HISTORY OF THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION 561 



created in the beginning by the Creator. He created at the 

 beginning of the world, all of the different kinds of plants and 

 animals. Of course they have changed some through the cen- 

 turies of time but essentially they are the same today as in the 

 days of Creation. According to this idea Thallophytes, Bryo- 

 phytes, Pteridophytes, and Spermatophytes, with all of their 

 species have been in existence since the time of creation. They 

 were all created at practically the same time and one is in no 

 way related to another in respect to origin. It is evident that 

 the theory of Special Creation differs from the theory of evolution 

 about as much as it is possible for one theory to differ from another. 

 One assumes that all kinds of organisms were created in the 

 beginning and therefore one did not evolve from another. The 

 other assumes that in the beginning there were only very simple 

 oraganisms and from these simple ancestors all other forms 

 have gradually arisen during the numerous centuries intervening 

 between the present and the time these simple ancestors first 

 appeared. 



Naturally the theory of Special Creation was not easily dis- 

 placed, for it was the theory held by the church, and the Christian 

 teachers commonly made it a point to impress it upon their 

 students. Some of the Christian teachers taught that the crea- 

 tion of the world took place in six natural days and that the plants 

 were formed on the third day, and animals on the fifth and sixth 

 days. Even the great naturalist, Linnaeus (1707-1778), favored 

 the theory of Special Creation. It has not always been safe to 

 propose any other theory of origin, for the church has not always 

 been slow to punish those that were not orthodox. But centuries 

 before the Christian era the theory of evolution was proposed 

 and there have always been some thinkers who advocated it, 

 although the theory of Special Creation dominated until about a 

 half century ago. The general acceptance of the theory of 

 evolution is chiefly due to the work of Charles Darwin (Fig. 484)* 

 the foremost investigator of evolution. 



It is interesting to note that Charles Darwin (1809-1882) and 

 Abraham Lincoln were born on the same day and both are re- 

 garded as great emancipators, for Darwin emancipated the minds 

 of men from the bondage of the traditional idea of Special Creation. 

 He presented such clear and abundant proof of organic evolution 

 that the theory rapidly gained in favor despite much opposition 



