if WW. Sp: 4 ■* ■ — i^ mS F i JTf ^►i™,eo<, NATIONAL LIBRARY MEDICINE WashingtonfD.C. HEREDITARY DESCENT: LAWS AND FACTS APPLIED TO HUMAN IMPROVEMENT. BY O. S. .FOWLER, EDITOR OF THE AMERICAN PHRENOLOGICAL JOURNAL LIKE BEGETS LIKE."----"EACH AFTER ITS KIND. "Hot Jl^ -'■'-'■ J:;* ' * STEREOTYPE EDITION. I NEW YORK: FOWLERS AND WELLS, PHRENOLOGICAL CABINET, 131 NASSAU STREET. AND BY BOOKSELLERS GENERALLY. 1848. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, By FOWLERS & WELLS, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Southern District of New York. STEREOTYPED BY BDRNS & BANER, 11 SPRUCE STREET. PREFACE TO THE STEREOTYPE EDITION. All the matter of the previous edition has been re- tained, though considerably condensed, in this, except that which appertains to the influence of the various states of the mother's physiology and mentality on ofF- spring, or the bearing of children, which has been re- served for the author's work on this subject, entitled " Maternity, or infantile carriage, delivery, and manage- ment"—a work which every prospective mother should peruse. Large additions of facts have been made to every portion of the work, many new principles, amply illus- trated with numerous cases, introduced, many valu- able transpositions effected, and the entire work every way improved. '"Indeed, much more labor has been be- stowed upon the revised than upon the first edition, partly in order to obviate some of the defects of the for- mer, and partly to deserve a continuance of the favor with which that was received, but mainly in consequence Of the INTRINSIC MOMENT OP THE SUBJECT TREATED. PREFACE. Though the sun of science has dawned upon Geol- ogy, Agriculture, Mechanism, Chemistry, Botany, Conchology, Natural History, Astronomy, Physiology, and Phrenology, enlightening what was before ob- scure, and shedding on man a flood of happiness, alike in their acquisition and application, yet the most important of all, Parentage, and the means of thereby improving our race, remain enshrouded in comparative darkness. How long shall this species of ignorance be tolerated, and even fostered ! How long shall man continue his researches and discoveries in these minor matters, yet leave this by far the richest field of phi- losophy and human improvement, almost unoccupied? We investigate and apply its principles to the im- provement of stock, yet its far higher application to the improvement of humanity is almost wholly neglected. But has not the time fully come for collecting and dis- seminating that knowledge on this vitally important subject, which shall enable parents to bestow on offspring personal beauty, physical stamina, muscular strength, and, above all, high intellectual and moral endowments ? That the physical and mental capabilities of mankind are innate, not created by education—have a consti- tutional character inherited from parents, instead of being a blank on which education and circumstances write all they contain—will be fully shown in this volume. It is penned to aid prospective parents in making choice of such partners as shall secure a healthy, talented, and virtuous progeny, by expounding, in the light of classified facts, those laws which govern this department of nature. To enlist public attention, and guide inquiry in this 6 preface. cause of God and humanity, till vicious pre-dispositions shall be superceded by virtuous, and a far higher order of human beings shall fill the earth and enjoy its boun- ties—the feasible and natural result of our proposed in- quiries—have engaged the author's intellect, and warmed his soul, in the prosecution of this " labor of love." In its compilation, facts have been his motto, and the principles of Phrenology and Physiology—these sciences of man—his analytical crucible. Without all three united, no one, however learned or talented, can do this subject justice. Though Walker has said some clever things concerning the transmission of physical qualities among animals, yet he is sadly at fault in the matter of mental transmission as applicable to man—■ the main point of utility—or, rather, gropes in darkness. But a Phrenologist, especially a practitioner, besides possessing a nomenclature and analysis of the mental powers incomparably superior to all others, can also trace clearly, and read legibly, both resemblances and differences existing between parents and their children, by means of their phrenological developments, which can be correctly estimated by this means, but by no others. The extensive professional practice of the author, for almost a quarter of a century, throughout the Union and Canada, and his access to foreigners from all parts of the world, as well as to many sources of facts unknown to others, and, especially, his having been called to ex- amine together, professionally, parents and their children by scores of thousands, so that he could see at once wherein and how far each child resembled each parent, and the like, have given him just the material required for prosecuting those inquiries to which this volume— the work of many years—is devoted. All these con- verging facilities have been treasured up and laid under contribution—with what success it is left for his readers to judge—in the prosecution of this arduous undertaking. EXPLANATION OF THE SMALL RAISED FIGURES. Each general principle proved, point presented, and subject treated, in this work, has been introduced by an appropriate head, and numbered, so that subsequent inferences dependent on them can be enforced by spe- cific reference to them. This reference is made by small figures, elevated above the lines, called superiors, and found throughout the work. The utility of con- necting and fortifying subsequent points by those previ- ously demonstrated, so as to secure all the advantages of circumlocution and copious repetition, without any of its disadvantages, or even defacing the page, is ap- parent, and will be appreciated, at least, by the tho- rough, thoughtful reader, who would comprehend the bearings of each principle presented on all the others, and thus grasp and digest the work as a whole. The author flatters himself that this original device will find favor with the reading public. For a kindred reason, his other works, similarly num- bered, have, in like manner, been referred to. Thus, p 17 refers to the seventeenth paragraph of " Physiolo- gy, Animal and Mental ;" s 212 to this numbered head in " Self-Culture ;" M510 to the five hundred and tenth head of "Memory—Applied to Intellectual Improvement and Juvenile Education ;" m 413 to this number of " Ma- ternity ;" My to " Matrimony ;" and w to " Woman." The author's writings will thus form a connected series, which will be found more interesting and profitable if read in connection with each other, than separately; yet each -can be as fully understood without such refer- ence, as if it hatl not been made. • % CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. physical qualities hereditary, SECTION I. TRANSMISSION GOVERNED BY CAUSATION. PAGE. 301. Parentage, its reproductive efficiency.—302. Its collateral institutions.—303. Reproduction governed by law.—304. Like begets like.—305. These causes within human control.—306. Benefits of such application, --......- 15—22 SECTION II. THE PHYSICAL QUALITIES OF RACES AND NATIONS TRANSMITTED. 307. The human anatomy and physiognomy hereditary.—308. The colored race.—309. The Indian, Caucassian, and other races.—310. National features.—311. The Jewish physiognomy, - 22—27 SECTION III. FAMILY LIKENESSES, STATURE, ETC., TRANSMITTED. 312. Family likenesses.—The Rogers' likenesses.—The Webster physiognomy.—The Hopkins' family likeness.—313. Forms of body hereditary: the Hatches.—The Franklin and Folger families.—The Woodbury stature.—The Webster stature and likeness.—The Dwight likeness and stature.—314. Size transmitted: Lewis, Sanborn, etQ,— A Scotch practice: small women,......27—36 SECTION IV. PHYSICAL STRENGTH TRANSMITTED. 315. Muscular strength hereditary: Bihin—The Fessenden, Doug- lass, and Gerrish families.—Jonathan Fowler and his descendants.— The Royal Stuart family.—316. Physical debility hereditary, - 37—44 SECTION V. PHYSICAL DEFORMITIES TRANSMITTED. 317. Marks and excrescences hereditary. Porcupine men.— Twenty-four fingers and toes hereditary.—Other deformities heredi- tary.—Wens hereditary.—Flaxen locks hereditary.—Early baldness • and grey hairs hereditary.—318. Peculiarities often pass one or more generations.—Important inferences, - 45—51 X contents. SECTION VI. LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. PAGE. 319. Length of life hereditary: Jarville; Parr; McDonald.—The Hobart, Bass, Copeland, and French families.—The Lewis, Marsh, Cobb, Tappan, and Brevoort families.—The Franklin, Folger, Wood- bury, Adams, and Fowler families.—The Esten family of Rhode Isl- and.—320. The longevity of one's ancestors can be predicated.— The Whitman family.—321. Data on which these predictions are made.—322. Premature death is hereditary.—323. Beauty and all other physical qualities transmitted.—324. Accumulative nature of our argument,..........52-70 CHAPTER II. diseases hereditary. SECTION I CONSUMPTION, SCROFULA, AND SYPHILIS TRANSMITTED. 325. Diseases not transmitted, only predispositions.—326. Con- sumption hereditary.—327. Scrofula hereditary.—Lugol's practice. —328. Syphilitic diseases transmitted,.....71-82 SECTION II. DISEASES IN GENERAL HEREDITARY. 329. Gout and apoplexy.—330. Cancers and ring-worms.—331. Dyspepsia and heart affections.—Calvin and Alexander Edson.—332. Resistance and subjection to heat and cold.—333. Sudden death he- reditary.—334. Cutaneous affections.—335. Blindness, deafness, and stammering.—336. Hemorrhage hereditary.—337. Dizziness, fits, tic-doloreux, and rheumatism.—338. Several diseases collectively.— Summary.—339. Momentous importance of the subject.—340. Pre- vention of inherited disease.—341. Prospective parents should pre- serve health, .......... 32__ioi SECTION III. INSANITY HEREDITARY. 342. Madness the worst of maladies.—343. Conditions of insanity transmitted.—Suicidal insanity—The Purriugton family.—The Sew- ell, Bartlett, Coffin, and other families.—344. Promiscuous cases of hereditary insanity.—George III. and Queen Victoria.—Reports of lunatic asylums,........f 2g^__,0 < CHAPTER III. mental faculties and characteristics hereditary. SECTION I. THE LAWS WHICH ENTAIL THE PHYSIOLOGY ALSO TRANSMIT THE MENTALITY. 345. Argumentative evidence.—Character as shape, and both equally transmissible, .... ... j25__m contents. XI SECTION II THR CHARACTERISTICS OF MANKIND AS A WHOLE, AND OF RACES, NATIONS, AND MASSES HEREDITARY. PAGE. 346. Universality of all the mental faculties.—347. The mental peculiarities of the Indian race transmitted.—348. The mental char- acteristics of the African race.—The mentalities of the Caucassian and Malay races. — 349. The Jewish mentality transmitted.— The destructiveness of the Jews. — Mechanical ingenuity.— The inhabitiveness of the Jews.—The hospitality of the Jew.—The veneration and marvellousness of the Jews.—The superior intellec- tuality of Jews.—350. The Chinese and Hindoos.—351. The French, Spanish, Danes, Germans, English, and Scotch, ... 131—145 SECTION IH. IDIOCY AND THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. 352. The Emersons and other idiots.—353. Amativeness trans- mitted.—Aaron Burr and his uncle Pierpont Edwards.—A remarka- ble case.—The incestuous propensity transmitted.—Deficient Ama- tiveness.—The twin-bearing tendency and having large families.— 354. The other social faculties.—355. Combativeness and Destruc- tiveness transmitted. Patty Cannon and her father and brother.— Nero and his anc sstry.—The inhabitants of New South Wales.—The mother of Byron.—Archibald and Hector M'Neil.—Frederic the Great.—Col. J. W. Scott's great-grandfather.—356. Excessive and deficient appetite hereditary.—Appetite for particular things trans- mitted: intemperance.—Love of alcoholic drinks.—Three brothers named Downing.—Appeal to parents.—Unmarried women.-—Tea, coffee, tobacco, and opium.—Cannibalism hereditary.—357. Acquis- itiveness transmitted.—Love of particular kinds of property.—358. Propensity to commit given crimes.—A family of forgers, - 146—176 SECTION V. CAUTIOUSNESS APPROBATIVENESS, SELF-ESTEEM, AND FIRMNESS TRANS- MITTED. 359. Cautiousness entailed.—360. Approbativeness hereditary.— 361. The haughty, overbearing spirit.—Love of liberty and ambition hereditary, -------.-- 177—181 SECTION VI. THE MORAL FACULTIES TRANSMITTED. 363. General and specific cast of religious feeling hereditary.— Henry IV., King of France.—Commodore O. H. Perry and ancestry. 364. Specific moral faculties hereditary.—Capt. Miles Standish.— Wesley and his ancestry.—David Brainard and his relatives.—The Edwards family.—Very large Conscientiousness hereditary.—The descent of Spirituality.—Benevolence hereditary.^Washington and his ancestry.—365. the descendants of the Puritans, - - 181—203 xii CONTENTS. SECTION VII. CONSTRUCTIVENESS, IDEALITY, IMITATION, AND MIRTHFULNESS TRANSMITTED. 366. Constructiveness hereditary.—367. The poetical genius in- nate.—368. Mirthfulness, - - - - - - - 203—209 SECTION VIII. INTELLECT, ITS KIND AND AMOUNT, HEREDITARY. 369. Talents in general descend.—John Quincy Adams and his ancestry and descendants.—370. Order hereditary.—371. Specific in- tellectual talents and calculation.—372. Memory hereditary.—373. The musical passion and talent transmitted.—The Hastings families. 374. The reasoning powers transmitted, .... 219—226 SECTION IX. THE OFFSPRING OF KINSMEN INFERIOR TO THEIR PARENTS. 376. The children of cousins.—The marriage of still nearer kin- dred, ...........227—234 SECTION X. AGE, AND OTHER CONDITIONS IN PARENTS, AS AFFECTING OFFSPRING. 377. The older the parents, the more mental and less animal their offspring.—The age most suitable for marriage.—The premature de- velopment of the sexual instinct.—Large families and over-popula- tion.—378. Distinguished men from a long-lived stock, - 234—242 SECTION XL GENERAL APPLICATION OF HERDITARY LAWS TO HUMAN IMPROVEMENT. 379. The combination of powers in their parents.—The Hutchin- son family.—The Cheney family.—380. The combination of different faculties of parentage.—Enoch Lewis and family.—381. The momen- tous importance of this law.—382. Specific application of these laws; or, who should marry whom.—What temperaments should and what should not unite.—383. Parents can transmit their powers increased—What Phrenological organs should, and what should aot unite.—Concluding appeal,......243—28C APPENDIX. " THE FAMILY BIOGRAPHER 4.ND GENEOLOGICAL RECORDER." LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. NO. PAGE. 1. A Native African................................. 23 2. Indian Chief Blackhawk........................... 24 3. Sample of the Caucasian Race..................... 25 4. A Malay........................................ 2G 5. A Mongolian..................................... 26 6. AJew.......................................... 27 7. Walter Folger .................................. 31 8. Sereno E. Dwight................................ 34 9. Big Thunder. _................................... 133 10. Meche-kele-a-tah................................. 133 11. Hewlitt, a Mulatto Actor.......................--- 134 12. Emerson, an Idiot................................ 146 13. Aaron Burr...................................... 149 14. Pierpont Edwards................................ 150 15. Patty Cannon.................................... 155 16. Patty Cannon.................................... 155 17. Betsy Cannon.................................... 156 18. Nero........................................... 157 19. Vitellius........................................ 158 20. Negro.......................................... 180 21. Jonathan Edwards................................ 189 22. General Peters.................................*- - 209 23. Elias Hicks...................................... 217 24. Herschel........................................ 219 25. Patrick Henry................................... 24G HEREDITARY DESCENT. CHAPTER I. PHYSICAL QUALITIES HEREDITARY. SECTION I. TRANSMISSION GOVERNED BY CAUSATION. 301. PARENTAGE—ITS REPRODUCTIVE EFFICIENCY. Parentage perpetuates our race. Besides re-supplying the ravages of war and pestilence, of death in all his insatiate "cravings, it even far outstrips him in swiftness, and rises above him in might, literally defying his power to annihilate the spe- cies. Man will multiply, the earth will be replenished, in spite of him ! What magnificent results, from an arrangement so simple! Wastes, but yesterday desolate, to-day it *s beginning to peo- ple, and anon will have crowded with homes, hamlets, villages, and cities, swarming with countless millions, and teeming with life and happiness. It'plants its seeds of humanity upon soli- tary islands, and then fills them with throngs of busy occu- pants. It sends its hardy progeny almost to the icy poles, to multiply in spite of all that is terrible in the utmost of cold, and wind, and storm. Anon, it takes possession of the tropics, still urging on its grand process of propagation, though melted to weakness, and scorched to blackness. In short, wherever life can be sustained, thither does or will this prolific principle send the swarming trophies of its power to " multiply and re- plenish the earth," till it is literally full. But for this, or a kindred arrangement, our earth would have been a solitary waste, without one living soul, except the first parents of our 16 PHYSICAL QUALITIES HEREDITARY. race, to have enjoyed its beauties and its bounties. Even beast, bird, fish, reptile, insect—animal life in every form and grade, other than the first God-created pair—would have had no existence; and all the adaptations of water, air, and earth, to their subsistence and happiness, would have been in vain. Even the entire vegetable kingdom would have passed away in its very infancy, to return no more for ever; because re- production .here also is effected by that same great principle of parental agency which obtains in the world of animation and sense.* Considering, then, either its extraordinary efficiency in re- producing such vast hordes of herbs, trees, animals, and hu- man beings—and at the same time that it multiplies our race, it also augments the means of re-supplying their constantly returning wants—or its own philosophical beauty and perfec- tion, surely no department of creation evinces more the very infinitude of His concurrent wisdom and goodness who made all things, than this arrangement of parentage. Nor is any, more promotive of human progression in numbers and happi- ness ; for it is the beginning and foundation of all the inter- ests of man—those myriads of human beings who have thus far inhabited our earth, and the millions that now enjoy its luxuries, each being but the products of this great contrivance, as will be all those who, in all coming time, may rise up, in successive generations, to people this world and another. 302. ITS COLLATERAL INSTITUTIONS. Parentage also ushers in the connubial, parental, and filial affections, together with all the domestic ties. But for it or a kindred arrangement, the delightful relations of husband and wife, parents and children, and all the heaven-born pleasures * To become fruitful, any and every kind of seed must of necessity have a male and female parent, and the pollen of the latter receive im- pregnation from the former; just as must the eggs of fowls, fishes, etc., before they can bring forth their chick or spawn. If this idea should be new to any reader, he will find its investigation exceedingly interesting But, however instructive and philosophical this whole subject, yet, as this work proposes to discuss it as applied to man only, these, its other appli- cations, are dismissed with this passing allusion to their existence merely REPRODUCTION GOVERNED BY LAW. 17 of domestic life, would have had no existence. Annihilate parentage, and you blot out all the tender yearnings of con- nubial love, all the fond delights of parental endearment, all the pleasures of infantile and juvenile provision and guar- dianship, and thus extinguish a cluster of the holiest and happiest emotions mortals can experience ; because the latter are only the satellites of the former. But parentage begets all these other tender ties, and thereby contributes incalcula- bly to human virtue and enjoyment in every department of life, as this series of volumes abundantly shows. 303. REPRODUCTION GOVERNED BY LAW. Nor is this reproductive process left to chance; but in common with every other department of nature, it is governed by immutable law. All the regularity and uniformity of causation govern every one of its products, vegetable, animal, and human. But for this uniformity, nothing like Genera and species—most convenient arrangements, truly—could have had an existence; and hence some horses might have had feet, others none, and others still, thousands. Some human offspring might have had heads, and hearts, and mus- cles, others neither, and others again, hundreds ; while others still would have been liable to have been brutes, or trees, or stones; whereas, in consequence of this law, they now are certain to be human beings, having one common system of anatomical structure and mental elements. But for thus governing parentage by law, some human subjects might have had the faculty of color, others none; some, the elements of justice, reason, appetite, and the like, but been wanting in others ; while others' again might have omitted the former but possessed the latter, according to fitful chance; so that our mental world would have been a perfect bedlam—" confusion worse confounded" throughout; whereas, this legal institution bestows on every member of the human family the same number of bones, muscles, limbs, and organs, and the same general appearance, together with more or less of every pri- mary mental element; or in other words, a kindred physical and mental constitution. 2* 18 PHYSICAL QUALITIES HEREDITARY. It also allows a beneficial diversity of form, stature, char. acter, and capability ; some being born with some organs larger, and faculties stronger than others; so that though all have eyes, hands, feet, and the like; and also reason, affec- tion, and all the primitive mental elements, yet no two are exactly alike in shape or character. 304. LIKE BEGETS LIKE. This great law is summed up in the great arrangement, that all things shall bring forth " after his kind, cattle, and creep. ing thing, and beasts of the earth after his kind." The pro- duct of the oak is an acorn, which reproduces another oak, but nothing else; and thus of all seeds, grains, fruits, beasts, and human beings. But for this law of the resemblance of products to their parentage, the farmer might plant corn and reap thorns—might sow stones and raise cattle; and human offspring would be as liable to resemble beasts, or trees, as human beings having fixed characters. But this "each- after-its-kind" institution causes all the generations of every herb, tree, and animal, to resemble their first parents, and renders human offspring men and women-, and all human beings substantially alike. It causes children to inherit the natures of their parents, and even all their constitutional peculiarities. Indeed, the minuteness and accuracy of this transfer is truly astonishing—that same uniformity "and cer. tainty obtaining here which is found wherever cause and effect reign supreme. That laws of cause .and effect govern this department of nature, is too apparent to require labored argument. Unless thus governed, one of the most interesting and important departments of nature is left to chance—a doctrine utterly absurd. Law is indispensable and inviolable156543, and no- where more so than here. Since causation imbodies the best system for the government of nature in general, why should it not also control this, one among its paramount de- partments ? To suppose otherwise " charges God foolishly," and ascribes anarchy to nature in one of her leading depart- ments—a supposition as preposterous as contrary to fact. To LIKE BEGETS LIKE. 19 attempt to prove that children resemble their parents, in ana- tomical formation and mental predisposition, or that such resemblances are governed by causation, is like attempting to prove that a part is less than the whole, or any other axiom ; because this conclusion is irresistibly thrust upon us by every comparison of children with their parents. All see, feel, and know this universal truth. Nor this merely, but every constitutional quality of off- spring, mental and physical, has its procuring cause in simi- lar qualities in parentage; and by converse, all the consti- tutional predispositions of parents are transmitted to their offspring. If causation governs this resemblance in part, it governs all. The whole or nothing is nature's universal mottop17; so that, since children inherit some of the peculiari- ties of their parents, they of course inherit all the constitutional characteristics of parentage, mental and physical. Either no causation governs this matter, or else the most minute con- stitutional peculiarities of children are caused by similar ele- ments in their parents. Then let parents learn and remem- ber that their prospective children will be the very images of themselves, reflected in all their shades of feeling and phases of character; inheriting similar tastes, swayed by similar passions, governed by kindred sentiments; debased by the same vices, ennobled by like virtues; adorned by kindred charms and graces, and endowed with similar moral powers and intellectual capabilities with themselves—that they are " bone of your bone, and flesh of your flesh," mind and soul of your mind and soul; great, or good, or bad, according as you are great, good, or bad ; and happy or miserable as you enjoy or suffer. To the elucidation of this great truth and its momentous bearing on human happiness, this work is devoted. 