Scope Monkey Trials
How it All Happened
The basis for the Scopes trial was laid when the Tennessee State Legislature passed the Butler Act – which took effect on March 21st, 1925. The essence of the Act was that it made it illegal for anyone:”… to teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals”in any state-funded educational institution. (For the full wording of the Butler Act seeThe Butler Did It)The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) were already aware that the Act was likely to become law because it had been passed by the lower house of the Tennessee legislature by a landslide (in January, 1925).
After a few false starts, the ACLU sent a press release to several Tennessee newspapers, such as the Chattanooga Daily Times, announcing that they would provide legal assistance, etc. for a school teacher in Tennessee who would be willing to stand trial for having taught evolution in a public school so that a test case could be mounted to challenge the constitutional validity of the Act.Encouraged by George Rappelyea, (a mining engineer who managed six local coal and iron mines owned by the Cumberland Coal Company), a group of leading citizens in the small town of Dayton* – the “drug store conspirators” – decided to accept the ACLU’s offer, in the hope that the publicity surrounding the trial would help to reverse the town’s declining fortunes.
On May 4th the group recruited John Scopes, football coach and algebra, chemistry and physics teacher employed, on a one year contract, by Rhea County High School as the subject for the test case, on the basis that he had taught from the section on evolution in Hunter’s A Civic Biology – the State-approved textbook.(* Dayton is situated in the valley between the Cumberland Plateau and the Appalachian Mountains. It is just a few miles West of a line from Chattanooga (36 miles to the Sou’ Sou’ West) to Knoxville (79 miles to the North East).)Rappelyea sent a telegram to the ACLU’s New York office.
The ACLU replied the next day, accepting his proposal. Scopes was charged with having taught evolution on April 24th, 1925. A preliminary hearing on May 9th bound him over pending a specially convened Grand Jury hearing on May 25th. The members of the Grand Jury, who were well aware of the true purpose of the charge against Scopes, handed down an indictment and Scopes was instructed to present himself at the Rhea County court house for trial on the morning of July 10th. At no time was Scopes held in jail on this charge which, by the way, was only classed as a “misdemeanor”, not a “felony.”
On hearing about the trial, from the leaders of the WCFA (World’s Christian Fundamentals Association), on May 12th William Jennings Bryan volunteered his services to the prosecution. By the end of that week Clarence Darrow had contacted Scopes with an offer to appear pro bono for the defense. Darrow effectively became the leading defense counsel, though John Neal was technically chief counsel for the defense. Bryan, on the other hand, was only one of several assistant prosecutors under the leadership of Tom Stewart (Attorney General for the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit).
Who was Involved in these Events?
(Some characters appear in more than one group because they played multiple roles.)
The Judge:
The Honorable J.T. (John Tate) Raulston
(circuit judge for the 18th judicial district)
The Defendent:
John Thomas Scopes(sports coach and teacher at Rhea County High School)
The “Drug Store Conspirators”: (See The Drug Store Conspiracyfor details)
Wallace Haggard
(local attorney)
Herbert Hicks
(local attorney)
Sue Hicks
(local attorney – brother of Herbert Hicks)
J.Gordon McKenzie
(County Judge)
W.E. Morgan
(local businessman)
George Rappelyea
(Mining company manager)
Frank E. “Mr Earle” Robinson(owner of Robinson’s Drug Store and chairman of the Rhea County Board of Education Note: Robinson is frequently referred to as “Fred”. I am indebted to Tom Davis of Bryan College for correcting me on this point.)
