Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-01-27
Outside Point of View

One of the first things in life, that Is
as soon as the mental faculties are
in working order, is to understand the
result of cause, and effect. 1t is an Old
illustration, but the burnt child breads
the fire, and said child has apparently
learned one lesson perfectly. Now If 1T
was possible for this child to pass
along to his children and children's
children the simple fact that fire
burns the human body and any part
thereof, what an improved condition OF
affairs we would have. To state 1t an
other way, there is no such thing as
inherited experience. And it is almost
safe to assert that observation, knowl-
edge and theory are of comparatively
little use in preventing the son going
to work on the same snag that ends the
self, and states nothing more exact
than the child makes the same mis-
takes of the parent.
Not only is all this true, but strange
to relate, the very things that make
the parent, wise, rich, influential, and
respectable member of the community,
seem with few exceptions to be lost
sight of. unobserved altogether or
forgotten by his Offspring "A chip of
the old block" is not verify in one
case in a thousand A drunkard's son
may be or may not be a drunkard. II
he is, certainly he fails to get the BEN
eft of his fathers experience. If he Is
a. total abstainer it is not because Of
his fathers awful example. but from
circumstances and environment that
would have placed him in the total abb
stenance ranks, if his father had died
before he was born.
OF late years we have largely
omitted the doctrine of heredity in so
far as disease is concerned. Now we
say such a person was predisposed to
tuberculosis Other things being equal
such person is more likely ito con-
tract that disease, but another en-
vironment may allow such a person to
die of old age at 80. But this doctrine
will not apply to experience as we un-
derstand the meaning of the word.
Experience begins and ends With .he
Individual. It is true that the colles-
ton of individuals that which we call
the community, does profit by the his
tory of past communities, but this in
only a limited degree To illustrate, the
individual drinks contaminated water,
and breathes impure air and the re-
suit is disease. The community OBJ
serves this and furnishes pure water
and ventilated tenements. But this
does not prevent a child born in this
environment from contracting typhoid
while in camp as soldier I'M our
armys camping place in the south. The
records of our army force during the
Spanish war, this referring to typhoid
fever would seem to bear out the
statement that neither officers nor men
had ever heard of the cause of typhoid.
And. experience, the real hard cold
fact>pf personal experience is not al
WAYS a cure The child is father to the
man says one. True, but the burnt
child is more than likely to place his
hand in the flame again this with
a full knowledge of the resultant pain;
The man recovering from delirium
tremens deliberately seeks more liquor,
the very cause of his present horrible
condition. The shiftless neer do we'll
law individual with a full knowledge
OF cause ana ellecl, lHfS Will d iSt'fiN-
ing sense of his present surroundings,
seldom if ever mends his ways. And
finally more strange than all is it that
the observer, taking time and delibera-
ton to inquire into all of these things,
even acquiring knowledge sufficient
to become an able and eloquent preach
err against the evils that do affect man
kind, frequently falls by the wayside
and into the very ditch. he warns 9TH
ers to avoid. Such men lacking eX-
perience fail even to profit by that of