CONTENTS
| [CHAPTER I] To Begin at the Beginning | |
| Certainty that there was a Beginning of the World—Whatwas there before?—The Great Problem, to beanswered by Reason and Science | PAGES [1-3] |
| [CHAPTER II] Reason and Science | |
| Principles of Reasoning—Scope and method of Science | [4-7] |
| [CHAPTER III] Evolution | |
| Term variously used for a Process and a Principle. Wecommence with the latter | [8-9] |
| [CHAPTER IV] "The Law of Evolution" | |
| Evolution as a Philosophy—Main features of thesystem | [10-14] |
| [CHAPTER V] What is a "Law of Nature"? | |
| Erroneous use of the term frequent: its scientific use | [15-19] |
| [CHAPTER VI] "The Law of Substance" | |
| A combination of two other "Laws," viz.—The indestructibilityof Matter, and the Conservation ofEnergy—But there is also Dissipation of Energy—Consequencesinferred from this as to the Durationof the Universe | [20-28] |
| [CHAPTER VII] [{x}]"The Seven Enigmas" | |
| The "Law of Continuity"—Alleged breaches—Sevenevolutionary stages deduced to be scientificallyunexplained, or even inexplicable | [29-34] |
| [CHAPTER VIII] Matter and Motion | |
| Constitution and Properties of Matter inconsistent withHaeckel's evolutionary system—Also the Laws ofMotion—Radium and its revelations | [35-44] |
| [CHAPTER IX] The Problem of Life | |
| Evolution here considered as a process—In its largersense, postulates spontaneous generation—which, however, Science disallows—Protoplasm and Crystallization | [45-66] |
| [CHAPTER X] Animal and Man | |
| Origin of simple sensation and consciousness even lessexplicable than that of life—Gulf between manand the lower animals—Language exclusivelyhuman—The significance of Free-will can be impugnedonly by the absurdity of denying its existence | [67-85] |
| [CHAPTER XI] The Order of Nature | |
| The order of the Cosmos requires a Cause—No causeknown to us can produce such a result except Intelligence—Hencewe infer Purpose or Design andare led to Theism—Scientific evidence as to this, "the Grand Question" | [86-109] |
| [CHAPTER XII] Purpose and Chance | |
| What "Chance" means—It is the sole alternative toPurpose or Design—Arguments against PurposiveCreation—The Existence of Pain—The Mysteriesof Generation | [110-125] |
| [CHAPTER XIII] [{xi}]Monism | |
| The Monistic Philosophy—Its utter lack of a scientificbasis—Contradicted by the ideas of morality andtruth—Not really adopted by Monists themselves | [126-139] |
| [CHAPTER XIV] Organic Evolution | |
| "Evolution" now to be considered in its most restrictedsignification—Organic Evolution, or "Transformism," not identical with Darwinism—Thenature of the questions before us | [140-148] |
| [CHAPTER XV] Darwinism | |
| Though no essential part of our enquiry, Darwinismmust be studied on account of importance ascribedto it—Baseless claims on its behalf—True characterof the system—Natural Selection and its mode ofaction—Phenomena which seem to favour Darwinism—Difficultieson the other side—Limits ofVariation—Specific stability—Adverse probabilities—Naturalselection can produce nothing—Transitionaldevelopments useless or harmful—Artisticornaments unexplained—Flaws in argument—Organicprogress—Rudimentary Organs—Embryology—Scientificopinion as to Darwinism | [149-203] |
| [CHAPTER XVI] The Facts of Evolution | |
| Palæontology furnishes the only sound basis for argument—Thenature of the evidence required—Thehistory of Life as known to us is inconsistentwith evolutionary theories—Haeckel's "ante-periods"—Conclusionto which facts point | [204-238] |
| [CHAPTER XVII] [{xii}]"Audi Alteram Partem" | |
| Arguments on behalf of Evolution—The genealogy ofthe Horse—Haeckel's Pedigree of Man—Darwin'splea of imperfection of the geological record—Noevolutionary process is yet demonstrated; Still lesshas anything been done to establish Evolution as acreative force | [239-269] |
| [CHAPTER XVIII] To Sum Up | |
| Reason leads to conclusions which physical science cannotreach—The recognition of a First Cause beyond theSensible Universe an intellectual necessity—Knowledgeof this cause attainable by reason—Conclusion | [270-280] |
| [APPENDICES] | |
| A. Recent Scientific Verdicts concerning Darwinism and Transformism | [281] |
| B. Development of Plant life—the Cycadofilices | [284] |
| C. The Course of Evolution | [285] |
| D. The pedigree of the Horse: further evidence | [286] |
| [Index] | [289] |
I
TO BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING
THAT the world as we know it had a beginning is a truth which there is no denying. Not only have philosophers always argued that it must be so: the researches of physical science assure us that it has been so in fact. Astronomy, says Professor Huxley,[1] "leads us to contemplate phenomena the very nature of which demonstrates that they must have had a beginning." The hypothesis that phenomena of Nature similar to those exhibited by the present world have always existed, the same authority assures us,[2] "is absolutely incompatible with such evidence as we have, which is of so plain and so simple a character that it is impossible in any way to escape from the conclusions which it forces upon us." This conclusion, physicists tell us, is inevitable when we study the laws by which the operations of Nature are governed, and as Professor Balfour Stewart writes,[3] we thus become "absolutely certain" that these operations cannot[{2}] have existed for ever, and that a time will come when they must cease. In like manner, a recent and competent witness to the conclusions of contemporary Science, lays down,[4] as one of the truths which her latest discoveries compel us to accept, that the world is not eternal, that the earth is cooling from a state of heat rendering life impossible, to one of physical exhaustion equally fatal to it. Accordingly "Life must have had a beginning and must come to an end,"—and our whole Solar System (he adds) must similarly have had a commencement, at a period not infinitely remote.
But, if the world had a beginning, what was there before it began? Something there must have been, and something which had the power of producing it. Had there ever been nothing, there could never have been anything, for, Ex nihilo nihil fit. That nothing should turn into something is an idea which the mind refuses to entertain. Nor is the case any better even if we suppose that matter had no beginning, that it has existed for ever as we know it now, and that at first there was nothing else. For if so, whence have all these things arisen which, according to all observation and experiment, matter cannot produce, as, organic life, sensitive life, consciousness, reason, moral goodness? Had matter been always what it now is, and had there been no source beyond matter whence the power of producing all these things could be derived, they could never have been produced at all, or else they would[{3}] have come into being without a cause. It would be like a milestone growing into an apple-tree, or a mountain spontaneously giving birth to a mouse.
We are therefore compelled by common-sense to ask when we consider Nature, What is the force or power at the back of her, which first set her going, and whence she draws the capability of performing the operations which we find her performing every day; that force or power which must be the ultimate origin of everything that is in the world? This is the great fundamental problem which the student of Nature has to face, and beside it all others fade into insignificance. It is with this that we are now engaged. We have to ask how our reason bids us answer it, and the first question which arises naturally is, What light is thrown on the subject by modern Science, of whose achievements we are all so justly proud?[{4}]