New-York tribune., 1902-05-26
ADAM and ETOLUTION.

Professor Henry Goodwin Smith. of the Lane
Theological Seminary. of Cincinnati. a Presby-
terian institution recently contributed an article
10 THE Evangelist" on Adam and evolution. in
which he declared that the traditional view of
Adam and the Creation is no longer tenable.
First. as to the antiquity Of man, until recently
Christians generally accepted the so-called
Ussher chronology. which places the Creation
1904 years before Christ Professor Hodge de-
cared it utterly incredible to hold that man
has existed hundreds of thousands Of years, and
Professor Shedd gave man an antiquity of only
six thousand or eight thousand years. DR.. y. A.
Hodge showed the influence of science by ad-
mitting that man might have existed for six
teen thousand years, and opened the door TO
further speculation on the subject by declaring
that God never said He created Adam SIX
thousand years ago
Professor Smith believes that If Genesis
is to be taken as divinely inspired history
this last statement Is not true. For that book
states specifically the number of years from
Adam TO Noah and from Shem TO Abraham.
The generations he says. ARE thus links in
chain. While the figures in the Samaritan and
'Septuagn texts differ considerably, It is an
evasion 10 say that these variations in the
texts show that Genesis teaches no chronology
''On the contrary. there is a definite chronology
lin every text Of Genesis, and in every text
'the interval between Adam and Abraham is
less than thirty-five hundred years. Egyptian
land Babylonian history now goes back of the
Genesis date of the food according to every
text of Genesis. The inerranCy of all the Gen
'esis texts must therefore be surrendered. or
there can be no reconciliation with the facts
now known through both archaeology and
geology concerning the antiquity of the human
1nI
connection of man and the anthropOid apes as
proved, and If that fact is established the be-
lief in special creation of man becomes I'M
tenable The examination of child intelligence
and that of the animal world disclOses n funda-
mental unity in their mental processes that
points TO n common origin. As to sin being the
cause of death It is a mere theological hypOthe-
sis which is opposed by the teaching of paleon-
tolOgy
Professor Smith does not believe that the Gre
alton story of Genesis is historical. but SYM
bollcal or alegorical. 1t bears close resem-
blance to the Babylonian legends Of the
Creation which are plainly not historical.
Evolution teaches that man has risen by slow
progression from the animal and the sensual
upward TO the spiritual. and the Creation story
may be fairly interpreted in harmony with that
theory. The word "falI' is not used In the
Bible. and the theological doctrine of a formal
covenant between God and Adam disappear.
with the literal historical nature of the first
chapters of Genesis.
In regard TO this well as other doctrines
Professor Smith believes that the view of
prolonged antiquity and Of a gradual mental
"and spiritual progression will modify or do
away with the conception of a primitive revela
''tOn. The Old Testament reveals progressive
manifestation of God Paul in Romans
teaches n constant rather than n primitive
revelation. . revision today that
ignores or rejects the generally accepted views
"Of modern knowledge. and retains the petty
"and incorrect conceptions of n past age will
mot satisfy the intelligence or conscience of the
presbyterian Church"