Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1912-12-09
MERE WRECKS OF
men LIVE TODAY
SAYS DR.. SPERRY
Stirring Address to the Men
of Boise in Which Weak
ness of Race Is Pointed
Out.

Five hundred men listened at the
Boz yesterday afternoon while DR.. Ly-
man B. Sperry, the noted lecturer on
sex matters, ripped the covering off OF
many things that are not usually men,
toned, and spoke frankly of the abuses
that are causing the gradual decay Of
the race and the lowering Of the stand
ard of family life.
In his first of a series of six lectures
he argued for higher standards of NOR
ality and declared but that for the
abuses which he mentioned the aver
age life could be heightened to $50 years
instead of being lowered to an average
of 40 years. He said:
Nowadays we hear Of the conserva-
ton of the national resources, of the
protection of the forests. of the saving
of our title in the power sites and
waterways of the country and many
kindred things, but to me the most i'm
portant of all is the conservation and
protection of our men and women, our
boys and girls, for upon them means
the future welfare of the race.
Every man is a self made man to a
STedteT GAtSIl llldIl lie ever
At the same time, every man is the
victim and the sport of the influences
and environments with which he is sur
rounded and with which he does not
reckon for he feels they have no power
But for the abuses to which this race
of ours subjects itself, we should live to
be $50 years of age instead of cutting
down our lives to less than 40 years
and working out that prophecy which
says that man does not live half his
days
BUT for the fact that we are moral
perverts, degenerates, and abusers OF
ourselves we would be men-now we
are only remnants, mere wrecks of men
Before you this afternoon you see a
man who has been practicing medicine
for over % years and who for more
than three score years and ten has
studied the conditions of which he
speaks and knows the things he men.
tons from his own observations anG
studies. And today, with all Of my age
I am getting more out of life than
ever did before and expect many year:
of pleasure before I fade away like thu
glory of an Idaho sunset, and pass ovel
beyond the dark curtain of life.
Death Of Children.
Do you know that 90 per cent o.
the children who are brought into thi.
world die before they reach their frs
birthday anniversary? Do you know
that % per cent of the children wht
are born die before they are five year.
old, and that only one-half of all of III
who come into this world ever live t.
reach manhood and womanhood? Ant
even if those who finally pass the mari
that indicates full maturity one-hal
are degenerates and failures and ar,
incapable of reproducing their species
in the way that it was intended tina
they should.
WAR is one of the greatest destruc
tors of the forces that produce a rae
Of men. 1t takes the best of the man
hood of the people at time when thei
vitality is the highest at a time whel
they are best fitted to become father
of families at a time when they shoul'
have children on their knees rather thai
rifles, and wives in their arms rathe
than a canteen and a haversack.
THE nations Of Europe are dali.
taking men away from homes and fam
lilies and throwing them into militar
camps. They are killing off the bes
of the race at time when the vitalit
of these men is needed for the natiol
at home. To-day there have been 100,
900 men killed in the wars in the Bal
kans and twice that number are in tn
hospitals of the opposing armies. Up t
date since first men began to write O
the destructiyeness of wars 100000
$ of the best and most vigorous men q
{ the earth have fallen victim to tn
weapon of their enemies and have die
on the field of battle or In the camp.
"Wiliiam T. Stead. that noted Eng
lish writer. said just before he wen
down under the waters that engulfe
the Titanic, that two thirds Of the me
now in the army and navy Of Grea
BRIAN s-e unfit for the marriage rela