Page:The World's Most Famous Court Trial - 1925.djvu/130

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TENNESSEE EVOLUTION TRIAL

Q—Did he ever undertake to teach you anything about evolution?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—Did he undertake to teach you anything about any theory—

Mr. Darrow—I think, your honor, I will object to that. Ask him what it is.

Gen. Stewart—Q—What did he teach you in reference to?

The Court—What is the difference?

Mr. Darrow—Why—

The Court—All right.

Gen. Stewart—Q—About any evolutionary theory as to where man came from.

(Laughter in courtroom.)

Gen. Stewart—Just state in your own words, Howard, what he taught you and when it was.

A—It was along about the 2d of April.

Q—Of this year.

As Boy Heard Story

A—Yes, sir; of this year. He said that the earth was once a hot molten mass, too hot for plant or animal life to exist upon it; in the sea the earth cooled off; there was a little germ of one cell organism formed, and this organism kept evolving until it got to be a pretty good-sized animal, and then came on to be a land animal, and it kept on evolving, and from this was man.

Q—Let me repeat that; perhaps a little stronger than you. If I don't get it right, you correct me.

Mr. Hayes—Go to the head of the class.

Gen. Stewart—He said that in the beginning, the earth was a crystaline mass, too hot for any life to exist upon it; that it cooled off and finally the soil formed and the sea formed, plant life was on the earth, and that in the sea animal life began with a little one-celled animal.

A—Yes, sir.

Q—Which evolved and evolved and finally got bigger and became a land animal?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—And the culmination of which was man?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—Is that right?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—Did he say—

Mr. Darrow—Would you mind asking what he said?

Gen. Stewart—Yes, sir; I will do that.

Q—Now, when was it he taught you this that we have just repeated?

A—Well, it was in April.

Q—During class?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—What were you studying, what subject, when he said that?

A—We were studying General Science book.

Q—This General Science book?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—That is the theory that he taught you about a man being a little germ and sprouting in the sea, and so forth, and finally culminating and coming out on dry land; is that in this book? Could you find it in this book?

A—No, sir; I couldn't find it.

Q—Did you look for it?

A—No, sir.

Q—If it is in there, you could not find it?

A—No, sir.

Gen. Stewart—I hand it to you, gentlemen, to find it. (Handing book to counsel.)

Gen. Stewart—I ask you further, Howard, how did he classify man with reference to other animals; what did he say about them?

A—Well, the book and he both classified man along with cats and dogs, cows, horses, monkeys, lions, horses and all that.

Q—What did he say they were?

A—Mammals.

Q—Classified them along with dogs, cats, horses, monkeys and cows?

A—Yes, sir.

Q—You say this was along about the 2d or 3d of April of this year?