Gunnison news-champion., 1922-01-13
Heredity Often Excuse
For Self-Indulgence


A well-known woman writer has tie
following to say on the subject Of
heredity, which strikes us about right.
Time and again we hear the remark:
1T 10 in the blood-he can't really
help It." or ~I'm not bit surprised to
hear It, he inherited II FROM nam
ing some unlucky relation long since
dead and, therefore. unable to refute
the claim that he 10 70 blame for
what is-nine times out Of ten-simply
selfish self-indulgence. Says the lady
writer in . recent publication: -
"All mans weakness and all his
faults are accepted a Inevitable and
the fault Of his forefathefs. Know
ing ones family history should be
regarded rs = warning and not IN
excuse for laxness.
There Is no excuse in the world
30 over-worked, going and coming, Is
'heredity," Whenever = man or .
woman are quitters-who lay down on
the job of life; whenever they are too
self-indulgent TO control their appe-
tites and passions; whenever they are
lazy and trifiing. they take no blame
to themselves. They lay It all on
their forefathers. 49,.
Judging by the people who talk the
most about heredity, il would appear
that the one characteristic which pa
rents bequeath to their children is .
yellow streak. II is the failure who
puts the loud pedal on the subject and
invariably attribute what they are to
their ancestors. The successful in life
are apt to take credit for what they
are to themselves alone for their
successes and to claim that they are
self made
"Heredity has only too often been
o mantle of charity under which weak
lings take refuge, not only to their
own shame, but from the judgment Of
society. And the amazing thing 10
how they have put II over the rest Of
us and gotten away with It.
Year after year We 20 on support
ing the shiftless and yanking drunk
ards out Of the gutter, and putting up
with the tantrums Of the vile-temper-
ed because we are committed to the
hallucination that they can't help their
faults.
ats in the blood we may darkly
and cryptically remark, as we dip in
TO our pocketbooks and put the brakes
ron our tempers and make another cf-
fort to help those who are either too
inert or too selfish to try and help
themselves.
~Worse, still, the hercdity myth ex-
ercises q paraiyzing eject on those
who believe they are its fore0rdained
victims. There is no doubt that there
is some peculiar poisoned chemical
compound in the blood that flows thru
their veins and exerts q malign infiu-
ence on many people and prevents
them from becoming the decent and
upright citizens they should be-,
"They believe that nobody expects
them to be anything or do anything.
and that they have no blue china that
they must 1--we up to. And as conse-
quence they expect nothing Of them
selves no they have no self-respect TO
maintain, and this makes it easy TO
take the Inc of least resistance which
always points downward.
"Just how much there Is In heredity
not even scientists know. Certainly
we see II work out in strange ways IN
real life, because Just as often child
rem seem to inherit the virtues that
their parents haven't got, ~ they tn-
herit the faults they have got. Otter
when one runs over the list Of success
ful men and women in their acquaint-
ance, you will diseover that three
fourths Of them are the offspring q
ne-er-do-well fathers. The fathers
shiftlessnes forced the boy out to work
and made man out Of him instead Of
. loafer. It,is also well-known and
proven fact that many no account and
worthless methess have capable and
efficient daughters. 20 gLa 81
"Many Of the most rabid prohibition.
lists Of today were the children Of
drunkards.
All Of which goes 70, show that
heredity u mostly IN excuse for SELF
indulRence and that we can easily ex-
ereise control over what evil spirits
our ancestors handed down to ~
by the use Of . little self-determina-
ton and will power: 1t doesn't mat
Ter what & in the blood - long -
there is enough strength in the back
bone TO fiRhE II.