SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE 259 



Theory of Life, Orthodoxy and Monism. The Opinions of 

 Father Erich Wasmann, S.J., and the Speeches made in 

 Opposition to him in Berlin, edited by Dr. Plate. Berlin. 

 With 12 Illustrations. Jena, 1907.) 



This work gives an abstract of my three Berlin lectures ; 

 the accompanying illustrations have almost all been bor- 

 rowed from my book, Modern Biology and the Theory of 

 Evolution. The speeches of my opponents are given, 

 some in an expanded form, and then my closing address, 

 which is much abbreviated, and, lastly, some remarks by 

 the editor. I will only say a few words about this rejoinder. 

 My readers will be able to judge for themselves who has 

 truth on his side. 



Professor Plate's introductory remarks about the evening 

 discussion (p. 3, etc.) have been sufficiently dealt with in my 

 statement on p. 85, etc., of this work. On p. 10 he asserts that 

 I refused to publish my lectures jointly with my opponents, 

 ' because I said that I had been badly treated by them, and 

 insisted upon special conditions of publication.' The terms 

 proposed to me in writing, by Professor Plate, would have 

 deprived me of what I was plainly entitled to claim, viz. the 

 right to reply to my opponents' speeches (which had lasted 

 three hours) more fully than it was possible for me to do in 

 my closing address, delivered at midnight on February 18th. 

 It will be obvious to any one that I could not accept such 

 conditions. 



I see, on reference to Plate's work, that, in the present 

 publication, the contents of my opponents' speeches have 

 been reproduced exactly and correctly, with the exception of 

 those made by Count von Hoensbroech and Mr. Itelson, 

 which have been omitted as irrelevant. I will not complain 

 that Professor Plate, in the new version of his speech, has 

 considerably expanded and modified it. His statement, 

 quoted verbatim on p. 109, to the effect that it was only 

 logical to assume the existence of a lawgiver behind the laws 

 of nature, is, on p. 70 of Plate's own publication, weakened 

 down by the addition of the words, ' whom I imagine as a 

 very high intelligent principle in the pantheistic sense/ 



