This page has been validated.
I.
First, we have to consider the relative place which comparative anatomy concedes to man in the 'natural system' of animals, for the true value of our 'natural classification' is based upon its meaning as a pedigree. All the minor and major groups of the system—the classes, legions, orders, families, genera, and species—are only different branches of the same pedigree. For man himself, his place in the pedigree has been fixed since Lamarck,[1] in 1801, defined the group of vertebrates. The most perfect[2] of these are
- ↑ See note, p. 80.
- ↑ Perfect, in the sense of highest stage of evolution, may seem a petitio principii. Leaving aside the consideration that no living creature is absolutely perfect, in the sense that its organization cannot become more efficient or proficient, we have here to deal with relative perfection of the whole
8
