416 FRAGMENTS OF SCIENCE 



established science/' On the ground, among others, that 

 it promotes the pernicious delusions of the Socialist, 

 Virchow considers the theory of evolution dangerous; but 

 his fidelity to truth is so great that he would brave the 

 danger and teach the theory, if it were only proved. 

 "However dangerous the state of things might be, let the 

 confederates be as mischievous as they might, still I do 

 not hesitate to say that from the moment when we had 

 become convinced that the evolution theory was a per- 

 fectly established doctrine so certain that we could pledge 

 our oath to it, so sure that we could say, "Thus it is' 

 from that moment we could not dare to feel any scruple 

 about introducing it into our actual life, so as not only to 

 communicate it to every educated man, but to impart it 

 to every child, to make it the foundation of our whole 

 ideas of the world, of society, and the State, and to base 

 upon it our whole system of education. This I hold to 

 be a necessity." 



It would be interesting to know the persons designated 

 by the pronoun "we" in the first sentence of the forego- 

 ing quotation. No doubt Professor Haeckel would accept 

 this canon in all its fulness, and found on it his justifica- 

 tion. He would say without hesitation: "I am convinced 

 that the theory of evolution is a perfectly established doc- 

 trine, and hence on your own showing I am justified in. 

 urging its introduction into our schools." It is plain, 

 however, that Professor Virchow would not accept this 

 retort as valid. His "We" must cover something more 

 than Professor Haeckel. It would probably cover more 

 even than the audience he addressed; for he would hardly 

 affirm, even if every one of his hearers accepted the theory 

 of evolution, that that would be a sufficient warrant for 