305. THESE CAUSES WITHIN HUMAN CONTROL. Nor are these hereditary causes and effects hid under a bushel, or beyond human control. They are exposed to full view. Parents can compare—cannot well help comparing— their children with themselves, and drawing these hereditary 20 PHYSICAL QUALITIES HEREDITARY. inferences. Men study and apply these principles in planting seeds, selecting 6oils, and improving their breeds of domestic animals. They know how, by such application, to secure fleetness, strength, beauty, and other qualities in horses; fat- tening properties in swine, fine-wooled sheep, game and fat- tening predispositions in fowls, and the like. So fully do they understand, and so effectually apply these laws, that they can predict with certainty beforehand, whether,,the prospec- tive foal is to be a mule or a race horse, the lamb black or white, the calf Durham or any other breed. Now since those same laws which govern transmission throughout the brute creation also govern human transmission throughout all its phases304, he can of course ascertain and apply them to the production of whatever physical or mental qualities, in off- spring, he may desire—can render his prospective children strong, healthy, sprightly, beautiful, intelligent, moral, and the like, as he may choose—can render them amiable or revengeful, proud or humble, coarse or refined, mathematical, mechanical, benevolent, reflective, or whatever else he pleases, or all combined—and that by constitution " dyed in the wool"—and even predict their respective characteristics be- fore they see the light. Parents can so unite in marriage as to render their offspring short or tall, diseased or healthy, deformed or well formed, long lived or short lived, peaceful or pugnacious, timid or courageous, honest or unjust, ingenious, musical, witty, acquisitive, communicative, poetical, logical, oratorical, profound, or whatever else may be desired. Those who doubt this in the main, virtually deny either that laws govern this matter of transmission, or else that man can see and apply them; to dispute either of which is to deny our senses. 306. BENEFITS OF SUCH APPLICATION. Nay more. He can derive immense advantages from such application. All know how much the breed of stock has been improved by this application. Men have profitably expended thousands of dollars for a Durham calf, and that farmer who neglects his seed or stock, is left behind. BENEFITS OF SUCH APPLICATION. 21 But those advantages capable of being derived from apply- ing these principles to human improvement, as far exceed these, as man excels the brute, as his faculties are more varied and positive than theirs. If he can derive benefits from improving his stock, how much greater by improving his children—as much as human capability and destiny excel those of brutes. Animal improvability is confined to a few elements, and those mostly physical; the human scale not only embraces a far greater number and variety of phys- ical excellencies, but adds to them a vast range of intellectual powers and moral capabilities and virtues. As from two or three simples but few compounds can be made up, and as every additional simple greatly augments the number and va- riety of producible compounds, till the variations capable of being formed by the twenty-six letters of the alphabet require forty-one figures to express—a number altogether inconceiva- ble—so the far greater number of man's mental faculties, especially when taken in conjunction with his physiological elements, allow a proportionably greater number of changes to be wrung on humanity, every one of which can be an im- provement. Not that all these improvements can be com- bined in one person, but effected on the race. Yet very many of them can be blended in every single subject of hu- manity. Many of the organs can be thus improved in every individual, and every improved organ improves all its combi- nations, which amount to millions, and also descend to pos- terity. Behold, O parents! the blessed star of promise thus held out to you by this principle. Can you §ee fruit like this with- in your grasp and not pluck it—especially when it is as easily plucked as those sour grapes which many compel themselves to eat through life ? The destinies of your dear prospective children are thus placed completely within your control. Nay, willing or unwilling, you are compelled to wield them, or else not to become parents. A necessity exists. Your children are obliged to be what you are, and cannot help themselves. O! can you contemplate these prospective child- ren, and remember that their destinies are completely at your 22 physical qualities hereditary. mercy—that you cannot possibly escape these solemn re- sponsibilities—and yet sleep on over these momentous conse- quences ? Will you not gladly learn what parental conditions in you will render them the most perfect and happy, and you in them, and also strive to fulfil them ? Then study and ap- ply those laws and facts thrust by God upon your perpetual cognizance, and imperfectly set forth in this volume and its successor, " Parentage." SECTION II. THE PHYSICAL QUALITIES OF RACES AND NATIONS TRANSMITTED. 307. THE HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOGNOMY HEREDITARY. The hieroglyphics and likenesses handed down to us from past ages, show that man still retains the general form and features which he has always possessed—that he has always been endowed with his present upright posture and general aspect and mien—has always possessed the same form and position of head, nose, eyes, cheeks, mouth, chin, hair, arms, feet, and general physiognomy and anatomy now found in all mankind. To attempt to prove this would be superfluous, because all admit it. Yet this admission presupposes the transmission from pur first parents of these and all our other physical organs and functions. What but transmission, gov- erned by uniform laws, could have secured a sameness so vast in duration, so perfect in detail, and so infinite in application ? And this same law also assures us that these characteristics will be handed down as long and as universally as the race exists—thus effectually establishing this fundamental princi- ple and fact of the existence of transmission, and its govern- ment by law. 308. THE COLORED RACE. Though all mankind have always had, and always will have, mouths, eyes, ears, brains, lungs, stomachs, bones mus- cles, and the like ; yet this hereditary law groups all human THE COLORED RACE. 23 beings into races, all the members of which are characterized by well-defined physical peculiarities, which contra-distinguish every individual of each race from every one of all the others ; and all these peculiarities are of course hereditary. Of this the well-known characteristics of the Africans, as seen in every one of this race, and represented in the accompanying en- graving of a native of Africa, furnish unequivocal examples. No. 1. A Native African. Thus, the color of this race is unquestionably hereditary, and appertains to every individual, and even all their crosses, in proportion to the amount of their African parentage. Of this not a rational doubt can exist. Their mode of moving, carriage in walking, tones of voice, manner of laughing, form of nose and mouth, color of eyes and teeth, and other peculi- arities, are born in them, and form a part of them. In all ages and climes, all the members of this race have borne these marks of their origin. Their peculiarities also become less and still less apparent, the less colored lineage they possess; yet all are tinctured with them, as well as evince pretty nearly how much African parentage they inherit. Another mark of African descent is this. All pure-blood- ed Caucasians have a division or furrow in the gristle of the nose, plainly discerned by touch, while both Africans and all mulattoes have no such separation—a peculiarity in each race of course hereditaiy. Their muscles are also inserted at points of their bones slightly differing from those of Cauca- 24 PHYSICAL QUALITIES HEREDITARY. sians; and hence that peculiarity of walk and motion already noted. But, is not our argument too plain to require additional fortification or detail ? 309. THE INDIAN, CAUCASIAN, AND OTHER RACES. The physiognomical and physical characteristics of the In- dian race are also hereditary. Their copper color, high cheek- bones, wide mouth, strait black hair, light beard, prominent bones, sunken eyes, para-toed gait, and Indian aspect, well illustrated in the accompanying engraving of the celebrated No. 2. Indian Chief Blackhawk. national features. 25 LOUIS CORNARO. No. 3. Sample of the Caucasian Race. Blackhawk, while they characterize this race, also descend from father Indian to son Indian, and appear in all their crosses, in proportion to the Indian mixture. Who ever saw curly hair on a son of the forest? Or a Caucasian face on red man's shoulders? Or an Indian body with Malay features? All such diversities this hereditary law under discussion effectually prevents, while it brands the physiology and physiognomy of every race indelibly on its front. The Caucasian characteristics are so strongly marked as to be easily and universally recognized ; of which the accom- panying engraving of the Venetian nobleman, Louis Cornaro, furnishes an excellent sample. That these Caucasian char- acteristics are transmitted is too obvious to require proof, since they pervade all ages and all nations. Of the Malay and Mongolian races, the same general prin- ciples and facts are equally apparent; but as the truth of our subject is liable to no rational doubt, enlargement is unneces- sary. 3 26 physical qualities hereditary. No. 4. A Malay. No. 5. A Mongolian. 31Q. NATIONAL FEATURES. Not only can any Caucasian, Malay, Indian, Mongolian, and Tartar, be instantly recognized by that uniformity of features and complexion peculiar to each race, but nearly or quite every nation has its national physiognomy so distinctly marked, that every shrewd observer knows an Irishman, a Scotchman, a Frenchman, a German, a Russian, a Turk, a Spaniard, and the like, the moment he sees them. This gen- eral fact is too obvious to require comment, and that these respective physiognomies are hereditary, admits no manner of doubt; because a child born in America of Irish or Ger- man parents, will resemble the physiognomy of its nation as much as if born in the land of its parents. But probably the most striking and extensive exemplification of this doctrine of the descent from parents to offspring, of physiognomical pecu. liarities, is to be found in 311. THE JEWISH PHYSIOGNOMY, Of which the accompanying engraving is an excellent sam pie. Every Jew bears some general resemblance to this na tional stamp of face so close, that his Jewish origin can easily be determined. To dwell on this point is unnecessary. Suf- fice it to say, that a knowing observer can select every Jew family likenesses. 27 No. 6. A Jew. however dressed, from among thousands congregated together from among all nations. Of course these likenesses are he- reditary ; especially since this nation has intermarried within itself from time immemorial. SECTION III. family likenesses, stature, etc., transmitted. 312- FAMILY LIKENESSES, Also every where abound. Women are shrewd observers, and one of their first observations respecting infants is, that "This child looks like its mother;" " that babe like its father;" "the other infant like its grandmother;" and still another, 28 FAMDLY LIKENESSES HEREDITARY. "like its uncle, or aunt, or cousin;" and such is generally the fact. Probably every child, and all human beings, re- semble some ancestor or relative in their forms of face or body. If any should object to this doctrine, even he himself will be found to be its living confirmation. So certain and universal is this resemblance, that communities often ascribe the paternity of children whose fathers are not certainly known, to those whom the child resembles in looks and action, which resem- semblance is often too close to leave room to doubt the cor- rectness of the conclusions drawn. Hence the portraits of descendants among those of their ancestors, and the resem- blance of the former to one or other of the latter, will be ap- parent.* If one ancestor had red hair, red hair will appear, every now and then, in every succeeding generation, and be more and more prevalent, in proportion to the animal vigor of that ancestor. THE ROGERS' LIKENESSES. Thus John Rogers, the martyr, had red hair, as appears from a painting of him now in Harvard College ; and accord- ingly red or light hair and sandy whiskers will be found to prevail in his descendants in this country to the present day. So powerful was his constitution, that it stamped its own im- press upon the great majority of his descendants so strongly, as still to rival those families into which his descendants have married. Compare the number of Rogerses who have more or less admixture of the red in the color of their hair with the community as a whole, and the force of this hereditary fact will be too apparent to be controverted. So when some conspicuous ancestor had a prominent, or a Roman, or pug nose, or a projecting, or retreating, or double chin, or full or sunken cheeks or eyes, or high, or small, 01 prominent cheek-bones, or heavy eyebrows, or a high or re- treating forehead, or large or small mouth, thick or thin lips, long or short face and neck, large or small ears, more or less •Preserving the likenesses of our parents and grandparents, and handing our own down to posterity, would greatly facilitate the inves- ligation of this whole subject of hereditary transmission, and Is strongly recommended. WEBSTER--HOPKINS. 29 of his descendants will " take after " him or her in these and other respects. THE WEBSTER PHYSIOONOHT. The Webster eyebrows illustrate this subject. Those of Daniel are large, long, thick, coarse, and very heavy. So were those of Noah, his distant relative. Those of Professor Haddock, a cousin of Daniel, and those of a Webster in Philadelphia, a sixteenth cousin of Daniel, bear a strongly- marked resemblance to those of the distinguished Senator THE HOPKINS' FAMILY LIKENESS. Five hundred years ago, a member of a family named Hopkins, removed from the native town of this family in England, and three hundred years afterwards, one of his de- scendants emigrated to this country, and finally one of this branch removed to Canada, and was elected a member 4to its Provincial Parliament. Another Hopkins recently emigrated from England to Canada, and was also chosen a member of the same body. One of these Hopkinses had served several years before the other was chosen. The new member re- quested the Speaker, Col. Fitz Gibbon, my informant, to introduce him to the old member, Hopkins, which was done. On comparing notes, each Hopkins was able to trace his an- cestry back to this same family estate in England, and to the same individual, and so strong was their family resem- blance that Col. Fitz Gibbon expressed himself thus concern- ing it. " On looking at the two, their resemblance to each other was as striking as if they had been brothers. Though well acquainted with the old member, I even found it some- what difficult to distinguish them from each other." It thus appears that the Hopkins' form of body and face had stamped its impress on these, and of course on all intermediate descend- ants so powerfully as to have perpetuated itself, in spite of all intermarriages, for five hundred years. The resemblance of twins to each other would be in point; but to multiply words on a fact so universally cognisable is unnecessary. Every close observer must often have been struck with the close physiognomical resemblance borne by 3* 30 FORMS OF BODY TRANSMITTED. children to their parents and relatives, and by descendants to their ancestors. The transfer, saving the intermingling of the likenesses of different ancestors, is almost as close to each other as though father, sons, and grandsons were daguerreo- type likenesses, taken at different times, from one common original. 313. FORMS OF BODY HEREDITARY : THE HATCHES. This principle of likeness also extends to the entire per- sons. Whenever any ancestor is lean and lank, more or less of his descendants will be thin and spare; but when any ancestor is plump and full in person, some of his descendants will be round favored. And when one descendant is tall and another short, or one fleshy and the other raw-boned, some of the descendants will often resemble one, and others the other, even in the same family of children. Thus a family by the name of Hatch, who resided in Cohocton, the author's native town, were nearly all very tall and slim, for the three genera- tions with whom he was personally acquainted, and this pecu- liarity doubtless extended still farther backwards, and also downward, and into the other branches of this spindling family. THE FRANKLIN AND FOLGER FAMILIES. Both the likeness and the form of body of Franklin were peculiar—easily recognised wherever seen. In form, he was large, portly, deep-chested, and round shouldered. His mother was a Folger from Nantucket, and the descendants of her brothers, now residing on Nantucket, still bear a marked resemblance both in the general structure of their bodies, and in their family likenesses to Franklin. Of this, the accom- panying engraving of Walter Folger, compared with that of Franklin, the son of his grandfather's sister, affords a striking example. George Folger, of N., exhibits the same Folger likeness. William Homes, of Boston, who died 1785, bore "a striking resemblance to his uncle, Dr. Franklin." John Tappan, of Boston, brother of Arthur and Lewis, of New York, has this same Franklin likeness and structure; and his mother, Sarah Homes, was a grand-daughter of FOLGER AND FRANKLIN. 31 No. 7 —Walter Folger. 32 FORMS OF BODY TRANSMITTED. Franklin's sister, whose mother was of course a Folger. At New London, Ct., in 1837, the author saw a grand-daughter of Franklin, whose likeness and configuration of body were closely analogous to those of her philosophical grandfather. The maiden name of Lucretia Mott, so widely known as the " Quaker preacher," was Folger, and she is from the same Folger stock from whom Franklin undoubtedly inherited his physical and mental peculiarities. Her forehead, like his, and like those of John Tappan, and Walter and George Folger, is high, broad, bold, projecting, expansive, and indented in the middle, and her face, like theirs, has that same square-cor- nered aspect which all Franklin's front likenesses show him to have possessed. THE WOODBURY STATURE. Levi Woodbury, ex-Secretary and Senator, has a peculiar form both of body and face, large, round-favored, fleshy, and especially developed at the abdomen. In 1843 a professional applicant for the author's services gave her name as Wood- bury. Her likeness and personal appearance bore so close resemblance to this distinguished statesman—she being large, portly, fleshy, and similarly formed—that I.inquired whether she was related to Levi Woodbury, and was answered that she was his cousin ; that she resembled her father, Levi's brother, that Levi resembled his, and of course her, grandfather, and that the Woodburys were generally known by their family resemblance to each other and to their ancestors—two brothers who settled in Beverly, Mass., seven generations back. THE WEBSTER STATURE AND LIKENESS In 1840, a customer entered my office whom I supposed to be, and called Webster, supposing him to be Daniel. He was the sixteenth cousin of Daniel already cited. He had the same general structure and configuration peculiar to Daniel, the same carriage, about the same slowness but power of motion, the same height and weight, color and coarseness of hair, form and color of eyes, and extraordinary vital and mus- cular apparatus, and the same form and expression of counte- nance. THE dwights. 33 Professor Charles B. Haddock, of Dartmouth College, is a nephew of Daniel Webster; and the two bear a close family resemblance to each other. The Websters in Maine and New Hampshire are generally distinguishable by their possessing the same Webster likeness and great size of head. Noah Webster had two of the physiognomical marks of Daniel—the heavy eye-brows and prominent forehead—and though no relationship has existed between their ancestors for 250 years since they emigrated to this country, yet their pro- genitors in England were probably related. THE DWIGHT LIKENES3 AND STATURE. Sereno E. Dwight, son of President Dwight, while riding on horseback among the New Hampshire mountains, overtook an old man, also on horseback, who, after eyeing him closely for a while, finally looked him full in the face, and inquired whether his name was not Dwight, and he the son of Col. D., adding, " Sixty years ago I worked for the Colonel, and you resemble him in countenance, tone of voice, the way you sit in the saddle, and in other respects so nearly as to warrant the question of relationship." Sereno replied, that Colonel D. was his grandfather, and his son Timothy, the theologian, was his father. Colonel D. was a large, well formed, finely-proportioned, noble appearing man, and so was the President, as seen in the accompanying likeness of him, and their descendants generally, as the author can testify from a personal observation of several of them. But why multiply facts in proof or illustration of a heredi- tary principle so perfectly obvious ? Who that compares an- cestors and descendants does not see it exemplified wherever he makes observation ? This is especially apparent wherever either have any strongly marked physical or physiognomical peculiarities ; and such extreme cases furnish the best tests of the truth of this law of nature. Children of course derive their ever-varying forms of body and face from some source. Then from what but parentage ? This fact before us is only the more minute confirmation of that great law which causes all mankind—all that propagates—to resemble, in genera] 34 family likenesses. No. 8.—Sereno E. Dwight. structure and form, their parents, and of course each oth- er. 307- And since all the conspicuous peculiarities of human, animal, and vegetable formation are known to be propagated, of course all is hereditary, down to the most minute item, both of shape itself and that structure which occasions it; for if parentage bestows any part, it confers the whole, in har- mony with that doctrine of universality which characterizes all nature,p-17- GIANTS AND DWARFS. 35 314. SIZE TRANSMITTED • LEWIS, SANBORN, &C. " These four tgiants] were borne to the giant iu Gath."