On the day of the birth of Charles Robert Darwin (Shrewsbury, February 12, 1809 – London, April 19, 1882) I took up my copy of “The Descent of Man” in its first Italian translation in 1872 by Michele Lessona and read some paragraphs that it is always necessary remember, to reflect on the importance of science and the rational thinking.
“The nature of the following work will be best understood by a brief account of how it came to be written. During many years I collected notes on the origin or descent of man, without any intention of publishing on the subject, but rather with the determination not to publish, as I thought that I should thus only add to the prejudices against my views. It seemed to me sufficient to indicate, in the first edition of my Origin of Species, that by this work light would be thrown on the origin of man and his history; and this implies that man must be included with other organic beings in any general conclusion respecting his manner of appearance on this earth. Now the case wears a wholly different aspect. When a naturalist like Carl Vogt ventures to say in his address as President of the National Institution of Geneva (1869): Personne, en Europe au moins, n’ose plus soutenir la cration indépendante et de toutes pièces, des espèces, it is manifest that at least a large number of naturalists must admit that species are the modified descendants of other species; and this especially holds good with the younger and rising naturalists. The greater number accept the agency of natural selection; though some urge, whether with justice the future must decide, that I have greatly overrated its importance.”
