104 



Evolution of the Earth. 



ABSTRACT OF THE DISCUSSION. 



Pkofessou W. Le Conte Stevexs: — 



Evolution in its application to the genesis of our earth is a sub- 

 ject •which now has but little, if any, theological bearing. We 

 all know the mental agony through which Hugh Miller passed, in 

 the vain effort to reconcile the biblical and geological accounts of 

 the early development of our planet, the final effect of which was 

 to deprive the world of an enthusiastic geologist, who became 

 literally a victim of his own piety. In this discussion, the geol- 

 ogists won the field. To-day there are few jjulpits in which tin- 

 effort is made to teach literally what is contained in the first chap- 

 ter of Genesis. The reconciliation attempted to-day rests upon a 

 wide latitude in the use of language, and an inexactness of state- 

 ment which is wonderfully comforting to those who can be satis- 

 fied with it. There is no such middle-ground, however, for us to 

 accept, no reconciliation for our comfort. We must accept the 

 Mosaic account exactly as it was written, or reject it utterly. For, 

 if not inspired, it is of no more value than any other piece of 

 mythology. With all veneration for the noble teachings contained 

 in the pages of the bible, we kindly but firmly disregard it in every 

 case where it is found open to attack on historical or scientific 

 grounds. 



But any conclusion that we may reach about the early develop- 

 ment of the earth, even on a scientific basis, is necessarily largely 

 speculative. It is impossible to insist too strongly upon the im- 

 portance of limiting the intensity of our convictions, and of pro- 

 claiming that what we accept is merely an exjiression of jirobabil- 

 ity. We accept the probability expressed in the nebular hypothe- 

 sis, that the initial condition of our earth was that of a hot, 

 gaseous mass, containing all the elements now known to chemis- 

 try; and that every law of nature now based on the evidence of 

 observation or experiment has been in force throughout the indef- 

 inite past. It does not seem necessary to assume any univei'sal 

 diffusion of initial heat. Let the law of gravitation be granted, 

 and that matter was widely diffused in an indefinitely tenuous 

 condition, at a temperature as low as that now i)ervading inter- 

 planetary space, several hundred degrees lower than that of our 



