,,the ,,gospel ,,of ,,evolution  ,from  
,the ,atheistic ,platform1 ,twelve      
,lectures  ,by ,edward ,aveling         
,london3 ,freethought ,publishing       
,company  #fc1 ,fleet ,street1 ,e4,c4   
#ahhd    ,,the ,,gospel ,,of ,,evolution
  ,a new and better ,gospel is now      
preached to men4 ,that which has for a  
long time gone by the name of ,gospel   
7good news7 is neither news nor good4   
,it is not news1 for it has been        
preached for nearly nineteen centuries4 
,not that length of time alone could    
make it old and effete4 ,but the ,gospel
 of ,christianity has not within itself 
that inherent and strong life of reality
 which makes even old truths to have a  
perennial freshness1 an eternal youth1  
,nor is the ,gospel of ,christianity    
good4 ,in the tales that it tells us of 
the past1 in the advice that it gives us
 for the present1 and in the hopes and  
threats it holds out for the future1 it 
is a misleading guide1 a poor           
philosopher1 a false friend4  ,the      

legends have it that on the coming of   
the central figure of the discredited   
evangel the angels sang together3 ,peace
 on earth1 good will to men4 ,it was a  
false alarm4 ,neither peace nor good    
will was forthcoming4 ,but with the     
advent of this scientific gospel1 the   
,gospel of ,evolution1 comes the        
possibility of striking a universal     
peace through sea and land1 the         
possibility of the universal brotherhood
 of man4  ,perhaps we are all of us too 
anxious and too hopeful in the feeling  
that some one idea will save the world4 
,the religious creeds of different races
 and times are the expression of this   
anxiety4 ,we that have rejected all     
belief in the supernatural must take    
care that the same fancy that has spoilt
 the lives of so many does not mar our  
own4 ,we must have a care lest we make  
too much of some truth1 even though it  
be a scientific conclusion1 based on    
scientific observation and reasoning4   
,and we must not forget that1 of all the

 great generalisations1 that of         
,evolution is the one most likely to be 
thus regarded1 for it is a              
generalisation of generalisations4 ,the 
mind of man is always longing for some  
solid resting-place4 ,man wants to get  
back and back1 to something certain4 ,he
 wants to feel that1 whatever happens1  
some one great principle stands fast4   
,the children of the decrepit gospel    
dreamed that this was found in ,god4    
,the children of the new ,gospel know   
that in the indestructibility of matter 
and of motion1 and in the infinite      
nature of the transformations of matter 
and motion1 they have a solid fact on   
which to fall back when all else fails4 
,only it is very important to remember  
that1 great as any idea may be1 the     
mental effort needed for its            
understanding and its acquisition is to 
the individual of as much moment as the 
idea itself4 ,the exercise of our       
faculties is of as great value to us as 
the results attained by the exercise4   

,the old parental habit of asking of the
 school-boy or the school-girl3 ,what   
prizes have you gained8 is only one form
 of a general error4 ,the question is   
not1 ,what prizes have you8 but ,what   
have you learned8 ,we are coming to     
recognise this in some measure in our   
estimates of grown men and women4       
,still1 however1 to the vulgar1 the     
measure of a man is the banker's        
balance4 ,but the thoughtful1 as yet few
 in number1 although the number grows   
hourly1 and even the commonplace people1
 if they are in the unaccustomed        
atmosphere of culture1 are estimating   
the value of a human being by that which
 he actually does and is1 rather than by
 the magnitude of the cheques he can    
draw4  ,what is1 then1 this ,evolution8 
,in the asking this question and in the 
attempt to answer we see how much       
happier is the position of the new      
gospel as compared with that of the old4
 ,the good news of ,christianity1 having
 no scientific and indeed no natural    

