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[May, 
ANALYSES OF BOOKS. 
Evolution and Involution. By George Thomson. London : 
Trubner and Co. 
We opened this book in the hope of finding here the demon- 
stration of some important and hitherto unrecognised lawtouching 
the development of organic existence. We thought that the 
author might have got sight of what has escaped the vision of 
Darwin to wit, the initial cause of those variations which 
<< Natural Seleftion ” at the best can only preserve and accumu- 
late We were grievously disappointed. The “idea” of the 
work is probably to test that supposed indefinite quantity, the 
patience of unfortunate reviewers. We have here a repetition, 
in its grossest form, of the threadbare and now utterly inexcus- 
able error that Evolutionism is an attack upon the existence of 
God. We quote the following most deplorable passage : — 
“ Messrs. Darwin, Spencer, Huxley, &c., in England, and a few 
similarly inspired Germans, Frenchmen, and Americans, have at 
the appointed time appeared on the stage of existence to enlighten 
humanity, and to show what stupid fellows all former men have 
been, and what more stupid fellows we are in adhering so long 
to anything to which these stupid ancestors have given utterance. 
It seems that the ancestors of the present races of men some- 
how stupidly took into their heads that there was a personal God 
in being, the author and complement of all, and that we more 
stupidly have been for ages worshipping this imaginary Being by 
way of praying and singing psalms to Him, and after divers 
other fashions, all attesting the folly and credulity of the human 
race. Now, however, there is to be no more of this nonsense 
and stupidity,” &c. „ ,_ f 
This passage seems doubtless to Mr. George Thomson very 
killing irony. We can pronounce it nothing but an entire mis- 
apprehension of Evolutionist teachings,— a perversion simply 
disgraceful to its author, who ought before writing on Evolution 
at any rate to have acquired some acquaintance with its nature 
and tendencies. Had he been conscientious enough to learn 
before teaching, he would have found that the “ few similarly in- 
spired Germans, &c.” comprise well nigh the total body of men 
capable of understanding the question of the origin of the forms 
of organic beings ; he would have found that the dodtrine of 
Evolution leaves the existence of a personal God precisely where 
it was before, though it may lead us to different and worthier 