—2 Sam. xxi. 22. The Bible often speaks of " giants," the sons of giants, and even of races of giants. Dixon H. Lewis, the " weighty " ex-Speaker of the lower house in Congress, so large that a chair was made expressly to hold his magnitude, and that he always fills three seats in the stage, weighs 430 pounds, and has a brother who weighs 400, and also a sister of the extra delicate weight of over THREE HUNDRED. Mr. Sanborn, of Salisbury, weighs 400, and has very large hands and fingers, and a sister who weighs 300. Two brothers and three sisters in Southboro', Mass., weigh together 1250, or 250 on an average. The Patigonians of South America, are said to be gigantic in stature. Buffum mentions a Martin Salmerson, a Mexican giant, the son of a Mestizo, by an Indian woman, who measured seven feet three and three quarter inches, and was well pro- portioned. J. H. Reichart, of Friedburg, near Frankfort, Germany, was eight feet three inches. His father and sister were both gigantic. The giant body guards of Frederick William I. left a large race in Pottsdam, where they were quartered. Dwarfishness is also transmitted. A nation of very small men has recently been discovered in Africa. The Esquimaux attain the height of only about four feet eight inches, and the Mogul Tartars only four feet nine inches. The Polish nobleman, Barwlaski, who was well propor- tioned, intelligent, and skilled in the languages, measured only 28 Paris inches; his brother 34, and his sister only 21. C. H. Stoberin, of Auremburg, was only three feet high, and her parents, brothers, and sisters were dwarfs. Other analogous cases might be cited, but who is so dull of observation as not to have seen many such ? And what is 36 SMALL WOMEN. quite remarkable, many of the members of some families, generation after generation, are small and slim till just about a given age, when in a short time they become excessively corpulent. Of this the author has seen many examples in parents, children, and grandchildren. This tendency is undoubtedly the result of hereditary influences. As these occurrences of course have their causes, what other as appa- rent or efficient ? A SCOTCH PRACTICE : SMALL WOMEN. Formerly, when the Scotch were more ambitious than now to have large and tall sons for warriors, the matrimonial demand for large women was so great that such, though infe- rior in other respects, were universally preferred, while small women, whatever might have been their virtues, on that account were doomed to live a life of single blessedness. Hence in part the fact that most Scotchmen are of rather extra size, and few small. But, unfortunately, the scales are now reversed by us. Small women are now preferred. % A woman who weighs over ninety is too large for the matrimonial mar- ket, and the diminutiveness of our children is the conse- quence. Little mothers must necessarily have little children, and as our women try to render themselves thus extra small and delicate, we must expect, at this rate, to become a nation of Lilliputians. Sometimes, from causes to be specified hereafter, large parents have small children, but the general fact that small parents usually have small children, all must have observed in cases without number. The Wigglesworth family of New England, one of whom was professor in Har- vard College, are generally small. And where one parent is large and another small, the children who " take after " the large or small parent in countenance or character, generally inherit their size also. BIHIN, THE FESSENDENS AND DOUGLASSES. 37 SECTION IV. PHYSICAL STRENGTH TRANSMITTED. " And there was at Gath a man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four and twenty, six on each hand and six on each foot. And he was the son of a giant." 315. MUSCULAR STRENGTH HEREDITARY : BIHIN. Stature being hereditary, and strength depending in part on stature, we might infer that both muscular force and fee- bleness are transmitted. And facts attest the truth of this in- ference. Mons. J. A. J. Bihin, the Belgian giant, who was exhibited a few years ago in our museums, measured nearly seven and a half feet in height, four feet two inches around his chest, twenty-eight around his thigh, and twenty- two around the calf of his leg, and weighed three hundred pounds ; being symmetrically formed throughout. At birth his height was twenty-five inches, and his weight twenty-six pounds. When twelve years old, he was five feet ten inches high, and at fourteen, over six. He could lift eight hundred pounds, and straighten himself when stooping under two tons. Both of his parents are athletic, and his father's father was nearly as large and strong as himself; and so was his father's paternal grandfather, as the author learned from the giant himself. THE FESSENDEN, DOUGLASS, AND GERRISH FAMILIES. Gen. Fessenden, of Portland, Me., one of the first law yers in that State, has been a remarkably strong man; as were also his father and uncle ; and this is true of the Fessen- dens generally. The Douglasses, to this day, are remarkable for great phy- sical strength, and Scotch history shows that they always have been. In war, one or another Douglass performs some al- most superhuman feat of strength; and in peace, some one of this powerful clan eclipses all others in those games of wrest- ling, leaping, lifting, throwing heavy weights, and the like, so common in that country. 4 38 strength hereditary. The Gerrishes, of Newbury, Mass., for several generations, have been remarkable for both size and strength. Two bro- thers and two sisters weighed together 1344 pounds—aver- age 336 each. During the Revolutionary war, a blustering English captain sent a challenge to one of them to fight, which was declined. The captain meeting G. in the street, did all he could to provoke a combat, and finally spit in his face. G. brought his hand to his face as if to wipe it, and struck the captain a back-handed blow, which knocked him sprawling. At the capture of Louisburg, the British soldiers chal- lenged the Americans to a trial of strength. It was accepted, and Col. Samuel Gerrish was selected, and in every contest with the English soldiers, carried his point with the great- est ease. He even out-pulled five of their champions with one hand, to their great amazement, of course. When at home, many persons came from a great distance to wrestle with him. On one occasion, a noted wrestler hearing of his strength and skill, came from a distance to have a wrestle with him. Calling when he was absent, his sister dressed herself in his clothes, and, personating her brother, floored the challenger repeatedly, who, on discovering that his an- tagonist was a female, sloped. An English agent of claimants of lands situated in B----, Me., where some of this giant race had settled, attended the town-meeting, and seeing such tremendous men, asked if such men as these occupied the land in dispute. He was told that these were only boys compared with those who lived back. He did not prosecute his claims. JONATHAN FOWLER AND HIS DESCENDANTS. Jonathan Fowler,* of Coventry, Ct., was the son of an immensely large woman, of about 300 pounds' weight, and endowed with extraordinary strength, which her son Jona- than inherited ; as the following bear story, copied from the * Barber's Statistics of Connecticut, mentions John Fowler as one of the first settlers of Guildford, Ct., in 1645, the native place of the author's father. John's brother William settled at Milford Ct JONATHAN FOWLER. 39 Vermont Republican, of Sept. 29, 1817, and originally taken from the Hartford Times, fully attests : " The history of Gen. Putnam and the wolf, are too well known to need any elacidation. The writer of his life, David Humphreys, has fully delineated the heroism and courage of that veteran, and the many bold and daring enterprises which characterized it, in war and pe^ice. About the same time, as bold and daring an attempt to destroy another savage monster of the forest was undertaken and ac- complished by Mr. Jonathan Fowler, of Coventry. As this uncom- mon act of bravery has never appeared in print, I will give a short narrative of the affair, so that the youthful part of the community may see what feats of valor their forefathers were capable of performing. Mr. Fowler, being on a visit to East Windsor, between seventy and eighty years ago, and walking out one day with several of his friends, they were suddenly surprised by a huge bear, who rushed upon them from his place of concealment. His associates, like a band of choice modern Pettipaug spirits, fled without trying to make the least oppo- sition. The bear came up to Mr. Fowler, who, although a man of great bodily vigor, yet rather inclined to corpulancy, did not happen to be quite so nimble-footed as his brave friends were. Finding that he should soon be overtaken, and determining not to be attacked in the rear, very resolutely faced about just as the bear rose on his hind legs to give the sweet Indian hug. " He, at this instant, with that degree of courage which was ever a prevailing characteristic of our forefathers, seized the bear by the throat with one hand, and held him off. In the scuffle which ensued, the bear had partly got him down, while he begged his friends to get a club and kill the bear, but, like fixed statues, they remained insen- sible to his entreaties. At this time the old proverb, ' fortune fa- vors the brave,' was completely verified, for, happening to cast his eyes around, he espied a pine knot on the ground near him, which, with one hand he reached and took, while the other was fast hold of the bear's throat, and with it very deliberately beat out his brains. His brave companions, after being fully satisfied that the dead bear would not hurt them, ventured to come to the spot. " His Majesty, the king of England, was so highly pleased with one of his subjects performing so great a feat of valor, that he or- dered him to be drawn in the act of killing the bear in one of the rooms of his palace, where he remains to this day. He was nearly seven feet high, and weighed about 300 pounds. Though very large, he was not fat, most of his flesh being muscle. "The following anecdote of his great-grandson, Seymour Fow- ler, of Coventry, will show that the courage of Jonathan Fowler has, in a great degree, descended unimpaired to one of his posterity. Seymour Fowler, the young man above alluded to, about twenty years of age, being in July last in the State of Ohio, in company with several others, went to Lake Erie, for the purpose of bathing ; and on arriving at the water's edge, they perceived something of the feathered kind about fifty rods from the shore, upon the surface of 40 strength hereditary. the water. As none of the company could swim except Fowler, they very prudently advised him not to go out to it; but he being determined to see what it was, stripped off his clothes and swam within about a rod of it, and finding it to be a monstrous great eagle, thought of trying to regain the shore, without further molesting his kingly majesty. " He accordingly swam for the shore with all speed, but the eagle, in his turn, pursued his unwelcome intruder. Finding he should soon be overtaken, and determining, as his predecessor had done be- fore him, not to be attacked in the rear, he resolutely faced about. The eagle, finding he had got as high mettled stuff as his own to deal with, turned over on his back in a fighting posture, with his talons spread and erect, the bigness of a man's hand. Fortunately for Fowler, he happened to take a walking stick in his hand at the time of his going into the water, and probably it was the means of saving his life. After being in the water for nearlv an hour in close combat with the eagle, and finding his strength pretty nearly exhausted, and that he struck at him in vain, he determined to make one more desperate attempt at the eagle's life, or perish in the attempt. He accordingly rose out of the water as far as he could, and just as the eagle was drawing himself up in order to fix his talons into his body, he aimed a deadly blow at his head. He was so fortunate as to hit him on the head and stun him, so that taking hold of one of his wings, he with great difficulty drew him on shore, amid the shouts and acclamations of his companions. The extent of this monster of the feathered race, from one wing to the other, was eight feet and six and a half inches; and some of the quills, which are now in Coventry, measure nearly one inch in cir- cumference." The bear story is backed by such living and incontestible evi- dences, as fully to prove its authenticity. The identical pine knot mentioned in the story, and also the skin of the bear killed—and an immensely large skin it is—together with the original painting of Fowler, drawn in the act of killing the bear, and headed, " Jonathan Fowler, the Giant of America," have all recently been seen in the British Museum by a friend of the Bradford, Pa., branch of this bear-killing ancestor, and can doubtless still be seen by any who will make the requisite search for them. Unless a most extraordinary feat of strength and valor had been performed, it would pro- bably neither have reached the ears of the king of England, nor, if it had, been deemed worthy of a historical painting.' This identical story, without any material variation, is also in the memories of every old inhabitant of the Connecticut Valley, and of the Northern and Middle States, and told of JONATHAN FOWLER. 41 Jonathan Fowler, of Coventry, Ct. One of the particulars told by the old people, but not mentioned in the extract, is that the father-in-law of Jonathan had found and killed the bear's cubs, and thus enraged her, so that she pursued him with apparent vengeance, when he called to Jonathan to " come and take off this filthy beast." So renowned was this bear killer as a wrestler, that those who thought themselves too strong to be thrown by any one, often came hundreds of miles to wrestle with him, but all returned floored, while he never found the man who could beat him. As he was about to join issue with one of these wrestling applicants, he invited him down cellar to drink cider with him ; when, knocking out the bung of a full barrel, he took hold of its chines, lifted it to his mouth, drank, and set it down, at arm's length, and told the other to help himself. The latter gave up beat without the wrestle. In the old French war, some American soldiers had igno- rantly violated some martial law, for which they were sen- tenced to run the gauntlet. This greatly incensed the Amer- icans, " the giant" included, who, with another strong arm and fearless spirit, rushed into the crowd assembled to wit- ness their chastisement, and each catching a prisoner under one arm, and parting the dense concourse with the other, res- cued them from unmerited punishment. The strength put forth in dashing aside the crowd, is described as indeed Her- culean. An Irish bully, who thought he could whip all. before him, on hearing of Fowler's far-famed strength, travelled from Boston to Connecticut—then quite a journey—to challenge the giant to a fight. His rap at the door was answered by Fowler's sister—a very large and strong woman—who in- formed him that her brother wrestled, lifted, &c, but never fought. Disappointed, but still determined to provoke the giant to fight, he met the latter on the highway, and impu- dently challenged him to fight, which Fowler declined as-con- trary to his principles, meanwhile proffering a wrestle. The bully answered that he had come all this distance to have a fight, and a fight he would have, and upbraided him as a A* 42 STRENGTH HEREDITARY. "contemptible coward," in order to provoke him to fight. Fowler still declining, the bully threatened that he would make him fight, at least in self-defence, and at the same time wrung his nose. Jonathan, always remarkably cool, still remained self-possessed, and bore all patiently, while the Irish- man, becoming perfectly enraged, made at him, ^termined to knock him down. Fowler being very tall and loi.g-armed, caught him by the shoulder as he came up ; and holding him, in spite of his struggles, in one hand, as in a vice, far enough off to avoid his blows, with the other snapped him in the face till he cried " enough !" when he let the conquered bully go, saying to him, " Tell your Boston friends, not that I flogged you, for I will not fight, but that I snapped you." A strong man, who was loading stones into a cart, had been some time vainly endeavoring to load one too heavy for his strength, when Fowler coming along, caught it up, and tossed it clear over the cart, as if it had been a mere pebble and then loaded it. An immense shark had been left in a pool near the shore, at Guilford, Ct., by the retiring tide, still alive, though weakened by scarcity of water. Fowler captured, shouldered, and brought it, through mud and water, to shore. It weighed five hundred pounds—quite a load for so slippery a com- modity and bad a road. Other stories are told of his wrestling with an Indian, stri- king a very turbulent slave at the master's request, lifting one corner of a small house, which several men tried in vain to do, and many other like feats of strength, all showing that he was one of the strongest men on record. The bear story is a free-mason's sign by which all his de- scendants identify each other. And what confirm0 jur he- reditary doctrine, is that these descendants generally have been remarkable, throughout the States and Canada, as the strongest men of their times and places. Thus, Eliphalet Fowler, of Bradford, Canada, who died some thirty years ago, was reputed in his prime, the strongest and most able bodied man of his time. His nephew, Levi Fowler, formerly of Pompey, N. Y., had the name of being able to roll more THE ENGLISH ROYAL FAMILY. 43 logs, and clear more new land in a day, as well as handle larger logs, than any other man in town. He was also a great wrestler while young. The father of Wm. Fowler, of Bradford, Vt., a great-grandson of Jonathan, broke a large iron bar while screwing down a press—the bar having been made and used expressly for turning the screw. And this Wm. F. and also his son William, are very stout men. The Fowlers in Bradford, Pa., are also equally remarkable for their strength and size. So are those of Litchfield, Mass., and in the Connecticut Valley generally. And whether the Author's endurance of labor confirms this doctrine of transmitted strength as applicable to the power of undergoing mental ex- ertion, his diversified labors must answer. THE ROYAL STUART FAMILY. The following, headed " The last of the Stuarts," taken from a Scotch paper, shows that this Royal family were origi- nally endowed with extraordinary muscular strength—to which they were perhaps indebted for that ascendancy which finally placed the crown on their heads. Its subject was the brother of " The Pretender," and was 115 years old at the time the article was written. It is as follows : " Hundreds of persons can bear testimony to his amazing strength, from which circumstance he got the bye-name of 'Jemmy Strength.5 Among other feats he could carry a twenty-four pound cannon, and has been known to lift a cart load of hay, weighing a ton and a half, upon his back. Many a time he has taken up a jackass, and walked through the toll bar, carrying it on his shoulders. It will be long before we can look upon his like again, to hear of his stories of 1745, and his glowing descrip- tions of the young Chevalier." The two Stuarts now on exhibition at the American museum though only seven and nine years old, weigh together over seven hundred pounds, besides being remarkably strong, and as well formed for strength as probably any other human beings! Parkins, Ex-Sheriff of London, so long imprisoned in this country, but now dead, was an illegitimate of this fam- ily, and remarkably strong and sprightly. So was also an- 44 DEBILITY TRANSMITTED. other illegal descendant who was a college classmate of the author. Ranges of facts like the foregoing, which attest the descent of great muscular vigor from ancestors to descendants for many successive generations, and throughout all the branches of these strong families, might be cited to any required extent, yet are doubtless known to every reader, so that we need not enlarge. Indeed, the fact under discus- sion is too palpable, and too universally observable, to require on its own account, even the space allotted to it. Our object in thus dwelling upon this and other kindred points in the early progress of the work, will be seen when we come to make the application of these principles. We wish to render our premises absolutely impregnable, that our inferences may be both irresistible and tangible. 316. PHYSICAL DEBILITY HEREDITARY. Stature and strength being thus hereditary, the inference is obvious that debility is equally so. This is rendered evident by facts quite as numerous and striking as those just adduced in proof of its converse. Who ever saw a strong child from parents both of whom were naturally weakly ? On the con- trary, look where we may, we see weak-muscled parents to have weak-muscled children, though many parents are too effeminate to have any children. Working men, whose mus- cles are strengthened by labor, generally have stronger chil- dren than the sedentary, whose muscles have become enfee- bled by inaction. But as this point is closely allied to the transmission of health and disease—subjects to be fully dis- cussed hereafter—we dismiss it till it can be presented with greater effect. STRENGTH HEREDITARY. 45 SECTION V. PHYSICAL DEFORMITIES TRANSMITTED. 317. MARKS AND EXCRESCENCES HEREDITARY. PORCUPINE MEN. That same law which transmits, from generation to gene- ration, these various physical properties, often hands down physical excrescences and even deformities; which renders our hereditary argument, already indubitable, completely de- monstrated, as well as adds another forcible illustration to its already beautiful variety. The Porcupine Men furnish a striking instance of this law. Mention is made of them in several scientific works. Their skins were covered with wartlike, bristly bunches, which " looked and rustled like the quills of hedgehogs cut off within an inch of the skin." They were shed annually. Some of the children were naturally formed, but one of them had six children, all of whom had this excrescence. It was traced in three generations in the Lambert line. TWENTY-FOUR FINGERS AND TOES HEREDITARY. The Old Testament mentions several giants who had " twenty-four fingers and toes, six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot." Pliney describes a like peculiarity as existing in his day; doubtless transmitted from the extra fingered and toed giants of Old Testament times. Reaumur traced a like mal-formation in three generations. Carlyle also observed it in four generations. The first was a female, ten of whose eleven children had the super- numeraries, while another had but one extra finger and one surplus toe. This one had four children, three of whom had one or two limbs natural, the remainder of the limbs all de- formed. The fourth had the supernumerary fingers and toes and of his eight children four had them and four not. Two were twins—one deformed, the other natural. The Hobart family, who reside in Ontario county, New 46 MARKS AND DEFORMITIES TRANSMITTED. York, have five fingers and a thumb on each hand, and six toes on each foot, though some escape. They trace this pecu- liarity back in the Hobart line to England. In some these extra appendages stick straight out, while in others they lie snugly ensconsed by the side of the little fingers and toes. Daughters and their children often have them. Mr. French and Sheriff Butterfield, of Lowell, Mass., and Mr. Blanchard, of Groton trace these extra fingers and toes in several generations. Though in many they have been amputated at birth, yet they re-appear in their progeny, as much as in those not amputated. Zera Colborn, the celebrated mathematician, had this peculiarity, as had also his mother—from whom, by the way, he evidently derived his wonderful calculating powers—and some of his children. B. B. Newton, his father, and two out of three of his children, furnish still other examples of the transmission of similar extra appendages. Many of the Newmans of Ipswich have the surplus fingers and toes. Two of their boys who attended J. Coffin's school, had them, their parents had not, but ancestors had.318 OTHER DEFORMITIES HEREDITARY. A professional applicant in Manchester, N. H., had but one finger, which tapered off from the place of the little finger to that of the first in one continuous enclosure, in which, how- ever, the rudiments of the other fingers were slightly per- ceptible. A parent, an uncle, and two children of a sister had a similar mal-formation, though this sister had not. He also mentions a family in whom their third fino-er was generally the longest. Jonathan Fowler, already cited for his great strength, is said to have had immensely large hands and feet; and several of his descendants are characterized by a like peculiarity. Even some who inherit a rather diminutive stature from other ancestors, yet retain these marks of their having descended from the bear-killing giant. THICK LIPS, SQUINTS, ETC 47 Mr.