basis1 has been ,protean in its forms4  
,these have been indefinitely varied    
according to the taste and fancy of the 
age and of the individual4 ,the ,gospel 
as preached by ,messrs4 ,benson1 ,booth1
 ,baldwin ,brown1 ,spurgeon1 ,liddon1   
,moody1 is somewhat mixed4 ,but the new 
evangel is founded wholly on a natural  
and scientific basis4 ,there may be     
slight differences of opinion as to     
matters of detail among its apostles and
 its disciples1 but the fundamental     
principles are accepted by all4 ,upon   
these1 no doubt1 much less any dispute  
reigns4  ,evolution is the name for the 
idea of the unity and continuity of     
phsenomena4 ,the popular and            
unscientific notion was that there was  
not only an original effort on the part 
of the supernatural causing the natural1
 setting it going1 in fact1 but a       
continual interposition of the          
supernatural from without1 controlling  
the natural4 ,evolution is the doctrine 
of non-intervention4 ,according to this 

gospel1 matter and motion are all in    
all4 ,matter is the convenient name for 
all that which can affect the senses of 
man4 ,motion is change of place1 whether
 it be of large1 palpable masses1 as    
when the arm is raised1 or of minute    
impalpable molecules1 as when heat or   
electricity is at work4  ,the ordinary  
notion of movement is wholly confined to
 that which is called molar1 that is1   
the motion of masses4 ,molesa mass4     
,thus the movements of a running man1 or
 of a football when kicked1 or of a     
railway train when the engine draws it  
along1 are all cases of molar motion4   
,but a finer kind of movement has of    
late years come within the ken of       
mankind4 ,it has been at work probably  
eternally4 ,it is molecular movement1 or
 movement of small masses4 ,but only    
very recently has the mind of man been  
able to take cognisance of this form4   
,the researches of the physicists1 the  
chemists1 the biologists have           
demonstrated that there is a whole world

 of movements that affect only the      
minute particles of bodies4 ,thus heat  
is a mode of motion2 electricity is     
another2 magnetism is a third4 ,the     
familiar phenomena of light are no      
longer regarded as due to any actual    
matter that has been thrown from a      
luminous body4 ,they are the result of  
waves of a fluid imponderable and       
universal called ether1 and there seems 
every reason to believe that the        
phenomena commonly called vital are of  
the same or of a ,kindred order4 ,life1 
it would appear1 is but a mode of       
motion4 ,and though we know life        
generally only by its manifestations of 
molar motion1 as in the blow of the arm1
 or the stride of the leg1 yet these    
massive movements are but the outward   
representatives of a large number of    
internal movements1 of chemical nature  
in digestion1 of nervous nature in the  
sense-organs and nerve tissues4 ,every  
bodily movement visible to the ordinary 
eye is only the obverse aspect of many  

molecular motions1 not as yet visible to
 man4  ,the reasons why we regard matter
 and motion as all-sufficient in the    
explanation of all the phenomena of the 
universe are several4 ,in the first     
place1 no destruction of matter has ever
 been witnessed4 ,second1 no destruction
 of motion1 has ever been witnessed4    
,the creation of either matter or motion
 has been equally unseen4               
,transformations of matter from one of  
its infinitely many forms to some other 
are constantly visible1 and they are    
always unattended by the smallest       
increase or diminution in the actual    
quantity of matter4 ,so also with       
motion--transformations without any     
change in quantity are continually      
occurring4  ,thus1 we see the rocks     
disintegrated by the action of rain and 
running water1 weathered by the action  
of the air4 ,we see the matter of which 
they consisted worn away and carried    
down by streams and rivers to be        
deposited at the mouths of rivers or on 

the beds of seas4 ,or we set fire to a  
candle and watch its matter combining   
with the matter of the air to form the  
products of combustion1 carbon1 dioxide1
 steam1 and their fellows4 ,or a dead   
animal or plant is seen to decay slowly 
into these same gases that the burning  
candle gives forth and into certain     
inorganic salts4 ,and these are all     
cases of the transformation of matter   
without any creation or destruction4    
,or we see the molar motion of a        
student's hands bringing together some  
acid and two metals4 ,at once chemical  
action1 a form of molecular motion1 is  
set up4 ,the molar motion of hands1 a   
piece of silk1 and a glass rod results  
in electricity1 a mode of molecular     
motion4 ,or we apply heat1 a mode of    
molecular motion1 to a bar of metal     
which expands1 to a mixture of hydrogen 
and oxygen which unite chemically4 ,or  
to a crystal of tourmaline1 one end of  
which becomes positively electric1 the  
other negatively4 ,these are all cases  