John Thomas Scopes
(co-opted)
Walter White
(Rhea County Superintendant of Schools)
Burt Wilber(constable)
Lawyers
For the Defense (The final line up – see For the Defensefor details)
Clarence Darrow
(pro bono volunteer – effective head of the defense team)
Arthur Garfield Hays
(ACLU – nominally manager of the defense team)
Dudley Field Malone
(pro bono volunteer)
Frank B. McElwee
(local attorney)
John R. Neal
(Dean of private law school in Knoxville and technically head of the defense team)
William T. Thomas(Darrow’s legal associate)
For the Prosecution
(The final line up – see For the Prosecutionfor details)
William Jennings Bryan
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor)
William Jennings Bryan Jnr
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor, W.J. Bryan’s son)
Wallace Haggard
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor)
Herbert Hicks
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor)
Sue Hicks
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor)
Ben McKenzie
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor, retired district attorney-general)
J. Gordon McKenzie
(volunteer – assistant prosecutor, Ben McKenzie’s son)
Thomas A. “Tom” Stewart(Chief Prosecutor – Attorney-General for the 18th judicial district)
Witnesses
For the Prosecution (In the order in which they gave evidence)
Walter White
(School superintendent)
Howard Morgan
(student at Rhea County High School – claimed he was present when Scopes allegedly taught Darwin’s theory of evolution)
Harry Shelton
(student at Rhea County High School – claimed he was present when Scopes allegedly taught Darwin’s theory of evolution)
Frank E. Robinson(drug store owner and chairman of the school board)
Expert Witnesses for the Defense
(Only Maynard Metcalf and William Jennings Bryan gave evidence in person – see The Expert Witnesses – and Others for more on Maynard Metcalf) and Duel in the Shade for Darrow’s questions to Bryan. Scientific:
Fay-Cooper Cole
(Professor of anthropology at the University of Chicago)
Winterton C. Curtis
(Professor of zoology, University of Missouri)
Charles Hubbard Judd
(Director of the School of Education, University of Chicago)
Jacob G. Lipman
(Director of the New Jersey agricultural Experiment Station at New Brunswick)
Kirtley F. Mather
(Chairman of the Geology department at Harvard University)
Maynard M. Metcalf
(Zoologist, researching at Johns Hopkins)
Wilbur A. Nelson
(State Geologist for Tennessee)
Horatio Hackett Newman
(Dean of the College of Science at the University of Chicago)
Theological:
William Jennings Bryan
(Politician, public speaker, assistant prosecutor)
Dr. Shailer Matthews
(Dean of the School of Divinity, University of Chicago)
Dr Herbert E. Murkett
(Pastor, First Methodist Church, Chattanooga)
Dr. Herman Rosenwasser
(Rabbi and linguist, San Fransisco)
Walter C. Whitaker(Rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Knoxville)
The Jurors (The list covers everyone who was called as possible jurors for the trial, in the order they were called, It includes their occupation and religious affiliation, and (where relevant) the reason they were excused from jury service. Only those people with a number against their name actually served on the jury.)
1. W.F. Roberson
(farmer, no religious affiliation)
2. J.W. Dagley
(farmer, Methodist)
3. Jim Riley
(farmer. Religious affiliation, if any, not known)
J.P. Massingill
(minister – excused by Darrow on grounds of partiality)
J.H. Harrison
(excused at own request on grounds of age. He was 66)
4. W.D. Taylor
(farmer, described himself as “Methodist Episcopal, South” (Southern Methodist))
Tom Jackson
(farmer, Southern Methodist – excused by Darrow on grounds of partiality)
5. R.L. Gentry
((farmer, public school teacher, Baptist)
J.C. Dunlap
(After objection by J.G. McKenzie he was excused by judge on grounds of partiality)
W.A. Ault
(merchant, Baptist – excused by Darrow on grounds of partiality)
Will Weir
(teacher – excused by judge after he admitted that he was partial)
6. J.R. Thompson
(ex-US marshall, farm owner (not a farmer), Methodist)
7. W.B. Smith
(farmer, Baptist)
J.T. Leuty
(farmer, no religious affiliation, excused by J.G. McKenzie on grounds of partiality)
8. Jess Goodrich
(shipping clerk, Campbellite)
9. J.H. Bowman
(cabinet maker turned farmer, Methodist)
10. Bill Day
(farm owner. Rented his farm out or farmed it himself, Baptist)
H. A. Davis
(Was called but did not respond.)
F. S. Collins
(Was called but did not respond.)
11. R.L. West
(farmer, Baptist)
W.P. Ferguson
(farmer, Baptist – excused by Darrow on grounds of partiality)
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12. J.S. Wright(farmer, Baptist)