Wehavealreadysketchedsomeofthereasonssuggestiveofsuchatheoryofderivationofspecies,reasonswhichgaveitplausibility, andevennosmallprobability, , — thefairestandmostadmirableopposingonethathasappeared—hefreelyacceptsthatensembleofnaturaloperationswhichDarwinimpersonatesunderthenowfamiliarnameofNaturalSelection, allowsthattheexpositionthroughoutthefirstchaptersseems "alafoisprudentetfort," andisdisposedtoacceptthewholeargumentinitsfoundations, thatis, sofarasitrelatestowhatisnowgoingon, orhastakenplaceinthepresentgeologicalperiod—-relatedspecies, whetherwithinthepresentperiodorinremotergeologicaltimes; averynaturalviewforhimtotake, sinceheappearstohavereachedandpublished,severalyearsago, thepregnantconclusionthattheremostprobablywassomematerialconnectionbetweentheclosely-relatedspeciesoftwosuccessivefaunas,andthatthenumerousclosespecies, whoselimitsaresodifficulttodetermine, , orreadytoaccept, thebasisofDarwinstheory, andallitslegitimatedirectinferences, herejectstheultimateconclusions, bringssomeweightyargumentstobearagainstthem, andisevidentlyconvincedthathecandrawaclearlinebetweenthesoundinferences, whichhefavors, andtheunsoundorunwarrantedtheoreticaldeductions, .
