298 THE HISTORY OF CREATION. 



them would occupy too much of my limited space, I must 

 confine myself here to setting forth their great general 

 importance, and refer for particulars to the niimerous 

 writings which have recently been published on the 

 Primaeval History of Man, more especially to the excellent 

 works of Charles Lyen,^'' Carl Vogt,^' Friedrich RoUe,^ 

 John Lubbock,^* L. Biichner,*^ etc. 



The numerous and interesting discoveries presented to us 

 by these extensive investigations of late years on the 

 primaeval history of the human race, place the important 

 fact (long since probable for many other reasons) beyond a 

 doubt, that the human race, as euch, has existed for more 

 than twenty thousand years. But it is also probable that 

 more than a hundred thousand years, perhaps many 

 hundred thousands of years, have elapsed since its first 

 appearance; and, in contrast to this, it must seem very 

 absurd that our calendars still represent the " Creation of 

 the World, according to Calvisius," to have taken place 6821 

 years ago. 



Now, whether we reckon the period during which the 

 human race, as such, has existed and difiused itself over 

 the earth, as twenty thousand, a htm.dred thousand, or 

 many hundred thousands of years, the lapse of time is in 

 any case immensely small in comparison with the in- 

 conceivable length of time which was requisite for the 

 gradual development of the long chain of human ancestors. 

 This is evident even from the small thickness of all 

 Diluvial deposits in comparison with the Tertiary, and of 

 these again in comparison with the preceding deposits. 

 (Compare p. 22.) But the infinitely long series of slowly 

 and gradually developing animal forms from the simplest 



