The Right of Search. 27 



dawn of history, and from the inmost depth of 

 every soul, the face of our father Man looks out 

 upon us with the fire of eternal youth in his 

 eyes, and says, ' Before Jehovah was, I am !' " l 



And yet, this " Man our father," was once an 

 Ape: and, before that, "a jelly-bag." That 

 jelly-bag (which " made all gods and shall un- 

 make them ") sucking in water and sticking to 

 a stone, has advanced to its present august 

 condition by "a principle of development" and 

 "a process of evolution." It is true indeed 

 that the principle is one which nobody has ever 

 proved, and the process is one which nobody 

 has ever witnessed ; but woe to the unlucky 

 wight who dares to doubt their validity, or who 

 fails to recognise in " Mr. Charles Darwin, the 

 Abraham of scientific men." 2 



" Most of you," says Professor Tyndall, " have 

 been forcecl to listen to the outcries and de- 

 nunciations which rang discordant through the 

 land for some years after the publication of 

 Mr. Darwin's ' Origin of Species.' Well, the 

 world even the clerical word has for the 



1 Professor Clifford : " The Ethics of Religion," in The 

 Fortnightly Review, vol. xxii. New series, p. 52. Vide 

 in/rd: Appendix, Note A. 



1 Prof. Tyndall : " Science and Man," in The Fort- 

 nightly Re-view, voL xxii. New series, p. 615. 



