万物简史英文版_比尔·布莱森- 第80部分

darwin　enjoyed　every　advantage　of　upbringing；　but　continually　pained　his　widowed　fatherwith　his　lackluster　academic　performance。　鈥測ou　care　for　nothing　but　shooting；　dogs；　and　rat…catching；　and　you　will　be　a　disgrace　to　yourself　and　all　your　family；鈥潯�his　father　wrote　in　a　linethat　nearly　always　appears　just　about　here　in　any　review　of　darwin鈥檚　early　life。　although　hisinclination　was　to　natural　history；　for　his　father鈥檚　sake　he　tried　to　study　medicine　at　edinburghuniversity　but　couldn鈥檛　bear　the　blood　and　suffering。　the　experience　of　witnessing　anoperation　on　an　understandably　distressed　child鈥攖his　was　in　the　days　before　anesthetics；　ofcourse鈥攍eft　him　permanently　traumatized。　he　tried　law　instead；　but　found　that　insupportablydull　and　finally　managed；　more　or　less　by　default；　to　acquire　a　degree　in　divinity　fromcambridge。

a　life　in　a　rural　vicarage　seemed　to　await　him　when　from　out　of　the　blue　there　came　a　moretempting　offer。　darwin　was　invited　to　sail　on　the　naval　survey　ship　hms　beagle；　essentiallyas　dinner　pany　for　the　captain；　robert　fitzroy；　whose　rank　precluded　his　socializing　withanyone　other　than　a　gentleman。　fitzroy；　who　was　very　odd；　chose　darwin　in　part　because　heliked　the　shape　of　darwin鈥檚　nose。　（it　betokened　depth　of　character；　he　believed。）　darwin　wasnot　fitzroy鈥檚　first　choice；　but　got　the　nod　when　fitzroy鈥檚　preferred　panion　dropped　out。

from　a　twenty…first…century　perspective　the　two　men鈥檚　most　striking　joint　feature　was　their1an　auspicious　date　in　history：　on　the　same　day　in　kentucky；　abraham　lincoln　was　born。

extreme　youthfulness。　at　the　time　of　sailing；　fitzroy　was　only　twenty…three；　darwin　justtwenty…two。

fitzroy鈥檚　formal　assignment　was　to　chart　coastal　waters；　but　his　hobby鈥攑assion　really鈥攚as　to　seek　out　evidence　for　a　literal；　biblical　interpretation　of　creation。　that　darwin　wastrained　for　the　ministry　was　central　to　fitzroy鈥檚　decision　to　have　him　aboard。　that　darwinsubsequently　proved　to　be　not　only　liberal　of　view　but　less　than　wholeheartedly　devoted　tochristian　fundamentals　became　a　source　of　lasting　friction　between　them。

darwin鈥檚　time　aboard　hms　beagle；　from　1831　to　1836；　was　obviously　the　formativeexperience　of　his　life；　but　also　one　of　the　most　trying。　he　and　his　captain　shared　a　small　cabin；which　can鈥檛　have　been　easy　as　fitzroy　was　subject　to　fits　of　fury　followed　by　spells　ofsimmering　resentment。　he　and　darwin　constantly　engaged　in　quarrels；　some　鈥渂ordering　oninsanity；鈥潯�as　darwin　later　recalled。　ocean　voyages　tended　to　bee　melancholyundertakings　at　the　best　of　times鈥攖he　previous　captain　of　the　beagle　had　put　a　bullet　throughhis　brain　during　a　moment　of　lonely　gloom鈥攁nd　fitzroy　came　from　a　family　well　known　fora　depressive　instinct。　his　uncle；　viscount　castlereagh；　had　slit　his　throat　the　previous　decadewhile　serving　as　chancellor　of　the　exchequer。　（fitzroy　would　himself　mit　suicide　by　thesame　method　in　1865。）　even　in　his　calmer　moods；　fitzroy　proved　strangely　unknowable。

darwin　was　astounded　to　learn　upon　the　conclusion　of　their　voyage　that　almost　at　oncefitzroy　married　a　young　woman　to　whom　he　had　long　been　betrothed。　in　five　years　indarwin鈥檚　pany；　he　had　not　once　hinted　at　an　attachment　or　even　mentioned　her　name。

