Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-11
CAUSE OF GENIUS.
Mixed Marriages and the Parentage
Of Great Men.

From tie London Mall.
For COOL many years past there has
been Il singular scarcity OF really great men,
which is all the more remarkable because
We have never before had so many men OF
q high order Of ability.
What l. tho reason OF this scarcity If
tue common belief Is correct that the birth
Of a great man IL an accident We have Il
simple explanation.
But philosophers prove that there are no
accidents. Everything that happens has
definite cause that cause Is the consequence
OF artcredert events, SO that the genius Of
q Shakespeare or a Napoleon Ia no moro an
Rceidcu. than frost IN winter.
Mr. Francis Gallon, Mt II. Ellis and 9th
ors have examined this question OF the pro
duH.tan OF genius from various standpO!uts,
ana. Il they have not furnished with a
recipe fOy the making Of great men. they
have shown that one Of the most important
factors Is mixture Of blood,
So important indeed. IS this factor, that
Il almost seems as - We could produce
Shakespeare ana Nago!eons by a process OF
Cross-5recdNg.
The analysis o, the blood IN the veins OF
great men IS difficult operation. Tor we
have 20 60 back 20 grandparents and great
grandparents. Mr.. Ellis overcame the Diff
Guilty by direct Inquiry as 20 tho ancestry Of
several great men Of recent years.
Ftpu Lord TeuuysOn came the reply that
''Tho Teuuysous came from Il Danish part
al England. and I have 10 doubt you are
righ, In giving them q Danish origin. The
Scandinavian stock Of Iennysous CIoune-
tcusJ mingled with the Fytches. a Lincoln
KlEre family. and also with q foreign
Nugucuot strain
Thus was the great poet produced. Swim
b,lrnc f. also Of mixed blood-Scaud!nav!a Il
modified by foreign Celtic blood. His great
grandmother came from the family OF the
AuvergnRt princes OF Polignae
Ro<=etu had only p per cent OF English
blood. His father, an italian exile, mar
rlcd IN London the daughter OF e. native OF
Tuscany whose mother was an 1.nElsH-
woman.
Browning was compounded OF many
strains. Wis grandfather came nom Dorset
10 London and married r Creole from the
rled t. lady from Dundee. whose father was
q German and whose mother was Scotch
woman. The poet consequently had five
varieties Of blood IN his veins.
Il appears that a mixture OF strains IS
essential 70 the making OF poet and of all
imaginative writer's. Austin Dooson's mother
was q DevOnshIre woman, and his father
was born IN France OF a French mother.
Coventry Patmore's father was English his
mother Scotch, and a great-great-grand-
father came from Prussia.
Olive Schreiner had a German father and
an English mother, while she inhertts Jew
ish blood from a great-great- grandmother.
Walter Paters family on the fathers side
was French.
They came TO England and settled in
Buclcnghamshire where the French blood
was mingled with English. "The French
strain has a peculiarly beneficial effect in
producing intellectual ability" says Mr..
Ellis.
Irish blood. also. forms a good mixture
with English blood. Thomas Hardy's great
grandmother was Irish, and one of his
grandparents came from Berkshire. This
slight addition 10 what Is mainly pure Dor