the bed Al, and + the coarse no farther than 'b', forming the bed B1, the result will be the + formation of two continuous beds, one of fine sediment (A A1) over-lapping + another of coarse sediment (B B1). Now suppose the whole sea-bottom is + raised up, and a section exposed about the point Al; no doubt, 'at this + spot', the upper bed is younger than the lower. But we should obviously + greatly err if we concluded that the mass of the upper bed at A was + younger than the lower bed at B; for we have just seen that they are + contemporaneous deposits. Still more should we be in error if we supposed + the upper bed at A to be younger than the continuation of the lower bed at + Bl; for A was deposited long before B1. In fine, if, instead of comparing + immediately adjacent parts of two beds, one of which lies upon another, we + compare distant parts, it is quite possible that the upper may be any + number of years older than the under, and the under any number of years + younger than the upper. + </p> + <p> + Now you must not suppose that I put this before you for the purpose of + raising a paradoxical difficulty; the fact is, that the great mass of + deposits have taken place in sea-bottoms which are gradually sinking, and + have been formed under the very conditions I am here supposing. + </p> + <p> + Do not run away with the notion that this subverts the principle I laid + down at first. The error lies in extending a principle which is perfectly + applicable to deposits in the same vertical line to deposits which are not + in that relation to one another. + </p> + <p> + It is in consequence of circumstances of this kind, and of others that I + might mention to you, that our conclusions on and interpretations of the + record are really and strictly only valid so long as we confine ourselves + to one vertical section. I do not mean to tell you that there are no + qualifying circumstances, so that, even in very considerable areas, we may + safely speak of conformably superimposed beds being older or younger than + others at many different points. But we can never be quite sure in coming + to that conclusion, and especially we cannot be sure if there is any break + in their continuity, or any very great distance between the points to be + compared. + </p> + <p> + Well now, so much for the record itself,—so much for its + imperfections,—so much for the conditions to be observed in + interpreting it, and its chronological indications, the moment we pass + beyond the limits of a vertical linear section. + </p> + <p> + Now let us pass from the record to that which it contains,—from the + book itself to the writing and the figures on its pages. This writing and + these figures consist of remains of animals and plants which, in the great + majority of cases, have lived and died in the very spot in which we now + find them, or at least in the immediate vicinity. You must all of you be + aware—and I referred to the fact in my last lecture—that there + are vast numbers of creatures living at the bottom of the sea. These + creatures, like all others, sooner or later die, and their shells and hard + parts lie at the bottom; and then the fine mud which is being constantly + brought down by rivers and the action of the wear and tear of the sea, + covers them over and protects them from any further change or alteration; + and, of course, as in process of time the mud becomes hardened and + solidified, the shells of these animals are preserved and firmly imbedded + in the limestone or sandstone which is being thus formed. You may see in + the galleries of the Museum up stairs specimens of limestones in which + such fossil remains of existing animals are imbedded. There are some + specimens in which turtles' eggs have been imbedded in calcareous sand, + and before the sun had hatched the young turtles, they became covered over + with calcareous mud, and thus have been preserved and fossilized. + </p> + <p> + Not only does this process of imbedding and fossilization occur with + marine and other aquatic animals and plants, but it affects those land + animals and plants which are drifted away to sea, or become buried in bogs + or morasses; and the animals which have been trodden down by their fellows + and crushed in the mud at the river's bank, as the herd have come to + drink. In any of these cases, the organisms may be crushed or be + mutilated, before or after putrefaction, in such a manner that perhaps + only a part will be left in the form in which it reaches us. It is, + indeed, a most remarkable fact, that it is quite an exceptional case to + find a skeleton of any one of all the thousands of wild land animals that + we know are constantly being killed, or dying in the course of nature: + they are preyed on and devoured by other animals or die in places where + their bodies are not afterwards protected by mud. There are other animals + existing in the sea, the shells of which form exceedingly large deposits. + You are probably aware that before the attempt was made to lay the + Atlantic telegraphic cable, the Government employed vessels in making a + series of very careful observations and soundings of the bottom of the + Atlantic; and although, as we must all regret, up to the present time that + project has not succeeded, we have the satisfaction of knowing that it + yielded some most remarkable results to science. The Atlantic Ocean had to + be sounded right across, to depths of several miles in some places, and + the nature of its bottom was carefully ascertained. Well, now, a space of + about 1,000 miles wide from east to west, and I do not exactly know how + many from north to south, but at any rate 600 or 700 miles, was carefully + examined, and it was found that over the whole of that immense area an + excessively fine chalky mud is being deposited; and this deposit is + entirely made up of animals whose hard parts are deposited in this part of + the ocean, and are doubtless gradually acquiring solidity and becoming + metamorphosed into a chalky limestone. Thus, you see, it is quite possible + in this way to preserve unmistakable records of animal and vegetable life. + Whenever the sea-bottom, by some of those undulations of the earth's crust + that I have referred to, becomes upheaved, and sections or borings are + made, or pits are dug, then we become able to examine the contents and + constituents of these ancient