"SPECIAL CREATION" 143 



the carrying out of a systematic creative plan, an 

 interpretation which the author claims " is not 

 at all invalidated by the acceptance of the evolu- 

 tionary theory." He is not, we need hardly say, 

 in any way singular in taking up this attitude, since 

 it was held by Darwin, by Wallace, by Huxley, 

 and by other sturdy defenders of the doctrine of 

 evolution. 



Yet, just as at the time that Darwin's views 

 were first made public, many thought that they 

 were subversive of Christianity, so, even now, 

 some whose acquaintance with the problem and 

 its history is of a superficial character, are inclined 

 when they see the word creation, even with the 

 qualifying adjective "special" prefixed to it, 

 used in contradistinction to evolution, to imagine 

 that the theory of creation, and of course of a 

 Creator, must fall to the ground if evolution 

 should be proved to be the true explanation of 

 living things and their diversities. 



It is more than a little difficult for us, living at 

 the present day, to understand this curious frame 

 of mind ; yet it certainly existed, and existed 

 where it might least have been expected to exist. 

 Nor is it quite extinct to-day, though it only 

 lingers in the less instructed class of persons. 

 The misconception arose from a confusion be- 

 tween the fact and the method of creation. As 

 to the former, no Catholic, no Christian, no 

 theist has any kind of doubt ; indeed there are 

 those who could not be classified under any of 

 those categories who still would be prepared to 

 admit that there must be a First Cause as the 