------, of Newburyport, Mass., was born with the second joint of his little finger perfectly stiff, which his two only children inherit. Mr. Anderson, a Norwegian, who resided in Lowell in 1843, had a mal-formation of his second toe on each foot, and all his brothers and sisters had one just like it. The Rev. Mr. V. Z. on his trial for seduction at Rochester, in 1841, was shown to have a crooked finger, as had also the illegitimate of whom he was the alleged father. Thick Lips were introduced into the Royal family of Aus- tria three centuries ago, and are yet plainly perceptible. " William B. Gouse " said a man, in conversing on here- ditary facts, "so nearly resembles his cousins whom I knew, that I mistook him for them, so near alike was their manner of laughing." Mr. A----, of Philadelphia, has a deformed heel which renders him lame, and has a son similarly afflicted. Two Gayleys, brothers, have a singularity in their quack- eling or squeaking of the voice, caused, probably by the deaf- ness of their father and grandfather. The Howe family, whose capture and Canadian captivity by the Indians at Fort Hinsdale, in the old French war, the American Preceptor so eloquently describes, have very large, wide, long, and projecting front teeth. I know nearly all the descendants, especially of the Squire Howe, who, while rest- ing, is there mentioned as having been knocked off the In- dian sacks with the handle of their tomahawks, and who carried the deep indentations thus made in his head, to his grave, not one of whom but have this Howe mark. I have traced it in five generations. A deceased mother who, as it was expressed, laughed out of her eyes, had three sisters who had a similar expression of the eye when they laughed, and three children, and several grandchildren who took after her in this respect. She inher- ited it from her mother. She and two of her sisters, and a son have also a spasmodic twitching of the eye, owing, doubtless, to the same cause. 48 MARKS AND DEFORMITIES HEREDITARY. Mr. Coffin mentions a mother who had a peculiar squint, which she transmitted to her five daughters. A Mr. Taylor, whose body was well formed and of good size, but whose legs were very short, at some religious anni- versary in Vermont, invited Rev. Mr. Culver, of Boston, to his house, where were a son and two daughters, deformed like their father, the daughters well formed in body and fine j looking when seated, but only about four feet in height, and having a very singular appearance when on foot. WENS HEREDITARY. Stepping into the barber's shop, No. 2 Beekman street, New York, and hearing some conversation about a wen on the neck of one of the customers, I inquired whether either of his parents had similar wens. He answered, " No, but my uncle had." I again inquired whether he was considered to resem- ble that uncle. He replied, " Yes, very much; and am often taken for him."315 A Mr. Paynter, of Newtown, L. I., had several excrescen- ces or wens on his head-, formed in the scalp, and moveable. His daughter has similar ones; so had a parent; and one was just beginning to form on a grand-daughter. Her cousin has another. None appeared in childhood. All were de- ! veloped at about the same age. Many similar extra forma- tions might be cited, as having descended four, five, and more generations; and probably many more, but these must suffice as illustrations of kindred transmissions within the inspection of probably every reader. FLAXEN LOCKS HEREDITARY. Mrs. Horton, who, in 1842, resided about a mile east of Pawtucket, Mass., has a flaxen lock of hair growing on Benevolence, nearly white, while the rest of her hair is brown or dark. Two of her daughters, both closely resembling her, had a kindred lock. So had her father, and his mother, and also her father, and thus on for seven generations; and probably as much farther. Of her twelve uncles and aunts, eight had it, and four not, and those who had it lived longer EARLY BALDNESS : THE RANDALLS. 49 than the others; and their old great-grandfather, to whom it was traced, lived to be 104 years old. A similar mark occurs in a lad who lives in Newark, N. J., and was exhibited there by the Author at his lectures on Hereditary Descent, in 1845, in whose ancestors it was trace- able for five generations; though it did not appear in his mother, but did in her mother. EARLY BALDNESS AND GREY HAIRS HEREDITARY. Mr. Harthan, of Great Falls, N. H., became bald at 21. His father, and grandfather were bald young, and his uncle, sister, and several cousins are either bald or have very thin hair; and those wno lose their hair all look like his bald grandfather. The wife of the Rev. Mr. ----, of----, became grey young. So did her father. Many like cases exist every- where, in which tendency to become both bald and grey very young, is evidently hereditary. 318. PECULIARITIES OFTEN PASS ONE OR MORE GENERATIONS. The transmission of qualities in an unbroken line is so com- mon, as to be universally conceded and expected. But singu- lar as it at first appears, it is nevertheless a hereditary law, that nearly or quite all the powers and peculiarities transmitted, often run under ground one, two, and even more generations, yet re-appear in subsequent ones in all their distinctness. Thus, two of the children of Nathaniel P. Randall, of Woodstock, Vt., have little holes or issues just in front of their ears, which discharge during colds. Mr. Randall has none; but, at the corresponding location, a little indentation about the size of a pin head. A sister has it and her children. His father, through whom this mark descends, has only a slight indentation like that of his son, but his maternal grandmother has it. It therefore passes over one generation in his father and sisters, and two in himself and father, but reappears in the third—his children. The Belgian Giant furnishes a kindred illustration of this law.8" 5 50 REAPPEARANCE of peculiarities. That tall Hatch family furnish still another.313 One of this spindling family, whose height is only ordinary, and per- son rather stocky than slim, has a spindling girl who resem- bles her tall grandfather. Mrs. Hunt, of Boston, has bright red hair. Not one of her numerous family of children has it, and only one of her grand- children, of whom she has a goodly number. Of course, this one is her special favorite. She says, " Every hair on its little head is worth a guinea." Mr. W---- had red hair, yet every one of his children had dark hair, and all his grandchildren, except two; but his great grandchildren all over the country are coming out with bright red hair. Many who know these descendants and their parents, and grandparents, but not their red-haired progenitor, wonder from what source they derive this peculiar- ity. In these cases it lies dormant for two generations, and appears only in the first and fourth. Other similar facts will be found interspersed throughout the work. Two or three more in this connection must therefore suffice to fix this law distinctly upon the reader's attention, so that he may notice this class of facts hereafter. The more so, as a most important inference grows out of it. Two virtuous white parents in New Jersey, were as much astonished as mortified to find in one of their children the dark skin, curly hair, thick lips, and other unequivocal marks of African lineage, upon which, of course, neighborhood scan- dal seized to discredit the mother's fidelity. But she so solemnly protested her innocence, and had always been so far above suspicion, that the father visited the native town of her ancestry, on the borders of France, when he found that the fifth ancestor back from this mulatto infant, his wife's great- grandfather, was an African, yet that no intermediate traces of this African sire had made its appearance. Those who think this incredible, can often see children who " take after" neither parent, but strongly resemble a grandparent; and will also find that consumption and other diseases, talents included, appertain to grandparents; that is, pass over one generation wholly, without leaving any intermediate marks. Cases like IMPORTANT INFERENCE. 51 these are too common and palpable to be disputed. Randall's case renders it certain, that such peculiarities sometimes run under ground two generations, and appear only in the first and fourth. Now, as these peculiarities actually do disappear one and two generations, why not more ? Why should not that same law which suppresses them one generation, also suppress them two, three, and four, or more, yet ultimately bring them out again ? At all events, our facts are facts, disbelief to the contrary notwithstanding. IMPORTANT INFERENCE. One important circumstance connected with this law deserves the special attention of all whom it may concern; namely, that as Mrs. Horton317 resembled her father in her phrenology and physiognomy, from whom also she inherited her flaxen lock, and her daughters her ; and as those relations who had the flaxen lock lived longer than the others, that is, inherited longevity along with this mark, so in general, those who resemble a consumptive grandmother, for example, will be more liable to consumption than their brothers and sisters, who take after some other branch ; and thus of all other pecu- liarities ; just as the man who had the wen resembled his uncle, who also had one.317 One other fact by way of rivet- ing this important principle. At the Temperance House, Lowell, in 1843, the chamber- maid had a cancer on her face. Her father had none, but his mother died of one, and she resembled this grandmother while he did not. Her uncle, however, took after this grand- mother__his mother—and had a similar cancer; as did two of his children, who also resembled their father, and of course, grandmother and cousin. Those, therefore, whose parents may have been afflicted, or died with any disease, but who do not resemble this parent, are much more likely to escape the malady than those who do; while those should be on their guard who do " take after" parents, grandparents, or relatives thus afflicted. The same law applies equally to longevity, strength, talents, morals—all those qualities which are trans- mitted—and constitutes a guide of great value to those whom it may concern. 52 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. SECTION VI. LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. " And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years * * and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers." 319. LENGTH OF LIFE HEREDITARY: JARTILLE J PARR; McDONALD. That some families are long-lived in all their generations, is so obviously a law of transmission as to require little else, as far as argument is concerned, than its mere statement. Yet, for the reason already given, that we are now laying a foun- dation for other inferences of great practical moment, we shall fortify these our primary positions by an array of facts which will effectually preclude all ground for reasonable doubt, so as to render the force of our subsequent positions complete. Dr. Alcott's "Teacher of Health" for 1843, page 315, in an article on " the Influence of Temperance on Longevity," states that " a woman was living quite recently, at Glasgow, Scotland, aged 130 years, who had not felt pain for a century. Her father died aged 120, and her grandfather 129. A woman died in the west of England, a few years ago, at the age of 110, having 450 descendants. Jarville, in Scotland, a water-drinker, lived 108 years, and his son still longer, and his grandchildren to a great age." Thomas Parr lived to be 152 years old, and a son 109, and a grandson 113, and Robert Parr, a great grandson, died Sept. 21, 1757, aged 124. The "Library of Health" for 1840 contains the following: "We were personally acquainted with the late Donald McDonald, of quarrelsome memory, who was sent to the house of correction for a street brawl, when about 105 years old. When 106, he enjoyed excellent health. * * * * His father lived to be 137, and no one knows when he would have died, had he not been accidentally killed. * * * THE ALDEN FAMILY. 53 " A former neighbor of ours died at the age of 80, though an immoderate opium-taker 40 years. His father lived to be 97, and had 19 children, 105 grandchildren, 155 great-grand- children, and four of the fifth generation. Many of his chil- dren reached the ages of 80 and 90." THE ALDEN FAMILY. " The Genealogy of the Fourteen Families of the Early Settlers of New England"—a work unconsciously full of hereditary facts—contains the following genealogy of Hon. John Alden, the stripling who first leaped upon Plymouth rock, and progenitor of the Aldens in the United States. He was the one sent by Captain Miles Standish to get the consent of Priscilla Mullins and her father to a marriage with said Standish. After having made his request, the fair damsel replied, "Pr'ythee, John, why do you not ask for yourself?" He did, and they married; for which unpardonable offence the Captain never forgave them. This Alden, at his death, had 19 children, 62 grandchildren, 134 great-grandchildren, and seven of the fifth generation. He lived to a great age—about 90. One of his descendants, Timothy, in Yar- mouth, Massachusetts, was a pastor fifty-nine years, and died at 92. John Alden, the great-grandson of the ancestor, died at Middleborough, aged 103. He retained his bodily and men- tal powers so remarkably, that, after he was 100 years old, he often conversed with propriety on religion, and could repeat whole chapters from the Bible. He was the oldest man in the " Old Colony," and a church member seventy-eight years. His grandmother was daughter of Peregrine White, the first white male child born in New England. His mother was the daughter of Captain Ebenezer White, and therefore grand- daughter of this Peregrine White. Of the ancestor's descendants of the fourth generation, Dr. Silas Alden attained the age of 90, Nathan 80, Daniel 80—Daniel's father, Joseph A., a grandson of the ancestor, 80—Eleazer 79, Samuel 80, Seth 75—his daughter 81—Mary 80, Zephaniah—grandson of Joseph—80, Barnabas 60, Har- riet 70, Jonathan—a great-great-grandson of the ancestor— 54 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. 84, and his wife 91, and her grandfather 80; Zephaniah Alden, another of the fourth generation, and his brother, each 80, Samuel 81, Hannah 70, another 83, another 90, two others, 80 each, another, Deacon Ezra, 84. Of the third generation, John, already mentioned, was 103, Noah, a rev- erend 72, and Abigail 88. Elizabeth, daughter of the ances- tor, died at 93, at which time her granddaughter was a grandmother ! five generations of her descendants being alive at once, and she the sixth. Other descendants reached 73, 82, 67, 79, 81, 79, 70, 91, 91, 70, 92, 92, 70, and 74 years, nearly all the ages there recorded, which are comparatively few. THE HOBART, BASS, COPELAND, AND FRENCH FAMILIES. The same work gives the following ages of the descend- ants of the ancestor Hobart, from whom Bishop Hobart was descended : Edmund Hobart, son of the ancestor, 82, Peter 75, Caleb, grandson, 89—wife 86—third son, Caleb, 70, Rev. Joshua, another grandson, 89, who was a preacher 49 years, Rev. Jeremiah, also a grandson, 87, and his brother 62, and Rev. Nehemiah, grandson of Peter, 64, a preacher 40 years. The Bass family attained the following ages: The ancestor, a Plymouth pilgrim, lived 94 years, and had 162 descendants when he died. His wife died at 93, and some of their de- scendants as follows: 84, 89, 97, 82, 98, 74, and 87. Lawrence Copeland, a very aged man, born in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and deceased 1699, had children who attained the respective ages of 90, 92, 77, 78, 86, and 83. John French, another ancestor, lived to be 80, and his sons 89, 73, 78, and 80, the two last twins. THE LEWIS, MARSH, COBB, TAPPAN, AND BREVOORT FAMILIES. " Hannah Lewis," says Rush on the Mind, " though de- ranged from middle life, lived to be 87. A predisposition to longevity, derived from her ancestors, predominated over the tendency of her long-protracted disease to destroy her life. She lost one sister in the eighty-second year of her age, and, at the time of her death had another living, who was 94." Of the Mash or Marsh family, " The Memoirs of Mrs. Tap- pan" states that Onesiphorus and his son John, and grandson THE CABLES, TOPPANS, ADAMSES, &C. 55 David, died each aged 80 years. David's wife—a Moody— lived to be 91, and had lost none of her twelve children at her death, nor did any die till twelve years afterward. " This family has been remarkable for the longevity of its members." Seven brothers, Cobbs, lived to the following ages: Benja- min nearly 87, Mason above 84, John 82, David 79, Daniel 71, Solomon alive at 84, and Jonathan at 82. Aggregate ages 570 ; average age nearly 82. Two of them saw their great-grandchildren. Their father lived nearly 80 years, and their mother 98.—Chronotype. Henry Brevoort recently died in the Bowery, New York, aged 104, and most of his ancestors and relations have lived to be very old. Seven Tappans of New York State, all recently alive, have together lived 597 years—over 85, on an average—and likely to live considerably longer. The Toppans or Tappans generally live to a great age. The grandmother of Lewis and Arthur Tappan, was a Marsh, of Haverhill, Mass. ; she died aged 84. Her father, Deacon David Marsh, died aged 89: he had 12-children, whose average ages exceeded 84, and in the aggregate, were over 1000. THE FRANKLIN, FOLGER, WOODBURY, ADAMS, AND FOWLER FAMILIES. Franklin's father lived to be 89, and his mother 83. Nei- ther were ever sick. Franklin himself, and his son lived, the one to be 84, and the other 82. As already remarked, the Tappan and Franklin families are related to the Folgers,—also long lived : Walter is now 82,—and of course to each other. The Woodbury families live to a great age. John Q. Adams—now a remarkably laborious, yet vigorous and eloquent old man—at over 80, is from a very long-lived stock. His great-grandfather died at 93, and his father at 91, and so well at that age, that he expected, the day he died, to have celebrated " Independence " in Boston, but died suddenly. The author's great-great-grandfather, Fowler, died, aged 93, and his grandfather over 80, of poison, yet able to work quite hard; and Eliphalet Fowler, already mentioned,315 lived to be 84, and was able to do light work, the year he died. 56 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. The author's grandmother, Field, was 84, and would, doubt- less, have lived to a greater age, but that she took opium in great excess. Nearly all her brothers became very old. One, Solomon Field, of Ashfield, Mass., died at about 90. Mrs. Jane Simmons died in London, in 1792, aged 119 years. She left two daughters, each 100 years old. A woman in Berlin, in Prussia, recently married after she was 100 years old, at which time she had a son over 80. John Van Frost, of Schenectady, in his 104th year, had children aged as follows :—James, 84; Gersham, 79 ; Aaron, 71 ; John, 64; and a daughter, Mrs. Shirtleff, 77. The following, from Joshua Coffin, bears recorded testimony, touching this point: LETTER FROM JOSHUA COFFIN ON LONGEVITY. Newbury, 30th November, 1846. Dear Sir,— Samuel Chase, of Newbury, married Hannah Emery, 8th Dec, 1713. His children were Francis—born 8th August, 1715, and died 25th September, 1806; aged 91. Amos—born 9th January, 1718, and died in 1817, aged 99 years 10 and a half months. Hannah—bom 23d March, 1721. Mary—born 15th August, 1724, died young. Anna—born 3d October, 1727. Samuel—born 22d October, 1728. Mary—born 24th December, 1731. Betty—born 9th October, 1734. I can obtain and send, in a few days, the ages of all the preceding persons, who, I am told, all but one or two, lived to an advanced age. Let us now take the posterity of Deacon Francis Chase, the first in the above list. He married Sarah Pike, and lived in Newtown, N. H., and had fourteen children, viz: 1. Hannah—married Joseph Welsh, of Plastow ; had 13 children and died aged 80. 2. Samuel-married Molly Stuart, of Litchfield; had 11 children and died aged 76. 3. Amos—married Hannah Carlton, of Unity, and died aged 73, having 13 children. coffin's letter. 57 4. Francis—married A. Hubbard; had 7 children, and died aged 80. 5. Joseph—married Elizabeth Darrah, of Litchfield ; had 14 chil- dren, and died aged 82. 6. Abner—manied A. Moody; had 5 children, and died at 91. 7. Simeon—married three wives; had 8 children, and died at 81. 8. Sarah—married Reuben Curner ; had 8 children, and died at 98. 9. Elizabeth—married Richard Whittier ; had 5 children, and died at 73. 10. Daniel—married Sally Eaton ; had 7 children, and died of a cancer, at the age of 55. 11. Molly—married James Carlton ; had 5 children, and died at 70. 12. Moses—married Mary Noyes ; had 5 children, and died at 50. 13 and 14. died in infancy. Let us now take the second son of Francis—Samuel, who mar- ried Molly Stuart. Their children were, 1. Samuel, of Litchfield; had 11 children. 2. Ebenezer—had 8 children, and died aged 70. 3. Daniel—has had 8 children ; is now living, aged 80. 4. Robert—had 13 children, and died aged 71. 5. Francis—had 4 children ; is now living, aged 71. 6. Polly—has had 8 children ; is now living, aged 68. 7. Simeon—had four children. 8. Nancy—had 8 children, and is now living, aged 62. James Davis, senior, died 29th January, 1679, aged 96, an ances- tor of Col. James Davis, of N. H., who died in 1749, aged 88. He had 9 children, who died at the following ages, viz : James, 93 ; Thomas, 88 ; Samuel, 99 ; Daniel, 65 ; Sarah, 91 ; Hannah, 77; Elizabeth, 79; Ephraim, 87. Phebe was living in 1824, aged 85. Enoch Coffin, Esq., of Edgartown, died in 1761, aged 83. He had 10 children ; ages at death as follows :—Love, 88; Hepzibah, 90 ; Elizabeth, 73 ; Abigail, 88 ; John, 82 ; Enoch, 90 ; Deborah, 80 ; Benjamin, 75; Samuel, 70; and Buelah, living in 1810, aged 80. Enoch Coffin's father, John, died in 1711, aged 64. John's father, Tristram Coffin, senior, died in 1681, aged 72. Tristam Coffin jun., sou of Tristam Coffin, sen., died in 1704, aged 72. Peter Coffin, of Dover, N. H., died in 1715, in his 85th year ; he was son of Tris- tram C. senior. James, son of Tristram Coffin, died in 1720, want- ing fourteen days of 80 years. Stephen, another son of Tristram Coffin, died in 1735, aged 83. Mary Starbuck, daughter of Tristram Coffin died 1717, aged 72. Hon. Nathaniel Coffin, son of Tristram Coffin^ junior, died in 1748, aged 79. Col. Joseph Coffin, son of Nathaniel Coffin, died in 1773, aged 71. 58 longevity hereditary. Deacon David Marsh, of Haverhill, died in his 80th year. Hia wife died in her 92d year. They had twelve children. The eldest died in her 84th year : the second, in her 88th : the third in her 80th year ; the second son, in his 81st; the fifth son in his 69th. The seven other children were living in 1810, as follows :—The eldest son was in his 87th year ; the third, in his 82d ; the fourth, in his 80th; the 6th, in his 76th; the seventh, in his 73d ; the fourth daughter, in her 71st; the fifth, in her 69th year. All are now dead. Their precise ages I will obtain in a few days. William Peters died in Medfield, Mass., in 1786 or '7, aged 85. Hannah, his wife, died in 1786, aged 93 They had 10 children, viz :—Joseph, died in 1800, aged 71; Ben- jamin, in 1803, aged 72 ; Mary, in 1813, aged 81 ; Adam, in 1813, aged 79; Eve, in 1823, aged 87; Tahpunis, in 1817, aged 77 ; An- drew, in 1822, aged 80 ; Nathan, in 1824, aged 77 ; Tunis, in 1820, aged 73. Jethro Peters was living in 1824, in his 81st year. The day he was 80 years old he walked 13 miles. Dr. H. Martin died in Marblehead, leaving 7 children by his first wife, who were all living in 1824, of the following ages, viz .