Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-16
modern warfare. and this fact should cheer


tnose who have that cause at heart
Inc superhuous population. composed Of the
morally and physically diseased. the drunkard
ana .he brute, IL immense and offers ever-grow-
remember hearing, whom was in America.
OF society calling itself the Harmony So
ciety, and composed Of doctors and eompe-
vent judges, who examined free Of charge. any
persons VINO we're contemplating matrimony
ana wisned to know whether they were fit for
that holy estate. that 10 to say, sound and
healthy in mind and body 1 never came
across member OF this excsllent association,
out that Is not sufficient reason for doubling ito
existence. In my opinion such q set Of coun-
seiors ought TO exist In every civilized country.
and, furthermore, 1t should be made punish
able ohense for people suffering from an inher-
ited disease to marry. There is no sadder
sight than that OF q helpless, innocent child
ioredoomed TO life of pain and misery be-
cause Of an inherited bodily disease, unless il
be that Of a hitherto promising young man or
woman utterly blighted as the poison OF alcohol
or insanity In the blood begins its deadly work.
STUDY OF PHYsIooSoMY.
IL IL sad to think that natural
selection should fail to eliminate the
unfit, but seeing that TO q certain extent
II does fail could we not help it little?
We teach great many sciences in our schools.
How would 1T be to try one moro and teach the
young something Of physiognomy and
phrenolosy? In the boarding schools You may
see girls out at elbows fourishing n pencil and
learning drawing, forsooth. | do not say that
In every case this study may be utterly useless,
though l could not help smiling when an in
spector OF schools said to me: ''Oh, it will help
them TO lay table neatly by and by" Prob
ably not one-fourth Of those girls will ever
have to lay decent table. but almost every
one OF them will marry, and suggest that a
study OF physiognomy might help her to
choose good husband The villain, AZ Mr..
IpfOme a m har inc hrn Qtou
Land, is easily distinguishable on the stage
You know him directly, for he always comes on
wearing high hat and smoking q cigarette
But off the stage he is by no means as obliging,
about labeled. He may go so far az to wear
his high hat, but hundreds of good men do the
same. Get him to take it off and then show
the girl whom he has marked for his prey the
lines OF his head, and tell her what they mean
taken in conjunction with his obliauely set
eyes and sensual mouth. You may perhaps
spare her life Of misery and the chance of
being the mother of future villains.
THE CRIMINAL POPULATION.
Phvsiognomy ana phrenology may not tell
us quite as much as some Of their ardent stu
dents claim they do. but in combination with
other science they teach US that most of our
CRIMINALS have been born with criminal in
stncts, which were bound to wreck their lives
ana make them curse to society Our use
less and criminal population are more to be
pltied than hated for their plague spots have
been transmitted to them by their parents, and
1t becomes a serious question whether il il not
the duty of the state to interfere and prevent
such people from perpetuating their species
lhey are as mt objects for hospitals as any can
Ger patient, and 1t would pay society to build
for them and keep them in hospitals where
they could have no intercourse with the oppo-
site sex. There would soon he fewer prisons
and asylums required. There are plenty of
people who strongly believe that society has
no right to punish crime, but all admit that il
mas perfect right to protect itself from the
criminal. Some OF us go further and say that
1t had right to protect itself against unborn
criminals and moral and physical cripples
who. under the present state of the laws are
adding yearly larger and more frightful sum
to the misery OF the world There is such a
Thing as false humanitsrianism.
FRENCH ACQUITTALs.
People who read French newspapers must
have been struck by the number Of acquittals
givon by French juries in cases of murder or
manslaughter committed under the influence of
jealous love. but few know the explanation.
which Is this: The French law makes a serious
distinction between premeditated crime and
CRIME which is done in a moment of blind pas
sion, yet the llghtest sentence that it allows a
Judge to pass on even q person whose provoca-
ton has been ever SO tremendous is one of
from hive to ten years penal servitude And
so juries, rather than send to the felon's prison
Tor such term man or woman who has
always borne good character, but who, mad
dened by passion. kills tries to kill the faith
less one, bring in verdict of not guilty. But
we shall soon hear less of these acquittas. NJ.
Beranger has framed an excellent bill which
Is pretty certain to pass for its clauses are all
excellent. He proposes that extreme lenieney
should be shown to first offenders and a corre-
spending rgor to old gaol birds. As soon ne
becomes tyil ha
able to make the punishment fit the crime"
much better than at present. They will have
three forms of unfavorable verdict at COM
mand: Guilty; guilty, but with extenuatiug
circumstances, and guilty, with very extenu-
ating circumstances.
When will such bill be passed by the En-
glish who 60 on numbering legally" Just as in
voitalre's time, having law which makes no
distinction between the human fond and the
man who does the killing under desperate
provocation? Human laws should be humane,
MAX O'RKLL.