The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-06-07

overplus populations Of very triHing aO-
count.
But there is g vast amount of comfort
for the surplus population to be found in
the doctrines Of q Mr.. n w. Senior, who
negatives the surplusAge, by showing that
an advancing civilization diminishes the
capacity to increase the size of families
down to about the bread furnishing stand
ard. In other words, showing that the
gluttons Of wealth are to be well supplied
with plenty of food at the expense Of the
non-produced children, which they are
not permitted to have, and Mr.. w. R.
Greg now appears upon the stage TO rein
force Mr.. Senior, to put down the fatal
statistics Of Nautilus; but the joke of the
put dO,on is that Mr. Greg cannot find the
statistics to do it with But the Tribune
has kindly come to its aid The Tribtsns
says:
And now comes Mr.. W. r. Greg, in his re-
Gently published work entitled "EnigmAs of
Life, " to reinforce the forgotten battle of Mr..
Senior. 1t cannot be said that he has added
much to what NJ. Senior said. He admits
that he has not been able to find any stats
tics Of sufficient scope to refute Mr.. Nautilus,
but he thinks that he has observed in Eng
land, where what is called moral restraint"
is less practised than anywhere else in the
civilized world, q marked diminution in the
number Of children born to the families Of the
well TODD classes. He thinks that cerebral
development opposed to fecundlty, and
telhgence the power of multiplication dimin-
ishes in obedience to physiological law. He
believes that this is fact, and suggests in
vestigation by statisticians and medical men.
If this be not true he says nightly that the
Malthusian doctrine is the most stupendOus
of all the enigmas of life being apparently
an insurmOuntable barrier to human progress;
for if the human race is bound to increase
faster than the means of subsistence, with no
other correctives than war, pestIlence and
famine, and with no other hindrance than
moral restraint, which he regards practi-
cally no hindrance at all, the great mass Of
mankind have nothing to look forward to in
this world but penury, degradation, vice, dis
ease and crime We trust that Mr.. Gregs
suggestion will be taken up by statisticiAns in
this country, for we feel tolerab y sure that it
will oe found that the size Of families has di-
minlshed in a very marked degree among the
native American stock during the past fifty
years, notwithstanding the means Of subsis-
tence have increased III a still greater ratio.
We think that the time Of the statisti-
clans would be much better employed in
finding some remedy for vices that render
refined sensuality incapable Of reproducing
at a natural rate their own species 1t is
not cerebral development that Is opposed to
fecundity, but it is a reduction Of physical
power by an abuse of its functions in a
manner not polite to mention in a public
journal. And these statistical gentlemen
will find that workingmen have better fe
cundity and ability to support their off
spring wherever they can get out Of the
reach Of this boosted government civiliza-
ton A much better use Of mental power
can be found in inquiring into the grievous
wrongs which rob and starve the industrial
masses, and then drench the earth with
their blood. 1t is in this direction we
would like to see the Tribune sage direct
ing his efforts in place Of muddLng his
brains and that of his readers with Nal
thus Senior compounds.