The morning call., 1893-12-08
HUMAN SACCULINE.

In the lecture delivered by Principal
Jordan on Wednesday he alluded TO the
degenerated forms of animal life which
attract the attention of students of natural
history. He observed that under the tails
of crabs are found little parasites called
sacculiDa. They send tentacles into the
body of the crab and draw nourishment
from lis blood. The sacculina is degen-
Grated crab descended from higher and
more complica ted form. 1t has withdrawn
from the struggle for existence.
The history of the sacculina is the his
tory of life, not only in the lower orders
of created beings but also in the human
species. All seem to have been created
with organs different from those we now
observe. Some organs have been i'm
proved and developed-as. for instance.
the spine, which has been Strengthened; !;
the soles of the feet, which have been
fiattened; the shape of the brain, which
has been enlarged to admit wider convo-
lutons. Other organs, which doubtless
had their use in primeval man, serve no
purpose which we can discover. There
must have been a time when the spleen
and the vermiform appendix had duties
to perform; now, so far as we know, they
dkO uSclCoSs 1Dcto WAS d tluio nnFb tuOn
had three eyes; two were found sufficient
for all purposes and more effective; the
third is lost in the pineal gland. The
coccyx, with it's four small vertebr@. is all
that remains of the tail of our ancestors.
The organ has passed into inpocuous
desuetude, and useless bone commem-
crates it's existence. So with the lower
animals. The original founder must have
swum on his side or his eyes would not
have been placed on each side Of his nose:
now he finds it safer to be on his belly on
the bottom, and the under eye travels
through his head.
The evolution which is apparent in the
physical is also visible in the moral world.
The highest qualities of mankind are con-
stantly growing. Men are becoming more
humane, more broad-minded, more clear
headed, more tender to the weak, more
forbeariDg to the erring. simultaneously,
those who are the least fitted for the strug-
gle of life are either passing out of exist
ence OF are falling into the condition of the
sacculiD&, are Of no use In the world, and
live in obscure retirement by sucking the
blood Of those who retain ther vigor. The
criminal, the vicious, the idle class are
the human saceulina. And it is the de-
velopment of the highest attributes of
human nature in the better grades Of man.
kind which enables these sacculina to live.
II is contrary TO modern humanity that any
man should be allowed to die of hunger.
however idle ana worthless he may be.
Therefore the inveterate tramp adheres to
his calling. knowing he can live without
work. Therefore the thief. knowing that
at the worst he can only be sent TO prison
where he will be we'll fed, we'll clothed
and comfortably housed, continues to steal.
The elevation in the moral tone of man.
kind operates to swell the ranks of the
useless class.
The world is full of intellectual succu-
lin@, men who dsdain to join the process
sion of progress. and rather plume them
selves Oh adherng to the obsolete stupidi.
ties of their fathers How few, even of
the men whom society respects the most,
can say on their deathbed that they have
been of real use to the age in which they
have livedi A man leads an honest life,
breaks no laws, violates no proprietes,
pays his debts. supports bis wife, and
brings up mis- children IN a cleanly fashion
such a man is fairly entitled to the eulogy
which the minister breaches over his
coffin; but when all is said and done, what
would the world have lost if he had never
lived? The poet whose genius is only now
beginning to be appreciated bade us SO act
"that each tomorrow find US further than
to-day" BUTT is so much easier not to act
TO grub along In the old rut, avoiding
sharp corners and rough powders, and
smoothly sailing, so as to pass through life
without collisions, As Colonel Esnond
said when his grandchildren twitled him
with being henpecked by their mother.
and asked him why he did not stand up
like man. "My dears," said the easy old
gentleman, II find it pleasanter TO sit
down." 1t is less trouble to cuddle under
the tail Sf the crab. and to suck ones susie
nance from it's blood, than to go out hunt
ing for larva and offal. The neglect of
duty involves degradation Of the Species
But to some that carries with it no dis