The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1901-08-28

| ASoec3 ouo AahuJ cl tucSo Qe8I parGAGE
are no doubt the offspring of the inter
marriage of cousins
Among these 400 pupils SO maria
ges have occurred and there have been
born to them 10 children, 80 of whom
can hear and 81 are mutes. In 10 Of
tho marriages there were no children
born. Now, after one, two or three
mutes have been born in succession to
parents it would seem sin, if not q
crime, for them to have more. The
law should prohibit it.. But if this
cannot be done after marriage, the
remedy for the future is to prohibit
the marriage Of cousins and
second cousins. To be born deaf or
blind is sin against the child, and to
have it supported by the State is a
drain upon the treasury, that might be
avoided.
] But being deaf or blind is not all
the evil that follows these incestuous
marriages. If the children are not
deaf or blind they are generally under
some physical disability. They are
consumptives or epileptics or idiotic,
and pass through life and leave no
sign. Fortunately most of such mar
riages result in no progeny.
"Oh, we'll, some say, "the Levitt
cal law did not prohibit it, No, it
did not, and I reckon Cain married
his sister. We know that Abraham
married his half sister, and no doubt
that is why no children were born to
them except the one by grace in their
old age.
|! But it is said that the Roman laws
and the laws of England permit such
marriages. Yes, the Roman law did
until Pope Alexander III stopped it
and prohibited first, second end third
cousins from intermarrying. The laws
of England permitted such marriages.
because the kings and the nobility
wanted to keep the crown and titles
and their estates in their families.
And 80 our American people, who
have patterned after English law and
precedent for more than hundred
years have been reluctant to make any
change n'this regard.
But the question is now coming to
the front, and the time is coming for
q change. It seems now to be an es-
tablished and universal rule that these
marriages entail upon the offspring
evil consequences, bodily or mentally,
or both. The evil effect Of what is
called breeding in" among animals
leads to the. conclusion that it is an
universal law. Good stock, biouded
stock is not perpetuated in that way.
Heard q conceited man declare that he
was descended from the CAROLS, Of
Carrollton, in old Maryland. Suppose
he did. That was six generations
back, and would give him sixty.four
ancestral fathers and mothers, and
hence he had only one sixty-fourth
part of old Charles Carroll's blood in
his veins. I know lady who boasts
that her father could trace his lineage
back to Cromwell. That was eighteen
generations back, and would give him
612, 900 ancestors-not much Of Crom-
wells blood in her. It is astonishing
how rapidly /, lie ancestral tree widens.
Two generations back gives a man
only four great-grandfathers and
grandmothers, but twenty generations
gives him over million. just think
of it, young man, and quit Dragging
about your ancestors, for there are
over million different strains Of blood
in your veins, and no doubt some Of
it is bad, very bad. My wife's grand
father was Holt, and his grandfath-
er was q Randolph, and his grandfath-
sr vas . Peyton, and his grandfath-
er was Lord Rolfe, who married Poca-
hontas. That was ten generations
back, and gives my wife 1,OA ances.
tors. and, therefore she has IL ,O24th
part Of Poky's blood in her veins.
Mighty slim strain, it seems to me
not much Injun about her. One day
1 ventused to ask about the other
1923 parts that did not come from
Poky and she never said anything but
looked at me in peculiar tone Of
voice that reminded me that it was
none of my business. But I honor o
nOOie ancestry. l used to think that
maybe I descended from Captain John
Smith. but on Investigation found
that he never was married and had
no children to speak of.
BILL ARP.
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