of the transformation of motion without 
any creation or destruction4 ,in all    
these cases the amount of matter and the
 amount of motion remain unchanged4     
,only the quantities of particular kinds
 vary4 ,the generalisation that the     
quantity of matter and motion in the    
universe is the same yesterday1 to-day1 
and for ever1 appears to be thoroughly  
established4  ,more than this4 ,not only
 is there no scientific basis whatever  
for the fancy of a creation or of a     
destruction of matter or of motion4 ,the
 fancy is unthinkable4 ,no human mind is
 capable of picturing to itself the     
passage from the material to the        
immaterial1 the moment of time in which 
the non-universe began to be the        
universe4  ,yet again4 ,up to the       
present time every explanation of every 
phenomenon of the universe has been in  
terms of matter and of motion4 ,the law 
of gravitation1 ,kepler's three great   
generalisations in astronomy1 the       
phenomena of attraction and repulsion in

 electrified and magnetised bodies1 the 
nature of chemical elements and         
compounds1 the relation between1 plants 
and animals in regard to their effect on
 the air1 the principles of variation1  
of natural selection1 of heredity1 of   
adaptation--these and thousands of other
 truths that unseal our eyes to the     
beautiful meaning of nature1 are all    
explanations as to how certain forms of 
matter are in certain states of motion4 
,and if up to the present hour all the  
explanations that have been forthcoming 
of natural things are in terms of the   
natural1 we are entitled to conclude    
that all explanations hereafter will be 
in kindred terms4  ,or we may look on   
the question in another way4 ,in the    
days of man's greater ignorance         
everything was primarily or ultimately  
referred to the supernatural4 ,all      
phenomena were at first directly due to 
the action of the supernatural4 ,but1 as
 time and knowledge advanced1 these     
references grew fewer and fewer in      

number4 ,they were replaced by perfectly
 natural explanations of events1 and we 
are entitled to believe that this       
process of elimination has now gone on  
sufficiently far for us to hold that    
since super-naturalism is unnecessary   
for the primary explanation of          
phenomena1 it is also unnecessary for   
their ultimate explanation4  ,from all  
that ,i have just said it will be       
understood that the ,gospel of          
,evolution has a wider significance than
 popular notions imply4 ,the general    
idea1 as to ,evolution1 that it is      
synonymous with ,darwinism1 is not      
accurate4 ,the ,darwinian teaching is   
only a part1 though in one sense it is  
the most important part1 of the         
,evolution truth4 ,evolution itself     
means1 as we have seen1 the unity of    
phenomena4  ,all things are1 according  
to this new principle1 one huge         
continuity4 ,whilst ,darwinism shows    
that man is not distinct from the lower 
animals1 and that all species of        

animals1 and all species of plants are  
artificial groups gliding one into the  
other1 just as in their gradual         
development they glided one out of the  
other1 ,evolution goes further than this
 and does not fare worse4 ,for the      
evolutionist not only believes that     
which the works of ,darwin have made an 
assured truth1 but he believes that     
plants and animals have had a common    
parentage1 that living matter has       
originated from the non-living1 that    
there has been no break in the vast     
series of phenomena at any point4  ,some
 of the general grounds for this belief 
have been given4 ,let us look rapidly at
 some of the more special4 ,the         
principle of the conservation of energy 
already mentioned indirectly is1 in a   
sense1 the starting point of thought on 
this subject4 ,grove's essay on the     
,correlation of the ,physical ,forces1  
published a few years since1 was the    
first clear enunciation of the          
generalisation towards which so many    

