The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-21

oOIfle one mas SAID mat he never en-
tered a school room that he did not
feel like doffing his hat to the possible
future president of the United States,
who might be sitting on a bench be-
fore him. Hardly one of the orators
who make their flights on our nations
natal day but dilates upon the virtue
of republican institutions that permit
the promotion of the citizen from the
loWliest to the highest sation, and he
will cite Garfield the canal boy, unable
to read at thirteen; Lincoln, the split
ter of rails and helmsman of a river
fatboat. and Johnson, the ignorant
tailor, whose wife taught him to read,
as illustrations of his theme We all
rather pride ourselves upon our self
made men as being, somehow. and in
manner we never attempt to analyze,
the peculiar product of our institutions,
indigenous to our soil, and we forgive
them, because of their success, their
tendency to worship their creator.
But institutions are only the environ
ment that can encourage or repress,
but cannot create, and back of the
orators patriotic praise of free govern
ment and back of the careers of self
made men lies the great and unsJ,ya BILE
mystery Of the distribution of intel
lectual capacity, made in defiance of
all the dogmas of heredity and all con-
ceptions of the effect of social inffu-
ence or conditions. In the domain Of
the animal, men have demonstrated
the ability to improve form by intelli-
gent selection and breeding. and posi-
bly, similar results might be obtained
by similar methods with the human
form; but when we enter the domain
of mind the laws affecting develop
ment of form cease to operate, and men
tai capacity seems to be distributed
under the whim of caprice rather than
under any immutabIe law. In the most
surprising manner there suddenly
shoots up above the level Of the mass
of humanity from the most unexpect-
ed quarters, a commanding genius to
| become the acknowledged leader. He
runs his course, does his work and, dy-
ing. leaves no heir TO inherit his DOW.
ers. No condition of life is so IowIy
that out of it may not come such men
or women, and no condition of life can
! be so inviting as to insure their birth
within it. The Giver of the divine gifts
! of intellect went down into the OBJ
| scurest ranks of English life to find a
mother for Shakespeare, and when He
lets loose a great thinker on this
! planet" to put "ali things at risk" he
! selecting the place OF entrance
From consideration of this impartial
allotment of capacity. to which the
slightest observation brings overwhelno-
! ing evidence. one turns with i'll con-
| cealed impatience to the propositions
made in sundry quarters to adopt legis-
! lation that will stamp out" what they
! with complacent assumption of SUI
periority in themselves. call the unfit. y
James Olinhant is one of these. and
I in the Progressive Age, he states the
question to be 'the avoidance of the
evils shat follow from promoting the
! ascerdency of the unfit" These. he
assumes, propagate faster than do "the
more capable half" and unless steps
are taken TO prevent this increase the
submergence of the fit" is only a
question Of time. He would, therefore
have all who find the struggle of life
more than they can bear" placed in
life confinement. as is now done with
! certain criminals. In other words. this
self-sufficient, calmly superior individ-
ual would corral the indiscriminately
bestowed gifts Of capacity Of the AL
| mighty within the charmed circle OF
| those who might be able to convince
the government that they were of the
capable half" And this from a mar
in country out OF whose paupeI
house rose Henry M. Stanley to found
new nation on the banks of the
Congo.
And who are the unfit" and who
! constitute the capable half?" Is
wealth or social station to be the di-
viding line? How far back. even IL