The Portland daily press., 1873-08-23
erage human skull which might have belonged

erage human skull which might have belonged
to philosopher"
Again the oldest skull found in America, so
far as knsw, about which there can be no
question that its possessor was contemporary
Win the early Mound Builders, the elephant
ana mastodon, was found in a large mound in
North Madrid County, Missouri, inclosed in an
inverted earthen pot, resting npon the ancient
dirt hoor in an apartment of the mound which
contained the altar and the charred remains of
many victims. The mouth of the lar SO
small the skull could not be removed whole.
Thi skull was taken out in the presence of
several gentlemen from depth of thirty feet
below the undisturbed surface of the mound
which was covered with vegetable soil some
two feet deep, and on which were growing the
older trees of primitive forest, and stumps
and fallen logs still older, were decaying. This
precious relic of the earliest Americans, is
small, perfectly preserved, thin, of fine texture,
oval rather than ellptical and belonged to a
beautiful woman; it may be, a Hebe or Mother
Eve. desired to show you this skull, but did
not dare to risk its transportation. This mound
was built on second bench of the Mississippi,
and about six feet of aluvial matter bas been
deposited since it was deserted. In the bank
OF creek near and apparently in the same
formation that had been deposited around the
mound, was found the tooth OF a mastodon.
We opened another small burial mound near
the one mentioned above. 1t gave the same
indications of antiquity. In It we found on
rounding surface, that many bodies had been
deposited, but nothing remained save a dark
stain and some gray calcareOus powder, show
ing where Dust turned to dust, and some en-
amel of the teeth. In this mound we also
found great many curious earthen vessels
ornamenued with plastic representations of an
imals and women. Of the latter some few rep
resent the whole body, others the head and
and faces represent race as highly developed
as the average Mongolian, or the best develop
ed Indian tribes.
/ will assure you there is nothing in all these
representations of humans and animals to re-
mind you of the monkey but the arms of one
of the women, and even they though very diff
ferent from he arms which art has given
Mother Eve, are still very exact representa-
tion of the long lean arms of the Malaysiau
women.
Other skulls of inferior structure and great
antiquity have been found, but absolutely moth
ing to show man was less developed there than
now
The historical record then gives us no indi-
cation of mans physical development from the
monkey even during the 500, 900 years he is sup
posed to have lived upon the earth.
But Mr.. Darwin appeals to the illimitable
| geological cycles But if monkey is to be de-
veloped into man, and we find that man has
made little progress and the monkey less, dur
| ing the vast periods of the Quaternary and re-
cent ages, how long will it take TO ill the wide
| gap between them?
| this question. The advocates of progressive
development must look for mans primoidal
stock in an epoch more distant from the tertiary
than the tertiary is from the present, and that
will carry his beginning beyond all monkeys
and beyond all mammals, and he will be COM
PEELED to start from a reptilian or a fish. As
much therefore we gain in time we lose by
beginning lower on the development scale.
There are therefore, two insuperable objec-
tions to the development of the monkey into
man.
1st. The m ,nkey had no rudiments of moral
sense or anything kindred to it which could
possibly be developed iuto mans moral nature.
The whole theory of development by natural
selection is based upon like producing like. No
natural selection ever could have produced
race of Retrievers had not some dog learned to
retrieve, that he might be selected to propagate
that race
There is therefore no possibility of making
moral being out of monkey by natural selec-
ton, unless some monkey with moral sense
can be found to operate upon. Without this
not step can be made by natural selection.
I'd. The facts in mans vastly long history
fail to show even the slightest probability that
the physical monkey was developed into the
physical man.
If then as scientific men we follow where the
facts lead and nowhere else, man must be
dropped from the series before the theory can
be accepted as true.
Like Mr.. Darwin we must also admit organ
isms to start with
Again the theory will be relieved of serious
difficulty by not requiring the change of plants
to ANNALS. 1t is quite as simple to suppose
each comes from its own peculiar primoidal
germs.
With some few notifications of this charac-
ter, the devel .pment theory is relieved of its
most serious difficulties.
Mr.. Darwin has much confidence in the
changes produced by domestication to establish
his theory. His book is rich in interesting and
instructive facts But the facts do not carry
fba oypa iafio tn oil
The facts incident to domestcation are in
some respects very valu able, since much greater
changes are produced by the aid and skill of
man than in the state of nature. Yet these
changes can not have the same value in deter
mining the question at issue. since nearly or
quite all the species have been produced in a
state of nature and under very different inhu>
ences. Even if we give these changes all the
short of any conviction stronger than possibili-
ties; species has boon produced in oil tho
thousand years of the trial. Cuvier's argument
from the animals and plants found embalmed
in the ancient Egyptian tombs, mere than neu-
tralizes all the convictions from modern
changes. Add to this the argument that is
coming down from the prehistoric ages, and
the negative becomes very strong. If in these
many cycles man with all his Skill aided by
al! climates, soils food and varied habits, has
not produced a species where will he be able to
do it?
Then again the universal tendency to return
to original forms when left to nature, makes it
very improbable that such changes would occur
in nature. 1t shows at least that there is no
strong tendency to depart from original types.
The hog has been greatly changed by domes-
ticaton, and yet when left to himself, he soon
returns to the orig ginal type.
During the late war many hogs some of the
most improved breeds, were turned loose and
left to shift for themselves. Two years after 1
found them possessing all the physical charac-
teristics of the wild boar of Europe. This was
l1vf of bQ ,,orS Of fI,a
herds.
Since such is the tendency with all animals
and plants, it seems to indicate natural sta
bity of original types.
The American Bison. furnishes very inter
esting example of changes produced by the
physical structure of the regions they occupy
There are several we-known herds, which
range in certain wooded and high regions of
the Rocky Mountains. These herds never come
down to the plains. They leave their peculiar
hauntS only when driven down by excessive
SHOWS. They then remain among the foot hills
until the snow permits their return to their
mountain Businesses How long these herds
have occupie d these places no one can tell but
long enough to produce such changes as we'll
known laws would indicate They are smaller,
have finer hair and darker color, and have more
activity and sprightlineSs than their kindred of
the plain. But il would be safe to predict
rapid disappearance of all these variations,
should they be driven out to feed in the broad
Bison, are as great as the laws lead us to sus-
pect, should they remain in their present homes
indefinitely. Should they migrate. they can
find no possible location, that would increase
their variations, each new place would turn
them back is their normal types.
There are some important facts pertaining to
the distribution of the American Bison show
ing he has limited capacities for migrations.
All the facts known of those mountain herds
above named, shew they confine themselves to
very limited areas. They never go b. yond the
limits of cluster of spurs or range Of peaks,
and hunters seldom fail to find them in a sin
gle day.
Benton says the 'Buffaloes are the best en-
gineers." They show great skill in selecting
routes and unflinching perseverance in filling
up chasms and quagmires with their own bod
les. But they seldom cross the Rocky Noun
tains, though his trail leads hard by passes over
which unimproved, one could drive his car
riage. The numerous skulls whitening along
the Deer Lodge Pass, and down the valleys of
the Silver Bow and Deer Lodge towards the
Columbia show that multitudes once crossed
and perished. Why? Their annual migra-
l. Al A. T-1 r