CHAPTER XXXI 
EVOLUTION 
433. Doctrine of Special Creation. In the time of 
Linnaeus, the "father of botany," men believed that the 
seven "days" of creation left the world substantially as 
we now find it. The stars and planets, mountains and 
oceans, plants and animals were created once and for all, 
and continued without important change until the present. 
In the beginning, as now, there were the same oceans and 
hills, the same kinds of plants, and the same kinds of 
animals. Nor, it was believed, are any fundamental 
changes now in progress. Creation was not continuous; 
it took place within a brief period (seven "days"), and 
then ceased; after that the Creator merely watched over 
the objects of his handiwork. 
434. Meaning of Evolution. Evolution means gradual 
change. Applied to the natural world the theory of 
evolution is the direct opposite of the doctrine of special 
creation. It teaches that things were not in the beginning 
as we now find them, but that there has been constant 
though gradual change. Creation is regarded, not as 
having taken place once and for all, but as being a con- 
tinuous process operating from the beginning without 
ceasing and still in progress. 
435. The Course of Evolution. The theory teaches 
that the gradual changes have been from relatively 
simple conditions to those more complex. The com- 
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