Blackfoot news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1891-1902, 1897-07-03
THE ACE OF THE woRup.
IL IL Maoh Greater Than Has Bee.
Supposed.

Supposed.
One OF the questions considered by
Prof. f. b. PouIton In his presidential
address before the geological section
OF the British association related 10
the length Of time required for the
development Of animal life on the earth
10 It's present condition, says Popular
Science Monthly; whether the pres
state Of archaeological and zoolog-
lcal knowledge diminishes or increases
the weight Of the opinion of Darwin.
Huxley and Spencer, that the time
during which the biologists concluded
that the fossiliferous rocks had been
formed was utterly insufficient for or
ganic evolution" The arguments OF
the physicists. derived from the sup
posed effect OF tidal action upon the
length OF the day, ard from the esti-
mated length Of time occupied by the
earth n cooling from an assumed tenn
perature TO its present condition, are
shown TO have been proved invalid as
bases for calculating the probable age
OF the earth as a ~life-bearing body.
The argument derived from the sup
posed life of the sun has not yet been
ruled out and that gives a maximum of
00,0O0,0O0 years. The computation of
the time required for depositing the
geological strata gives a minimum of
100000 and a maximum OF csc, 000,-
BOO years-possibly 400, 600 600 years.
The authors inquiry as TO how much
OF the whole scheme Of organic eyolu-
lion has been worked out in the time
during which the fossiliferous rocks
were formed does not deal with the
time required for the origin Of life or
for the development OF the lowest be-
ings with which we are acquainted
from the first formed beings Of which
we know nothing; but only with so
much of the process Of evolution as
we can infer from the structure OF liy-
Ing and fossil forms.
The comparison Is made from a
study Of the evolution OF the phyla. AL
available evidence points TO the ex-
IRENE slowness of progressive evolu-
tionary changes in the coelenterate
phyla. although the protocol are even
more conservative. When we consider
further on the FIVE coelenterate phyla
that occur fossil we shall find that the
progressive changes were slower and
indeed hardly appreciable in the echi-
noderms and gephyrea, as compared
whit the mollusca. appendiculata and
vertebrate. Within these latter phyla
we have evidence for the evolution OF
higher groups, presenting a more or
less marked advance in organization.
As a whole, the comparison is quite
enough TO necessitate a very large in
crease In the time estimated by the
g~eologist. We can hardly escape the
conclusion that. for the development
OF the arthropod branches from a COM
mon chetopodlike ancestor and for the
further development OF the classes of
each branch, a period many times the
length Of the fossiliferous series is re-
Quired. The evolution of the ancestor
OF each OF the higher animal phyia
probably occupied as long a period as
that required for the evolution which
subsequently occurred within the ply
ium. But the consideration OF the
higher phyia which occur fossil. except
the vertebrate. leads TO the irresistible
conclusion that the whole period in
which the fossiliferous rocks were laid
down must be multiplied several times
for this later history alone. The period
thus obtained requires to be again in
creased and perhaps doubled for the
earlier history.