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are those of domestication. The art of the horticulturist, the fancier, 
the cattle breeder, &c., consists in producing greater and greater 
deviations from a given wild type of plant or animal, in any particular 
direction that may be desired for purposes either of use or of beauty. 
. . . We know as a matter of fact that all these differences have 
been produced by a process of Artificial Selection or pairing. . . . 
Now it is immediately obvious that in these cases the process of 
Artificial Selection is precisely analogous to that of Natural Selection 
—and of sexual selection—in all respects save one : the utility or the 
beauty which it is the aim of Artificial Selection continually to enhance, 
is utility or beauty in relation to the requirements or to the tastes of 
man ; whereas the utility or the beauty which is produced by Natural 
Selection and sexual selection, has reference only to the requirements 
or the tastes of the organisms themselves. But with the exception of 
this one point of difference, the processes and the products are 
identical in kind. ... It becomes impossible to doubt that 
selection by nature is able to do at least as much as Artificial Selection 
in the way of thus creating new types out of old ones. Artificial 
Selection, indeed, notwithstanding the many and marvellous results 
which it has accomplished, can only be regarded as but a feeble 
imitation of Natural Selection which must act with so much greater 
vigilance, and through such immensely greater periods of time. In a 
word, the proved capabilities of Artificial Selection furnish, in its best 
conceivable form, what is called an argument a fortiori in favour 
of Natural Selection.”—(Darwin atid After Darwin, pp. 293-6.) 
This is the position which is taken by Mr. Darwin and 
his expositors. 
“ Man may be said to have been trying an experiment on a gigantic 
scale, and it is an experiment which nature during the long lapse of 
time has incessantly tried. Hence it follows that the principles of 
domestication are important for us.”—(Darwin. The Variation. 
1st. ed. vol. i., p. 3.) 
“ The experimental argument which lies at the very base of 
Mr. Darwin’s theory is that man’s process in forming new breeds of 
pigeons is the analogue of nature’s process in evolving new forms 
from old—the one is Artificial Selection, the other Natural Selection.” 
—(St. Clair. Darwinism and Design, p. 108.) 
Shakespeare is supposed to speak somewhat to the same 
effect in The Winters Tale:—