CHAPTER XXI 

 PLANT EVOLUTION 

 The Theory of Special Creation.— The rise of botanical 

 science was comparatively slow. As long as Mother Nature sup- 

 plied the human race with all its needs, there was no great 

 incentive for the study of plant life or for effort to increase 

 plant production. If. we look into the history of the science, 

 we find that much of the early progress was due to man's efforts 

 to find plants of medicinal value. This study necessitated the 

 classification of plants and step by step the study of the science 

 advanced. As the science progressed, the students of botany 

 gave more and more attention to the study of classification and 

 eventually to the laws governing both plant and animal life. 

 These questions were not new ; they had been considered by the 

 Greek philosophers 2000 years ago or more, but through all this 

 long period of time very little attention was given to the study 

 of living plants by educated men. The predominating idea con- 

 cerning the universe, the earth and the life on it was what is now 

 known as The Theory of Special Creation. This theory was 

 based on a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis. The 

 sun, moon, earth and all the forms of life on the earth were the 

 results of a series of Divine acts during a period of seven 

 days. After this period of creation, the earth and all forms 

 of life had remained practically unchanged. This idea of spe- 

 cial creation was questioned from time to time by learned men, 

 but no gi-eat progress was made until Charles Darwin advanced 

 The Theory of Natural Selecfiov. 



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