BRONN DEVELOPMENT. 6 



a generatio spontanea, which has never been proved. And yet we 

 know of no third explanation. 



" We will therefore at least attempt to describe that organization- 

 creating power more closely by means of its operations, while we 

 postpone the proofs that these operations really took place to a sub- 

 sequent portion of this essay. 



" 1. The first productions of this power in the oldest Neptunian 

 strata of the earth consisted of Plants, Zoophytes, Molluscs, Crus- 

 taceans, and perhaps even Pish; the simultaneous appearance of 

 which, therefore, contradicts the assumption that the more perfect 

 organic forms arose out of the gradual transformation in time of the 

 more imperfect forms. 



"2. The same power which produced the first organic forms has 

 continued to operate in intensively as well as extensively increasing 

 activity during the whole subsequent geological period, up to the 

 final appearance of man : but here also can no traces be found 

 of a gradual transformation of old species and genera into new ; but 

 the new have everywhere appeared as new without the cooperation of 

 the former. 



*^ 3. In the succession of the diJfferent forms of plants and animals, 

 a certain regular course and plan is perceptible, which is quite 

 independent of chance. Whilst all species possess only a limited 

 duration, and must sooner or later (fisappear, they make way for 

 subsequent new ones, which not only almost always oiFer an equiva- 

 lent, in number, organization, and duties to be performed, for those 

 which have disappeared, but which are also generally more varied, 

 and therefore partly more perfect, and always maintain an equilibrium 

 with each other in their stage of organization, their mode of life, and 

 functions. There always exists, therefore, a certain fixed relation 

 between the newly arising and the disappearing forms of organic life. 



" 4. A similar relation necessarily exists between the newly arising 

 organic forms and the outward conditions of life which prevailed at 

 their first appearance on the earth's surface, or at the place of their 

 appearance. 



"^ 5. A fixed plan appears to be the basis of the whole series of 

 development of organic forms, in so far as man makes his first 

 appearance at its close, when he finds everything prepared that is 

 necessary to his own existence and to his progressive development 

 and improvement, — which would not have been possible had he ap- 

 peared at a former period. 



"6. Such a regular progress in carrying out the same plan from the 

 beginning to the end of a period of millions of years can only be 

 accounted for in one of two ways. Either this course of successive 

 development during millions of years has been the regular imme- 

 diate result of the systematic action of a conscious Creator, who on 

 every occasion settled and carried out not only the order of appearance, 

 formation, organization, and terrestrial object of each of the count- 

 less numbers of species of plants and animals, but also the number 

 of the first individuals, the place of their settlement in every 

 instance, although it was in his power to create everything at once, 



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