Not until fully fifty years later, when Darwin breathed new life into the transformation views founded therein, was the buried treasure again recovered, and we cannot refrain from regarding it as the most complete presentation of the development theory before Darwin.
"While Lamarck clearly expressed all the essential fundamental ideas of our present doctrine of descent; and excites our admiration at the depth of his morphological knowledge, he none the less surprises us by the prophetic (_vorausschauende_) clearness of his physiological conceptions." In his views on life, the nature of the will and reason, and other subjects, Haeckel declares that Lamarck was far above most of his contemporaries, and that he sketched out a programme of the biology of the future which was not carried out until our day.
J.Victor Carus[56] also claims for Lamarck "the lasting merit of having been the first to have placed the theory (of descent) on a scientific foundation." The best, most catholic, and just exposition of Lamarck's views, and which is still worth reading, is that by Lyell Chapters XXXIV.-XXXVI.

of his _Principles of Geology_, 1830, and though at that time one would not look for an acceptance of views which then seemed extraordinary and, indeed, far-fetched, Lyell had no words of satire and ridicule, only a calm, able statement and discussion of his principles.

Indeed, it is well known that when, in after years, his friend Charles Darwin published his views, Lyell expressed some leaning towards the older speculations of Lamarck.
Lyell's opinions as to the interest and value of Lamarck's ideas may be found in his _Life and Letters_, and also in the _Life and Letters of Charles Darwin_.

In the chapter, _On the Reception of the Origin of Species_, by Huxley, are the following extracts from Lyell's _Letters_ (ii., pp.

179-204).