174 ILWMOND C. OSBURN Vol. XXII, No. 7 



The scientific men of tiie past century and a half, especially, 

 have established the following important facts with regard to 

 life on the earth: 



1. There has been a gradual development from simpler 

 to more complex forms. 



2. There have originated multitudes of new species as 

 well as whole new phyla since the geological record began. 



3. Other multitudes of species as well as whole orders 

 have passed out of existence in geological time. 



4. These changes have been the result of orderly procedure 

 and not of cataclysmic action. 



5. There has been continuity of life and uniformity of 

 biological processes. 



6. Untold ages of time have been involved since life first 

 appeared on the earth. 



The only satisfactory explanation of these facts is found in 

 organic evolution. All those who have the best right to an 

 opinion on this matter — the scientists who have investigated 

 and carefully weighed all the data, are agreed that there is 

 no other satisfactory method of putting the facts together in 

 logical order. All of the facts and deductions are open to 

 re-examination, but as they have been carefully scrutinized 

 already by large numbers of investigators and from all angles, 

 it is not likely that any different interpretation will be found 

 possible. 



Notwithstanding this concensus of opinion among those 

 qualified to judge, there has always been a number of 

 "conscientious objectors" among those untrained in science, 

 on the gi-ound that evolution opposed certain established 

 theological dogmas. A theistic conception of evolution, how- 

 ever, satisfied the more liberal minded of these objectors and 

 there has been a gradual diminution of opposition since the 

 time of Darwin. Recently, however, a well-known, quixotic 

 platform speaker has made a virulent attack on the law of 

 evolution and the weight of his oratory has carried so many 

 people with him, that opposition to evolution has spread like 

 an epidemic through certain portions of this country. If 

 he had chosen, instead, to attack the Copernican theory that 

 the planets revolve around the sun, he would no doubt have 

 convinced many unthinking people -and those unfamiliar with 

 the facts. This campaign against a law of nature would be 