in　every　other　respect；　however；　the　beagle　voyage　was　a　triumph。　darwin　experiencedadventure　enough　to　last　a　lifetime　and　accumulated　a　hoard　of　specimens　sufficient　to　makehis　reputation　and　keep　him　occupied　for　years。　he　found　a　magnificent　trove　of　giant　ancientfossils；　including　the　finest　megatherium　known　to　date；　survived　a　lethal　earthquake　inchile；　discovered　a　new　species　of　dolphin　（which　he　dutifully　named　delphinus　fitzroyi）；conducted　diligent　and　useful　geological　investigations　throughout　the　andes；　and　developeda　new　and　much…admired　theory　for　the　formation　of　coral　atolls；　which　suggested；　notcoincidentally；　that　atolls　could　not　form　in　less　than　a　million　years鈥攖he　first　hint　of　hislong…standing　attachment　to　the　extreme　antiquity　of　earthly　processes。　in　1836；　aged　twenty…seven；　he　returned　home　after　being　away　for　five　years　and　two　days。　he　never　left　englandagain。

one　thing　darwin　didn鈥檛　do　on　the　voyage　was　propound　the　theory　（or　even　a　theory）　ofevolution。　for　a　start；　evolution　as　a　concept　was　already　decades　old　by　the　1830s。　darwin鈥檚own　grandfather；　erasmus；　had　paid　tribute　to　evolutionary　principles　in　a　poem　of　inspiredmediocrity　called　鈥渢he　temple　of　nature鈥潯�years　before　charles　was　even　born。　it　wasn鈥檛　untilthe　younger　darwin　was　back　in　england　and　read　thomas　malthus鈥檚　essay　on　the　principleof　population　（which　proposed　that　increases　in　food　supply　could　never　keep　up　withpopulation　growth　for　mathematical　reasons）　that　the　idea　began　to　percolate　through　his　mindthat　life　is　a　perpetual　struggle　and　that　natural　selection　was　the　means　by　which　somespecies　prospered　while　others　failed。　specifically　what　darwin　saw　was　that　all　organismspeted　for　resources；　and　those　that　had　some　innate　advantage　would　prosper　and　pass　onthat　advantage　to　their　offspring。　by　such　means　would　species　continuously　improve。

it　seems　an　awfully　simple　idea鈥攊t　is　an　awfully　simple　idea鈥攂ut　it　explained　a　great　deal；and　darwin　was　prepared　to　devote　his　life　to　it。　鈥渉ow　stupid　of　me　not　to　have　thought　ofit！鈥潯�t。　h。　huxley　cried　upon　reading　on　the　origin　of　species。　it　is　a　view　that　has　beenechoed　ever　since。

interestingly；　darwin　didn鈥檛　use　the　phrase　鈥渟urvival　of　the　fittest鈥潯�in　any　of　his　work（though　he　did　express　his　admiration　for　it）。　the　expression　was　coined　five　years　after　thepublication　of　on　the　origin　of　species　by　herbert　spencer　in　principles　of　biology　in　1864。

nor　did　he　employ　the　word　evolution　in　print　until　the　sixth　edition　of　origin　（by　which　timeits　use　had　bee　too　widespread　to　resist）；　preferring　instead　鈥渄escent　with　modification。鈥�

nor；　above　all；　were　his　conclusions　in　any　way　inspired　by　his　noticing；　during　his　time　inthe　gal谩pagos　islands；　an　interesting　diversity　in　the　beaks　of　finches。　the　story　asconventionally　told　（or　at　least　as　frequently　remembered　by　many　of　us）　is　that　darwin；while　traveling　from　island　to　island；　noticed　that　the　finches鈥櫋�beaks　on　each　island　weremarvelously　adapted　for　exploiting　local　resources鈥攖hat　on　one　island　beaks　were　sturdy　andshort　and　good　for　cracking　nuts；　while　on　the　next　island　beaks　were　perhaps　long　and　thinand　well　suited　for　winkling　food　out　of　crevices鈥攁nd　it　was　this　that　set　him　to　thinking　thatperhaps　the　birds　had　not　been　created　this　way；　but　had　in　a　sense　created　themselves。

