Arizona republican., 1903-03-09

a smile as wild speculation not worth
serious answer.
But coming as 1t does from such a
man as DR.. Wallace, whose many sci
entific books are shining and authori-
tative in their in their own field, COM
ing from man who might fairly claim
to stand in Darwin's own shoes as the
true father of the great doctrine of evo-
luton, the proposition cannot be pass
ed by in silence. 1t must cause every
thinking man to pause, even though It
be only in amazement.
1T furnishes a splendid argument
and powerful weapon for those reac-
tionary thinkers who. without any real
comprehension of the meaning of recent
scientific advance, are striving to bring
the world back again to the standpoint
of the old theology and of science in its
| swaddling clothes.
"It is important. then, to take some
of the chief points in DR.. Wallace's
argument and examine them in the
light that science affords.
First, he asserts as preliminary
step in proving the superlative import
ance of the earth and of man in the
eyes of the Almighty Creator that tina
starry universe is not infinite in extent.
This may be freely granted. Astron-
omy does not claim that the visible uni
| verse extends to infinity.
Can any one believe that the AL
mighty, for the mere purpose of Great
ing man as the chief of His works,
formed in the far-off depths of space
suns ten thousand times greater than
the one that shines upon the favorite
creature of His hands, and left them
with no life basking in the presence
and no lofty forms Of intelligence to
grow to perfection under the stimulus
of their vivific rays?
ITO establish this proposition DR..
Wallace would need to show not merely
that the universe is limited, but that
its members are all inferior to the sun
and the earth.
Then, again, he AYERS, and refers to
astronomy for his authority. that the
sun (sun and the eartD are at the
center of the globular cluster of stars
which occupies the center of the WIS.,
ible universe.
I'm this position astronomy does not
support him.
eff the sun were the real center Of
the universe, as DR.. Wallace assumes
that it is, it would not be flying thus
in a direct line, while all the other stars
about it are also flying with various
velocities, not along with it, and not
4 around it, but this way and that way,
like the oscilating atoms of a rare gas.
| "Only in the center, says DR.. Wal
lace. could such result as the orderly
development of living souls have been
obtained. But DR.. Wallace's imaginary
center is flying and changing one.
Another question which DR.. Wal
lace attacks is that of the existence OF
life on the other planets of the solar
system, such as Mars and Venus.
But he prefers to allow no rivals
near the earth. He thinks that Jupiter,
planet more than thousand times
larger than ours, was created as 4
mere incident in the carrying out of a
plan whose aim was only the evolution
of man on comparatively insignificant
globe, and that Mars, with it's seasons.
it's polar moves, its earth-like changes,
is only the vain image of an actual
world.
DIR. Wallace seems to fly in the face
of all that marvellous development of
modern science which has proved the
unity of composition that prevails
throughout all the orbs of space