The Story of the Earth and ManDawson, John William, Sir
Science
The Story of the Earth and Man
Dawson, John William, Sir
Human beings -- Origin; Paleontology
gives no evidence that at some point the body will fly off at a
tangent, and does not even inform us whether it is making progress in
space. Even if it is so making progress, its orbit of revolution may
remain the same. But it may be said the reproduction of the species is
not in a circle but in a spiral. Within the limit of experience it is
not so, since, however it may undulate, it always returns into itself.
But supposing it to be a spiral, it may ascend or descend, or expand
and contract; but this does not connect it with other similar spirals,
the separate origin of which is to be separately accounted for.
I have quoted the latter part of the passage because it is
characteristic of evolutionists to decry the intelligence of those who
differ from them. Now it is fair to admit that it requires some
intelligence and some knowledge of nature to produce or even to
understand such analogies as those of Mr. Spencer and his followers,
but it is no less true that a deeper insight into the study of nature
may not only enable us to understand these analogies, but to detect
their fallacies. I am sorry to say, however, that at present the
hypothesis of evolution is giving so strong a colouring to much of
popular and even academic teaching, more especially in the easy and
flippant conversion of the facts of embryology into instances of
evolution on the plan of the above extract, that the Spencerians may
not long have to complain of want of faith and appreciation on the
part of the improved apes whom they are kind enough to instruct as to
their lowly origin.
The mention of "appropriate conditions" in the above extract reminds
me of another fatal objection to evolution which its advocates
continually overlook. An animal or plant advancing from maturity to
the adult state is in every stage of its progress a complete and
symmetrical organism, correlated in all its parts and adapted to
surrounding conditions. Suppose it to become modified in any way, to
ever so small an extent, the whole of these relations are disturbed.
If the modification is internal and spontaneous, there is no guarantee
that it will suit the vastly numerous external agencies to which the
creature is subjected. If it is produced by agencies from without,
there is no guarantee that it will accord with the internal relations
of the parts modified. The probabilities are incalculably great
against the occurrence of many such disturbances without the breaking
up altogether of the nice adjustment of parts and conditions. This is
no doubt one reason of the extinction of so many species in geological
time, and also of the strong tendency of every species to spring back
to its normal condition when in any way artificially caused to vary.
It is also connected with the otherwise mysterious law of the constant
transmission of all the characters of the parent.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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