Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1890-01-15
vIRCHOW ON DARWINiSM.
The Great German Biologists Latest Al
tack on n Popular Theory.

The Great German Biologists Latest At
tack on n Popular Theory.
Some sensation was caused at the
recent Anthropological congress in
Vienna by the speech of the great
Berlin biologist, Prof. Virchow.
About u year ago Virchow, on sim
liar occasion, made a severe attack on
the Darwinian position, and this year
he is similarly outp6ken. Following
Is an extract from his long address 10
the congress:
Twenty years ago. when we met at
Innspruck, it was precisely the mo-
ment when the Darwinian theory had
made its first victorious mark through
out the world. My friend Vogt at
once rushed into the ranks of the
champions of this doctrine. We have
since in vain sought for the interme-
date stages which were supposed to
connect man with the apes; the proto-
man, the pro.anthropos, is not yet dis
covered. For anthropological science
the pro-anthropos Is not even q subject
OF discussion. The anthropologist
may, perhaps, see him in dream, but
as soon as he awakes he can not say
that he has made any approach
toward him. At that time in Inns
pruck the prospect was, apparently,
that the course Of descent from ape to
man would be reconstructed all at
once; but now We can not even prove
the descent OF the separate races
from one another. AT this moment
we are able to say that among the
people Of antiquity no single one was
any nearer to the apes than we are.
AT this moment can affirm that there
is not upon earth any absolutely UNI
known race of men. The least known
OF all are the peoples OF the central
mountainous districts OF the Malay
peninsula, but otherwise we know the
people of Terra del Fuego quite as
well as the Esquimaux, Bashkirs,
POlynesians and Lapps. Nay, we
know more OF many of these races
than we do OF certain European tribes;
/ need only mention the Albanians.
Every living race is still human; no
single one has yet been found that wo
can designate as simian or quasi
simian. Even when in certain ones
phenomena appear which are charac-
teristic OF the apes-o. g.. tho peculiar
ape-liko projections OF the skull in GER
tain races-still we can not on that ac-
count alone say that these men are
ape-like. AS regards the lake
dwellers, have been able TO submit TO
comparative examination nearly every
single skull that has been found. The
result has been that we have certainly
met with opposite characteristics
among various races; but of all these
there is not one that lies outside Of the
boundaries OF our present population.
1t can thus be positively demonstrated
that in the course of five thousand
years no change OF type worthy Of
mention has taken place. If you ask
me whether the first man were white
or black / can only say don't know.
Twenty years ago." concluded
Prof. Virchow, "the leaders of our
conscience (anthropology) asserted
that they knew many things which
as matter Of fact they did not know.
Nowadays we know what we know.
l can only reckon up our account in so
far as to say that we have made no
debts-that Is, We have made no loan
from hypothesis; we are in no danger
of seeing that which we know over
ftrncd In tho co,,raa of Tho pavt mo
ment We have leveled the ground
so that the coming generation may
make abundant use of the material at
their disposition. As an attainable
objective OF the next twenty years we
must look forward to the anthropology
Of the European nationalities. Lon
don Times.