New-York tribune., 1877-06-27


regions. do NOT however, despair OF beng aiie
continents Al nrcscnt. while od1soned cltastrophes,
nvoying repeated world -giie destruction OF all e,su
the revolt oi the biologists OF his tHe justly r.
pudAted On the other haud. the mild aai.matous Of
the f2raus, that existing rates ~ change and
indefinite time are ample TO FOR the past.
fatty and eInphaucay cOntradcted by American facts.
dovctaling ther of the two IDEAS. The ages have
progressed the stil way through
vast lapscs Of time followed the stately nov OF years,
drifting on by inseusbe gradat0ns through higher and
higher forms. ana then all al pert of the earth
suffered snort sharp, destructive revolution un-
heralded earthquake or volcanic cruptions.
The sciences are ~ independent bodily organs;
they are inc Vtals OF human knowledge. fallacy
lodged in produces functional disturbance Of the
others IL was the error OF universal and extreme
trophies which 80 violated the conceptions OF Lamarck,
Goethe aud St Hilae as to draw o their earnest pro-
test. and as usual they urged the pendulum past the
golden me- OF truth % the counter OF
treue Uniformfnransn This later error has been con
ndenty in ~ one OF the cOrnerstones OF the i'm
posing structure Of Evolution. believe the crumbHng,
valucess nature of ths foundation win yet make ITSELF
fen IN he RUN just ~ Guch as the builders have rested
upon IT,
CATASTROPHE AND EVOLUTION
II the vcissIuJes OF planet have beeu marked
by catastrophes as believe, how does that Law aect
conceptions Of the development OF life and
the hypothesis OF Evolution MN, whatever the
drift OF life philosophy, with rest
less eagerness, with pathetic anxiety to the en-
gma OF his own origin, his nature his destiny
courage, with cowardice, by every Of approach
in every age, the old problem Is confronted. We
pour out passionate quesonngs, and hearken lest
mute nature may this time answer But nature only
yields one syllable OF reply at a time.
Darwin. who in his day has caught the syllable
from natures lips, advances always with canton and
although ne practically rejects does positively deny
tie existence OF sudden changes In the earth his
tory. Huxley. permeated in every fiber bY belief in
Evolution feels That even today Catastrophn not vet
/.
who bang all the doors shut ont ali doubts, aud haunt
their little sign. Omuiscence on draught here" It
u,uat he hnvever that hfoior-v whole denies
str0pism In order - Evolution. IL is the
mistake Of biologists 10 assume that catasirOpGes
ord meaning b. that the observed gaus 0f hfe tle
absence OF connecting links OF fossils between Older and
sets of successive strata There never more
seIiuus CutasuOphes are far surely proved
by tc observed meccauical rup'urc. uspi ccneut on
gllmeut crmping, and crushing of the rocky surface
OF the globe Granted tAat the evidence would nave
been slightly less perfect h4d there been no lie
TIL the present period sull t1c reading would
have been amply Conclusive. The archaeological
record b. as imperfect as Darwin pleads. Dut The dy mamie
record is yuaIrd 10y no such aln5 suty.
IL the business of geology TO work ont the changes
OF tho past consuaton OF the gobe ana IT'S climate TO
produce series o maps oI tG successive Stages Vi me
continents and ocean basins but u Is also s business 10
investigate ana nN Tue rates "l chanSe Eeo".y ~ ho
solely science 81 ancient c"ufEui d0n. III ~ also
history the ng rat agd mode Of action ot ;errr.
mgut and must BE- solved regardless of biology 1t
must be oased sound physical principles, aud esab
Ashed Dy FfclrdSp proof lt' eFou'i"h ol eH'Ir"
ment, distinct branch oi geology which must soon
take form. will DO NOT hesitate TO assrt o. found
to dcpead on a Iew lrnad laws, 2hu nitltt lie Cn-
formitatitnism Of LycI aud IiuftOl Darwin anj
Hlecke the universal CatasropAi,m 0f cuyier ana
tue majority ot lelcoi"-'i', wiz he NUMBERED among
these laws. In tue dominant philosophy OF the modern
biologist tncrc is no admission ui middle Erounu o-
tween these two t'orc-, N"ich l. tor one, am G o t-
jcct. Huxley alon" among prominent evoiutiDhisei
open, the door TO- union OF e du OF tlutl ~ ID
Two SCHOOLS, lu>iN- ti'h ih H4- I'P"rN L''''i" i''
Geology. Looking back Oy,r tril4 ot thirty Thousand
mics OF geological travel aa after as close reocl
"s am capable, am iinleirl l." -,s ,n''e Li5 .et &
sighted view precisely SATISFIES my interpretation OIL the
broad facts OF the American conluent.
The admission Of even muU , cttastsOn he, namely,
suddenly destructive, e, but not a-cstIiel chan- 49,
OF COURSE, do"nrsgl rejection Of sliTcJ lHAorit4-
rdui,H cDlhpthrau t,'t ulp'ithe- Oh tue pJet oh'
how farrcIcus and rlilcll me logical couscQ ience
Of this belief must be- II true 10 IS nothing less h1n
an isnitt oonfs&e thrown INTO the camp OF the oi-
oSrts. who have Tranquility bulis upon CnrorWltdr
ansm, and The supposed mperccon oi the geological
record. rOtc lev Cd. their characteristic Uttelces.
