Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-01-30
PASSING OF EVOLUTION.

"Are the days OF Darwnlsm num-
bered?" Is a question now considered in
German theological circles The i'm
mediate cause OF the debate IS, accord
ing to The Literary Digest, an arti-
Gle on the Passing OF DarwInlsm' by
the veteran philosopher Edward Won
Hartman. He points out that Darwin
ism gained ground rapidly in the seven-
ties Of the past century; in the eighties
II exercized almost absolute control on
scientific research. But In the nineties
few tmId expressions Of opposition
were heard, and now II has become APP
parent that the theory Is doomed.
Among It's opponents, he says. are
Elmer, Gustav Wolf, Freshman
Relnke, and others. Hartman believes
that the doctrine Of descent Is securely
established, while DarwinIsm has been
found wanting. Selection he argues,
Can in general not achieve any posi-.
tive results, but only negative effects;
the origin Of species by minImal
changes Is possible, but has not been
demonstrated. The pretenslons Of OAR
winism as a purely mechanical explain
alton OF results that show purpose are
totally groundless"
other scholars, however deny that
the theory Of descent has been estab.
lished, Among these Is the French &c.
ologist. NJ. Meunier also quoted In The
Literary Digest. His argument Is un-
answerable He says:
Organized beings have often been
compared 10 the products obtained by
the potter by baking clay; II seems as
II the same order OF Ideas might fur
nish table OF organic progress, indie
pendently Of any transformist hypOthe-
sis,
"The potter, In fact, after having for
a long time made hemispherlcal vessels,
bowls, and the like, invents a more
spherical form In order to prevent too
rapid evaporation. A further step con-
sists In furnishing the opening with a
cylindrical extension, which may be
closed with stopper, Thus we have a
bottle, The addition OF handle has
obvious advantages, and thus a cruise
Is formed
Evidently there Is a very intimate
connection between the bowl. the goutd,
tho bottle, and the cruise, with or with
out spout, since these objects are the
work OF the same artisan, and have
been made with the same original ma.
terial, Nevertheless, we can not say
with truth that the bowl has given rise
to the gourd, the latter TO the bottle
etc. for these are simply the members
OF progressive Industrial series.
why should there not be something
of the kind In relation TO organic be,
ings? They are made Of the same sub.
stance and by the same workman,
nothing proves that they have arisen
directly one from another. II Is impor.
tant 10 add that pottery has still other
analogles with organised creatures,
which enable us 10 apply 20 their In.
depreciation considerations OF the order
OF paleOntology and embryogeny, We
shall find In fact, that they have ap.
pearod successfully. The simplest are
the Oldest and the most perfect are the
most recent The latter present dur.
ing certain phases Of. their manufacture
the same characteristics ms the inferior
forms, The gourd at a certain moment
was bowl, turning on the potter's
wheel and growing continually at It's
edge
Persons who believe In transform
ism, as a result Of descent, make II
consequence Of the successive modlhca-
lions that the environment necessarily
must undergo In course Of time But
although every one II attracted by this
theory az the outset, the details that
have been given In each particular case |
appear such as TO make the consldera- |
ton Of this idea unacceptable"
Disciples Of Darwin undertook TO |
prove too much, and therefore failed |
They proposed to prove that organic life |
had evolved from primary inorganic |
aud that there was no creative |
factor, free TO plan and to execute the
designs planned. They proposed to
prove, above all, that man Is no |
new departure" but only higher
grade Of animal In this they utterly
failed. The earliest relies OF human be-
Ines so far discovered prove man, from
the beginning, capable of knowing,
loving and obeying God and this alone
places between him and the animal
creation a gulf that cannot be brldged,
Every age has its own fashion, IN
heresles az In clothes But the fash
ions pass rapidly only truth remains
forever
In this connection It Ia OF interest to
note that scientific research has failed
to flnd confederation Of the assertion
Of evolutionsts concerning the immense
ages necessary for the development OF
life to SIS present forms. The evolu-
tonlsts used to talk gllbly about thous-
ands and millions Of millions OF years
rs a mere trlhe OF geologic time, But
the latest calculations place such ok.
among the category Of Wild
II IL estimated, for in
a -