Evolution. 



HE Problem of Evolution,&quot; by 



[_ Erich Wasmann, is an account 

 of the course of lectures, and the 

 public discussion thereon, by the 

 erudite Jesuit, well known in the 

 scientific world as the leading, 

 authority on ants and termites 

 and as the author of a number of 

 works, including the celebrated 

 &quot; Modern Biology and the Theory 

 of Evolution,&quot; now in its third 

 German edition a work which 

 ought long ago to have made its 

 appearance in an English dress. 



These lectures, directed against | 

 Haeckel and his monistic views j 

 and severely scientific in their 

 character, elicited the greatest 

 interest in Berlin, where they 

 were delivered, and indeed 

 throughout Germany, as is evi- 

 denced by the fact that the 

 author is able to report that more 



than five hundred articles had 

 appeared in relation to them in 

 the columns of the press. We 

 are delighted to find the lectures 

 and the discussion in a form 

 which renders them accessible to 

 English readers, for they form an 

 armoury from which the Chris 

 tian philosopher can extract most 

 valuable weapons for the over 

 throw of his materialistic adver 

 saries. 



Fr. Wasmann is careful to 

 point out the true relations 

 between the theory of Evolution 

 and Darwinian views, also the 

 position which Evolution and 

 Christianity occupy with regard 

 to one another. He develops his 

 own views as to a polyphyletic 

 evolution views which have 

 been already made public in his 

 &quot; Modern Biology&quot; and whether 

 one agrees with this explanation 

 of nature or not, it is impossible 

 to urge that the author s conclu 

 sions are not based on scientific 

 facts and observations. 



Within the limits of a review 

 such as this it is not possible to 

 deal more than superficially with 

 a book which treats of so many 

 subjects as this does. Beyond the 



attention, as well as such matters 

 as the relation of soul and body, 

 the descent of man, and a host of 

 other questions now constantly 

 under debate. As to the discus 

 sion at the end it may fairly be 

 said that the Jesuit Father gives 

 a very good account of himself in 

 his conflict with his eleven oppo 

 nents, and we may concur with 

 the remark quoted from a Protes 

 tant journal that &quot; Wasmann, an 

 insignificant priest &quot; the uncom 

 plimentary reference to a really 

 distinguished man of science 

 may perhaps be pardoned on 

 account of the admission which 

 follows &quot;in consequence of his 

 training, and of his intellectual 

 abilities, speaking as a philo 

 sopher, routed our collective 

 scientists, and in the course of 

 the discussion displayed the 

 greatest tact in combating that 

 scientific arrogance which deals 

 with truths that are limited to an 

 existence of twenty-five years, as 

 Ibsen Stockmann tells us, where 

 as the Church, in her exalted 

 wisdom, is fully conscious that no 

 earthly truth, of any kind what 

 ever, can be contrary to a divine 

 truth.&quot; 



We can only express the hope 

 that this book may find a place in 

 the library of every seminary, as it 

 most assuredly will on the book 

 shelves of all those interested in 

 the conflict between monism and 

 Christianity. 