observations had led4 ,when he reminded 
men that chemical action1 electricity1  
heat1 sound1 light1 magnetism1 and life 
were all convertible1 one into the      
other1 and thus convertible in definite 
numerical proportions1 mathematically   
calculable1 the keynote of the idea of  
,evolution had been struck4  ,harsh as  
it may seem1 an idea in any branch of   
knowledge has never attained a sure     
basis until it is expressible in terms  
of mathematics4 ,there was a time when  
physics and chemistry were divorced from
 mathematics to a large extent4 ,now    
even the phenomena of electricity and   
the reactions one upon another of       
chemical bodies are expressed in        
algebraical formulae4 ,this is the      
result of the increased precision of our
 knowledge4 ,following in the footsteps 
of physics and chemistry the biological 
sciences are becoming every day more    
mathematical4 ,we have formulas to      
express the manner of the arrangement of
 leaves upon a stem1 the manner of      

arrangement of the parts of a flower4   
,one of these days every structural and 
functional fact in regard to every      
living thing will be related to some    
formula of mathematics more or less     
general4 ,we shall not all become       
martinets or dryasdusts4 ,there is a    
beauty in exactness4 ,i sometimes think 
that the difference between the         
loveliness of our thinking and of our   
dreaming on natural phsenomena1 as      
compared with that which the older      
thinkers and dreamers enjoyed1 will be  
as the difference between the joy of a  
game of chess between skilled players or
 between those that know not even the   
moves4 ,the child pushes the kings and  
queens and rooks and knights and bishops
 and pawns about at random1 and laughs  
gaily4 ,but the master' of the game1    
moving them according to definite rules1
 obtains a far higher enjoyment1 and    
produces a combination that has its     
poetry4  ,the very sciences that deal   
with these different modes of matter and

 motion are now by no means as clearly  
marked off one from another as their    
earlier students thought they were4     
,physics1 chemistry2 geology1 botany1   
zoology1 anatomy1 physiology1 how they  
all dovetail into1 or actually overlap  
each other4 ,it is impossible to say    
sometimes to which domain of science a  
particular fact belongs4 ,the           
distinctions between the physical and   
the chemical properties of bodies are   
confessedly artificial4 ,botany implies 
a study of the anatomy and the          
physiology of plants4 ,physiology in its
 turn becomes only a question of        
chemistry2 its phenomena are becoming   
reduced to mathematical expressions4 ,we
 are learning to calculate the actual   
amount of work done in the performance  
of different functions of the living    
body1 in the same terms as we calculate 
the work done by a steam engine4 ,the   
respiratory organs or the muscular      
during the day do so many foot-pounds of
 work4 ,the foot-pound is the unit of   

measurement employed in the study of    
work4 ,work is done when matter is moved
 through space4 ,the footpound is the   
amount of work done when the mass of a  
pound is raised one foot against the    
gravitation attraction of the earth4 ,a 
steam-engine does per day a certain     
number of foot-pounds of work4 ,its     
capacity for work is usually expressed  
by saying that it is so many horse      
power4 ,one horse power is equivalent to
 #cc1jjj footpounds per minute4 ,the    
physiologists are1 by means of very     
intricate and careful calculations1     
enabled to calculate with               
ever-increasing accuracy the equivalent 
in footpounds1 i4e41 the mechanical     
equivalent1 of each of the body         
functions of the average man per diem4  
,if we turn to any of the special       
sciences the same dovetailing and       
over-lapping appear4 ,in chemistry it is
 difficult to mark off any group of     
bodies from all other groups4 ,the three
 sets of bodies that chemistry is       

supposed to study are elements1         
mixtures1 and compounds4 ,an element    
such as carbon or gold1 is a body which 
has not yet been decomposed4 ,a mixture 
is that which results from putting      
together two or more substances1 without
 those substances undergoing any change 
of properties4 ,thus brandy and water1  
or gunpowder is a mixture4 ,the         
properties of the brandy and of the     
water in the one case1 and of the       
charcoal1 nitre and sulphur in the      
other1 are unchanged4 ,a compound is the
 result of the union of two or more     
elements with change of properties2 thus
 water is a compound of hydrogen and    
oxygen1 and its properties are those of 
neither hydrogen nor oxygen4 ,the       
fundamental distinction supposed to be  
at the basis of all chemical study1 that
 between elements and compounds1 is     
found to be inapplicable when we study  
such bodies as cyanogen1 a compound of  
the two elements carbon and nitrogen1   
that behaves like an element4 ,ammonium1

