BIOGENESIS AND ABIOGENESIS 83 



the existence of a Creator. But try all one may 

 one cannot prove that spontaneous generation takes 

 place. In fact all the proof is the other way. Then, 

 of course, spontaneous generation must have taken 

 place at some time or another, since otherwise there 

 would be no life on the earth at this moment. So 

 runs the argument, and so it must run if we are to 

 deny the existence of a Creator. On the other 

 hand there are many who will concur with Reinke : * 

 " If we agree that living matter has at some time 

 come from inorganic substances then, in my opinion, 

 the Creation hypothesis is the only one which meets 

 the necessities of Logic and of Causality and there- 

 Vith answers to the needs of a prudent seeker after 

 nature". 



There are two further points which must be 

 touched upon before this matter is concluded. 



In the first place one must be quite clear of May living 

 this fact that though the genesis of living from not- ^fj^ m 

 living matter has never yet been demonstrated it is matter? 

 not, therefore, impossible that it may some day fall 

 to the lot of some fortunate investigator to announce 

 such a discovery and to have his discovery recog- 

 nised by a scientific jury. And if this were to be 

 the case we may be quite sure that there would be 

 hosts of persons prepared once more to announce 

 the annihilation of all religion by the last great 

 scientific discovery. 



1 Einleitung in die Theoretische Biologie, s. 559; 



