The Project Gutenberg EBook of Contributions to the Theory of Natural
Selection, by Alfred Russel Wallace

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Title: Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection
A Series of Essays

Author: Alfred Russel Wallace

Release Date: August 29, 2007 [EBook #22428]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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_CONTRIBUTIONS TO_ THE THEORY OF NATURAL SELECTION.

A Series of Essays.

BY

ALFRED RUSSEL WALLACE,

AUTHOR OF

"THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO," ETC., ETC.

_SECOND EDITION, WITH CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS._

New York:

MACMILLAN AND CO.

1871.

[_The Right of Translation and Reproduction is reserved._]

LONDON:

PRINTED BY HEAD, HOLE & CO., FARRINGDON STREET,

AND IVY LANE, E.C.

PREFACE.

The present volume consists of essays which I have contributed to
various periodicals, or read before scientific societies during the last
fifteen years, with others now printed for the first time. The two first
of the series are printed without alteration, because, having gained me
the reputation of being an independent originator of the theory of
"natural selection," they may be considered to have some historical
value. I have added to them one or two very short explanatory notes, and
have given headings to subjects, to make them uniform with the rest of
the book. The other essays have been carefully corrected, often
considerably enlarged, and in some cases almost rewritten, so as to
express more fully and more clearly the views which I hold at the
present time; and as most of them originally appeared in publications
which have a very limited circulation, I believe that the larger portion
of this volume will be new to many of my friends and to most of my
readers.

I now wish to say a few words on the reasons which have led me to
publish this work. The second essay, especially when taken in connection
with th