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What a condition of man would that be, in which human passions

were controlled by no authority, divine or human, in which there

was no shame or decency, no higher affection overcoming or

sanctifying the natural instincts, but simply a rule of health!

Is it for this that we are asked to throw away the civilization

which is the growth of ages?

For strength and health are not the only qualities to be desired;

there are the more important considerations of mind and character

and soul. We know how human nature may be degraded; we do not

know how by artificial means any improvement in the breed can be

effected. The problem is a complex one, for if we go back only

four steps (and these at least enter into the composition of a

child), there are commonly thirty progenitors to be taken into

account. Many curious facts, rarely admitting of proof, are told

us respecting the inheritance of disease or character from a

remote ancestor. We can trace the physical resemblances of

parents and children in the same family-