Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1924-05-01

And now comes Rev. John Roach
Straton Of the Calvary Baptist church of New
York, who attacks the American Museum of Natu-
raj History, laundering thus from his pulpit:
It is not only waste of the taxpayers money
to spend it in such exhibit but it is treason
to God Almighty and a libel against the human
dren the degrading idea that have come
from the beasts on evidence" so fimsy. SO tricky
assembled there Common honesty and fair play
and right treatment of the God-fearing elements
alike-demand that some showing be made there
in that so-called Hall of the Age OF Man of the
Bible philosophy of life.
Now, when Dr. Straton assaiIs the American
Museum of Natural History Of New York he as
sails no less a parsonage than its president, DR..
Henry Fairfield Osborn. And there Is no more
shining light among the disciples Of Darwin than
this same DIR. Osborn.
So far as that goes, it looks like fair fight,
with no favors asked and devil take hindermost
for Dr. Straton is not without fame himself. He
is the leader Of the "Fundamentalists" among the
Baptists and quite as well known as any church
man in the pitched battle between the FundAmen-
talists and the "Modernists' which appears almost
to be disrupting the Episcopal, Presbyterian and
Baptist churches
The issue between the Fundamentalists and the
Modernists is well set forth In the recent debates
which attracted nationwide attention between
DR.. Straton and Dr. Charles Francis Potter of the
West Side Unitarian church of New York The
first debate was on the question: Resolved, that
the Bible is the infallible word of God" DR.. Stra
ton Fundamentals, of course took the afirma-
tive Dr. Potter, a Modernist, took the negative
and won the decision Of the judges. The two met
again. This time the question was: Resolved,
that the earth and man came by evolution" DR..
Straton, upholding the negative, won this debate.
DR.. Potter won the third, unfolding the negative
of this: "Resolved that the miraculous virgin
birth of Jesus Christ is fact and that 1t is
sential Christian doctrine"
DR.. Straton was born in Indiana in 1875. He
was educated at Mercer university, Southern Bap-
fist Theological seminary, University of Chicago
and Boston School of Oratory and Expression.
He was ordained Baptist minister in 1900 and
had pastorates in Chicago, Baltimore and Norfolk,
Va, going to Calvary in 1913 He is trustee of
the Anti-Saloon league and of the Lords Day al
lance In his early days he won the southern
Interstate oratorical championship. He is the
author of six or more works. the last of which is
"Our Relapse Into Pagansm' (1921).
DR.. Osborn's fame is world wide; wherever the
evolution of man is intelligently discussed his
name is known 1t was the third Asiatic expedi-
ton of the American Museum of Natural History
last summer that brought back the famous ten
million-year-old dinosaur eggs. The fourth expe-
dition goes this year to the same locality in CEN
trail Asia There Dr. Osborn believes, is the cradle
of man-and not in the Garden of Eden" land
of Mesopotamia near Babylon. There he expects
to find the missing link" between man and apes.
DR. Osborn is the author of six or more standard
works on evolution His men of the Old Stone
Age" from which are taken the photographs lex
cepting the portraits) illustrating this article, is
classed by the scientific world as the most mpor-
rant work on the evolution of man since Darwin's
descent of Man..
DIR Osborn was born in Connecticut in 1857. He
is Princeton man, with the degrees of A. B. and