July 21, 1925 - The Scopes "Monkey" Trial came to a conclusion when after only nine minutes of deliberation the jury found high school biology teacher John T. Scopes guilty of teaching evolution and the court fined him $100. The trial had garnered national media attention with three-time presidential candidate, and life-long Presbyterian, William Jennings Bryan arguing for the prosecution, and Clarence Darrow, an agnostic and leading member of the American Civil Liberties Union, representing the defense. For eight days the world descended on the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, to watch two of the greatest trial lawyers go toe-to-toe over whether the Bible took priority over all other human knowledge. The trial reached its climax when, on the seventh day, Darrow took the unorthodox step of calling the opposing counsel as a witness. Bryan agreed to testify with the understanding that he would be able to call Darrow to the stand in return. However, after the exchange between Darrow and Bryan became heated the judge ended the questioning, declaring it to be irrelevant to the case. While technically the evolutionist camp lost the trial, many of them viewed it as a victory as public opinion began to be swayed toward their side. Today the pendulum has swung completely to the evolutionist side of the spectrum. In the 2005 case of Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District, the court held that teaching intelligent design, as an alternative to evolution, was a form of creationism and therefore violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. 

-- Clarence Darrow, in response to an objection while questioning William Jennings Bryan.

Heath is Reading

(to his girls) 

Harry Potter and the  

Chamber of Secrets 

by J.K. Rowling