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hypothesis ; bat if its origin be acknowledged, our flights of 
imagination and our scientific inquiries will necessarily fall 
into accordance with our cognizance of what that origin is 
calculated to effect. 
The strangest of modern instances which sustains the 
position that assumed life will sanction almost any hypothesis, 
is the derivation of man, by the developists, from the lowest 
forms of life. According to these, man began his career, it is 
difficult to say where. They track him, however, to the 
sponge ; thence to the star-fish or sea-urchin ; thence to the 
limpet or lobster. An osseous structure next falls upon him : 
he becomes invested with fins and scales — lo ! man is a fish. 
Subsequently he rose to the dignity of a reptile ; he hissed in 
the serpent or croaked in the frog. Then feathers appeared; 
and he took to pecking grain and grubs as the crow, or tore 
flesh as the eagle. In due time, down he came from the 
regions of air — fur sprouted where feathers grew — and he 
was found, either burrowing underground as the mole, or 
springing from branch as the nimble squirrel, or preying 
upon what was once himself as the otter ; but which of these 
does not seem to be quite clearly made out. Passing upward, 
he appeared in his present form as the child of an ape ; or, to 
account for diversity of race, at least three monkey mothers 
were concerned in the prodigy or progeny; — both, indeed. 
Hence, we see, man was not created at all ; but “ growed 33 
like poor Topsy — growed, gradually, from vegetable to intel- 
lect ; mind — the intelligence to will and to do — halving 
wriggled itself out of a fucus, or some such thing; and 
appeared on the stage of humanity — intellect, speech, and all 
through the monkey medium. I don’t think we are anywhere 
told how it was that the first monkey-man was not Roth first 
and last of his race. 
The development theory is a fair illustration of what may be 
imagined under life assumed, without reference to its origin. 
A latitude is thereby afforded for all kinds of absurdities; 
and, instead of a steady research, under control, the mind is 
apt to wander off into the very burlesque of science. I only 
allude to this fanciful theory, to show the necessity for a 
thorough understanding of the introduction of life. 
Different attempts are made to set up some sort of origin 
for the living. Time is by some quoted as an indispensable 
element in the production of life. Old Edax Rerum has a task 
assigned him directly opposed to his usual labours. Instead 
of the reaper, he is the sower of the seed. Instead of remorse- 
lessly mowing us down, we are his cherished offspring. 
Geology, very modestly, requires millions of years. Allow but 