 a compound of four atoms of hydrogen   
and one of nitrogen1 also behaves like  
an element1 taking the place of such    
metallic elements as potassium or       
sodium4 ,in fact all the so-called      
compound radicles which enter so largely
 into our study of organic chemistry are
 groups of two or atoms of two or more  
elements that behave as simple bodies4  
,the metals and the non-metals are      
connected by such forms as arsenic or   
selenium1 placed by one chemist among   
the metals1 by another among the        
non-metals4 ,hydrogen1 usually classed  
with the non-metals1 has the power of   
replacing metallic elements4 ,it does   
this so persistently that1 on           
theoretical grounds1 chemists had long  
spoken of hydrogen as probably          
essentially a metal4 ,when the ,french  
chemist ,pictet succeeded in liquefying 
hydrogen1 until then only known in the  
gas form1 the liquid fell upon the floor
 of the laboratory with a metallic ring4
 ,and who is to say positively whether  

an alloy of copper and zinc is to be    
regarded as a mixture or as a compound  
of the two metals8  ,still more         
important is the bridging over the      
supposed gulf between the inorganic and 
the organic chemical substances4 ,a few 
years back this gulf was supposed to be 
great1 fixed1 impassable4 ,the mineral  
or inorganic was makable by man4 ,the   
organic was not1 and never would be4    
,the chemist might go on continually    
manufacturing hydrogen and oxygen1      
carbon dioxide1 ammonia4 ,but he was    
never to hope to make alcohol1 sugar1   
urea1 any of the multitudinous          
substances called organic4 ,and now all 
this folly of forbidding is at an end4  
,the organic bodies are manufactured by 
man4 ,the inorganic and the organic are 
no more regarded as clearly             
distinguishable4 ,even the chemistry    
books by their very titles recognise and
 proclaim this fact4 ,we have no longer 
works on organic chemistry4 ,we have    
volumes on the chemistry of carbon      

compounds4  ,in geology the different   
kinds of rocks graduate into each other4
 ,between the aqueous1 or sedimentary1  
and the igneous1 or those due to the    
action of fire1 range the metamorphic1  
i4e41 sedimentary rocks that have been  
afterwards subjected to heat4 ,the      
various systems of sedimentary rocks are
 known now to be purely artificial if   
convenient divisions4 ,from the         
,laurentian up to the recent rocks there
 has never been any real hiatus4        
,nowhere is there the slightest evidence
 of pause or of recommencement4 ,our    
groups are artificial4 ,nature is like  
,oallio and cares for none of these     
things4  ,whilst rocks thus glide one   
into the other1 the fossil remains that 
they contain do likewise4 ,if the view  
of the special creationist were accurate
 we ought to find isolated forms of dead
 animals and plants1 we ought to find   
sudden appearances in the rocks of forms
 not allied to these already            
encountered1 we ought not necessarily to

 find a series of organic remains       
ascending in complexity of structure4   
,if the view of the evolutionist is     
accurate1 we ought to find no forms of  
dead animals or plants isolated2 we     
ought never to find a form appearing    
without preliminary heralds of its      
coming in the shape of kindred forms2 we
 ought to find a series of organic      
remains whose later members are in      
advance of the earlier4 ,these latter   
expectations are realised4  ,in like    
manner the gap supposed to exist between
 the kingdoms of the non-living and     
living is closing up4 ,as long as men   
had only studied the higher forms of    
living things there was no difficulty in
 defining and distinguishing living     
organisms4 ,to define and to distinguish
 the lowest forms of those now known is 
impossible4 ,how completely this is true
 can only be understood by those who    
have studied the protoplasmic masses    
that hover on the border line between   
the organic and the inorganic4 ,but even