—88, 87, 80, 76, 73, 7L 61. By his second wife, he left two children, aged 53 and 51. Mary Briggs died in Wellington, Mass., in 1813, aged 102, leav- ing 9 children, aged 79, 77, 73, 72, 70, 68, 63, 60, 57. Mr. Temple, of the county of Worcester, Mass., died in 1765, aged 86. His 8 children were living in 1788, at the following ages ;—89, 85, 83, 91, 79, 77, 75, 73. Oliver Farmer, of Billerica, died 1761, aged 76. His wife died 1773, in her 77th year. They had 9 children ; their ages were as follows : Abigail, died 13th January, 1791, aged 70 years 352 days. Mary, Sarah, Betty, Rebecca, Oliver, Isabella, Edward, John, In the Salem Gazette, of 1812, is the following account of a family of 8 children, born in Chelmsford, who were all living in January, 1812, at the following ages : Ephraim Warren, born 16th December, 1731, in his 81st year. 25th Sept., 1803, ' 72 << 19 " 8th Dec, 1819, " 95 (< 346 " 17th Sept., 1805, ' 70 <( 87 " 30th August, 1809, ' 83 a 79 " 24th Feb., 1814, < 85 a 196 " 26th Dec, 1793, ' 62 a 228 " 4th August, 1804, * 70 a 149 " 9th January, 1806, ' 69 a 21 < • twins. coffins letter. 59 John Warren—born 14th September, 1733, in his 79th year. Esther Warren—born 27th April, 1735, in her 77th year. Isaac Warren—born 30th January, 1737, in his 75th year. Lydia Warren—born 1st January, 1739, in her 73d year. Elizabeth Warren—born 25th May, 1741, in her 71st year. Thomas Warren—born 5th April, 1743, in his 69th year. Josiah Warren—born 27th April, 1745, was in his 80th year, and living in 1824. The above have all died since 1812, the most of them at the age of 80 or upwards. Their parents were above 80. In Dr. Dwight's Travels, vol. 2, I find the following : " James Leonard, the progenitor of the family, had three brothers. Including these, himself and his descendants, amounting to 44 males, the ages on this side of the family are as follows :—4, aged, but age not certainly known ; 3, almost 70 ; 9, above 70 ; 9, averaging 74; 3, near 80; 11, above 80; 5, age unknown. Of his female descendants, amounting to 25, 2 were aged, 5 were almost 70, 3 were 74, 4 above 75, 3 above 80, 1 above 90,1 almost 100, 6 age unknown. All these, except the progenitor, were his immediate descendants in direct lines. " Of the males, all except 5 lived to be above 60. All except 12, or 32 out of the 44, lived to be above 70 ; 23 above 74 ; and 11 above 80. " Of the 25 females, all except 8 lived to be near 70 ; probably all but 6 : 12 lived to be 74 ; 9 exceeded 75; 5 were above 80 ; 1 above 90 ; and 1 almost 100. These Leonards lived in Raynham. The first forge erected in America was built in Raynham, by James and Henry Leonard." In the same volume of Dwight's Travels, I find the following :— " A married pair, of the name of Clark, had 11 children. One died, if I mistake not, in early life: of the remaining 10, 4 lived to be above 90, 3 above 80, and 3 above 70. Six of these were sons, and lived, each, with the wife of his youth, more than 50 years. The youngest son died in the 98th year of his age. At the time of .his death, there had sprung from the original pair 1145 persons, of whom 960 were still living." This Clark family lived in Northamp- ton. In addition to what I said of the longevity of the Chases, you may add John Chase, who died in 1740, aged 85 ; and David, son of John, who died in 1802, aged 92 years and 2 months. Simeon Chase died in Newbury, in 1829, aged 84 1-2 years. I could men- tion many others, both in the Chase and Coffin families, who lived to an advanced age. I shall probably obtain in a few days, a more full account of Deacon Samuel Chase's family—that, is, his brothers and sisters, and his children. 60 longevity hereditary. Thomas Webster, the great-grandfather of Daniel Webster, was 83 years old when he died. Thomas Webster came to Hampton, in or about the year 1656, and died in February, 1715, aged 83. His son, Ebenezer, lived in Kingston, and he had a son Ebenezer, who was born in Kingston, and removed to Salisbury, N. H. That was Col. Ebenezer Webster, the father of Daniel and Ebenezer Webster, both giants in intellect. Thomas Webster was 36 years old, when his son Ebenezer was born, which was 1st August, 1667. This Ebenezer was Daniel's grandfather." THB BSTEN FAMILY OP RHODE ISLAND. "Joseph Esten, the first in the list, and now in the 95th year, en- joys comfortable health. The writer of this saw him two years ago on foot, going to visit his sister, a distance of three miles. He said he mowed that summer, though it plagued him to see the stones. Joseph Esten, born Dec. 2, O. S., or Dec 13, 1752, now of Bur- rillville, in his 95th year. Johanna Inman, born January 11, 1754, now of Burrillville, in her 93d year. Martha Inman, born June 22, 1756, now of Michigan, in her 91st year. Jemima Buton, born March 15, 1759, now of Smithfield, in her 88th year. John Esten, born October 2, 1761, now of Burrillville, in his 85th year. Henry Esten, born May 1, 1764, now of the State of New York, in his 83d year. Mary Brown, born April 15, 1771, now of Scituate, in her 76th year. Salome Buxton, born June 5, 1774, now of Smithfield, in her 73d year. Amey Inman, born Nov. 12,1776, now of the State of New York, in her 70th year. Averaging about 84 years. Their father died aged 78 ; their mother died aged 86. Their father's mother died aged 97 ; their mother's father died aged 97.—" Slaterville, Oct. 19, 1846. Providence Journal. Nor is there any end to facts of this class. Every even casual, observer must have seen similar instances of hereditary longevity; and seen them reported in papers and books, both domestic and foreign, by the thousand. But who can doubt the truth of this law of transmission ? THE WHITMAN FAMILY. 61 320. THE LONGEVITY OF ONES ANCESTORS CAN BE PREDICATED. Certainly, not less remarkable than this transmission of longevity, is the fact, that the age of ancestors can be predi- cated, from an inspection of the form and physiology of their descendants. In his oral lecture, of which work this is an ex- tension, the author has, hundreds of times, selected persons unknown to him from the audience, and pronounced upon their respective ages, and rarely fails to come within ten years, and usually names within five years of the age of an ances- tor, and generally tells which. Of course, the death of such ancestor, by accident and the like, occasions failures ; but, in hundreds of cases thus pronounced upon in public, he rarely errs five years, of which his numerous audiences are witnesses. A few examples : At my lecture in Marlboro' Chapel, Boston, Oct. 5, 1843, I remarked, that the grandfather of a stranger selected from the audience as a test, lived to be at least 95. " Above a hundred," was his reply. Thus were predicated both the age and ancestor. I remarked that the father of another, then on the stage, probably lived to be 85. The answer was " 82, and then died of gout, which afflicted him sixty years." I predicated that some of the ancestors of Mr. Booth, of Portsmouth, N. H., probably lived to be from 85 to 90. He replied, that all except those now alive had reached 80, and some exceeded 90. Mr. W. B. Kendall, of Boston, requested me to pass judg- ment on the age of his grand-parents. I answered, " they were second Mathusalahs." He replied, that his grandfather lived to be 101. THE WHITMAN FAMILY. In examining professionally the head of Rev. Jason Whit- man, of Portland, Me., I remarked : " Your ancestors on your father's side, lived to a great age, I should judge to 90 or 95." The next day, he kindly presented me with a work, con- taining the genealogy of his family from John Whitman, called the ancestor of the Whitman family in this country, who lived to be about 90. His brother, Zechariah, died at a 6 62 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. great age. None of hissons died under 82, and some reached 90 His eldest son, Thomas, died at 83. Nicholas, another son, had four children, who lived to be above 85, and two of them to 90. Judge Mitchell says of his descendants : " Four of them are now [1832] living, at the respective ages of 94, 87, 84, and 80." One of the latter was active and in good health, in his 97th year. The fifth child of Nicholas lived to be 80. Ele- ven males, all descendants of Thomas, attained the following ages: 80, 81, 82, 83, 83, 83, 88, 90, 90, 95, and 96; and three females lived to 92, 95, and 98; and the longevity of the females has equalled that of the males. One of the daughters of Abia Whitman, reached 92 ; and two of her sons, about 80 each ; and John, a son of Abia, was yet heal|hy when 80 years old. Five of the children of Ebenezer W.— a grandson of the ancestor, attained the following ages: 80, 86, 87, 90, and 94 ; and their father was very smart and ac- tive, and able to do a full day's work, at 71, when he was killed by a loaded cart running over him. Samuel W., an- other grandson of the ancestor, attained the age of 100: and another grandson died in his 80th year. Some of the fourth generation attained the following ages : 86, 83, 70, 88, 95, 80, 90, 95, 72, 75, 82, 80, 80 ; two others, between 80 and 90 ; and one of them, Deacon Jason Whitman, recently died at the extraordinary age of 107 !—the grandfather, if I mis- take not, of the Rev. Jason W., first mentioned; while an- other was living in good health, when in his 97th year; and another, in his 84th. One of this Whitman family had a son born when the father was nearly 80, and this son lived to be 80 ! Behold the predominance of the Whitman tenacity of life, over all those with whom they intermarried, so as thus to stamp the impress of longevity upon almost all of his descend- ants. What better patrimony could be left children than this of longevity ? In examining professionally the head of Mr. Horton, of Milk street, Boston, whose firm does the second larg-est busi- ness in Boston. I said: " Your ancestors lived to be nearly 100." One of them attained the age of 92. These predica- tions were made Saturday evening, Oct. 7. THE WHITBIAN FAMILY. 63 The day preceding, I told a professional subject, that a grand-parent whom I specified, lived to be 95, or over: 102 was the answer. Of another subject's grand-parents, I predicated 95: 92 would have been correct. Of another's of the same party, I pronounced 90 ; it was 87. To a similar question, from another of this party, I answered, " Your mother .was consumptive, and is probably dead." She died of this disease at 40; and if he attains that age, he will exceed my predictions. All these predications, with these results, were made within three days, and are but samples of what are continually oc- curring in my office and lectures. In Manchester, 1843, I judged the age of Mr. Colborn, to be 95. His grandmother lived to be 93, and a sister of his grandfather was above 90. Of those of Mr. Cook, I said " very aged." His father was 90, grandfather 88, uncle living at 92, and his sister at 85, while his grandfather's brothers were between 80 and 90. 1 judged the ancestors of Jacob Smart to have been from 95 to 100. He had ten uncles and aunts then alive whose aver- age ages were 78, one being 87, some above 90, and all healthy. I ascribed great age to the ancestry of George Freeman. His father was then alive at 89, and very active and healthy, and his father's father died at 86, and paternal grandmother at 94, and her mother at the same age. G. F.'s mother was 78, and both her parents 90. His grandfather's brothers and sis- ters generally lived to between 80 and 90. 321. DATA ON WHICH THESE PREDICTIONS ARE MADE. Many think these predications perfect presumption, yet the latter depend on scientific signs, cognizable by all. That this can be done as already illustrated, is evident from facts like the preceding, which transpire in public and private wherever I lecture. And I am willing, at any time, to submit even in public, to the trying ordeal of experiment—fully confident that what I have never failed to do I can still continue to do. 64 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. Nor are these personal narratives prompted by an egotistical spirit. Such predications are not difficult. All can be taught to come as near the longevity of all as the author does, and without any extraordinary mental acumen. The signs which indicate all this are palpable and easily read, and the result, where it is any way remarkable, perfectly certain. No. 8. Sample of great longevity. The principal index of great longevity in a given person's ancestors, is an ample development of the vital apparatus ; or a capacious chest, and of course large lungs, heart, stomach, and vital organs, with a proportionally smaller head, so that the latter shall furnish a full supply of that vitality which constitutes life, and continue that supply to old age. The accompanying engraving is copied from the daguerreotype likeness of one of whom the predication was made that his an- SIGNS of longevity. 65 cestors lived to an extraordinary age, and whose ancestors did live to be about 100. This general form—fulness of face and person, depth and breadth of chest, fulness of abdomen, and general breadth of structure—all betoken ancestral, and, extra- ordinaries excepted, personal longevity. Yet this fulness of face and body is not the only sign of lon- gevity. A spare, wrinkled, muscular temperament, which may be known by great distinctness of the muscles, bones, furrows, and projections, prominence of nose, eyebrows, chin, etc., also foretokens tenacity of life. Of this, Elias Hicks, who lived to be 82, notwithstanding his extraordinary labors, furnishes an example. His father was very aged, and his descendants bid fair to be. See his likeness370. One reason why longevity accompanies this temperament is because its great ease of action, accomplishes much labor, mental and physical, with comparatively little expenditure of vitality, so that the manufacture keeps pace with the supply; and another is that this organization is exceedingly tough, elastic, flexible, and powerful, as well as capable of astonish- ing endurance. The predication as to whether this longevity is derived from the paternal or maternal line, is made on the following data. The male form or type of head differs essentially from that of the female ; as will be seen in a work on " Woman," which will form a volume of this series. Yet sons often resemble their mothers, and daughters their fathers. This can easily and correctly be inferred. Hence, when I find a man who has the above described indices of longevity, and also large Firmness, Self-Esteem, Calculation, and other organs which more frequently predominate in man than woman, I infer, and am rarely mistaken, that he inherits both his longevity and phrenology from his father, and of course that his pater- nal line is long-lived. But if a son have the smaller Self- Esteem and predominant Approbativeness, Philoprogenitive- ness, and other organs, the predominance of which character- ize the female head, the inference is that he " takes after " his mother; and if he have also the marks of a consumptive habit I infer, and rarely fail of being correct, that he inher- 6* 66 LONGEVITY HEREDITARY. ited this tendency from his mother; that is, that she was con- sumptive. But when the son resembles his mother, and she her father, I sometimes mistake the mother's father for the father ; and thus of females. Where, also, the subject resem- bles both parents about equally, I cannot predicate from which side either longevity, talents, or diseases were inherited, only the fact that they were entailed. Yet while these exceptions sometimes prevent a correct predication of the side from which the various hereditary qualities are derived, they do not at all militate against the fact or the cognizability of such trans- mission. Not, however, that all descended from a long-lived parent- age will therefore necessarily live to an equal age, only that, if these parents had not impaired their health before their chil- dren were born, the latter have that native strength of con- stitution, which, if the laws of physiology are not violated, will prolong their lives to an equal age. Yet in order that descendants may inherit the longevity of their ancestors, two things are indispensable—that none of these ancestors have either married weakly companions, or broken their health by repeated abuses before the birth of any of such descendants, and that the descendants themselves have also so far obeyed the physical laws as to have preserved their own health un- impaired, either of which will shorten the life of descendants. Thus : if A. is descended from a long-lived stock on both sides, yet " breaks down " before he becomes a parent, his children will inherit his weakened constitution ; or if A should both preserve his own health and also marry into a long-lived family, and thus transmit strong constitutions and great tenacity of life to his children, yet if the latter should abuse their health, they will die proportionally early. Hence, multitudes, capacitated by nature to live to a great age, die young, and their children still younger; yet these very habits in parents which shorten the lives of their chil- dren, also diminish those indices of long life already men- tioned. Then let none abuse their health because their ancestors were aged; for ancestral longevity does not ensure their lives SHORT LIFE HEREDITARY. 67 when health is abused; but let us all cherish health, and in- crease by culture our natural tenacity of life, so as to trans- mit this greatest of patrimonies—capability for longevity—to our descendants in a degree at least equal to, and greater if possible, than that we inherited. These indices of longevity also enable us to tell about how long, extraordinaries excepted, given individuals will live. True, we can predicate " neither the day nor hour " of any one's death ; but since we can estimate quite accurately both his present amount of stamina, and also the rate at which he is disbursing it, we can compute about how long it will last, especially if we know his present and prospective habits. But since the habits of the present generation are far more luxurious and every way injurious to health than the simple and abstemious habits of our forefathers, I usually confine my predications touching the longevity of ancestors to the grandparents of the subject, and to the parents only condi- tionally. Other exceptions, in case the reader is determined to cavil, should be stated, but our great doctrine that longevity is hereditary, is a palpable truth, and put beyond all reason- able doubt or cavil, and thus dismissed for its converse, that, a tendency to 322. PREMATURE DEATH IS HEREDITARY. The facts which prove this position are not less numerous or palpable than those just given in proof that longevity is hereditary; yet are not so often made public, and are sooner forgotten. A mother may die at twenty, and her daughter or son live only just long enough to become a parent, or the third and fourth generations die off in their youth and all be forgotten, while an old man of eighty or ninety is the wonder of all, and his extraordinary age heralded far and near, and yet there is a score or more facts in proof that premature death is hereditary to every one that longevity is transmitted. In fact instances of the truth of our doctrine are too numerous to require comment. The children of those who die young, except by accident or some violent disease, rarely live to be aged, except where they inherit longevity from some ances- 68 EXTINCTION OF FAMILIES. tor, or where the death of the parents was caused by accident or imprudent exposure of health, or hastened by unhealthy climate or habits, or similar causes. The truth is too appa- rent to require argument that the children of those naturally short lived, that is, of the feeble, usually die young, and being few as well as delicate, sickly families usually "run out," whereas the vitality of long-lived families both increases the number of their offspring, and insures their life—a wise arrangement, yet one which dooms many of the families of the present day to oblivion! The miserable physical habits, especially of our women, are enfeebling, and burying nearly half our children, and rendering parents too debilitated or diseased to propagate, and thus obliterating their name and race from the face of the earth. Look around, reader, in view of these appalling truths upon society! How many weekly parents, and by consequence, delicate, diseased chil- dren ! Do you not know many parents too weekly or sickly to have living children, or at least, so feeble that the utmost pains are necessary to keep soul and body together, and that the least adverse wind blows them asunder ? Behold and heed the practical warning thus enforced by nature. But we shall apply these momentous bearings of our subject after we have prosecuted it far enough to enforce them in all their power and extent. In concluding this chapter, we solicit the special attention of the reader to every point gone over, with the view of can- vassing its evidence. What one of them is not a clear and correct interpretation of nature ? What one of them is not undeniably so ? What one could possibly be overthrown ? What one does not stand on facts always and everywhere ap- parent ? We put these questions, not because we expect any of these positions will be questioned, but that the reader may be induced to re-examine them in order to see how absolutely certain the positions thus far taken. Not, however, by any means wholly on account of these positions themselves, but mainly on account of subsequent inferences founded on them, the importance of which will soon be apparent. BEAUTY TRANSMITTED. 69 323. BEAUTY AND ALL OTHER PHYSICAL QUALITIES TRANSMITTED. Beauty is also transmitted. Of this David, his ancestry, and descendants furnish noted examples. This great king was " ruddy and of a fair countenance." In all probability Ruth, his great-grandmother was a beautiful woman: at least such is the general opinion. Now mark the number and beauty of his descendants. " But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised for his beauty—as Absalom—from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him." 11 Sam. 1. "And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar: She was a woman of a fair countenance."* 11 Sam. xiv. 25-27. " And it came to pass that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister whose name was Tamar." 11 Sam. xiii. 1. A beautiful son, a daughter, and a granddaughter by one wife, all doubtless from a beautiful mother. Rachel and Rebecca were both nearly related, and exceed- ingly beautiful women, and throughout Jewish history a great number of most beautiful women are mentioned. Indeed, is not the number of handsome females throughout this nation now unusually great ? Other nations, especially the Circassians, are famed over the whole earth for their beautiful women; and the Persian practice of importing these well-formed wives has greatly improved the looks of the descendants of their nobles. But the reader need not go far from home for proof or living examples of the transmission of fine features and persons. Know you no sweet-looking children from handsome mothers, or fathers, or both ? Do you know any whose parents or an- cestors were not originally handsome ? May you not safely calculate that, as in stock, so in man, beautiful progeny will result from the union of handsome parents ? If one parent is handsome and the other homely, their offspring will be well- formed in just that proportion in which they take after the handsome parent. As might be inferred, homely parents produce homely chil- dren. Exceptions, caused by the action of other hereditary laws, occasionally occur, yet do not conflict with this law. You can therefore tell before your children see the light— even before marriage—whether the offspring of a given pair will be handsome or homely. 70 DISEASES HEREDITARY. 