sea-bottoms, and find out what manner of + animals lived at that period. + </p> + <p> + Now it is a very important consideration in its bearing on the + completeness of the record, to inquire how far the remains contained in + these fossiliferous limestones are able to convey anything like an + accurate or complete account of the animals which were in existence at the + time of its formation. Upon that point we can form a very clear judgment, + and one in which there is no possible room for any mistake. There are of + course a great number of animals—such as jelly-fishes, and other + animals—without any hard parts, of which we cannot reasonably expect + to find any traces whatever: there is nothing of them to preserve. Within + a very short time, you will have noticed, after they are removed from the + water, they dry up to a mere nothing; certainly they are not of a nature + to leave any very visible traces of their existence on such bodies as + chalk or mud. Then again, look at land animals; it is, as I have said, a + very uncommon thing to find a land animal entire after death. Insects and + other carnivorous animals very speedily pull them to pieces, putrefaction + takes place, and so, out of the hundreds of thousands that are known to + die every year, it is the rarest thing in the world to see one imbedded in + such a way that its remains would be preserved for a lengthened period. + Not only is this the case, but even when animal remains have been safely + imbedded, certain natural agents may wholly destroy and remove them. + </p> + <p> + Almost all the hard parts of animals—the bones and so on—are + composed chiefly of phosphate of lime and carbonate of lime. Some years + ago, I had to make an inquiry into the nature of some very curious fossils + sent to me from the North of Scotland. Fossils are usually hard bony + structures that have become imbedded in the way I have described, and have + gradually acquired the nature and solidity of the body with which they are + associated; but in this case I had a series of 'holes' in some pieces of + rock, and nothing else. Those holes, however, had a certain definite shape + about them, and when I got a skilful workman to make castings of the + interior of these holes, I found that they were the impressions of the + joints of a backbone and of the armour of a great reptile, twelve or more + feet long. This great beast had died and got buried in the sand; the sand + had gradually hardened over the bones, but remained porous. Water had + trickled through it, and that water being probably charged with a + superfluity of carbonic acid, had dissolved all the phosphate and + carbonate of lime, and the bones themselves had thus decayed and entirely + disappeared; but as the sandstone happened to have consolidated by that + time, the precise shape of the bones was retained. If that sandstone had + remained soft a little longer, we should have known nothing whatsoever of + the existence of the reptile whose bones it had encased. + </p> + <p> + How certain it is that a vast number of animals which have existed at one + period on this earth have entirely perished, and left no trace whatever of + their forms, may be proved to you by other considerations. There are large + tracts of sandstone in various parts of the world, in which nobody has yet + found anything but footsteps. Not a bone of any description, but an + enormous number of traces of footsteps. There is no question about them. + There is a whole valley in Connecticut covered with these footsteps, and + not a single fragment of the animals which made them has yet been found. + Let me mention another case while upon that matter, which is even more + surprising than those to which I have yet referred. There is a limestone + formation near Oxford, at a place called Stonesfield, which has yielded + the remains of certain very interesting mammalian animals, and up to this + time, if I recollect rightly, there have been found seven specimens of its + lower jaws, and not a bit of anything else, neither limb-bones nor skull, + or any part whatever; not a fragment of the whole system! Of course, it + would be preposterous to imagine that the beasts had nothing else but a + lower jaw! The probability is, as Dr. Buckland showed, as the result of + his observations on dead dogs in the river Thames, that the lower jaw, not + being secured by very firm ligaments to the bones of the head, and being a + weighty affair, would easily be knocked off, or might drop away from the + body as it floated in water in a state of decomposition. The jaw would + thus be deposited immediately, while the rest of the body would float and + drift away altogether, ultimately reaching the sea, and perhaps becoming + destroyed. The jaw becomes covered up and preserved in the river silt, and + thus it comes that we have such a curious circumstance as that of the + lower jaws in the Stonesfield slates. So that, you see, faulty as these + layers of stone in the earth's crust are, defective as they necessarily + are as a record, the account of contemporaneous vital phenomena presented + by them is, by the necessity of the case, infinitely more defective and + fragmentary. + </p> + <p> + It was necessary that I should put all this very strongly before you, + because, otherwise, you might have been led to think differently of the + completeness of our knowledge by the next facts I shall state to you. + </p> + <p> + The researches of the last three-quarters of a century have, in truth, + revealed a wonderful richness of organic life in those rocks. Certainly + not fewer than thirty or forty thousand different species of fossils have + been discovered. You have no more ground for doubting that these creatures + really lived and died at or near the places in which we find them than you + have for like scepticism about a shell on the sea-shore. The evidence is + as good in the one case as in the other. + </p> + <p> + Our next business is to look at the general character of these fossil + remains, and it is a subject which it will be requisite to consider + carefully; and the first point for us is to examine how much the extinct + 'Flora' and 'Fauna' as a 'whole'—disregarding altogether the + 'succession' of their constituents, of which I shall speak afterwards—differ + from the 'Flora' and 'Fauna' of the present day;—how far they differ + in what we 'do' know about