Ltmarck. iu FktiOs0ghis Gc5tgi4He" 1909, says
Ine kinds suecies O ,uisms OF unequal age,
developed one atcf diiotiei dhu 7h'" OILY q t1.sll'e
aud temporary persistence. species arise out o vc-
ties. In the Irst beginning only tie very simplest
ava lowest ailn di' pam 'iht " utci tu' 80
of "a more complex organization only at later period
The Of tae eorhf drvru uputnt, .nd tnlt of Us
organic inhabitants WIS cuht il"u- mo-, lh'e fut.ed y
violent revolutions. Ire simplest animals Ild
the Simplest plane, wnicA st'tld at tae lowest p2u a
the scale oI OfsduZ'iloh' nave ofi-u"lti ana sun
originate by spo.iineodt ecncratlOi;. D p" NJ
cauti1us in Attempting 10 corcatr a. stlciR co'H -
rluo5us two formations, which include lev idcn ical
spacics ay The general succession ol trf oThs OF uc
a. species are produced and eXterminated hy slowly
acting aud stu acting causes ana not ny ulficous acts
0 creation and ~ ea;astr"nhts. Ana a-iin' Tor iil
part. loi9"lu. "t l5ei. h"dphof o'h A' c i''i.'
Geological record, history ol the world imper-iiy
kept. anna wrlicl ll changing datcl; oi gus history
possess ie -f volume alone r' iin- Only lc JN' or
tlrcc cOuutrc. OI tl- volume, Only mere and t1cic
here and there few lines. Eich W1id oi th' Slowly
changing an-Liee lA Wiru te history i' "fl''tu piNE
or les. dAcreni 10 tue sue esiFe ctitte>, may
reure-cut tnc 3H'rnt5 a'faplE cl.i- ''l' OF i.~
entunued u consecutive n1t widely separated for
nations ON ts Wv tie d,'i'il.le- a9'Fe discussed
an. -rcatI, diminished, or even Gistpueir.'
IL s unnecessary % repeat Aer ite Weino Wn views
OF LyrlL How Tar biologists have learned u lean on
hs uEliormtdrai cone n''ii' "'t De SCI ron .ii .
following quotation from HIerhc History OF creation
vol. j., pages IL, Is 10; ne lL''D ri.'f
that tuos- changes oi TIE cafth surface "H't. c ,
taxing place before our eyes gre perfectly surent 10
explain everything We KNOW OF tne develop nhJ oi tae
urlfs. 90 seek for mysterious causes IN ueNpcabr rev
oIu.ious lie showed that Ee ue,d ony have recourse
10 the hypothesis ~ NcselI-l "li- r'l..s ~ li
In order explain the formation or TIE crust OF the
earth IN tie simplest and most natural manner. ny the
means or the very stc c'T.t N.lcH "a .'c = 81 ' -, H. w
Many eeol0gists mad previously imagined tJ the h'zh
est cnaus or mountains which rice on the surface OF the
earth could owe th"r "flelh uLN 10 ei''lIvts ~
tons, Transforming great part 0t tlc catth 5ul'se
of mountains as those of the Alps the COriicras
were believed 10 have arisen direct fioh tHe hr! H
of the interior OF the earth through an enormous chdS
in the bFoRen crust Lyeil on tue otAer hind showeu
that explain tAe formation OF sH,h eotilors %
and inperceptbe risins aud 0rpftssOhs Ol thc e' W
surface which stIl continually taxing place. lnd te
causes Of which Dy no means miraeuIous' Alu"uth
these depIessI0us ana Il--AiHs i'! - i -I - If y
10 few ucncs. at most lew iet, III lic COURSE ol
thew are uerecy sufficient 10 raise mp the hl2 chains
~ vout the and ~ NY sterious aud lnc0mpre-
G.i'.,.is r,.v,,lutnus We have l1ug known, even
fr the structure Of the strhthed crust Of the earth
ona r if orlin and the formation or neptune rocks
fr,n .,ir must have taken az least several millions oI
veals From a strictly philosophical point OF view, IL
y,es no qilF.rei.ce wuctacr hyp0tbelciiy assume
for inns furc., ten millions ten thousand nl0ns oI
years Before lis and behind rs lies eternity. Ihi' y
ye,, holder tnau Hutton. Who says; take THINGS i7
ana ti, nt present and from Jnese reason rs fceids
which uii.t have ncciL \ th''' y p .'l.t,'-t
eict h. limited ID the actual constitution or TINS edIth
cnn1t n. "a lowed To- proceed step beyond TIE pres
I'M. .rccessive hypotheses which. linked together
f-I r.e cs,:n of Evoutou are, first, the ncpuar hA
nnlnesl. sccumd spuntlncudn ErlrIlIIoH ilIIu, &