324. ACCUMULATIVE NATURE OF OUR ARGUMENT. Having established the fact that some of those elements which compose mankind bodily—such as his anatomy, the number, shape, and position of his bones, muscles, and other organs ; his physiognomy, or likeness, form of body, stature, longevity, and the like, and even his idiosyncrasies 317-r-are he- reditary, the inference that all his physical elements and pe- culiarities are transmitted from generation to generation, is perfectly obvious, on a principle established in " Education," and already referred to, p 17. That same law which transmits one, of course transmits all constitutional elements and powers. How could it do otherwise ? How could a law vacillate and omit a part ? How transmit one without at the same time, and by the same means, transmitting all the constitutional peculiarities of parents to their offspring, and in that degree of power in which they exist in the former ? We have now laid foundation enough to begin to build up a superstructure—have detailed enough to warrant our begin- ning to generalize—in short, have cited facts enough to entitle us to make reliable inferences. After having demonstra- ted the law that any one thing, such as color, or likeness, or strength, or any other quality is hereditary, a lower order of proof is sufficient to establish any subsequent position. And these two established, the third is proved by an order and amount still lower, and the fourth lower yet. And so on, for every point demonstrated. Yet every position thus far taken, has been enforced by an order and amount of proof sufficient to demand belief in case it stood alone. All taken together, therefore, how absolutely demonstrative our entire argu- ment becomes? Who would risk his reputation for sound sense by calling any one point, much more altogether, in question ? Or rather, as we are in search of truth instead of pitted in the arena of discussion, is not each position thus far taken a correct interpretation of nature's ordinance, in refer- ence to the matter it presents ? And, do not our various prin- ciples, taken in concert, embody nature's ordinances-her modes and laws of transmission, as far as they are attempted to be discussed ? We proceed to scan another field of inquiry. CHAPTER II. diseases • hereditary. SECTION I. CONSUMPTION, scrofula, and syphilis, transmitted. 325. DISEASES NOT TRANSMITTED, ONLY PREDISPOSITIONS. That all the constitutional elements and peculiarities of parents should be transmitted to children in that ratio of power in which they exist in the former, is as reasonable as appa- rent. What, then, of the artificial, or abnormal states of the parental physiology ? Parents can induce various diseases. These, nature abhors. Does she, then, transmit them ? Trans- mission is ordained to secure the good of the product, and that only. Shall it then transmit evil ? Or the seeds of evil ? No; neither, strictly speaking, and yet, commonly speaking, she does transmit disease. Consumption runs in families as much as likeness, stature, or strength; or rather, those con- ditions from which consumption results. Consumption itself, however, is not hereditary, only small and feeble lungs, which, if abused, become consumptive. And thus of all diseases. We have shown that the relative size of the muscles, eye- brows, bones, body, and the like, are hereditary. Now this same law, of course, renders the relative size of the lungs of parents transmissible. In321 we show that longevity, before proved to be hereditary31B, depended on the capacity of the chest. This is equivalent to the transmission of the relative size of the organs of the chest. And such is the fact. As large lungs are hereditary, of course small ones are transmis- sible. And these, abused, become diseased. Yet, strictly speaking, disease is not transmissible, only a feeble supply 72 DISEASES HEREDITARY. of that vitality necessary to prevent it. This we will call predisposition. To avoid circumlocution, we shall often say that consumption and other diseases are transmitted, yet the definition of our meaning here given will prevent misunder- standing. Yet we shall discuss this point more fully and prac- tically at the close of this chapter. 326. CONSUMPTION HEREDITARY. Facts, everywhere abundant and palpable, put this prin- ciple completely beyond controversy. So numerous are they, that to detail cases in proof that the descendants of consump. tive parents are more liable to be carried to premature graves by its ravages than others, is almost a work of supererogation, Yet the plan of this work—to render every point both indubit- able and also clearly presented, so as to bind future arguments to them—requires that we give a few details. The celebrated Dr. Louis, of France, has discovered tu- bercles in the lungs of infants, at birth, both of whose parents were then consumptive. Such cases seem to clash with our doctrine, that active disease is not transmissible, yet are ac- ' counted for on the ground that the lungs were originally extremely small and feeble, and that they imbibed from their mother, before birth, those predispositions which resulted thus fatally. In Georgetown, Mass., in 1844, the author examined pro- fessionally the head of a girl six years old, then affected with incipient consumption. Her mother was confined to her bed with it, and every day in fear of dissolution. A father in Beverly, Mass., buried a wife and ten children- all victims to this fell destroyer. The mother of Mrs. H. died of consumption when about twenty. Mrs. H. died of it at about twenty-three, and left a daughter with all the indices of a similar predisposition. Miss-----was selected for examination by the audience, in Carbondale, Dec. 1845. I said before the audience that her mother was consumptive. The latter died of this disease. To a professional applicant I remarked: "Your father's relatives, and probably your father, were consumptive." He CONSUMPTION hereditary. 73 replied that his father had buried every one of his brothers and sisters of that disease. Of a lad examined the same day, I said, turning to his mother, " You or your family are consumptive, and your boy is in danger of dying of pulmonary affection before he is twenty, unless preventives are vigorously employed." The mother, weeping, answered that she had already buried his father of this disease, and inquired how it could be prevented ? I referred her to a chapter on its prevention, to be found in "Physiology," by the author172173174. I spend few days professionally without predicating this disease of one or more applicants, and scarcely ever fail of being correct, and usually predicate the parent whose rela- tives have been thus predisposed321. Of the transmission of this disease, Sir James Clarke, physician to the queen of Eng- land, and her mother, thus remarks:— u It has been questioned whether the child is more disposed to the diseases of the father or to those of the mother ; and I believe the majority of authors agree in favor of the former. Professor Nasse, of Bonn, however, in his excellent essay on tuberculous disease, is of opinion that the hereditary disposition is more fre- quently derived from the mother. The point is very difficult of decision. There can be no doubt that the child may inherit the constitution of either or both parents; on some occasions we see that of the father, in others that of the mother, predominating in different children of the same family. It has also been remarked, and the observation appears to be correct, that the more a child resembles the parent in external lineaments, the more certainly will a disposition to the diseases of that parent prevail. ******** " We have seen that, although it is a rare occurrence, the child at birth may present tubercles in one or more of its organs. " The next degree of hereditary disease is that in which the infant is afflicted with tuberculous cachexia—a state which requires very slight exciting causes to determine the disposition of tubercu- lous matter in some organ. The children of consumptive parents are not unfrequently born in this state, and often die of tuberculous disease during the period of infancy. " Again: the child presents all the characters oi the tuberculous or scrofulous constitution, and without care, gradually lapses into a state of tuberculous cachexia, and dies of tuberculous disease. The greater number of scrofulous and consumptive cases which we meet with in childhood and youth, are referable to this degree of hered- itary predisposition. 74 DISEASES HEREDITARY. " In another class of cases, the child merely shows a predispo sition to those functional derangements which generate the tuber- culous constitution ; more especially to that form of dyspepsia— strumous dyspepsia—to which I have already referred, as capable of generating the tuberculous cachexia, and consequently of giving rise to every form of tuberculous or strumous disease. The cases of predisposition to consumption which come under this class, are, according to my observation, the offspring of parents who have labored under dyspepsia, gout, cutaneous and other diseases not of a tuberculous nature. They constitute the most numerous and the most remediable of the degrees of hereditary disease ; and yet their nature is generally the"least understood. " I would beg to solicit the attention of the profession to the de- teriorated health of the parent as the origin of tuberculous disease. An acquaintance with the various derangements in the health of the parent, and the mode and degree in which these are manifested in the constitution of their offspring, is requisite to enable us to ob- viate them, and thereby to correct the hereditary predisposition. " An opinion is entertained that one generation sometimes escapes hereditary tuberculous disease, while the immediately preceding and succeeding generations are the subjects of it. This is not a very common occurrence, and when properly investigated, would, I have no doubt, admit of a satisfactory explanation, without sup- posing that the disease lay dormant in one generation to manifest itself in the next." My mother died of consumption, aged thirty-three. Her otherwise strong constitution delayed its termination for seven years after it was seated. An aunt and a cousin have both died of the same disease. She inherited it from her mother's side, though many of her relatives, named Field, are long-lived; yet in nearly or quite every family this dis- ease carries one or more to an untimely grave. Of course it comes through my grandmother's parents, four generations back, and I have traced it from them down in every family of their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I am predisposed to it—induced it by ignorantly exposing and abusing health at the several ages of fifteen, eighteen, and twenty-two—yet it was arrested, and has been kept at bay till the present time, mainly by the exercise of my lungs m speaking, and by practicing those directions for avoiding consumptive tendencies, given in " Physiology" 172. By fol- lowing the preventive regimen there specified, almost any one, however predisposed, not already confirmed, can both ward it oil, and live comfortably to a good age. SCROFULA HEREDITARY. 75 Additional cases might be cited, to prove that the children of consumptive parents are more liable to its attacks than others, yet, who so slow of observation as not to have seen scores of illustrative and confirmatory facts, and many fina themselves pitiable examples of this law, in having been compelled, broken-hearted, to follow beloved companions and children to a consumptive grave ? 327. SCROFULA HEREDITARY. Scrofula is closely allied to consumption—is the genus of what consumption is a species—is a tuberculous disease, which attacks now the lungs and generates consumption; now the stomach and other internal organs, inducing obstinate dyspep- sia, internal ulcers, etc.; now the bones, causing white swell- ings, distorted osseous formations, and muscular debility, or rheumatic tortures; and at other times other portions—the brain and nervous system, in particular—and might therefore be called the parent of consumptive predispositions. We might therefore safely infer that it is transmissible. But to the testimony of facts. LTJGOl/8 PRACTICE. This eminently talented and scientific physician, from long practice and extensive observation remarks, that— " When scrofula appears with a certain degree of intensity in a child, we may expect to see it developed in the brothers and sis- ters, for most of the other children present signs of predisposition to this disease, and there are those in whom it can be detected by its characteristic marks. We might apply the same remarks to the different branches of the family. * * * In fact, inheritance is the general cause of scrofulous diseases, and the only one we have been able to recognize and detect, * * * and this general truth constitutes the abstract of our labors, and the motto of our book * * * Tne first and most prominent fact seen in the study of scrof- ulous diseases, is their generality in families. ******** " A lady who possessed a good complexion, and every mark of good health, nevertheless had children and grandchildren who were scrofulous 3I8. This astonished her very much, although her sister was affected with the same complaint. She had a third, who was a little rickety, and to whom she bore no resemblance twenty years before. But since they had passed the prime of life, these two sisters had become strikingly similar to each other. The first time I noticed it was on seeing them weep together for the death of a 76 DISEASES HEREDITARY. scrofulous child, a relative of both. They wept in the same man ner. Now they have the same tone, the same accentuation, a pe- culiar movement of the commissures of the lips, which results partly from the loss of the same teeth in the two sisters; their features generally are wrinkled in the same manner, and the fam- ily likeness has become very apparent m. * * * On inquiry, we ascertained that the scrofula was general in the family, and inher- ited from the father. * * * The generality of scrofula in a family is so indisputable, that I do not hesitate to assert it of children who are absent. * * * Some years since, I attended a young lady, twenty years of age, who had a great number of ulcerated tuber- cles in the cervical region, and upper and anterior part of the chest, and probably also in the chest. There were several cases of pul- monary tubercles among her ancestors, more especially on the father's side. ******** "John Montel, sixteen years old, entered the hospital at St. Louis in April, 1829. He had ulcerated tubercles in the cervical region, a fistulous caries of the sternum, another in the left inter- nal malleolus, with three fistula? in this part. He was very weak in the region of the kidneys, and we found a good deal of puffiness in the lumbar region. This young man told us that he had lost two brothers and two sisters in early life, and that now he had only a brother, seven years old, who was not well, and a younger sister, who was born blind. A year after leaving our hospital, Montel en- tered the Hotel Dieu with phthisis pulmonalis. His young brother entered the hospital St. Louis in September, 1835. ******** "In 1831, I was consulted in regard to a young lady, nineteen years old, who had been laid up for seven months with a white swelling of the right hip, with elongation of the right limb, and danger of spontaneous displacement. Her brother had died of this latter disease the preceding year, aged seventeen years. A second brother had already experienced several attacks of coxalgia, which rendered probable a third case of hip-disease in this family. " Shortly before, I cured of the same kind of scrofula a young man, sixteen years old, who had coxalgia, with elongation of the right lower limb. The sister of this young man, twenty-five years old, had already been affected with this same disease, followed with spontaneous dislocation, causing a shortening of the leg about ten centimetres. "In May, 1830, we had at the hospital a young man, seventeen years old, attacked with a fistulous white swelling of the left elbow. "A year afterward, his younger brother came into our wards with the same disease. At the same time we recorded the cases of the two brothers Servit, both of whom had white swelling of the knee. " Some years since, I attended two children of an armorer of Nantes, both of whom were affected with congenital palpebral oph- thalmia. These two children had twin brothers, seven years old, SCROFULA HEREDITARY. 77 affected with otorrhcea from the right ear. The four brothers were evidently troubled with the same disease, viz., with catarrhal scrofula. The two eldest had in the eyes what the others had . j their ears. ******** " Twice I have had to treat, in my wards, two sisters affected with tuberculous scrofula of the neck. In both cases, the younger sister presented the disease in the rudimentary state, as it had com- menced in the elder sister. The latter, in both cases, had large tuberculous tumors. I have frequently seen similar cases in the city, and have often noticed distinct small tubercles in the cervical region in children, whose brothers and sisters had very apparent tuberculous tumors in the same regions. " In 1827, I saw the case of a young girl who inherited scrofula from her mother and maternal grandmother. She had obstinate ophthalmias, and was affected with scrofulous ulcers in the com- missures of the lips. She had a sister, five years old, in whom ophthalmia existed. I was consulted, ten years since, by a young man, nineteen years old, from Naples, affected with a double oph- thalmia of the loose edges of both eyelids. A year afterward I saw his sister at Paris. She had ophthalmia similar to that in her brother, but it was much less severe. ******** " Fredel, nineteen years old, with tuberculous ophthalmia, had lost five brothers or sisters, who were still-born, or who died at an early age. Another brother, who was small and humpbacked, could not stand erect, though he ate voraciously; he died when seven years old, of convulsions. Another sister died when twelve years old. There were still two sisters, one fifteen, the other twelve years old, both of whom, as also their brothers, had tuber- cles and ophthalmia. " Gachet, whom we cured of two abscesses in the right coxal region, had eleven brothers or sisters, nine of whom had died, most of them while nursing. " I have published the case of a young scrofulous individual, who had lost three brothers and sisters, and had four others affected, like himself, with scrofula. Also that of a scrofulous patient, who had a sister dying at the age of nine years, with caries of the ver- tebra, and who had two sisters younger than himself, whose growth, like his, had been arrested; and that of a young man, six- teen years old, whom we cured at the hospital St. Louis of a fistu- lous white swelling of the right knee. This scrofulous person had lost eleven brothers or sisters, who died very young. He had a brother, fourteen years old, of a delicate constitution, and a sister, thirty years old, who was said to enjoy good health. " When speaking of a scrofulous constitution, we mentioned a young lady from the department Cher, thirteen and a half years old, who was an only daughter, having lost a young brother and sister, and who was herself affected with serous infiltration of the eyelids. In August, 1831,1 attended a young lady, nineteen years 78 DISEASES HEREDITARY. old, who had been affected with tubercles and ophthalmia for fire vears. She had frequent attacks of coryza, and incrustations in the nose; the skin was fat and hypertrophied; the hair scanty and badly nourished. The mother of this young person died of pul- monary tubercles when thirty years old. Five children diea young; a sixth perished, when nineteen and a half years old, of pulmonary tubercles. ******** " Madame Deslingchamps had borne sixteen boys and girls. Of these fourteen had died, most of them being not more than five years old. " Twelve years since, I treated the only son of a lady who had eleven children. This patient, nineteen years old, had a white swelling of the right foot. His mother died of a pulmonary com- plaint, a few years previous. ******** " This girl was an only child, having lost an elder sister, who died when thirteen years old, covered with abscesses after an at- tack of the variola ; a brother with hydrocephalus, who died when two years and a half old, and another brother, who died at the age of eighteen months. Her paternal uncle had had eight children, six of whom had died already. Only two remained, one of whom was affected with tubercles, and was much emaciated; the other was very delicate." He very satisfactorily confirms these conclusions by citing cases in which the same scrofulous parent had scrofulous chil- dren in two and more marriages, and others which showed that a healthy parent had by one marriage with a healthy companion healthy children, and by another scrofulous partner, scrofulous children—a description of cases both most interest- ing in themselves and demonstrative in their bearing on the question at issue. His citations are as follows. " The father of this young man—a scrofulous subject—had six children by a first marriage ; all were tainted by scrofula. He had six by a second wife; all were exempt from this malady. " I knew a robust man who married two sisters, both of whom had pulmonary tubercles : he had scrofulous children by each mar- riage. By the first wife he had two, one a boy, who died when three years old, of disease of the mesenteric glands, and the other a girl, who died when twelve years old, of rachitis and pulmonary tubercles. He had three children by his second wife, who died of consumption; two of them at a very early age, while the third, when four years old, was so weak as still to require nursing. " 1 he next case is that of a scrofulous father havine scrofulous children by two wives, both of whom were healthy " The offspring of the first marriage had a brother who was deli cate, and whose development was very slow in every respect. SYPHILIS ENTAILED. 79 u The daughter by the second marriage, whose three organic systems were already affected with scrofula, had a sister eighteen months older, who had chronic otitis of the right ear; there was also a catairhal state of all the mucous surfaces, and she was subject to intestinal worms. " The father of these four children was the only remaining child : his three sisters died very young, and in his infancy he was very sickly. His development was very much retarded by a favus, which resisted different modes of treatment for several years. He joined the army at the age of eighteen, and his health improved ; still, at the age of forty-two, his constitution was feeble, and his height smaller than usual: his chest was narrow ; his voice husky; perhaps there was pectoriloquy. His father was the only survivor of six children. " Condert, a patient at the hospital St. Louis, in 1829, was affect- ed with several severe varieties of scrofulous diseases. The father of this young man had four children by his first wife, all of whom were healthy, and three by his second, all of whom had scrofula : our patient was one of them. The second wife had been married before, and had four children by her first husband, two of whom had pulmonary tubercles. '• Finally, I have seen the case of a man who married three times, and had scrofulous children only by his second wife. He had three children by this marriage, a boy, who entered the hospi- tal St. Louis, and two girls : one of them died when ten years old, of a white swelling of the knee; the other had cervical tubercles in infancy, but enjoyed good health when forty years old. This man's children by his first and third wives were healthy. 41 In May, 1837, Delpech died at the hospital St. Louis with tu- bercles, leaving four young children, all of whom died tuberculous in less than three months after their father; the eldest was less than seven years old. " Five years since, I saw a very small and delicate child, who died when six months old, unable to gain sufficient nourishment, although everything was done to save her. I think the father of this child will not be more fortunate, as I treated him, twenty-four years since, for chronic hydrocephalus, and because he inherited scrofula from his father. This case shows three generations of scrofula in a quarter of a century. The third was extinct at its birth. In many of these cases, this third generation never sees the light: the mothers most generally miscarry, and some never bear a full-grown child." 328. SYPHILITIC DISEASES TRANSMITTED. The seventh commandment is written quite as indelibly in the human constitution as in the decalogue. Nor can man transgress it without incurring the most horrible penalties, to himself and offspring, possible for human nature to endure. 