in　fact；　the　birds　had　created　themselves；　but　it　wasn鈥檛　darwin　who　noticed　it。　at　the　timeof　the　beagle　voyage；　darwin　was　fresh　out　of　college　and　not　yet　an　acplished　naturalistand　so　failed　to　see　that　the　gal谩pagos　birds　were　all　of　a　type。　it　was　his　friend　theornithologist　john　gould　who　realized　that　what　darwin　had　found　was　lots　of　finches　withdifferent　talents。　unfortunately；　in　his　inexperience　darwin　had　not　noted　which　birds　camefrom　which　islands。　（he　had　made　a　similar　error　with　tortoises。）　it　took　years　to　sort　themuddles　out。

because　of　these　oversights；　and　the　need　to　sort　through　crates　and　crates　of　other　beaglespecimens；　it　wasn鈥檛　until　1842；　six　years　after　his　return　to　england；　that　darwin　finallybegan　to　sketch　out　the　rudiments　of　his　new　theory。　these　he　expanded　into　a　230…page鈥渟ketch鈥潯�two　years　later。　and　then　he　did　an　extraordinary　thing：　he　put　his　notes　away　andfor　the　next　decade　and　a　half　busied　himself　with　other　matters。　he　fathered　ten　children；devoted　nearly　eight　years　to　writing　an　exhaustive　opus　on　barnacles　（鈥渋　hate　a　barnacle　as　noman　ever　did　before；鈥潯�he　sighed；　understandably；　upon　the　work鈥檚　conclusion）；　and　fell　preyto　strange　disorders　that　left　him　chronically　listless；　faint；　and　鈥渇lurried；鈥潯�as　he　put　it。　thesymptoms　nearly　always　included　a　terrible　nausea　and　generally　also　incorporatedpalpitations；　migraines；　exhaustion；　trembling；　spots　before　the　eyes；　shortness　of　breath；鈥渟wimming　of　the　head；鈥潯�and；　not　surprisingly；　depression。

the　cause　of　the　illness　has　never　been　established；　but　the　most　romantic　and　perhapslikely　of　the　many　suggested　possibilities　is　that　he　suffered　from　chagas鈥檚　disease；　alingering　tropical　malady　that　he　could　have　acquired　from　the　bite　of　a　benchuga　bug　insouth　america。　a　more　prosaic　explanation　is　that　his　condition　was　psychosomatic。　in　eithercase；　the　misery　was　not。　often　he　could　work　for　no　more　than　twenty　minutes　at　a　stretch；sometimes　not　that。

much　of　the　rest　of　his　time　was　devoted　to　a　series　of　increasingly　desperate　treatments鈥攊cy　plunge　baths；　dousings　in　vinegar；　draping　himself　with　鈥渆lectric　chains鈥潯�that　subjectedhim　to　small　jolts　of　current。　he　became　something　of　a　hermit；　seldom　leaving　his　home　inkent；　down　house。　one　of　his　first　acts　upon　moving　to　the　house　was　to　erect　a　mirroroutside　his　study　window　so　that　he　could　identify；　and　if　necessary　avoid；　callers。

darwin　kept　his　theory　to　himself　because　he　well　knew　the　storm　it　would　cause。　in　1844；the　year　he　locked　his　notes　away；　a　book　called　vestiges　of　the　natural　history　of　creationroused　much　of　the　thinking　world　to　fury　by　suggesting　that　humans　might　have　evolvedfrom　lesser　primates　without　the　assistance　of　a　divine　creator。　anticipating　the　outcry；　theauthor　had　taken　careful　steps　to　conceal　his　identity；　which　he　kept　a　secret　from　even　hisclosest　friends　for　the　next　forty　years。　some　wondered　if　darwin　himself　might　be　the　author。

others　suspected　prince　albert。　in　fact；　the　author　was　a　successful　and　generally　unassumingscottish　publisher　named　robert　chambers　whose　reluctance　to　reveal　himself　had　a　practicaldimension　as　well　as　a　personal　one：　his　firm　was　a　leading　publisher　of　bibles。　vestiges　waswarmly　blasted　from　pulpits　throughout　britain　and　far　beyond；　but　also　attracted　a　good　dealof　more　scholarly　ire。　the　edinburgh　review　devoted　nearly　an　entire　issue鈥攅ighty…fivepages鈥攖o　pulling　it　to　pieces。　even　t。　h。　huxley；　a　believer　in　evolution；　attacked　the　bookwith　some　venom；　unaware　that　the　author　was　a　friend。

2darwin鈥檚　manuscript　might　have　remain