Natural theology in the nineteenth century / by James Maclaren.

  • MacLaren, James
Date:
1878
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Natural theology in the nineteenth century / by James Maclaren. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    dark margin, gives the idea of a ball in a socket. The whole feather is not brilliantly coloured, but the design is very elegant. Another more familiar instance of beauty is furnished by the red admiral and peacock butterflies, very common in gardens in the early autumn. Both sides, upper and under, of the wings of these insects, are beautiful, and they are fond, when resting upon flowers, of alternately opening and shutting their wings as if to display their various charms. Now let the reader ask himself the ques- tion—-Is it possible that a bird or a butterfly should appreciate the dawnings of these beauties? — could foresee that some slight beginning in markings or colour was capable, if encouraged, of producing the beautiful patterns which we now see; and which, or anything like which, we must remember the female Argus pheasant or butterflies could never have seen ? The answer to this question will be—It is simply incredible. So thought Mr. Wallace —Mr. Darwin’s co-founder of the theory of natural selection—who says, that he believes
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