80 DISEASES HEREDITARY. If these terrible consequences were confined to the offenders, they would be indeed appalling. But they, too, are " visited upon the third and fourth generations," 318 and generally erase the name and race of their perpetrator. Nor is the punishment too great for the crime. I knew a young man, the son of virtuous parents, but whose mother had been infected with the venereal virus by a former dissolute husband, who was full of loathsome ulcers at and after birth. The disease finally located in his hip and knee joints, which were drawn out of shape in a dreadful manner, so that he could hardly hobble about, and his whole life was one of great suffering. The mother's health was much im- proved and blood cleansed by a transfer of the disease to her offspring. The children of the daughters of frailty in our cities and villages are almost always diseased. The great majority of our vagabond children are of this parentage, and most of them have scrofula in one or another of its forms, or some other loathsome disease or deformity, as all can see who will examine The children of licentious parents are often actually rotten with syphilitic ulcers at birth, and are the most pitiable objects upon which the sun shines. Such diseases, however, when not extremely aggravated, generally develop themselves in the form of scrofula, and as such are transmitted till they run out the families subject to themS27. Indeed, many physicians consider this disease as originating mainly in this vice, and one that, once introduced, rarely runs out in fami- lies till it has first run them out in their various branches. This doubtless exceeds the truth, yet there is no telling how frightful a source of disease it lias become. Undoubtedly the children of virtuous parents by thousands die in consequence of lustful ancestors consigned to the tombs long before their af- flicted descendants saw the light318. And other kindred effects are attributed to any other than this the true cause. On the transmissibility of this disease, hear Lugol again. " I have known scrofulous children whose parents have been syphilitic, or even were so when their children were conceived. On this point I am morally certain, and this is nearly equal to a physical certainty. " In the hospital St. Louis we have a patient, named Guillien, SYPHILIS ENTAILED. 81 who is scrofulous, and affected with tubercles and caries ; his father had been syphilitic several times, and was frequently troubled with sore throat. " Young Dasailly had a scrofulous exostosis of the left tibia, and her mother had a similar affection. In another case, we saw at the hospital, a child ten years old, with scrofulous tubercles; her mo- ther admitted she had primitive symptoms of syphilis, and that she was then affected with exostosis and syphilitic ulcers. " The syphilitic origin of scrofula is still more marked in the fol- lowing case : that of a family of three children, where the two elder were well, and the third had scrofula. The last was eighteen years old, and was no larger than a child twelve years old, his growth having been retarded by scrofula. The difference between the health of our patient and that of his brother and sister, is worthy of remark; the father of these three children, when he led a regular life and enjoyed good health, had children who were vigorous and healthy. But some years after his habits became dissipated; at that time, while exhausted and syphilitic, having also infected his wife, he had a third child who was born scrofulous, and whose life was only a succession of uninterrupted suffering, till the age of eighteen, when he died of marasmus." Other authors bear a kindred testimony. The world is full of practical examples of the evils of unweddcd indulgence." The fact is notorious, that the crews of American and Euro- pean vessels which visit the Pacific, shamelessly revel in lust- ful debauch with the native females of those islands, and have done so for many years, and the consequences are, that the syphilitic disease afflicts nearly all the inhabitants of both sexes and all ages, and destroys them so fast, that at the pres- ent ratio of decrease, in sixty years it will completely de- populate those once crowded and happy islands! Whole provinces in India have also been nearly depopulated by a similar importation of this disease among the natives, by their intercourse with the English. I state this fact on the authority of eye-witnesses, and add to it, on the testimony of one who knows and has seen, that this disease is also ravaging China, introduced by licentious Caucasians. These races, being less powerfully constituted than our own, are swept off much more rapidly, and cured with greater difficulty. But it will yet prove too strong for us, unless seasonably arrested. Rigid virtue is thus enforced upon pleasure-loving youth, in tones louder than the thunders of Sinai, and the passionate warned not to touch this forbidden fruit, lest their descendants, 82 DISEASES GENERALLY HEREDITARY. as well as themselves, perish in consequence. Nor can either escape. Just as far as parents contract this virus, will their posterity, generation after generation318, be tainted, and prob- ably destroyed. A law as sacred as that of chastity, must not be violated—cannot, without incurring these terrible penalties. Let the young take heed to their ways, and avoid this awful calamity by keeping themselves uncorrupted by this luring passion. SECTION II. DISEASES IN GENERAL HEREDITARY. 329. GOUT AND APOPLEXY. The fact that consumption and scrofula are transmitted from parents to children, through many generations, presup- poses that this hereditary principle of the transmissibility of some diseases, applies to all, on the ground of that wholesale principle already alluded to324. Is nature so irregular as to perpetuate some, and not all ? If thus partial, by what instru- mentality does she select one and omit another ? Or, rather, how is it possible for her to transmit some of the conditions of parents to offspring without transmitting all those of the former to the latter ? She must operate by means of laws, and these laws must execute, with the utmost fidelity and universality, the whole of what they execute any portion. Having, therefore, fully established the transmissibility of some diseases, a lower order of evidence is amply sufficient to establish the inheritance of other diseases. Gout is beyond doubt transmitted. This painful disease can indeed be engendered by luxurious living, in those whose parentage is wholly free from it, yet where one such origin of gout exists, twenty are caused by transmission. The great majority of those who are thus afflicted will be found to have both ancestral and collateral relatives similarly afflicted, as all can see who will make the requisite inquiries. Is not this point too clear and apparent to require fortification by means of detailed cases? Wherever gout is, there is our proof. !lS CANCERS--RING-WORMS--DYSPEPSIA. 83 Apoplexy, a near relative of gout, is also hereditary. Medical works cite many cases in point. A friend, in a re- cent walk, apologized for his slow pace by saying, that his limbs had been benumbed a few days before with a paralytic shock. His father and uncle had both died of paralysis. Like gout, apoplexy rarely occurs except when hereditary. And what is more, it makes its descent at about the same age in the descendants, at which it appeared in the ancestry314, only a little earlier each generation, till the race runs out. This point is also too palpable to require proof by detailed facts. 330. CANCERS AND RING-WORMS. A Mr. Rugg, of Heath, Mass., died a lingering death, of cancer. Soon after, his brother was taken down in the same way, and after having suffered beyond account, died of a can- cer in his face. A friend of the author had a cancer taken from her hand. Her cousin had a cancer cut out. A grandmother's sister, and one aunt, of these two, died of cancers. Mrs. Kitteredge furnishes another example. She died of a malignant cancer, after it had eaten into her breast and vitals, and caused her to suffer intensely. One of her sons died of the same disease, and two of his daughters, when about ten years old, each had a cancer on the face. One of his brother's daughters has a malignant cancer on the face. She resem- bles her uncle; and he resembled his mother in complexion, stature, looks, etc., and of course, Mrs- K. Other cases could easily be detailed, to any extent; but our subject does not require them. It is indisputable without. The ring-worm predisposition is also hereditary. A profes- sional applicant of the author had a ring-worm which almost covered the side of his face, and was highly inflamed. His father died of a similar one; so did several of his own broth- ers and sisters, and also several relatives on his father's side. 331. DYSPEPSIA AND HEART AFFECTIONS. Dr. Lyman Beecher has always been troubled with dys- pepsia, of a peculiarly obstinate and painful kind. His 84 DISEASES HEREDITARY. father, Deacon Beecher, of New Haven, Connecticut, was similarly affected, and so are nearly every one of his chil- dren, and some of his nephews and nieces. The author has suffered twenty years a similar affection. His aunt was unable, for years, to eat anything but rye pud- ding and milk, but by this means effected a cure. Others of the family are troubled in like manner. Nor does this doc- trine require to be established by isolated examples, it being commonly and easily observable. But one general range of facts, little suspected to establish this conclusion, deserves remark, not merely as a sweeping proof of this doctrine, but as a precautionary warning to all whom it may concern. The children of dyspeptic parents will generally be found to suffer severely from bowel complaints. I need not particularize. Produce a dyspeptic parent, and his children will be found to have feeble digestive powers, to be often disordered in their bowels, and with difficulty brought through their second summer. Some of them, too, will probably be found to have gone into premature graves in July or August. Reader, put these two things together—the fact that more than half the parents in this country are more or less dyspeptic— caused by eating enormously and very fast, as proved in the author's work on " Physiology" 7° 7178 "9l76,_and that half our children die under five years of age mostly of summer com- plaints. Behold the frightful mortality of children in August! The legitimate consequence of originally feeble digestive pow- ers. And these weak by parental inheritance! The children of robust parents do not die thus; but those of delicate, white-livered, thin-faced, small-abdomen, sedentary parentage fall in summer like grass before the mower—the death scythe which cuts them down bring inherited stomach and liver complaints! _ Heart affections have been associated with dyspeptic difficul- ties because their inter-relation is very intimate—the stomatio often causing the hepatic »'». Imperfect digestion often leaves the blood too stagnant and thick to pass freely through the heart, and hence its palpitation. Dyspepsia being transmitted, we rightly infer that therefore heart difficulties are equally so. CALVIN AND ALEXANDER EDSON. 85 Nor is this inference, conclusive as it is, our main proof. Open the book of descent by the key of observation, and the result will be perfectly apparent that most who have hepatic affec- tions have had ancestors, or relatives, or both, similarly affected. True, this disease, in common with all others, may be induced by wrong dietetic and other habits in those free from it by na- ture, yet the same aggravating causes will render those pre- disposed to it both much sooner and more grievously afflicted with it. CALVIN AND ALEXANDER EDSON. Calvin Edson of Randolph, Vt., died a few years ago a mere skeleton, weighing only forty-five pounds. His extreme ema- ciation rendered him so great a curiosity that he was exhibited as a show. He ate voraciously, and dissection disclosed the cause—an enormous tapeworm. His brother Alexander, college educated, and formerly a practicing physician, has been gradually losing his health and flesh for some years, and now weighs only fifty pounds, though above forty years old. " The Woodstock Herald" says of him:—" In his tight dress, he more resembles a skeleton in clothes than a living being." Undoubtedly consumed like his brother by a tapeworm bred by a disordered stomach inherited from parentage. He has recently died. More adults have both worms and'tape-worms preying upon their nutrition than is supposed; and adults by thousands are supposed to die of any and every disease but the true one— worms—engendered by a foul stomach, and this feeble by inheritance. Worms are always bred by stomatic corruption, and the parents of those children who are much troubled or die with them, will generally be found to have impaired diges- tion, and to have been similarly troubled in youth, and if the facts could be ascertained, most of them are doubtless now feed- ing internal worms along with themselves. Rectify the stom- ach, and this will eject worms and prevent their recurrence. But of this point in " Physiology, Animal and Mental"16917Q. 8 86 DISEASES HEREDITARY. 332. RESISTANCE AND SUBJECTION TO HEAT AND COLD. Whole families, as far as they can be traced, will often be found, most or all of whose branches are easily overcome with the cold, shivering and pinched up by even the slightest de- gree of cold, and thriving, like plants, only in the warm weather. The great-grandmother of the insane subject men- tioned in343, was from Jamaica, and could hardly endure our winters. When old, after having loaded herself with flannel garments, she would wrap quilts around her body and feet, and then shiver, in summer, with cold. Her daughter was similarly though less affected by cold, and her grand- children, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren like warm weather, but endure cold with great difficulty, and are unusually partial to the fire. Similar cases are common. A correspondent communicated the following for the Ameri- can Phrenological Journal :— " John Clark, a native of Connecticut, and who was born more than a century ago, was peculiarly affected by changeable or cold weather; his hands became benumbed and almost useless; his tongue stiffened so that it was with great difficulty he could give utterance to his ideas ; the muscles of his face contracted and stif- fened ; and one or both eyes closed in a very peculiar manner. This took place' in the cool mornings of every month in the year. How it was with his ancestors I am not certain, but believe it to have been the same with many of them. But about one half of his children inherited the above afflictive peculiarity in a remarkable degree, and also many of their children, and so on till the fourth generation—of which they suffer in a more permanent degree than their parent—while the other part of his family have inherited the physical and mental qualities of their mother, who was a Miss Elizabeth Rogers, and supposed to be a descendant of the martyr Rogers, and who, with their descendants, are exempt from this infirmity." L. jr. g. So there are opposite cases of whole familes who can endure cold. Of this all can witness examples who will take the trouble to inquire them out. It should be added, that capacity to endure cold depends on a vigorous circulation and powerful vital apparatus, on which longevity also depends319, and that in- ability to endure cold is the consequence of feeble or imper- fect circulation, and this indicates less longevity. Many other SUDDEN DEATH--CUTANEOUS AFFECTIONS. 87 transmitted qualities are similarly inter-related to each other, to mention which would impair the consecutive unity of our subject. The converse of both these principles holds equally true. Some families and their branches can endure heat remarkably. Others are easily overcome by it. Of this class, the following from the Cincinnati Commercial must suffice. " One of the Misses McCue, on Tuesday, went to market, and on returning, died of the excessive heat. On the Friday following, the second sister died in the same manner, after returning from the funeral. On Saturday, the third sister died in the carriage while attending the funeral of the second sister; and their mother was taken sick in the carriage and returned home. The three sisters were in apparent health up to the time of their death." 333. SUDDEN DEATH HEREDITARY. Instances of sudden death occur in some families. Some eight or ten members of a family named Livermore, who re- side in New Hampshire, have died suddenly, though ap- parently well, of heart affections 331. These belonged to some four successive generations. Joseph Eaton died suddenly in Framingham, Mass., and his brother and sister died almost instantaneously—one while singing in church, and the other while preparing to visit her friends. Dr. Milnor, rector of Beekman-street church, New York, died suddenly when in excellent health, as did also his father and brother. Similar occurrences are common. 334. CUTANENOUS AFFECTIONS. The undue redness or slight eruption on the face of the author is hereditary, though slight in his father, and a pater- nal uncle and aunt, as well as in some others. It occurs in his relations in Canada31S, though we parted four genera- tions back. Jonathan Fowler, the giant3,s, had a peculiar though harmless swelling of the veins of the leg. His great- grandson William, and his son William, of Bradford, Ver- 88 DISEASES HEREDITARY. mont, had a kindred swelling. So has the author and his father. So have other descendants of this progenitor. A Mrs. Whitney lost several children by a bad humor, which they inherited from her. Mr. E. F. Claflin, and his mother, maternal grandmother, and all his brothers, were affected with a dry and shrinking skin, and consequent cracking, bleeding, and soreness of their hands and faces. Salt rheum and erysipelas are also hereditary, and can be traced both backward and laterally in nearly all those cases where it appears. We rest this issue, and others of a kin- dred character, on the observation of the reader. 335. BLINDNESS, DEAFNESS, AND STAMMERING Are often transmitted. Dr. Howe's researches establish these positions. Four of the eight children of James A. Bul- lard, of Monticello, New York, are blind, and have been since about their fifth year, before which they saw. Their parents see, but an aunt is blind318. Weak and defective eyes are often inherited, as all can see for themselves. Both near and far-sightedness are often entailed, and so are cross-eyes. The St. Louis Gazette says : " A friend re- cently met an emigrating family, the father, mother, and all the children of which—not a few—down to the smallest ur- chin, were cross-eyed." Stammering is hereditary. Daniel Webster's grandfather stuttered badly. His father lisped all his life, and Ezekiel, Daniel's brother, was never able, though he labored hard, to spe%k some words correctly. 336. HEMORRHAGE HEREDITARY. That lung hemorrhage is hereditary, has been virtually estab- lished in proving that consumption386 and this its frequent con- comitant is hereditary, and is confirmed by general observation. Tendency to nose-bleeding is also transmitted. So is the bleeding tendency in general. In 1844, a man living on Cape Cod was bleeding, and had been for several weeks, from only a small wound, notwithstanding every effort made to arrest DIZZINESS--FITS--RHEUMATISM. 89 the hemorrhage. Already he had become very weak, and feared he should bleed to death from a wound, which would ordinarily have ceased in a few minutes. Two of his brothers had already bled to death from slight wounds, after a perpetual flow of blood for months. Their parents escaped, but one of their grandparents, and a brother of their father, had died of hemorrhage318. The Rev. Mr. Luther transmitted the following to the au- thor, for which he has our thanks. It was copied from an English paper, and headed " Singular Circumstance." " Carbondale, May 9, 1846. "Mr. O. S. Fowler:— " Dear Sir: The following ' Singular Circumstance' is related in an English paper. You may have seen it. If so, I have only lost my trouble in writing. You can make what use of it you deem advisable. The fact speaks volumes in favor of your theory of hereditary descent. Thousands will read the account—pronounce it a * singular circumstance,' or a ' strange coincidence'—and forget it altogether. When will men learn that nature is subject to law, and knows nothing of ' singularities' or ' coincidences?' "But the fact itself: ' On Saturday, a little boy, at Wolverhamp- ton, fell, and cut his gum, but not severely. The bleeding, how- ever, could not be assuaged, though every means were tried that surgical skill could suggest. The child died on Tuesday morning, from loss of blood. At the coroner's inquest, Hannah Philips, grandmother of the deceased, stated that she had lost four children from bleeding to death, and in the family twelve other persons— making altogether sixteen—had bled to death, not one of them having been seriously injured. The injuries were slight cuts or falls. Some of them had bled to death from teeth having been drawn. Medical aid had been always procured, but without effect.' "I should be glad,for one, to see the above in the ' Journal,' with some remarks from your pen. Yours, truly, "H. E. Luther." 337. DIZZINESS, FITS, TIC-DOLOUREUX, AND RHEUMATISM Are in like manner transmitted. A father, known to the author, is often taken dizzy so suddenly that he falls in the midst of his work, and is days in recovering. His son is sim- ilarly, though less severely, afflicted, although, as it increases 8* 90 DISEASES HEREDITARY. upon him, he may, on arriving at his father's present age, be as much afflicted. Several members of a family in Vermont, named Chase, have died of fits, and others, still living, are subject to them. This convulsive tendency has descended at least three gen- erations, probably more. Similar cases are numerous. The author saw a child, about ten years old, in Boston, in 1843, rendered intolerably wretched for weeks together by inflammatory rheumatism, or a neuralgic affection. It lay on its grandmother's lap, and the least change of position caused the most excruciating pains. Yet one position soon tired it, and every move, whether for change, or because the grand- mother was unable to keep perfectly still, caused it to scream out with agony, as if pierced with needles. In this pitiable condition it had lain for three weeks, but was convalescent. It had been similarly attacked before. Its mother, whenever she took cold, was similarly, though less severely, tortured, and her father died of the same nervous disease. So did two of her paternal uncles, and two cousins, having first suffered beyond account. Others of this neuralgic family were sub- ject to similar tortures. The grandmother in attendance traced it four generations, and in all the various branches, from the the first sufferer. Its virulence increased as it descended, as is usually the case. Kindred instances of the transmission of both rheumatism proper, and also those distressing complaints, the tic-doloreux, and neuralgia, are almost co-extensive with these diseases themselves, of which, many readers are doubtless painful ex- amples, and all may be observing witnesses. How common to see father, children, and grandchildren rheumatic ? How often does severe headache—sick headache especially, gene- rally the effects of cerebral rheumatism—descend from gene- ration to generation as far as they can be traced ? So of early and excessive toothache and decay, as well as of sound and handsome teeth. SEVERAL DISEASES ENTAILED. 