523 
bat in many respects affords the most unmistakable evidence of the 
relationship between these fossil and recent faunas, as for example, 
the fact that with one or two exceptions, the extinct as well as the 
existing animals of Australasia are marsupial, we have I think an 
amount of evidence before us which it is almost impossible to resist. 
It is quite true, as I originally insisted, that wo are reasoning upon 
a very imperfect amount of evidence, but every fresh paleontological 
discovery has invariably gone in the direction of supplying fresh 
arguments in favour of the theory of derivation ; and I have 
littlo fear therefore, that future evidence will do anything to reverse 
the unmistakable bearing of present facts. 
The controversy between evolution and its opponents, is, I think, 
strictly parallel to that carried on, some years ago, between the 
early geologists and their adversaries. Our forefathers found it 
impossible to believe that the natural causes which could bo 
observed in daily operation, were sufficient to bring about the 
stupendous changes in the configuration of the earth which geology 
professed to have accounted for. At first they denied that such 
changes had taken place, replying to facts like the occurrence of 
marine shells in strata far above the sea-level, that they were 
so created. 
"Wo can imagine one of the early 7 anti-geologists, when he was 
asked to believe that the summit of a mountain range, some 
thousands of feet in height, was composed of materials which had 
originally been deposited as sediment at the bottom of the ocean, 
but which had been elevated by the continuous operation of causes of 
no greater intensity than those which are now at work, or to whom it 
was pointed out the ravine in which he might be standing had been 
excavated by the comparatively insignificant mountain torrent at 
his feet — wo can imagine him objecting, that while there was a 
sufficient amount of change going on to give a colorable appearance 
to the theory, that the supposed causes were altogether incom- 
mensurate with the alleged results. Or, we may suppose his 
attention being called to one of the fiords in Norway, where 
successive deposits of sand containing sea-shells could be seen at 
different elevations, marking the sides of the surrounding hills. In 
