opinion among her
"demonstrated conclusions and established facts," for there would be
just as much, or as little, reason for ranging the contrary opinion
among them.

It may seem superfluous to add to the evidence that Mr. Gladstone has
been utterly misled in supposing that his interpretation of Genesis
receives any support from natural science. But it is as well to do one's
work thoroughly while one is about it; and I think it may be advisable
to point out that the facts, as they are at present known, not only
refute Mr. Gladstone's interpretation of Genesis in detail, but are
opposed to the central idea on which it appears to be based.

There must be some position from which the reconcilers of science and
Genesis will not retreat, some central idea the maintenance of which is
vital and its refutation fatal. Even if they now allow that the words
"the evening and the morning" have not the least reference to a natural
day, but mean a period of any number of millions of years that may be
necessary; even if they are driven to admit that the word "creation,"
which so many millions of pious Jews and Christians have held, and still
hold, to mean a sudden act of the Deity, signifies a process of gradual
evolution of one species from another, extending through immeasurable
time; even if they are willing to grant that the asserted coincidence of
the order of Nature with the "fourfold order" ascribed to Genesis is an
obvious error instead of an established truth; they are surely prepared
to make a last stand upon the conception which underlies the whole, and
which constitutes the essence of Mr. Gladstone's "fourfold division, set
forth in an orderly succession of times." It is, that the animal
species which compose the water-population, the air-population, and
the land-population respectively, originated during three distinct and
successive periods of time, and only during those periods of time.

This statement appears to me to be the interpretation of Genesis which
Mr. Gladstone supports, reduced to its simplest expression. "Period
of time" is substituted for "day"; "originated" is substituted for
"created"; and "any order required" for that adopted by Mr. Gladstone.
It is necessary to make this proviso, for if "day" may mean a few
million years, and "creation" may mean evolution, then it is
obvious that the order (1) water-population, (2) air-population,
(3) land-population, may also mean (1) water-population, (2)
land-pop