THE SCIENTIFIC CONGRESS OF 1863 169 



points of the geologist, but went on to the deeper 

 philosophic question. The notion of a ** perennial 

 circular movement" is "inconsistent with all 

 the facts of human history." "If we appeal to 

 sentiment, I must say that this circular theory 

 has no attraction for me, whereas the Darwinian 

 idea of a progressive evolution seems the only one 

 consistent with the nature of man." T'he story 

 of the animals and plants is subject to "the law 

 of progress" just as much as human history. 



In these words of Haeckel's we have a clear 

 indication of the optimistic temper of Darwinism 

 at the time. They touch a question of funda- 

 mental importance for the value of the new theory : 

 the question whether, in spite of all it destroyed, 

 in spite of its disseverance from the idea of God, 

 it brought with it a new ground of conciliation, 

 a conviction of the ever-advancing growth of the 

 world and ever greater achievements ? God was 

 replaced by natural law. There was no longer 

 any " design " beyond the simple and unchang- 

 ing course of natural laws. Well, what were 

 these natural laws going to do for us ? Were 

 they giving us a world that would become more 

 and more harmonious, that was on the whole an 

 advancing organism, that would be an increasing 

 embodiment of God — the God within nature, not 

 without, God at the end of things, after aeons of 

 worlds that seemed to break up like the indivi- 

 dual in the struggle for existence, yet were eternal 

 in the mighty essence that was tossed on from 

 world to world like a grain of dust and was 