 the unskilled in microscopic work will 
be able to grasp something of the great 
truth if they will take the trouble to  
look up the innumerable definitions of  
life that have been given by various    
persons1 and note how unsatisfactory1   
how contradictory and often             
self-contradictory they are4  ,if we    
pass up into the kingdoms of the living1
 and study plants and animals1 the same 
unity of phenomena meets us4 ,our       
classification terms--order1 genus1     
species1 and so forth--are as artificial
 as our names for the geological        
systems4 ,no one holds to-day that any  
single species is clearly marked off    
from all others4 ,connecting links      
abound in our vegetable kingdom4 ,the   
lichens1 long regarded as a separate    
class of lowly organised plants are now 
known to be fungi that are parasitic    
upon algae4 ,the higher cryptogams or   
flowerless plants are found to be at one
 in their structure and functions with  
the lower phsenogams or flowering       

plants4  ,the distinctions between      
plants and animals are found to have    
vanished4 ,once again it is easy enough 
to distinguish high plants from high    
animals4 ,but no man can satisfactorily 
draw the line between the lower members 
of the two kingdoms4 ,the old           
definitions of the animal and the plant 
given with a suicidal glibness in old   
books on botany and zoology1 when tried 
in the balance of criticism1 are found  
wanting4 ,even the food-distinction1    
supposed to be the best distinction     
between the two groups1 fails4 ,it is no
 longer true that plants feed on the    
inorganic1 and animals on organic       
substances4 ,the cases of vegetable     
parasites and of insectivorous plants   
give a direct contradiction to this     
statement4 ,and it is very interesting  
to notice how gradual are the           
transitions in this as in all cases4 ,a 
group of plants known as saprophytes1   
that feed on decaying organic things1 is
 the natural transition between the     

ordinary plants that eat inorganic      
food-stuffs1 and those plants that1 like
 animals1 exist on organic substances4  
,so marked is this difficulty of        
distinguishing between the lower plants 
and the lower animals1 that it has been 
suggested that a third kingdom of the   
living should be constructed midway     
between the two generally recognised4   
,this is to be called ,protista1 and is 
to include all the doubtful forms that  
are not clearly members either of the   
,kingdom ,animalia or of the ,kingdom   
,vegetabilia4  ,if the arbitrary nature 
of all our systems of classification is 
understood1 this new division will do   
little harm4 ,but for the systematist   
the difficulty is by the establishment  
of this group only doubled4 ,heretofore 
he had only to struggle over a          
particular living1 thing1 with the view 
to determine whether it were plant or   
animal4 ,now he will have to struggle   
over it with the view of telling whether
 it is ,protistic or animal1 or         

,protistic or vegetable4 ,but the true  
evolutionist will only look on the group
 of the ,protista as containing forms   
that represent the parent condition of  
both vegetables and animals4  ,the      
animal kingdom1 no less than the        
vegetable1 gives these results4         
,amphioxus1 the little ,mediterranean   
fish1 links the ,vertebrata1 or         
back-boned animals1 for ever on to the  
,invertebrata4 ,the classes of the      
,vertebrate sub-kingdom have their      
connecting links or intermediate forms4 
,these classes1 adopting for popular    
exposition the old classification1 are  
the ,pisces1 ,amphibia1 ,eeptilia1      
,aves1 ,mammalia4 ,whilst ,amphioxus at 
the lower end of the class of fishes    
connects these with the soft-bodied     
animals1 or ,mollusca1 at the upper end 
of the ,pisces1 we have the             
,lepidosiren1 or mud-fish4 ,it is       
impossible to say whether this animal is
 more of a fish or a reptile4 ,with     
limbs rather than fins1 with three      

