Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-06-30
INTELLIGENCE LEVEL
LOWERED, HASKIN SAYS
Daily Letter by Frederic j. Haskip

Brigham. For one statistical study
he has classified the intelligence
scores of foreign born draft men ac-
cording to their years of residence in
this country. This shows the remark
able fact that the foreigners who
have been in this country longest
averaged the highest in the tests.
Those who have lived here more than
20 years averaged a fraction higher
than the 13 year mental age Of the
white draft, and from that level the
scores dropped. Foreigners who have
been here less than five years aver
aged less than lis years.
1t should be understood that a
special kind of test was given to
soldiers who did not understand
English and to illiterates. For these
men instructions were given in sign
language and in each part of the test
the process was demonstrated in pam
tomime by a man at a blackboard.
IL by mistake q mar who did not I'M
derstand English we'll took the test
requiring ability to read and write
English, he was given the other
test and the first score was discount
ted.
For this reason the length of stay
in America is not thought to give any
appreciate advantage to the sold
iers tested. That men who have lived
here longer made higher scores is
attributed to the changing character
OF immigration from year to year.
DIR. Brigham Classics the popula-
ton Of the United States into four
racial elements-Nordic, Alpine, and
Mediterranean races of Europe, and
the negro. OF these, the Nordic race
ranks the highest in the scale of in
telligence, and the Nordics who once
made up sc per cen of our immi-
grafton now contribute only about
rs per cent to the total. Moreover,
with each succeeding decade of i'm
migration the different races seem to
be sending progressively lower types.
Dr. Brigham says: There can be
no doubt that recent history has
shown a movement of inferior people
or inferior representatives of peoples
to this country. Few people real
lie the magnitude of this movement
or the speed with which it has taken
place. Since 1901, less than a single
generation, it may be estimated that
about 10, 600, 600 Alpine and Medi-
~terranean types have come to this
country. Allowing for the return of
one-third or three-eights of these,
and using army estimates of in
tellectual ability, this would give us
over 100000 immigrants below the
average negro"
The final word of this scientist is:
According to all evidence avail
able American intelligence is de-
clining, and will proceed with an
accelerating rate as the racial adj
mixture becomes more and more ex-
tensive. The decline of American in
telligence will be more rapid than
the decline of the intelligence OF
European national groups, owing to
the presence here of the negro. These
are the plain, if somewhat ugly facts
that our study shows.
THE deterioration of American in
telligence is not inevitable, however,
II public action can be aroused to
f%prevent it. There is no reason why
legal steps would not be taken which
would insure a continuously pro
gressive upward evolution. - Immi-
grafton should not only be restrictive
but highly selective. And the re-
vision of the immigration and natu.
talization laws will only afford q
slight relief from our present diff
Guilty. The really important steps
are those looking toward the pre-
vention of the continued propagation
of defective strains in the present
population"