Evolution on Trial | Duel to the Death | 3
American History Tellers
Wondery
4.7 • 18.3K Ratings
🗓️ 23 July 2025
⏱️ 46 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On July 20, 1925, the trial of John Scopes continued in the stifling heat of the overcrowded county courthouse in Dayton, Tennessee. Tempers flared as the defense and prosecution sparred over the question of admitting testimony from scientific experts.
The heat became too much to bear, and the judge announced that he was moving the trial outside. Some 3,000 spectators and reporters gathered on the courthouse lawn. Defense lawyer Clarence Darrow shocked the crowd by calling a surprise witness to the stand, in a last-ditch effort to undermine the fundamentalist movement once and for all.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | As we explore the triumphs and tragedies that shaped America, |
| 0:03.9 | we're always striving to paint a vivid, nuanced picture of the past, |
| 0:07.3 | and with Wondery Plus, you can experience that vision in its purest form. |
| 0:11.0 | Enjoy ad-free episodes, early access to new seasons, |
| 0:13.8 | and exclusive bonus content that illuminates the human stories behind the history. |
| 0:17.9 | Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts and see American |
| 0:21.7 | History through a whole new lens. |
| 0:42.8 | Imagine is the night of July 16th, 1925 in downtown Dayton, Tennessee. |
| 0:47.1 | You're the local police commissioner, and you're walking home after a long day keeping the peace outside the county courthouse. The heat hasn't let up all week, and that's made |
| 0:51.8 | just about everyone cranky. You can feel sweat pulling beneath your hat as you turn the corner and come upon three |
| 0:58.0 | middle-aged men loitering outside Robinson's drugstore. |
| 1:01.6 | Their ruddy faces and scowling expressions suggest that they're drunk on bootleg liquor |
| 1:06.2 | and looking for trouble. |
| 1:08.2 | And when a man with slicked hair parted in the middle exits the store, |
| 1:11.9 | you understand why these drunk men are hanging around and stewing. Just stepping into the street |
| 1:16.9 | is Baltimore writer H.L. Mankin, who's become a controversial visitor in town lately. You see a |
| 1:22.4 | confrontation brewing, so you step forward. All right, boys, let's move it along. One of the men begins to protest, |
| 1:29.9 | but you tap your nightstick and cut them off with a look. As they wander off, you turn to Mencken. |
| 1:35.7 | He furrows his eyebrows. Oh, what? Have you come to chase me off too? No, I'm glad you're here. I've been |
| 1:41.2 | meaning to talk to you. I think you need to leave town. |
| 1:43.1 | Well, as much as I'd like to return to civilization, I can't leave until this trial's finish. Well, listen, my suggestion is no joke. The town's getting tired of your insults, Megan. Folks have been reading your articles and we know what you've been calling us. Morons, hillbillies, peasants? Oh, come on now, I just think you don't understand my humor. |
| 2:02.0 | Well, then maybe it's time you don't understand my humor. |
... |
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