Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1901-11-30


ERNST HAECkEL. Paris.
1t Is stated that during his expedition
TO Java, begun last year, Prof. Haeckel
has found striking evidence in support
Of the theory, advanced for the first
time only few months ago by Vir'
chow, that monkeys are descended from
nan. and not man from monkeys. That,
in fact. monkeys are nothing less than
degenerated humans.
Ernst Haeckel, now professor Of
zoology mt Jena University. was the
first distinguished scientist to fully &c.
cept Darwln's theory when the "Orlgln
Of Species" was published. The sciep.
tifc world was trembling on the brink
Of the revolution he caused later by
the publication Of "Thc Descent Of
Man." when Haeckel anticipated Oar.
win in his most far-reaching cOnclu.
slOns, and In measure prepared the
world for the startling doctrines limited
at In the "Orlgin Of Species" and fully
promulgated In "The Descent Of Man."
Since then Haeckel has been the most
advanced among the evolutionlsts. He
has long asserted that the history uf
man IL complete In all Its essential de-
tails. and that all that now remains to
be done IL to Ill in here and there such
concrete evidence as geological and
archaeological research shall reveal.
In his Systematic Phylogeny." o
monumental work in three volumes, he
made theoretIc systematic arrange
ment Of the vegetable and animal
worlds living and extinct on the basis
Of the law Of evolution. The work has
been called q vast pedigree tree, with
man Mt the top and the lowest non.
indicated cell ut the bottom. In this
pedigree there were no empty or un
accounted spaces. Haeckel construct.
Cd hypothetical animals and organisms,
and to him, In theory, there was nc
missing link.
twenty-five years before the discov.
cry Of Dubois pithccanthropus Haeckel
had foreseen in his phylogeny such q
creature, and he had christened II ''pith.
ecanthropus allalus," or the apelike
man before language. He gave to II
a place midway In the order Of life be.
tween the highest ape and the lowest
human.
In 1900 DR.. Eugene Dubois, n Dutch
army physician. travelling in Java. un.
earthed the fossil remains of a hitherto
undiscovered creature. There were only
a thigh bone. two mOlar teeth, and q
Uranium. Scientists hailed the creature
reconstructed theoretically from these
few fOsslllzed bones us the vertable
missing link. The size of the Uranium
showed that the creature had cranal
capacity for exactly 1000 c. NJ. 3. as
against the cranial capacity Of the high.
est known gorilla Of 65 C. NJ. 3. and the
cranial capacity Of the lowest form of
human, the Veddah woman Of CeylOu
or the bushman Of Australia, with 1900
c. NJ. 3. The thigh bone and teeth were
those of fully developed human Of
medium height.
Dubois called his discovery the plthe.
canthrOpus erectus, or the apellke man.
Scientists differed as to the origin of
the plthecanthropus. and the late Prof.
Cope, Of the University Of Pennsyl.
vania, was Of the opinion that 1t was q
species OF the homo neanderthalensle
and about 1900 years old.
TO Haeckcl the discovery was Of i'm
mense importance. In September, las,
year, he organized small expedition
and set out for Java In the hope Of max
ing fresh discoveries corrobOrative q
his systematic phylogeny. He, with nj
other scientists who had investigated
Dubois discovery, regarded the pithe
canthropus as having indisputable Wis
ual evidence of one Of the most Import
ant steps In the evolution Of man.
IF Prof. Haeckel has made any such
discovery" said DR.. Edgar Grant Conk
lin. professor Of zoology at the Univer
sity Of Pennsylvania. "Or II he has re
canted his former multitudinous writ
ings and lecturings sufficiently to make
any such statement 1t means that one
Of the most remarkable revolutions II
biological science has taken place. Il
he has made discoveries there" cOntin
ued Prof. Conklin. having explained
Haeckel's position with regard to evO
luton. (which would cause him to 70
verse all his established views. to re
cant the preachings Of busy and {
long lifetime. they must be Of an i'm
pOrtance ! cannot pretend to calculate.