them, leaving altogether out of consideration + speculations based upon what we 'do not' know. + </p> + <p> + I strongly imagine that if it were not for the peculiar appearance that + fossilised animals have, any of you might readily walk through a museum + which contains fossil remains mixed up with those of the present forms of + life, and I doubt very much whether your uninstructed eyes would lead you + to see any vast or wonderful difference between the two. If you looked + closely, you would notice, in the first place, a great many things very + like animals with which you are acquainted now: you would see differences + of shape and proportion, but on the whole a close similarity. + </p> + <p> + I explained what I meant by ORDERS the other day, when I described the + animal kingdom as being divided in sub-kingdoms, classes and orders. If + you divide the animal kingdom into orders, you will find that there are + about one hundred and twenty. The number may vary on one side or the + other, but this is a fair estimate. That is the sum total of the orders of + all the animals which we know now, and which have been known in past + times, and left remains behind. + </p> + <p> + Now, how many of those are absolutely extinct? That is to say, how many of + these orders of animals have lived at a former period of the world's + history, but have at present no representatives? That is the sense in + which I meant to use the word "extinct." I mean that those animals did + live on this earth at one time, but have left no one of their kind with us + at the present moment. So that estimating the number of extinct animals is + a sort of way of comparing the past creation as a whole with the present + as a whole. Among the mammalia and birds there are none extinct; but when + we come to the reptiles there is a most wonderful thing: out of the eight + orders, or thereabouts, which you can make among reptiles, one-half are + extinct. These diagrams of the plesiosaurus, the ichthyosaurus, the + pterodactyle, give you a notion of some of these extinct reptiles. And + here is a cast of the pterodactyle and bones of the ichthyosaurus and the + plesiosaurus, just as fresh as if it had been recently dug up in a + churchyard. Thus, in the reptile class, there are no less than half of the + orders which are absolutely extinct. If we turn to the 'Amphibia', there + was one extinct order, the Labyrinthodonts, typified by the large + salamander-like beast shown in this diagram. + </p> + <p> + No order of fishes is known to be extinct. Every fish that we find in the + strata—to which I have been referring—can be identified and + placed in one of the orders which exist at the present day. There is not + known to be a single ordinal form of insect extinct. There are only two + orders extinct among the 'Crustacea'. There is not known to be an extinct + order of these creatures, the parasitic and other worms; but there are + two, not to say three, absolutely extinct orders of this class, the + 'Echinodermata'; out of all the orders of the 'Coelenterata' and + 'Protozoa' only one, the Rugose Corals. + </p> + <p> + So that, you see, out of somewhere about 120 orders of animals, taking + them altogether, you will not, at the outside estimate, find above ten or + a dozen extinct. Summing up all the orders of animals which have left + remains behind them, you will not find above ten or a dozen which cannot + be arranged with those of the present day; that is to say, that the + difference does not amount to much more than ten per cent.: and the + proportion of extinct orders of plants is still smaller. I think that that + is a very astounding, a most astonishing fact, seeing the enormous epochs + of time which have elapsed during the constitution of the surface of the + earth as it at present exists; it is, indeed, a most astounding thing that + the proportion of extinct ordinal types should be so exceedingly small. + </p> + <p> + But now, there is another point of view in which we must look at this past + creation. Suppose that we were to sink a vertical pit through the floor + beneath us, and that I could succeed in making a section right through in + the direction of New Zealand, I should find in each of the different beds + through which I passed the remains of animals which I should find in that + stratum and not in the others. First, I should come upon beds of gravel or + drift containing the bones of large animals, such as the elephant, + rhinoceros, and cave tiger. Rather curious things to fall across in + Piccadilly! If I should dig lower still, I should come upon a bed of what + we call the London clay, and in this, as you will see in our galleries + upstairs, are found remains of strange cattle, remains of turtles, palms, + and large tropical fruits; with shell-fish such as you see the like of now + only in tropical regions. If I went below that, I should come upon the + chalk, and there I should find something altogether different, the remains + of ichthyosauri and pterodactyles, and ammonites, and so forth. + </p> + <p> + I do not know what Mr. Godwin Austin would say comes next, but probably + rocks containing more ammonites, and more ichthyosauri and plesiosauri, + with a vast number of other things; and under that I should meet with yet + older rocks, containing numbers of strange shells and fishes; and in thus + passing from the surface to the lowest depths of the earth's crust, the + forms of animal life and vegetable life which I should meet with in the + successive beds would, looking at them broadly, be the more different the + further that I went down. Or, in other words, inasmuch as we started with + the clear principle, that in a series of naturally-disposed mud beds the + lowest are the oldest, we should come to this result, that the further we + go back in time the more difference exists between the animal and + vegetable life of an epoch and that which now exists. That was the + conclusion to which I wished to bring you at the end of this Lecture. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Past Condition of Organic Nature, by +Thomas H. Huxley + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CONDITION OF ORGANIC NATURE *** + +***** This file should be named 2922-h.htm or 2922-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/2/9/2/2922/ + +Produced by Amy E. 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