The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-03-19

Coi aiFeduy. therefore In addition to the
increase In size, there is manifest centrali-
za1on OF power OF the brain in ganglia.
tor instance, a musician performs a diff
| cult piece OF music, or a dancer executes a
complicated series of evolutions These
performances at first are executed with
great palnstaking. but after practice, the
performer need only think of the name,
perhaps, OF a performance, and
willing that he shall do it, off he
goes to perfect rendition almost uncon-
sciously. This is done by means of the
gangla located in the members. Thus it is
that the descendants of musicians are apt to
De musicians and Of acrObats, acrobats; the
speciality of the foretather being most
readily acquired by the descendant. A
striking illustration of this principle is
found IN the single violin maker of this city,
Hls family has made such instruments for
5OO years continuously, and he has acquired
Tor Cincinnati the reputation of producing
Vlollns excesded only by the works of the
old masters. While the hand of man can
perform wonders even in our days they are
nothing TO what the hand of the man OF a
dozen centuries hence may do, when, if it
continues at the present rate of develop
ment, 1t Will be almost as rational creature
| in itself.
THE study of specialties, as is being done
by so many now, is a good thing for the
development of the race and like the spe-
ciallsts In manual training is apt to lead to
descendants who choose the same line of
| study. 1t is maintained by some that a
specialist becomes narrow minded. differ
with those people considerably The fact
Is, real thorough specialist, such one as
one must be to be recognized, has broader
education than a classical student. Take
my specialty-biology-f instance. Be-
fore man eau take step forward he must
familiarize himself with the classics, and a
classical course forms the very foundation.
not only must the scientist know Latin
and Greek, but he must be familiar with
modern languages SO that he can keep
posted as to the latest discoveries in all
parts of the world. Knowing these, he is
ready to begin work in his speciality, and
you will find that a large majority of the
specialists of to-day have thorough
grounding In the classics The more we
study, the easier will the same work be for
our descendants, and the child of a century
hence will consider as nothing the lessons
that tax severely the child of to-day, just
as the school children Of to-day would make
light of the lessons considered difficult to
child Of century ago.
The more we run into SpecialtieS of mind
or body, the freer the central brain is left to
design new inventions. These new inven-
tions, in their turn, require for their manip-
ulation the education of the members or the
education being gained, opens up new fields
of thought and discovery. The livelier the
brain the more stimuli it sends out by way
of the nerves. These stimuli, exciting the
muscles to which they lead, provoke an in
creased supply of blood to the parts, and an
increased flow of blood means an increased
growth. While these transferred sensa-
tons cause the body to grow, the
mere action of the brain causes itself to
grow, SO that it keeps pace with bodily in
crease. Increased bodily Yigor renders pos
| sible increased mental vigor, which. in its
turn, reacts upon the body. Thus the cir
cult goes round and round forever and we
might think that in time man would grow
to be giant, mentally aud physically. But
you must remember that this development,
though viewed in the light of the whole
universe is like the flash of a brilliant
meteor across the darkened sky, to US upon
whom it is operating it is imperceptible and
only is seen to exist by placing side by side
men of times widely separated.
But there is a dark side Co the picture.
1t would be grand thing were man to adj
vance steadily onward to the attainment of
this mighty power, but it is not in human
nature to do so. AS soon as a nation or
race of men attain positioa, whether by
reason of physical strength or artifce,
where they seem above fear and secure
from attack by other men, they relax the
vigor and determination of purpose by
which they attained their enviable position
and slowly but surely they lapse into de-
cay, the highest and most powerful falling
first. But they never fall SO low as the
place from which they began to rise, and
each successive ascent is from higher base
and goes further than the previous
one, so that there is really an adj
! vance, after all. But these relapses are not
| phys alone. There are times when
whole races fall morally, and we in America
are at the present time in the throes of one
of the most appalling relapses in the history
of man. A greater change has taken place
| here in the last decade than ever in
century before. 1t is not confined to the
laity, but religious circles have felt the
| shock. Preachers of all sects are to-day
proclaiming doctrines that, twenty-five
| years ago would have been sufficient cause
| for summary expulsion from their respect
! i've churches, while the religious careleSsness
of the masses is something startling. But
| it is all very easily explained. Ii is
not that we are so terribly wicked. In
our desire to ape continental customs and
to introduce, especially, the continental Sun
day, we have equaled and gone far ahead
! of the Europeans in that respect. A young
| man on the continent will do certain things;
| he never abandons his conscience or loses
his respect for law; while an American,
| OOl1K Jn6 SdulS buluSS, CuLS AOOoo AAOlh I'LL
restraint, casting away as burden all con-
| science, and deems it an honor to defy the
| laws of the land. We will soon see where
we are getting to and begin retreat, and
/ then we are apt to go to the other extreme
before we settle down to a normal condi-
| ton,
"There is forming in America at present
! new race, distinct FROM all others on the
earth. 1t is being made up Of moiety OF
/ every race and nation in existence. We
note the disappearance OF blondes. 1t is
| true, they ore going, for the new race is
going to be a dark-haired race, as pig
lnented people always gain the ascendency
where they mingle equally with non-plg-
| mented, not because nnu-pigmented people
are less able TO withstand disease than the
| others, but for the same reason that if
you mix white and black the white
cannot preserve its purity. The
new one is to bs tho largest race OF the
earth, and will contain all that is good and
some that is bad Of all other races. 1t is to
be grand medley, and the American OF
the future will be the representative m an
of the world. Bat we are as yet just begin
ming to develop into this race, which may
not be a distinctive one before thousand
years.
"1o sum it all up in single statement,
would say that man is positively increasing
in size, longevity and intelligence"