Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-01-19

Scientists have reached correct conclusions
which every sensible man will thankfully &C
cept. They have also put forth many theories
of purely speculative character, which are
nothing more than approved hypothesis of
more or less interest. Some of their most
brilliant specuIations have been exploded like
bubbles as soon as they were formed. About
most of them the most eminent scientists
have been irreconcilably disagreed. Take, for
example, the hypothesis of Charles Darwin
with reference to evolution and the descent
of man." 1t has never been generally accepted
by the most eminent scientists, and today the
divergent theories Of evolution are legion.
In like manner many of the theories con-
corning electricity which were current fifty
years ago. have been renowned. They seemed
as plausible then as they appear to be incred-
ible now.
Herbert Spencer, whom some belated and
benighted men still swear by, derided the pos
sibity of using the electric current for pur-
poses of illumination locomotion. Never
theless, before he could get himself snugiy
laid in his grave, electric lights were illum
mating cities nightly and electric cars were
Transporting millions of passengers daily.
Clearly he was too dogmatic; for in both
philosophy and science there is found much
of the most dogmatic dogmatism.
When the scientists undertake to speculate
on the age of the earth they are always dog
data to go upon, and their calculations are
utterly worthless. Of course those who are
disposed to accept any theory of evolution,
to explain the origin Of man must have vast
stretches of time in which the process Oper-
ated. Hence they figure millions of years
for the age of the earth and hundreds Of
thousands Of years for the age of man. But
no two of them agree. They disagree to the
extent of millions of years Years ago Mark
Twain derided them in a piece of his charac-
teristic humor, in which he claimed to demon
strate that once upon a time-many millions
of years ago, of course-'the Missippi River
stuck out over the Gulf of Mexico like fish
ing pole" His broad satire we'll deserved.
But the folly which he satirized persists to
this day. Like cat, it has nine lives.
Very recently the newspapers have re-
ported fine specimens of it which were ex-
hbitod at the meeting of 'The American
Association for the Advancement of Sci
ence,' that was held in Cincinnati during
the Christmas holidays.
Here is a sample presented in a press
dispatch dated December 28:
MAN although the product of evolution,
did not descend directly from the ape of to-
day, and had his origin in Europe hun
dred thousand years ago instead of Asia,
as generally is presumed, DR.. AIes Hrdlicka,
of the National Museum, Washington, d. c..
and Il leading anthropologist, declared be-
fore the American Association for the Ad-
vancement of Science in convention here
today
THE relationship of the existent ape to
man probably is that of cousin Dr.
Hrdlitka said, the two having sprung from
branches of the same family hundreds of
thousands Of years ago. If We went far
enough back, however. both probably would
be found to have had their origin in the
state of a simple double molecuIe,' he
added.
"The development of the human race he
pictured as similar to that of a tree, all of
which is the product of central trunk
Man, he said, might be compared to the
top, which had grown and developed to the
supreme point while all the branches and
offshoots could be considered as the lower
animals-all originating from a common
source, but developing along different lines
While some sort of anthropoid or man
like ape probably was the precursor of the
present human race, DR.. Hrdlicka said, there
must have been transition period during