The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-10-25

other lives; and to 1t experience
stretches out both hands in vain
Are you doubtful? Wait Are you
sure? Then you can afford to wait"
There is no sin to hearts that love,
says the poet There is no love to
hearts that SIM
Life is complex from the newborn
babes first glance. What will you
take-the moon, or the rattle. or
mothers eyes?"
ITO have hated him was religious
education"
(''The Beginning Of the End Boston.
Little. Brown Co. s1.25.)
debate, animated and sometimes
acrimonious, Is now going on in the
scientific world, which reminds one
strangely Of the 'iota" and "flioque"
discussions of ancient theological polem-
les. 1t is a. biological battle Of theories
to explain facts. some Of which are only
apparent to the mind Of the contes-
tants, not having yet been yielded by
observation.
But the trouble has a universal value
because Of its curious relation to the
question Of heredity, which has SO
much human and social interest 1t
will be worth while to give a brief ac-
count Of the matter:
WeisSnpan is the name that repre-
sents the new doctrine. According to
him the protoplasm which used to be
quite sufficient to explain the develop
ment of all forms of life is really Of
only secondary Importance. To take
its place he assumes a substance which
he terms germplasm. This is found in
the nuclear material within living cells
This germplaSm has most minute COM
plications. Among other things 1t has
a veritable architecture derived from a
long history of life that imposes a
specific form on each individual. But
the most important part of the hypoth-
esis lies in the statement that in the
egg from which all life in every rank
OF being may be said to spring, the cell
division occurs in such manner that
the organs of reproduction have exactly
the same character that the structure
itself receives. This occurs through a
doubling division of the germ cells. AS
this separation of function takes place
in the very initial movement of life it
follows that the history of each indi-
vidual is Of no Importance to it's i'm
mediate descendant. Acquired quail
ties of the individual cannot be trans
mitted, precisely because the reproduc-
tive apparatus Is definitely fixed with
ali its determinants prior to the life
history of the body built out of the
other part Of the cell. By repeated
divisions Of the germplasm, generation
follows generation in strict physical
Immortality. 1t would not follow that
the weakness OF an organization might
not affect the proper development of
the offspring, but it would follow that
the offspring. for example in the human
species, would inherit neither the
virtues nor the vices Of it's immediate
ancestors.
Oscar Hertwig is the most prominent
biologist to attack the Weissman the
DRY. According to him there is a body
OF facts which this theory of the germ
plasm does not explain, and by which
1t is amply refuted. He adduces SUCH
low organisms as the slime fungi. In
which every cen in TIE entire body has
the power of reproducing another body
like itself. This diffusion would show
that the theory of cells for the body as
distinct from cells for reproduction has
no foundation in fact. Then there Is
the familiar phenomenon Of the grow
ing Of the willow from the slips OF
branches. SO that all the characters of
the entire tree must have been disposed
In various parts Of the structure never
intended by nature for reproduction.
= hydras, a mails or snail may have