I. Haeckel and His Opponents

Reasoned reflection must therefore agree with Haeckel when he says: “ Either organisms have naturally developed themselves, and in that case they must all originate from the simplest common ancestral forms— or that is not the case, the various species of organisms have arisen independently of one another, and in that case they can only have been created in a supernatural manner, by a miracle. Natural evolution or supernatural creation of species—we must choose between these two possibilities, for there is no third!” ( Free Science and Free Teaching, p. 9.) What has been proffered by philosophers or scientists as such a third alternative against the doctrine of natural evolution shows itself, on closer examination, to be only a belief in creation which more or less veils or denies its origin.