The Washington herald., 1910-03-20

London, March 1S.-The authorities Of
the Bedford College for " omen invited
the Eugenlcs Education Society to send
them lecturer, and a few days ago
bevy of girl students laughed and
blushed while Prof Inge talked to them
OF eugenics.
a knowledge of eugenics he said.
would tend to prevent girls from falling
in love with the wrong men. 1t was
frequently objected that the science
constituted an undue interference with
an individuals free choice in falling in
10 q and marrying.
ITO a certain extent" said the pro-
fessor. 7 sympathize with that objec-
ton, but I 60 think a certificate OF sound
health should be one of the things in
sisted upon before marriage. Uneon-
sciously, as things are now, we are
much guided by eugene considerations
Generally a mans attraction for
woman is attributable to his fine and
strong physique, and in the same way
the points OF beauty in woman are those
which belong to her Womanhood But
| some training in eugenies would enable
young man or woman TO detect those
signs Of degeneracy which are obvious
70 the scientific eye"
Draws Gloomy Picture.
The professor drew a gloomy picture
of the outlook for this country, con-
sidered from the eugenic point of view.
Physical degeneration in this coun-
try" he said. SIS going on at an alarm
! ing rate. If the process continues at
/ its present rate, in three more genera
lions the English stock. which a few
years ago was one of the best in the
world. will be one Of the poorest,
In all my travels ] have never seen
| poorer specimens Of humanity than those
| IN the English slums. II has become a
serious problem that the more civilized
the state. the more the population is
increased from the most undesirable
stocks"
The professor noted that the birth rate
In this country had declined from So IN
1875 10 &c in 1903. This was due in part
to morality, in part to prudence, which
operated in deferring marriage and in
restraining the size of families. and 1t
was possible there had been a slight de-
cline owing to luxurious habits. AS civil
lization advanced. both death rate and
birth rate decreased. While the death
rate was eugenic, the birth rate was not,
for the greatest decline occurred in the
best parts of the population
Test of Prosperity.
The test of the prosperity of a country
was not the amount of exports or i'm
ports, not the power of its army or navy,
not the diffusion or amount of its wealth,
not the efficiency of its education, but
the kind of men and women it turned
out, Speaking of positive duties. he said
every man or woman who had reason TO
think that he or she was exceptionally
well endowed, either In body or mind or
character. ought to think it duty to
marry and have children.
With regard TO the negative side, there
were certain conditions. such as insanity,
epilepsy, deaf muteness, which should
probably prevent marriage, but they
ought not to be too scrupulous on some
Of these points, because physical health
was not everything and there we're a
great many families with some physical
defect who, nevertheless, were IN many
ways most useful to the community. 1t
would be undesirable for highly con-
scientious people TO inquire too closely
whether they had some weak spot in
their constitution and abstain from mar
rage on that account. A certain amount
Of sound health. however. ought TO be
insisted upon. An insurance policy was
more important than a marriage set
Element