Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1916-04-04
GROWTH OF THE EMBRYO.

H. Addington Bruce asserts that
geniusos are not born so but are the
product OF education and environ
ment. This is u pretty hard state
ment to swallow, in view Of the cN-
| pcricnce and observation that the or
| dinary man Is able to gather from a
review of the human beings he has
seen and known; yet we doubt not
that there Is considerable truth in
Mr. Brucc's contention If only II were
properly qualified. II is one Of the
Sarcasms Of nature that no two things
are exactly alike. and when we seek
to make an inviolable ruling TO fit
every case we are surprised to find
ourselves confronted with indubitable
evidence TO the contrary. No two
men ara born with all of the same
qualities I'm the same proportion.
Were 1t otherwise we would be con-
fronted with "A dead level of human
accomplishment and monotony that
Is essentially repulsive TO the scheme
of nature. No two pebbles are exactly
alike, no two leaves are perfectly
similar, and even the proverbial two
peas have n difference IL we took
the pains to discover their minute
characteristics. 1t follows that no
two human beings, not even twins,
are exactly similar, and II is fur
ther fact that after we take into con-
sideraton the innate difference in the
individual, we must remember also
that no two men have precisely the
same environment or the same influ-
onces to work In shaping their lives.
We are persuaded that the embryo
Of every human possibility Is present
in some degree in every child born
into this world, except where disease
has produced abnormality. That these
embryonic talents are not equally dis
tributed may justly be charged to
heredity, but they are there Just the
same. The nature of child, however,
may give it predisposition to excel
In some lines more readily than in
others, but whether the natural bent
CT the child is developed on lines of
the least resistance, or whether his
course is diverted into other channels,
is a matter to be determined by en-
Nironment and education. The man
who bewails his misfortune In not
being able to do what others have
done Is charging nature with crime
she did not commit. In the embry-
onic nature of every normal babe is
the germ of all accomplishment. BY
force OF heredity he may have q bias
in certain directions, and by force of
environment he may be denied the
opportunity to properly develop what
is best in him. Also, by the blunders
of parents or teachers, his strongest
training may be in a direction that
Is foreign to his native inclination,
with the result that he becomes q
round peg In square hole. II par
ents were wise enough to see plainly
the sphere in life where the child
was naturally fitted to do the most
good, we might look for q race of
genluses; but unfortunately the av-
erage parent is short on discrminat-
ing power and the development of the
child's nature IS left to the accident
of environment. for as the twig is
bent so is the tree inclined.
Should we concedc, then. that
genius is more dependent for Its de-
velopment upon the influence of early
training than II is upon The heritage
left 1t by long line of progenitors,
we have the Bruce idea with the Ian
suage turned about. 1t Is inconceiv-
able that any man could become a
genius by the force of education or
environment II he did not first pos
sess naturally the germs of genius
You cannot make silk purse of n
sow's ear, neither can you graft the
bud of genius upon the stalk of in
competency. II Mr.. Bruce meant
that genius could be manufactured
by education and environment out Of
any sort of material. he was un-
doubtedly wrong. But II he meant
that a child OF the greatest possibil-
tiles might never accomplish his des-
tiny If surrounded by adverse circum-
stances, he was probably right. We
are forced to the conclusion that the
germ is already there. but that 1t re-
quires cultivation for its successful de-
velopment. Full many an incipient
Socrates, or n Moses, or Michael
angelo, or n Milton, has never come to
light because early surroundings
smothered his possibilities.
-l-
The four big Kentucky distilleries
that have quit making whisky were