HASSELL. 209, 
Scriptures, they might conclude that there were very early states of 
civilisation. They all knew that the area of savage life in ancient times very 
greatly exceeded, and probably progressively exceeded, the area of civilised life. 
It was a very narrow stream of civilised life they had through the Hebrews, 
as compared with the enormous outflow of barbarism that prevailed else- 
where. That made the discussion of the subject one on which a great deal 
might be said, for, in proportion as they paid attention to the outer 
circle, they got one side of the impression, or, if they paid attention to the 
inner circle, they got another side of the impression. He thought those who 
advocated the credibility of the Scripture narrative might intrench them- 
selves very completely, and might make raids into the outer country. 
He thought, on that yround, the proposition might be maintained which 
had been brought before them that evening. 
Rey. F. A. AtuEN, M.A., said he always felt a delicacy in going into a subject 
like this, because one could not help feeling that one trod on ground upon 
which it was for specialists to decide, notably when it involved geological 
evidence. He did not see why the author had brought in the remarks upon 
the antiquity of man before the real subject of his paper. He supposed he 
did it, thinking to strengthen his argument by presuming that it was not 
necessary to predicate such a vast series of years, if they did not admit that 
man gradually became a civilised being. He quite agreed with the conclusions 
Mr. Hassell had arrived at, and he thought that the leading scientific men of 
the day had come to the same conclusion, 7.c., that it was very difficult to decide 
on geological evidence as to the time man had been on the earth. Both the 
Scriptural and secular accounts seemed to agree that man did go on and 
make discoveries, and at a comparatively age in his history attained very 
great civilisation and refinement. He thought the latter part of the paper 
was very good and very cogent, and he quite agreed with it. With regard 
to the New Zealanders, it was true they did not make any progress, they 
were rather degenerating ; it was said they were once in a more civilised 
state. The name of the man who introduced cannibalism had been handed 
down, and it only arose two or three centuries before the Europeans 
arrived there. The subject was a most interesting one ; and he thought the 
practical lesson was, not to come to any final conclusions rashly, and be on 
our guard against the danger of falling into the bondage of the infallible 
professor. 
Mr. C. Hastrnes Dent, C.E., F.L.S., ina few words, referred to a remark 
made by the Duke of Argyll in his recent work, that, if the number of years 
since the origin of man be taken asa multiplier in the process of elevation, it 
must be taken as a multiplier in the process of degradation. He (the speaker) 
thought that was not necessarily in the same ratio, because degradation went 
on much more rapidly than amelioration or elevation. As to the degrada- 
tion of man, certainly, from the religious records, the inhabitants of Africa 
were the most ancient degraded nation. But they lived closer to the 
starting-point of the race than the inhabitants of South Africa, Tierra del 
VOL. XIX, Q 