cavities to its heart1 and a            
swim-bladder that acts as a lung1 it has
 yet so many parts of its anatomy that  
are piscine as to lead ,professor       
,huxley still to place it as a solitary 
representative of the highest order of  
,pisces4  ,the class ,amphibia is itself
 a confirmation of the general truth1   
for its members1 such as the frogs1 are 
in their early condition fish1 and in   
their adult state reptiles4 ,pterodactyl
 of the ,jurassic strata is the winged  
lizard4 ,its name tells us that we have 
a form intermediate between the classes 
,reptilia and ,aves4 ,the duck-billed   
,platypus1 or ,ornithorhyncus1 of       
,australia1 is a furred mammal that     
suckles its young1 and yet has a bird's 
bill1 a bird's feet1 a bird's           
wishing-bone1 a bird's heart1 a bird's  
alimentary canal4 ,if we turn to the    
individual classes1 the same thing      
obtains4 ,to take but the the highest   
class1 the ,prosimiae1 or half-apes1    
among the ,mammalia are an order1 that  

stands centrally to the ,insectivora1   
,eodentia1 ,cheiroptera1 and ,primates4 
,there is no gap between man and the    
rest of the ,primates4 ,not a single    
mark of anatomy1 of physiology1 or of   
psychology1 clearly distinguishes man   
from the highest apes4  ,if we study the
 individual animal1 the same fact of the
 unity of phenomena is again borne in   
upon us4 ,the bodily functions are by no
 means so distinct in their nature as we
 were wont to think4 ,to take but an    
illustration4  ,the sense-organs of man 
are all found to be only so many        
modifications of the integument4  ,the  
skin or tactile organ is the integument4
 ,the tongue or taste organ is but the  
integument folded inwards and a little  
modified4 ,the nasal cavities are also  
lined with a modification of the same   
tissue1 and even the most complex sense 
organs that are at the same time the    
most important--that is the eye and the 
ear--are1 as the study of development or
 embryology shows us1 only the result of

 a series of remarkable changes         
affecting certain parts of the epidermis
 of the animal4  ,those physiological   
functions of the human body that appear 
to be clearly marked off are really not 
completely demarcated4 ,take as example 
the excretory action of the skin1 lungs1
 and the renal organs4 ,the lungs get   
rid especially of carbon dioxide2 the   
skin of water2 the renal organs of the  
products of nitrogenous decay4 ,but each
 of these organs also eliminates those  
products which are eliminated by the    
other two4 ,thus the lungs1 whilst they 
get rid principally of carbon dioxide1  
also get rid of water in the form of    
steam and of nitrogenous matter4 ,the   
skin gives off a certain quantity of    
carbon dioxide and nitrogen excreta4    
,and the renal organs also eliminate all
 three of the chief forms of excretory  
matter4 ,when any one of these three    
organs is not functioning at its best1  
extra work is thrown upon the others1   
and in some extreme cases this          

metastasis1 or transference of function1
 is very remarkable4 ,thus an ulcer in  
the human body has been known to secrete
 milk4  ,try to realise at least        
something of what all this means4 ,it is
 no longer possible to mark off clearly 
the various domains of science4 ,science
 is one1 for it is the study of nature1 
and nature is one4 ,in every branch of  
our knowledge that daily grows more     
unified1 the transitions are found to be
 innumerable and the gradations         
infinitesimal4 ,our chemical groups1 our
 geological rocks and strata1 our       
inorganic and organic kingdoms1 our     
plants and animals1 our classes1 orders1
 genera1 species1 all are seen to be    
artificial4  ,here is then the new      
message that science is uttering to man4
 ,it is in truth good news4 ,there is no
 break anywhere4 ,the universe is one   
vast whole4 ,it is true that at first   
there seems to be a loss because of the 
indistinctness that now veils the old   
lines of demarcation4 ,at first some    

taring of a shock is felt when we       
realise that the old definitions and    
classifications are only matters of     
convenience1 and really represent       
nothing in nature4 ,but our view of the 
whole gains incomparably4 ,we are led to
 take a larger and more true conception 
of the universe4 ,if the subdivisions   
disappear the unity of the whole comes  
out with wonderful clearness4 ,we study 
phenomena from below upwards1 and see   
something more than an unbroken series4 
,we see that actually there is no below 
and no above4' ,the mineral kingdom of  
the non-living passes into the living4  
,this by gradual stages of ascent rises 
to the loftiest forms of plants and     
animals yet known4 ,but these in their  
constant decay and in their death once  
for all as individuals1 return to the   
mineral kingdom again4 ,if only we grasp
 the full meaning of this new gospel    
founded on science1 all life acquires a 
new significance4 ,most of all our own  
life1 as the highest expression known to

