The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-01-13


The proposition which DR.. Wallace up |
holds (and ably and convincingly it may
be said at the outseD, was foreshadoWed
in articles in the Fortnightly Review and
the New York Independent. These art
icles were met with criticism, and this
criticism is met in turn by DR.. Wallace
in his book.
The Problem Stated.
l., DR.. Wallace himself states the problem
thus:
The problem is whether no the logical in
ferences to be drawn from the various results
of modern science lend support to the view that
| our earth is the only inhabited planet, not only
in the solar system, but in the whole stellar
universe. OF course. it is a point as to which
absolute demonstration. one way the other,
is impossible. But in the absence of any direct
proofs it is clearly rational to inquire into proba-
bilities; and these probabilities must be deter
| mined not by our prepossessions for any particu
lar view, but by an absolutely impartial and
unprejndiced examination of the. tendency OF the
evidence. s% 58.sas--r
SO candid a statement of a. great prob
lem and the limitations upon him who
would seek to attack it|from so eminent
an authority should at least command for
the book a fair reading, and the book is
worth such@sa reading by anyone.
/ Evidence gathered by the astronomer,
the physicist, the biologist, the geologist,
in support of his THESIS, q sss8Ss IS
Appealing to the asfii sn is1l :ae5 finds
support for the belief fhatsht selar system
is not far, comparat fvely 9sspeakfng, from
the center of the stellar universe, the most
striking and Beautiful feature of which is
the milky way. The situation Of the solar
system at such a point is an important
factor in his mastering ofSprobabilites and
on that he has been attacked, two as
tronomers holding that in the ages in
: which life has been developing on this
l planet the solar system would have had
ample time to traverse the universe from
, boundary to boundary.
DR.. Wallace meets these criticisms by
showing that they rest upon certain as
sumptions, (which are certainly to some
l extent, and may be to very large ex-
!. tent, erroneous To the lay mind, at
least, DR.. Wallace seems to have good
ground for refusing to accept the as
sumption that s'our admitted position not
far from the center Of the stellar universe
: is a mere temporary coincidence of nc
. significance whatever.
Life of Uniform Nature.
Having pointed out reasons for faith il
the uniformity of matter as his next step
7 he says:
: We may therefore. feel It to be an almost
same, the laws which act upon and combine and
Y modify those elements being the same-organ-
this universe must be fundamentally and in es-
e sential nature the same also.
Y Having sketched the characters of lv
+ ing organism, DR.. Wallace outlines thu
physical conditions essential for organi
| life thus:
= First-Regularity of heat supply, resulting in
: a limited range of temperature.
e Second-A sufficient amount of solar heat.
Third-Water in great abundance and univer
sally distributed.
! and consisting of the gases which are essentia
- for vegetable and animal life.
8 Fifth-Alternations Of day and night.
: How these conditions are all met b
Is a nice balance and adjustment of condi
lions on the earth is Interestingly an
clearly shown. 1t is when he passes fror
e. that to the support of the position tina
e the earth is the only habitable planet i
L. the solar system that one feels he
approaching the climax. OF course,
this position be true, Mars, with Whic
n there has been so much talk Of signaling
is desolate SO far as ''life as we kno,
it, is concerned. And Mars, 1t seem!
IL can hardly be inhabited because it's siz
and mass are so small that it cannot re
! tain aqueous vapor-to give only one
v the reasons assigned by DR.. Wallace.
+ But some one raises the question,
-, Mars or some of the other planets are nc
= habitable now, perhaps they have bee
II in the past or may be in the future. Blu
ly says DR.. Wallace, to suppose such cas-
m you must take into consideration yol
III source of heat and light. The sun hs
- not been giving out light and heat alwas
ST and will not do so forever. Physicist
ne limit the time the sun will last and 81
- a date back of which it could not hay
!. begun to be Of use in maintaining lif
u The development of life on a planet, {
shown by biologists requires a va.
stretch of time. If these other plane
VI. are going to grow anything they will ha,
so in the past under more favorable COZ
W ditions than exist on them now becau:
VS. there was not time.
ty Leap from Planets to Stars.
in To sweep out from the planets to tt
m stars and the milky way is somethir
ha only the mind of man would dare. He
. DR.. Wallace clings to what science h;
e shown, and, if his argument be less col
es yincing, it is not to be wondered at. b
he shows that there is evidence pointil
his way.
-, Why, then, the milky way and its mi
lions Of stars? Surely not for man? Z
ed Wallace suggests a partial answer at lea
st. to these questions. too, from a pure
as scientific standpoint, and then near t
= close says this:
G, Man, the Ultimate.
. All this life upon our earth has led up to Al
ISL eliminated in that of man. 1t has been, t
,ys lieye, a common and not unpopular idea tn
during the whole process of the rise and grow
and extinction of past forms. the earth has be
preparing for the. ultimate--Man Much Of t
bit, wealth and luxuriance of living things, the
to finite variety OF form and structure, the
quisite grace and beauty Il. bird and insect,
( i