Descended with modification is a much worse term than evolve in this context because 1 it is the more roundabout way of stating the simple fact 2 it minimizes and pushes under the rug the central importance of evolution to his theory and 3 it is even less clear a term to most laypeople to most people descended means went lower and modification is something that s deliberately imposed not something that just occurs Evolved is an infinitely better choice in this context though I don t see any reason not to mention descent with modification as Darwin s preferred term lower in the article A 21st century article should use 21st century terminology where appropriate even when describing 19th century thinkers The way to remove the implications of evolution are to use it correctly not to abandon all use of it altogether That would just be surrendering it to its implications