 us of the phenomena of matter in       
motion1 becomes more solemn and more    
full of hope4 ,in it more than in any   
other are gathered together the forces  
of the universe4 ,the attraction of the 
stone for the planet1 and of the        
particles of rock one for another1 the  
loves and hates of chemical atoms1 the  
energies of electrified and magnetised  
bodies1 the variations of innumerable   
simpler forms of organisms1 long chains 
of heredity reaching back through       
incalculable times1 myriads of          
adaptations1 struggles and failures1    
deaths and lives1 all have met in us4   
,we1 more than all others1 are the heirs
 of the ages4 ,while our less fortunate 
brethren1 the lower animals1 the plants1
 the minerals1 are playing their good   
part in the universal history1 without  
the consciousness in full of the meaning
 of it all1 we read the signs of the    
past and of to-day4 ,we know what we    
are1 but we know not what we may be1 in 
all the detail that our children's      

children will see and live4 ,yet we know
 that the race has a future that will   
transcend its past1 as that past        
transcended the dark dumb lives of the  
ancestry whence our kind has sprung4    
,the ,gospel of ,evolution is replacing 
that of ,christianity4 ,science is      
taking the place of ,religion and       
yielding to mankind the poetry that its 
forerunner missed4 ,nature is our all in
 all4 ,only the whisper of a secret     
thought here and there of hers has yet  
reached our ears4 ,but one4 ,the only   
good result that is supposed to flow    
from prayer does not really flow from   
prayer at all1 but is explicable by     
purely natural facts4 ,it is healthier  
that people should know these facts1    
than that they should refer real        
sensations to an imaginary cause4 ,this 
special re-action which under certain   
circumstances follows1 but is not paused
 by prayer to a supernatural existence1 
forms but a minute part of the results  
which flow from belief in prayer4 ,i    

desire to destroy prayer not only       
because it is a fraud1 but because it is
 a hindrance to progress4 ,men pray to  
do that which they should link hands to 
perform for themselves4 ,they are down  
on their knees1 crying like children1   
when they should be on their feet1      
working1 striving for their fellows4 ,i 
grudge every moment of time that is     
given by man to god4 ,man wants all we  
can do2 our heart1 our brain1 our love1 
our faculties1 all1 all these are sacred
 to man2 they must not be desecrated to 
the use of god4 ,it is sacrilege to     
steal for god the wealth needed for the 
enriching of man4  ,why1 only a few     
weeks since ,i read a letter from the   
,dean of ,peterborough1 asking for      
,l#dj1jjj for the repair of             
,peterborough ,cathedral4 ,and men1     
women and little children are rotting in
 cellars in the very city wherein that  
letter was published4 ,and he will get  
it4 ,l#dj1jjj are given so easily for a 
house of god1 but #dj1jjj pence would be

 grudged to make decent the hovels in   
which human beings live4 ,i hate the    
charity which pours out wealth for a    
god1 and counts in miserly fashion every
 farthing given for man4  ,there are no 
means of progress upon earth save those 
of study and of work4 ,study of nature  
to find out what is2 work to apply the  
knowledge for the increase of human     
happiness4 ,for centuries upon centuries
 men have prayed to god for deliverance 
from poverty1 from misery1 from crime2  
and poverty1 misery and crime are found 
on every side4 ,it is time that we      
should turn from god to man1 from prayer
 to work1 from dreaming to acting4 ,man 
shall do for earth what prayer has      
failed to do2 and man's thought1 man's  
love1 man's sturdy effort shall make    
that ,golden ,age for which so many have
 prayed1 but so few have worked4        
,printed by ,annie ,besant and ,charles 
,bradlaugh1 at #fc1 ,fleet ,street1     
,london1 ,b4,c4--#ahhd4