ON THE CREATION AND GOD. 31 



pearance of man the chances were all against his having 

 that long and successful career, which nevertheless a 

 series of fortunate events have since determined for him. 

 His immediate progenitors, half-human and non-human, 

 perished after launching him, not too well provided or 

 appointed, into a precarious life and a world of battle. 

 Moreover, we know that if from any of the other human- 

 resembling and still existing apes a. variety at all ap- 

 proaching the human had diverged, such did not survive ; 

 so that we must conclude on Darwinian principles that, 

 as the advent of man was not specially contemplated 

 by Nature more than of any other species, and as there 

 was no special fostering or favouring care shown him 

 when he did arrive, his actual survival through so many 

 imminent perils was due, partly at least, to the favour 

 of fortune, as well as the chances of battle. 



In one sense it is true indeed that nothing which 

 has ever actually resulted could have been otherwise ; 

 when the thing has occurred as a fact, we see that there 

 must have been causes all throughout to determine the 

 fact ; and the human species, including its art, science, 

 philosophy, poetry, has resulted as a fact. After the fact 

 has happened, we see that it could not have been differ- 

 ent, owing to the antecedent forces at work, just as we 

 see that an infinite intelligence might have predicted 

 the fact before it occurred; but this admission takes 

 nothing from the logical conclusion that, on Darwinian 

 principles, where neither an infinite intelligence nor a 

 controlling purpose is postulated, the appearance of life, 

 of man, and of consciousness must be recognized as a 

 series of fortunate accidents. 



6. In maintaining that Chance is the chief cha- 

 racteristic of the Darwinian process of natural selection, 

 when viewed in its philosophical reference, we do not 



