The call of the North. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1923-1924, 1923-10-31

aspect, I have examined many au-
thorities. The result has been volu-
minous and terrifyingly Illuminating.
Some time I hope for an opportunity
to present the subject in detail. On
this occasion of course I cannot do
more than summarize.
The government has published
statistical study of the Defects
Found Among Drafted Men," That
book is official and authoritative. If
we take the averages Of just blood,
and therefore Unbeatable, diseases
which the federal authorities found to
exist among our young men, and ap-
ply them to the whole population the
results are almost beyond belief.
Such a summary would show for the
whole country
Mental and nervous defects. 1,450,000
Veneral diseases .......... 1,250,000
Tubercular persons ....... 1925, 900
Blindness, in one or both
eyes NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 175,OOO
Alcoholics and drug addicts. $4,000
A grand total of. 4,375, 900
To these figures can be added the
safe estimate of DR.. Harry H. Laugh
lin, the noted eugenics expert, that
fully million detectives, dependents
and criminals are now requiring Gus
todial care in local, state and national
institutions.
DR.. Laughlin maintains, and has
proved, I think, that the custodial
groups of defective constitute only
five per cent of all those who are de-
ficoent mentally. Translated into ma
tiOnal significance, his figures reveal
an appalling number of people in that
class. The heart sickens, and we al
most lose courage in the face of this
fact, for these DEFICIENCIES are un-
changeable and heredity will pass
them on to future generations.
In his book, "The Revolt Against
Civilization" which fittingly has for
its subtitle, "The Menace of the I'm
der Man," Lothrop Stoddard reveals
the amazing results to posterity of
mentally deficient parentage. On
page SO, he says:
"a striking illustration of how su-
periority and degeneracy are alike
rigidly determined by heredity is af-
forded by the "Kallikak Family" of
New Jersey. During the Revolu-
tionary War, one Martin "Kallikak,"
a young soldier of good stock, had
an illicit affair with a feeble-minded
servant-girl, by whom he had a son.
Some years later, Martin married a
woman of good family by whom he
had several legitimate children. Now
this is what happened: Martins
legitimate children by the woman of
good stock all turned out well and
founded one of the most distinguished
families in New Jersey. In this fam
| lily and it's collateral branches we find
nothing but good representative citi-
zenship. There are doctors, lawyers,
judges, educators, traders, landhold-
ers, in short, respectable citizens, men
and women prominent in every phase
of social life. They have scattered
over the United States and are prom
inent in their communities wherever
they have gone. There have
been no feeble-minded among them;
no Legitimate children; no immoral
women, only one man was sexually
loose. In sharp contrast to this
branch of the family stand the de-
scendants of the feeble-minded girl.
Of these 4sO have been traced. Their
record is: 143 clearly feeble minded,
So illegitimate, SO grossly immoral
(mostly prostitutes), "a confirmed
alcoholics, epileptics, 80 died in in
fancy, 8 criminals, s kept houses of
i'll fame. Here are two family lines,
with the same paternal ancestor, liv-
ing on the same soil, in the same
atmosphere, and under the same gen.
eral environment; yet the bar SIMS
ter has marked every generation of
one and has been unknown in the
other"
What does the official report, de
fects Found in Drafted Men," say
about this? Listen:
eff one insists on an answer to the
inquiry, why there should be so many
cases of mental deficiency and mental
diseases in the population of military
age, it can only be replied that this
is fair index of the constitution of
the population of the United States,
as it is composed of those who have
migrated to its shores from Europe,
or their descendants"
"The outstanding conclusion" he
says, sis that, making all logical al
lowances for environmental condi-
tions, which may be unfavorable to
the immigrant, the recent immigrants
as whole present a higher percent
age of Unborn social inadequate quail
ties than do the older stocks"
In the special Army intelligence
tests seven grades of mentality were
recognized. Of the foreign born
whites tested, 30.s per cent were of
the grade D, inferior" and 14.s per
cent grade E, "very inferior" If
these percentages were applied to the
total foreign born population of the
country, it would mean that 6,347, 1886