Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1852-12-31
LETTERS TO MIR. ]. s. CRIMES.
No. 2.-rHE DEVELOPMENT HYPOTHESIS

nistic. You say, "God created all organized be-
ings, vegetables, animals and man, by the agency
of the circumstances by which they were success
fully surrounded II. Agein, you say, "It is
startling announcement that our Ancestors once
inhabited the mighty deep, and, sustained, on
broad extended fins, rowed through the vast
Ocean" p IS. Startling indeed! Much more
than startling! 1t is absurd, aud without the
shadow Of shade in Science, in reason, or in com
mon sense to sustain it, In antagopism to this,
the Bible represents God nssGying: "Let us make
man in our image, after our likeness tuot in the
image of brond tinny fsh.) "And Tie Lo:d God
formed mau of the dust ofthe ground, and breath
ed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man
became living SOUL" '"There is spirit IN
man, and the inspiration of the Almighty giVeth
him understandings" The development hYpothe-
sis Of old Epicurus, and of MI. Grimes, says,
othat animals sprang from fishes, which gradual
ly, and after uges ofrapproxmation,T became at
length capable of living on land,-at first for
few moments, then longer, and at length contin-
ued," II. The Bible says, "In the day that God
created man." "He spake, and it was done, He
commanded and it stood fast forever 1t says
also, that Adam tDas the Son Of God, not the son
of fish. a=yla4 ,.s7-sEs a-.tfe-s
Now, to meet this development hypothesis and
here let it be remembered, it is not TO meet one
single fact in Geology, the Bible in Sdiyine facts,
must be resolved into fubles, myths, falSehoods,
and this mythic, deluSive, and deceptive book,
the writers of which, were too ignorant to state
fact in such an age of barbarism, were not too ig
norant, to "teach the world great moral lesson
concerning the consequences of mans disobedi-
liz
moral truths inculcated are OF the utmost impor
lance, the phy.ica doctrines and illustrations be-
Icing TO barbarous age, aud may be rejected with
proprety'' pal.
Professor Oxen, in his "Elements of Physio-.
Philosophy also says: cali life is from the Sea.
Where the Sea organism, by self elevation, sue
ceeds it attaining into form, there issues forth from
it a higher organism. The first creation of the
organic took phase, where the first mountain sum-
mits prooctedout ofthe SEA-, indeed ,othOut doubt;
in India, if th~Himaiaga be the highest mOuntGin,"
MdiHet, more than century before wrote TO cX-
actly the same effect. For him however, there
was an excuse, because Geology was then no sci
encc. But it is remarked by Hugh Miller, that
Prince of Biologists, that ait is curious fact
that all the leading assertors of the development
nypOlleSlS nave DGGh Euu GGOlOSiSLS Anu IudI IL
cannot be out of place 10 remark farther, that geo.
logical discovery limo degree responsible for the
infdelity of the development hypothesis. Seeing
that in the first place, the hypothesis is greatly
more ancient than the diScOUcrics and, in the sec
ond that its more prominent assertors are erdctty
The tOhO knOtD least Of geological facts" Foot
prints p. 22I-3.
Now, with such system as you, sir, have pro-
poSed-lnlSe, yet plausible; eagerly embraced, yet
fraught with error and danger-where shall the re-
futation be found2 Obviously, in the very science
which teaches the order in which created beings
appeared. But when we appeal thus to Geology,
we do not imply that there is no other REPUTATION,
for there is no essential position of the whole
scheme which you advocate which is not hypothe-
teal. 1t is system of IFS. This is an insurmounta
BILE objection to its reception. We may admit thut
when Two species are nearly related in structure,
and each species capable of some modification of
that structure, the higher might have been develop
ed from the lower; yet, we contend that there is
proof, in a single instance that it has been so.
STILL willing to meet the issue of the inquiry,
whether there has been succession of improve
ment, from one geological epoch to another, in
the divisions of the animal or vegetable kingdom.
We admit that the lowest forms of animal life are
those of which the remains are found lowest in the
series. MolasseS appear first; then, in order,
fishes, reptiles, birds, QuadrupedS, monkeys, and
finally man. But this fact has no bearing upon the
question at issue. The question is-did either of
these classes their first appearance, possess the
lowest organization of its cIaSSe and attained, by
its gradual development, the highest? Let us, for
example, take the the fishes; were they, at first,
diminutve in size, possessing low type of Organi-
cation; and have they advanced in each successive
geological period to the present tilne3 We take
fishes because they were created at very early pc
Rod in the history of our planet 1t true, their
remains not found in the LO,Oest fossiliferous
starta; yet, they are found lower down than the
Siberian or New York System, and in formations
where fossils are yet fonnd in any abundance; but
they continue to appear in all the subsequent forma
tons to thepresent time Now, I'VE contend that there
Is no known circumstance Interference TO the habits,
size or structure Of the former neriod, which re-
quires that they should be degraded 10 lower
place than those of the later. Is.
The sum of geological evidence, then, in this de-
partment is that, previous to ecreatoa of fishes,
there were animals bearing any resemblance
in structure, habits and mode of life-to themj
that when they do appear, they have already re-
received the highest organization and the largest
cerebral development which, so far as yet appears,
they are capable of receiving; and that there no
progress made in Ibis class of animals during the
long succession of ages, since they first appeured:
yet vast number of LOWER species of fishes have
appeared, filled up their measure of existence and
disappeared. This is surely bad witness for the
development hypothesis. With quotation from
Hugh Miller. close the present communication,
purposing inmy next to notice the relation existing
the principles of Geology and The principles
of Religion:
'IEduring period so vast as TO scarce express-
BILE by figures, the creatures-now human have
beenrising, by almost infnitesmals, from compound
microscopic cells, until they have become the men