The underlying principle of this book is that the Soul, no less than the body, is a product of evolution, though, unlike the body which perishes, it has a destiny which will endure. The Soul, which has its origin in the dim sentience which accompanies even the lowest forms of life, is identified with the human Self-consciousness. It is carefully distinguished, however, from the Self, which is only one of its partial manifestations. The theory of Materialism is examined and found wanting, and the nature of Matter itself investigated. Following upon this, the book deals with the conditions necessary for the appearance of life and the mode of its appearance. A chapter is devoted to the controversy of the Spontaneous Generation of Life, and the curious process of Heterogenesis. The relations of physical to mental structure are dwelt upon, and the intimate connections of the two orders of development. The difficulties which beset the transition from a subhuman to a human consciousness, and the activities of consciousnesses in a subhuman condition, are discussed at some length. Speech is the distinctive mark of man, but it is shown to be connected with anatomical development and motor activity. Considerable attention is given to Weismann’s theory of the non-transmission by heredity of acquired characters, and the theory in its extreme form is rejected as improbable and unproved. This disposes of one of the chief obstacles raised by the Weismann school to the permanent value of education and the independent evolution of the Soul. There are chapters dealing with Personal Identity, the Relation of the Soul to the Self, the Unity of the Soul—in spite of the marvellous phenomena of multiple personality, and a very interesting discussion on the possible permanency of sex, even in the more spiritual stages of the Soul’s future development. The book concludes with some philosophical disquisitions on the nature and method of creation, and the place of the Soul in, and in relation to, the Universe of which it forms part. The author, regarding evolution as a process whose operation extends both to body and mind, repeatedly turns to the facts of physical evolution for hints towards elucidating the obscure course of mental evolution. THE DAYS OF ALKIBIADES. By C. E. ROBINSON, M.A. With a foreword by Professor C. W. OMAN, Oxford University. _With 16 full-page Illustrations from the Author’s Sketches._ _One Volume. Crown 8vo._ =5s. net.=