IMMORTALITY IN THE ANIMAL WORLD.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 261, 4 November 1890, Page 5

IMMORTALITY IN THE ANIMAL WORLD.

At the ordinary meeting of the Auckland Institute last evening Professor Thomas read a highly interesting paper on "Immortality in the Animal World." The immortality, he said, was of a material kind, and nob absolute or spiritual! A large proportion of the lowei animals did not die of old age, bull by accident, and a corpse was tha proof of death. In the case of the amceba, one of the protozoa, however there was no corpse. Multiplication took place 'by fission or division into two parts. The tiro started growing, after some time divided, into four, so oh, and this process .went on "*"■ i year after year, and century after' century* Its had been going on ever since life existed, and would continue till life ceased, There was no death, except by actual destruction* by accident, and the amoeba was potentially immortal and lived indefinitely. Among the metazoa, or higher anitnala, some lived only a few days, while others lived for centuries: The longer animals lived the less they became fitted for reproduction, and it was consequently an adran tago for the species for the individual toj die after a certain time. The reproductive cells in the higher animals were, like the protozoa, potentially immortal, and tha only mortal part was the body or the cloth* ing of the reproductive cells, which, from the point of nature, were more 1 i important than the body. On the ! subject) of transmission of acquired char-* [ acters, Professor Thomas said Professor Weieimann had cutoff the tails of a number of white mice for six generations, bud nob the elieMseet effect was perceptible.on the tails of a thousand of their progeny. This experiment, he thought, threw considerable doubt on the transmission of acquired 1 characters. Professor Thbmaa also touched vipon the possibility of acquired education or' its effects transmitted, and said that Bβ far evidence was against the theory that tha education of parents had any effect on tha mental powers of children, while physical evidence was against any such admission of acquired characters. At the conclusion of the Professor's paper some discussion ensued. Dr. Purchas contended that when one in* dividual'became two individuals the original individual practically died. This called from Professor Thomas a query aa ta : " where was the corpse?" The point was debated at some length, but no conclusion was arrived at, a hope being expressed i that the discussion would be resumed at o> future meeting.