The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-07-24
rs IOMHEOSO SANE?
His Conclusions Respecting mn Alleged kiss
ing Epidemic in America.

From he Chicn1o T,itnns.
Signor LombrSso the Italian so'iuloeist. has
contributed an article to tic August number ot
the FdN Mall Magazine entitled An Epidemic
OF Kisaes in America" lie charges the origin
OF the cpidem,c to Lieut. Hobsou, and thinEs
that in conai iCration OF the reserve oil the
Anglo-Saxon race. the modesty Of tho women
and the selr-possossion and hnrd- heudcdness
Of the American citizens tho phenomenon calls
for some explanation from n pathological
STANDPOINT. From this standpoint LombroSo
says:
In the case Of Hohsous 10 COZ kisses, the strange
ness an unconventionality of which were height
cnci by their publicity, the most striking fact Ia
that he was addressing a crowd Of specially elite
persons. The crowd is domain in which tho
Inicroho OF evil develops more readily than tho
microbo Of good because the eord elements Of tho
ndi,ilral arc eliminated by numbers or by the
presence of single morbid clement. Disturb
anccs arise noinly from the stronger influence
which the few dcprnved persons IN crowd exercise
upon it; for. being of m active nature, they over
swsf the vrtuous. who are Ivy nature more passive
This haleful influence Ia yet moro marked III a
crowd Of women partly because It includes Larger
proportion OF In sercsl persons, who live and rn.
ceive suggestions more readily than others, and
partly because. aside from hyStcrical tendencies
women arc moro open to suggestion, more inclined
to run to extremes. than men.
1t is unnecessary to answer Lombroso's tho
DRY from the pathological standpoint for the
simple reason that none OF the facts exist which
he assumes as the promises for his deductions.
First. there is no epidemic OF kisses in America.
There Is about tho Same average OF OSCILLATION
here in proportion to population that there Is
elsewhere. Second. Hobson did not begin his
career OF kissing at Nassar College. an institu-
ton which is lamentaby free from this habit.
| Third Hobson was not kissed by no fewer
than 10000 women" 1t is questionable
| whether Hobson was kissed by 100 women.
sons The spec spsscay S SRts Was '' eons T
class; Least Of ali Would the Specially Site.
which Is fastidious in its OSCILLATION and can
and q" @sht
in man as in wHnan; The latter is no more
sons among women, but the Mysteries do not
premises being unsound. his conclusions fall 10
heground. He IS reasoning from non existent
which accepts unfounded statements as truths
| without stopping to examine them. and then
proceeds TO evolve theories, which have no
| The trouble with SGnor Lombroso is that he
is insane upon the question Of other peoples
bsc9me Infected with their f particular microbes
| ne Is nov insane, Dut ne ID not sane. he lOOks
! at his objects through II glass which reflect
| distorted images. He has become crratic and
travels SO far away from the true paths OF
| science that he wanders OFF into all sorts OF
vaGaries He is to the science OF criminoogy
| what Flammarion is TO astronomy or Donnelly
| to Shakespeare. He has become injected with
the complaim he has been studying.
In concluding this paper Signor Lombroso
says: 1t would augur well for the glory OF the
great republic. on which at this time the gaze
Of the whole liberal world is fixed. II In the
| flush of victory the military artor OF your
| American cousin had restricted itself TO this
| single act. 1t would augur well H. having sc,
| one people free they had refraned from grid
| Ing on the sword to force another into slavery
| This OF itself is sufficient TO dcmonstr rate tho
mental vagaries Of Lombroso 1t indicates
also that he is IN complete sympathy with tina
| unfortunate class in this country known as
"aunties." who have been bitten by 9TH,
microbe Of evil and who have the hysterica
| tendencies Of which he speaks.