314 E VOL UTION A ND DOGMA . 



organic development. We are told that one of the 

 cardinal doctrines of the School is the immutability 

 of species ; that species are but realizations of the 

 archetypes, the " grand ideas," which have existed 

 from all eternity in the mind of the Creator ; that 

 to affirm the immutability of species would be tan- 

 tamount to asserting a change in the Divine proto- 

 types, or to predicating a mutation in the Divine 

 Essence itself. 



In answer to this objection I shall confine myself 

 to the teachings of the Angelic Doctor alone, as I 

 am perfectly willing to rest my case for Evolution 

 on his certain teachings respecting the nature of 

 species. 



It is necessary to premise here, that in the induc- 

 tive sciences, St. Thomas, like his illustrious master, 

 St. Augustine, teaches that disputed points are not 

 to be settled by a priori reasoning, but rather by 

 observation and experiment. No one, therefore, 

 who is even slightly acquainted with the mind of 

 the Angelic Doctor, and who duly appreciates his 

 penetrating and comprehensive genius, would for a 

 moment credit him with binding his disciples and 

 successors to metaphysical formulae, in matters 

 of experimental science, and thus obliging them to 

 reject the results of experiment and observation 

 when they might happen to contravene the dicta or 

 assumptions of metaphysics. Such an imputation 

 would not be borne out by his teaching and would 

 be as unjust as it would be erroneous. 



To remove ambiguity and clear away difficulties, 

 it may be observed that the word " species" may be 



