The Washington herald., 1921-07-31

this century than had been learned in all
time before. We know now that man in one
form or another has existed on this earth
ever since the beginning Of the present, or
Pleistocene Age. This beginning was GER
tainly 10000 years ago. II is probable
that man dates from the age before, which
would carry human existence back TO per-
haps a million years ago. In all that time
he had been undergoing a slow. progressive
evolution-very slow in the earlier hundreds
OF thousands Of years-more rapid in the
later ten thousands.
There is no doubt that man Of today is
a very different creature-we may call him
much better creature-than man OF
100000 years ago, in bis physical and
mental makeup. But there is also little
doubt that this biological evolution Of man
has advanced little, IL any, since the days
Of earliest historic man, say Eve or siI
thousand years ago, even, probably, since
the later prehistoric, or so-cAIled Neolithic
days ten to twenty thousand years ago.
That is, man as an individual had as good
biologic inheritance in the days Of Greek
and Roman greatness or in the earlier days
If Egyptian and Mesopotamian and Cretan
greatness. or even in the late Neolithic and
early Metals Ages, as be has now. But
now be is the inheritor, by social inheritance,
Of q vast accumulation Of knowledge and
Of scientific method and technique, which
gives him a great advantage over his an
cestors Of earlier days.
Nevertheless, with an this advantage.
he still has the same body and is still sub
ject to the same natural limitations and 10
controlled, in considerable degree, BY the
same natural laws
6arTHERE IS undoubtedly much IN tndi-
i vidual inheritance and much in race
inheritance. The race from which Ameri-
cans spring has demonstrated ability by its
accomplishments. 1t has within II capacity.
1t will hand that capacity down to its
children. The continent Of Africa has
offered as favorable conditions AZ Europe
for race development, but there Is a great
paucity Of results. The inherent qualities
of accomplishment were not in the people
who inhabited Africa.
Races remain the same as 10 inherent
capacity through the thousands Of years
1t is probably true that Adam had within
him the average capacities Of the normal
man of today. II he could have been lifted
out Of his environment as a child and set
down at the beginning of the twentieth cen
tury, be would have made as good man as
you or !. He Was Of good race.
Most of the races on the earth today that
have failed to develop have failed becaus.
Of innate Deficiencies. This is not true.
however. of some of them. The Maori. of
New Zealand. was still primitive when ib.
Europeans went to that island. Some Of
these tribesmen have been given the oppor-
tunities of the children Of British descent
who inhabit the island. They seem to tak.
an education as well. to become as efficient
individuals as the children Of the governing
class of this island. They had probably
failed to develop because Of the isolation in
which they lived.
There is much evidence that Is ready foT
the gathering which will bear upon the re.
suits of various race amalgamations The
popular impression is that the Eurasian 10
a degenerate race. The japanese have n
peculiar race aloofness, and refuse to smalfs-
mate with other peoples. The Chinese, on
the contrary, intr-mary freely and, ,e-
cording TO insufficient evidence, the indics
ton is that the resultant offspring is usually
good. Hawaii is a world experiment sta
ton in the amalgamation Of the races ana
these crosses between the Chinese and N.
whites seem to result in individuals Of roo5
quality, and crosses between the Chinese and
the Kanaka, native of the islands. is a mar.
ticularly attractive and interesting typ~
PLANT breeding has developed into n
unquestioned science. Long staple cotton.
for instance, resulted from the selection Of
the fttest plants and crossing them with
other fit plants. A race Of cotton was es-
tablished that was the best quality in III.
world. The grower of this cotton 4. we'll
aware of the fact that II he admits into If,
field few stalks Of cotton Of inferior ,r,d.
be will lower the quality Of his entire s.la
sGTNHE race Of which the American enrn..
J. has proved its superiority By the nI,c.
It has won in the world, by dominance, lead
ership, accomplishment. Allowing inferior
races To come into It's domain. to be ali.
sorbed by It, produces exactly the result thar
is produced when scrub cotton is allowed ts
hnd a place IN the field Of long staple. The
laws that control heredity In human beinr,
ar. exactly the same as thoss which control
beredIty in cotton plants. The sooner this
fact Is realized the better II viii be Coz
Al. I,n.rIe, ~ the futurt {" :