91 338. SEVERAL DISEASES COLLECTIVELY. Having their origin in as many ancestors, are often entailed upon some families to their speedy destruction. The author examined, professionally, a family of children in Woodstock, Vt., in 1844, both of whose parents were dead, and who in- herited consumption froni one parent, insanity from another, and the club-foot from a grandparent—three diseases from three grandparents3l8. A similar complication of several diseases, derived from several ancestors, is by no means uncom- mon, and would, of course, be expected where more than one progenitor was disordered—that same law which transmits any one also transmitting as many affections as can co-exist in any or all the parents and grandparents. This complica- tion will doubtless serve to account for many premature deaths otherwise unaccountable—the deceased having inherited a little of one disease from this ancestor, and a little of that from another, and so on till the scion, though from comparatively healthy stock, is borne down into an early grave by a com- bination of diseases, no one of which is alone sufficiently aggra- vated seriously to affect that ancestor or the descendants, but which, collectively, are insupportable. SUMMARY. But, observing and reflecting reader, is it either necessary or desirable to multiply additional facts ? Some will already say, "Why lumber your subject with so many? Half of them would render every point clear and irrefutable. You ovER-do it." For reasons already given—to forego all chance of escape from subsequent conclusions founded on these data. Moreover, nearly every case stated, besides being deeply in- teresting in and of itself, gives some new phase both to the principle in hand, and to collateral laws. Yet each one occu- pies but little room; and even additional detail would un- doubtedly suggest many practical inferences of great moment. At all events, no position thus far taken can intellectually be questioned. Every one singly considered is "true to nature," and all taken collectively not only put the great fact 92 DISEASES HEREDITARY. of universal hereditary transmission completely beyond con- troversy, but beget the most perfect assurance that parents diseased, do and must transmit in all respects, such disease to offspring in that degree in which it appertains to parentage. Do not all these facts and principles establish the general law, that all diseases, of whatever kind and degree, formed in pa- rents are transmitted to offspring? .Does not this strictly in- ductive process of investigation render it absolutely certain that those who marry companions any way diseased them- selves, or even, though apparently healthy, from a debilitated, or sickly stock, must expect sickly children, and may reckon on their premature death ? And since this is so, behold the 339. MOMENTOUS IMPORTANCE OP OUR SUBJECT. Fathers, mothers, actual and prospective, are the sickness and health, life and death of your dearly-beloved offspring— those idols of parental fondness—a matter of no moment to you ? Say, would the wealth of India compensate for the perpetual sickness and premature death of one child, or equal in value one healthy or long-lived heir ? Gold cannot measure the worth of a healthy family or a sickly one. If Astor could buy health and reason for his unfortunate, idiotic son with his whole fortune, he would make infinitely the best bargain of his whole life, and the son be rendered a thousand times more happy than he can now hope ever to become. Every parent of a healthy and well-organized family is in- finitely richer than Croesus in all the essentials of riches—the means of enjoyment. Perfect children are the greatest earthly fortunes parents can possess. The proper choice of a companion, then, should be made, as in fact it is, the most important business of life till it is effected. And yet, how few realize or practice this momentous truth! Farmers take extra pains to see that their sheep, calves, colts, and even pigs, should be raised from first-rate stock, yet pay no manner of regard to the parentage of their prospective children—either to their own parental qualifications, or to that of their joint partner in parentage. They select out and reject spavin and wind-gall in the one, but admit cancers, cousump- MOMENTOUS IMPORTANCE OF OUR SUBJECT. 93 tions, scrofula, and all manner of diseases in the other, and pay the awful penalty of straining at the gnat while they swallow the camel, in sleepless nights, anxious days, grave- yard tears, and broken hearts ! Oh ! foolish man ! when wilt thou learn and practice wisdom ? When apply common sense and self-evident principles to this highest concern of life—the choice of a companion ! They who will sin, be it even igno- rantly, must suffer; for nature is inexorable. But light is dawning. The time is at hand when connubial applicants will both scrutinize and be scrutinized—when, if a matrimonial candidate is tainted with ancestral or induced disease, such disease will be detected, and its subject unconditionally re- jected ; when those who are capacitated to parent healthy, handsome, or long-lived children, will be recognized and pre- ferred ; and also when parents will realize that the greatest legacy.in their power to bestow on offspring, is a good organ- ized constitution, as well as that the wealth of Croesus coupled with transmitted disease, is comparative poverty and wretch- edness—is the curse of all curses. How can such parents even look their children in the face, except with the deepest sense of shame and guilt ? Or what gratitude in children can equal that occasioned by the inheritance of healthy and powerful organisms from parentage ? But we are anticipating. Our foundation is not yet fully laid. The force of these and kindred inferences will be rendered more and still more ap- parent and powerful at every successive step of our progress. Suffice it here to have called attention to the point at this early stage of our researches. We shall recur to this whole subject in its.higher and wider applications hereafter. Our present object is simply to fix the reader's attention on two points—the first, that hereditary and induced tendencies to disease of whatever form, as well as to longevity, can be easily detected in all, even in the absence of all knowledge of their parentage321. Much more when the parentage can also be investigated. To point out the signs of diseases here, would be out of place. They will be found in the author's work on " Physiology " m m. Suffice it to say that every young man and woman carries the flag of their ancestry in plain sio-ht, and that every disease which they will entail on off- 94 DISEASES HEREDITARY. spring is easily and certainly legible in the countenance, color, and other physiognomical signs; as is also their capability of parenting healthy, or handsome, or long-lived, or active, or enduring offspring. As we can decipher the excellencies and defects of any given horse as a parent, and predict whether his progeny will be strong or weak, handsome or homely, sprightly or sluggish, draft or race, etc., so, only with far greater precision and minuteness, can we predicate before- hand whether the prospective offspring of a given couple will be beautiful or unsightly, indolent or full of action, genteel or awkward, robust or sickly, and thus of all their other parental excellencies and deficiencies. And by taking two candidates for marriage, we can foretell all about their offspring. Nor can those on the "look out" study any subject at all to com- pare, either in its intrinsic importance, or its momentous bearing on their own happiness and that of their prospective children and children's children for generations yet unborn! 340. PREVENTION OF INHERITED DISEASE. That diseases are thus transmitted by inheritance, is thus rendered perfectly obvious. Yet, can they, or can they not, be prevented ? Does this transmissibility of disease compei, the offspring of consumptive parents to be consumptive, and render those of deranged ancestors necessarily insane ? If so, fatalism, in its worst form, is proved to be a law of things. But this is not the case. Strictly speaking, disease is not transmitted—is not necessarily incorporated into those mate- rials employed as the messenger of life—but only a feeble endowment, in offspring, of whatever organs are feeble in parents ; for a full explanation of which, see " Love and Pa- rentage." Yet, unless preventives are employed, the result is much the same as if actual disease is transmitted. Still, in case preventives are adopted, the difference is heaven-wide. Are, then, such preventives possible ? Whenever parents become so thoroughly diseased that they cannot reproduce children endowed with sufficient vitality to live to a good old age, as well as to enjoy life, nature prevents their becoming parents. Disease prostrates; and hence those their prevention. 95 paients who have sufficient vitality and energy remaining to plant the seeds of life, so that they shall take root, can, by due maternal regimen, as shown in " Maternity," have living children ; and all children endowed with sufficient energy to once begin to live, rightly carried, can be ushered into the world; and all such can live, grow up, enjoy life, propagate, and attain a good age. What nature cannot perfect, she will not begin. This is her settled order of action. Hence her pro- vision that thoroughly diseased parents shall be childless. If she would consent to transmit the least disease, she would be obliged, by her own rules, to transmit all diseases, and in all the virulence ever found in parents, even when at the very gate of death, and to allow the most decrepit and aged to propagate up to the last hour of life, as well as to entail all their infirmities and inanity on their progeny; the result of which would be the flooding of our world with wretched ob- jects, far more miserable than any we now behold. At such endless misery, nature benevolently revolts. Yet rendering those parents barren who are too diseased to have children sufficiently healthy to enjoy life is not cruel—is a blessing even to parents—and no injury to any ; and hence this heredi- tary landmark. So far from propagating disease, she even extinguishes those families who are too feeble or sickly to have healthy children. Or, rather, any disease, say scrofula, first induced by infringing the organic laws, may be transmitted in the sense already explained. Now the scrofulitic offspring, by also violating the laws of health, can enhance this scrofu- lous inheritance, just as he can his pecuniary patrimony, and thus become more scrofulous than his parentage—and, in the present absence of physiological knowledge this is generally the case—or he can diminish, and even effectually ward off, this tendency, by a due observance of the conditions of health j and thus diseases can be aggravated till they extinguish whole families, by rendering the last generation impotent, or bury- ing them before they are old enough to become parents; or they can be diminished, generation after generation, till the descendants are completely rid of all traces of the ancestral debility. This law governs all diseases. Both those can- 96 diseases heriditary. cerous cousins already mentioned330, three of whose ancestors died of malignant cancers, have long been free from this family malady, and will undoubtedly escape. They both received a superior physical education, which so strengthened their constitutions as to ward off this tendency, though lineal. It is comparatively overcome, or else latent; and though a slight predisposition may lurk in the veins of their children, yet, by fortifying the constitutions of their descendants, they may be completely purged from this cancerous virus. All forms, all aggravations of disease, may in like manner be completely eradicated from all families. To know how, and then do, is all required to effect a radical erasure of all diseased tenden. cies, and substitute, in their stead, health and longevity. Yet the ruinous physical habits of most parents seem to aggravate, instead of decrease, hereditary diseases; and the penalty often blots out their name and race from among men—a provision of nature as beautiful in itself, and preven- tive of ultimate suffering, as it is just, though painful, to those bereaved. Nature is determined to secure a healthy stock upon the earth, or none; and this instrumentality is as perfect as beneficial. Take consolation, therefore, ye who have married diseased companions, or are hereditarily tainted yourselves, or have induced disease by the abuse of health. Your case, though less promising than if both were healthy, is not only not des- perate, but merely less hopeful than it otherwise would have been. It is not as bad, but only not as good as it might and should have been. Your children, though liable to disease, can both escape, and may rationally hope for and attain a long and happy life. As, in case you should die bankrupt, your children would not be obliged to pay your debts, but would only have to begin without capital; so if you are tann- ed with disease, they will not be saddled with your maladies, but will simply have to begin life on a small capital of vitality or health—yet sufficient, by proper management, to allow their collecting a good estate of life and its pleasures. For the same reason that unhealthy parents need not despair for their children, those whose ancestors and relations may all THEIR prevention. 97 have died of one or more diseases, need not despair for them- selves; but, by a proper regimen, may reasonably hope to live happily till they see their children fully grown, and establish- ed in business. And if they finally die young, they will per- ish not by hereditary entailments, but by their own hands ; or, at least, by diseases incurred independently of birth. Yet while these views are thus consolatory to tainted parents and children, they nevertheless both warn all not to tamper with disease by marrying its victims, though at the same time they hold out a hope of salvation to those who have sinned. They do not absolutely refuse a matrimonial certificate to all who have sufficient vitality remaining to propagate, but they ap- pend to this boon a double injunction on all such to employ every known means to preserve and restore their own health and that of offspring. The latitude of this matrimonial license clashes with the far more restrictive doctrines embodied in the first edition of this work, and generally entertained by all who have any he- reditary doctrines. Marriage is generally forbidden to the offspring of sickly parents, yet is allowed by the last principles laid down, except in extreme cases. The issue is one of the utmost importance, and the author is by no means insensible to the momentous responsibility attendant on giving such lati- tude. Hence he shall proceed both to fortify and qualify this doctrine, first, by nature's general ordinance of growth. She ordains that every successive period and day of life up to its meridian, shall increase vitality and health—a law too apparent to require comment. How often do children " out- grow" the diseases of infancy and adolescence ? How often do the delicate, and even sickly, become hale and hearty men and women ? True, diseases also " grow upon" childhood, youth, manhood, and old age, but in all such cases the disease is ag- gravated by an artificial infringement of the laws of health, and never a spontaneous growth of disease. We repeat, na- ture's universal economy is to obviate evil, never to aggravate it spontaneously. That economy subserves happiness al- WAys_misery never. This her universal economy precludes her developing morbid conditions. As fire goes out when its 98 DISEASES HEREDITARY. fuel is not renewed, and increases only as such fuel is re- supplied, so disease, and all abnormal conditions, whether of body or mind, burn down, and finally go out, unless revived and re-aggravated by a re-supply of their natural fuel and oause—violated physical law. That re-supplied, disease burns with a proportionably fiercer flame, and if such supply is copious, rages and consumes all before it, till the ashes of death alone remain of its miserable victim. The great ma- jority of hereditary diseases have a perpetual stream of the oil of abused health poured upon them, and thus "grow with our growth," yet this is abnormal, never natural. Allow nature her perfect work, and she will never light these fires at first, and once lighted, will go on gradually to extinguish them, just as she proceeds to heal wounds and all other ails with what- ever of energy remains; and for the same reason—in obedi- ence to the same law of benevolence. This salient principle is clearly her universal economy, and of course applicable in the present instance ; and this renders the doctrine already advanced, that any child, begotten with sufficient energy to begin to live, rightly carried, can live to be born, and once in the world, can be so nursed as to become stronger and stronger till it grows up to manhood, propagates, and fulfils the great and happy destiny of life. Cannot any feeble organ be strengthened ? Is not this a law of things. Consult " Educa- tion" and "Self-Improvement" on this point 213,the entire tenor of which is to establish the improvability of all the elements of human nature, and how to effect this their improvement335. Consult especially the first volume of that series—" Physiology" —as to the improvability of those physical organs now under discussion 169 m, also as regards the restoration and improve- ment of health and cure of diseases. This principle of im- provement is indubitable—a universal law of things—and therefore allows children, weakly by nature, and even dis- eased, to become stronger and stronger till energy supplants debility and health disease. It is not therefore impossible for diseased parents to have healthy children, and all hereditary diseases to be ultimately eradicated. Yet far be it from me to encourage the marriage of the dis- THEIR PREVENTION. 99 eased in the present state of physiological knowledge and practice. For those who are afflicted with maladies to be de- prived of marriage and its joys is indeed a bitter pill, but far more bitter the loss of children. Diseased subjects can endure celibacy with much less pain than they can bury children or a companion. Better bear thine own bitter lot alone than still further embitter the lives of companions and children, and those to whom they may have become attached. Though we have just proved that it is possible for the children of diseased parents to live and become healthy, yet this rarely occurs, and cannot be expected except where the conditions of health are thoroughly known and rigidly practiced. This is ex- tremely rare; and I therefore solemnly warn all who are hereditarily pre-disposed to any disease, never, on any acoount, to marry until they have thoroughly investigated the laws of health, and brought themselves to the solemn determination to to enforce them practically on themselves and their children. Indeed, these laws are but very imperfectly known, even by our best authors. The key of health has been developed in only a single work within the author's knowledge. Physi- ological science is yet in its merest infancy—too infantile to warrant the marriage of those hereditarily diseased to any great extent. To all practical intents and purposes, there- fore, the author virtually revokes that matrimonial latitude just given, and reiterates his former doctrines, and the popular in- junction that those predisposed, hereditarily, to disease, should not marry, or marrying, abstain from propagating. Readers may accuse me, with some show of propriety, of affirming that diseases are hereditary, and then that they are not; and of granting the largest matrimonial liberty, and then of revoking that license ; yet those who bring this accusation have not comprehended the true tenor and spirit of our argu- ments. No one interpretation of nature yet given has been revoked or contradicted, but every position taken has been sus- tained by an order and amount of proof absolutely irresistible. We have shown that a liability or exposure to disease, rather than an actually diseased condition, is transmissible, yet that such liability can be obviated and disease staved off; but 100 DISEASES HEREDITARY. added that few understand physiology or self-government suf. ficiently to do it. All seeming contradiction springs from na- ture's perfection on the one hand, or man's physiological imperfection on the other. Man is untrue to nature, but she is always true to herself, and not represented, in these pages, as at war with herself. Moderate intellectual acumen will discern both our general interpretation of hereditary inferences and also those specific qualifications here appended, without discovering the least contradiction. 341. PROSPECTIVE PARENTS SHOULD PRESERVE HEALTH. This great moral inferance is powerfully enforced by sev- eral of our positions, one of which is, that, for children to attain longevity, their parents must both possess this condition, and also take care of their health 321. We have also shown that parents, though from a healthy stock, can induce diseases by abusing their health, and then transmit these diseases. In- deed, this was the primitive origin of all diseases. Man was healthy at first. But repeated abuse of health brings on various maladies, which these hereditary laws transmit. We have also seen that families often " run out," and, in all probability, the great majority of infected families run out in a few generations ^ ; yet these diseases increase because indi- viduals are perpetually contracting, and then transmitting them. Any prospective parent, however healthy originally, may, by exposing him or herself to severe colds, induce lung affections; and this done, will, of course, transmit this affec- tion to posterity. Still, such children can obviate these tern- porary diseases much more easily than those transmitted for several generations. In selecting conjugal companions, then, it is not enough that they be free from all hereditary taints. They must also have preserved the constitution they inherited. In fact, those some- what invalid—so much so that they have been compelled to husband their health—are generally able to endure more, and parent better children, than the majority of those who have always been robust; because, nineteen out of every twenty of such, utterly insensible of the value of health, have shame- insanity transmitted. 101 fully abused it, and nearly broken down, yet are insensible of its cause, and still as reckless as ever. The summary of this whole matter is simply this: Select healthy com- panions, and let all prospective parents assiduously preserve health. SECTION III. INSANITY HEREDITARY. 342. MADNESS THE WORST OF MALADIES. Humanity commiserates those blooming youth cut down by fatal consumption just as they are entering upon the thresh- hold of life's hopes and pleasures. We instinctively pity that miserable wreck of humanity who is pierced with the pains, and racked with the ulcers of malignant scrofula and cancer. But, of all other victims of disease and objects of pity, among the wretched millions on our globe, those are most to be pitied, because the most completely wretched, whose reason is dethroned, and whose minds are wrecked. Yet these maladies are frequent—quite as numerous as any other sickness. Gov- ernmental and private institutions, for the amelioration and restoration of lunatics, are therefore among the most humane, as well as necessary, erected by modern benevolence. He who, in a fit of bewildered frenzy, can lay violent hands on his own life, because his malady renders that life so intolera- bly wretched, must indeed be tortured with perpetual agony, and deserve both human sympathy and aid8235282; and those insane asylums are both saving many from suicidal death, and restoring half their inmates to themselves, their families, and their enjoyments. More insane patients, by far, walk our streets, and throng the public concourse, than are confined in our asylums; and a large proportion of those incarcerated in our prisons belong, of right, to the mad-house9210. This malady assumes all gra- dations, from the most violent ravings of the infuriated maniac, to the slightest idiosyncrasies or aberrations, often called ec- 102 INSANITY hereditary. centricities and peculiarities, yet are in fact departures from right reason. Nor is derangement confined to one form of mental aliena- tion, but distorts and perverts every faculty of the human mind, from its normal to abnormal or deranged action6208. 343. CONDITIONS OP INSANITY TRANSMITTED. Though its effects are mental, yet its cause is always purely physical. It indeed alienates the mind, yet its seat is in the brain—that acknowledged organ of the mentality. And it consists, without any exception, in the diseased condition and action of the brain and nervous system8210. This is univer- sally conceded. Dr. Rush—high medical authority—dis- cusses the cause and seat of insanity as follows:— "Madness has been placed exclusively in the mind. I object to this opinion—rl. Because the mind is incapable of any operations independently of impressions communicated to it through the me- dium of the body. 2. Because there are but two instances upon record of the brain being found free from morbid appearances in persons who have died of madness. One of these instances is related by Dr. Stark; the other by Dr. Haen. They probably arose from the brain being diseased beyond that grade in which inflammation and its usual consequences take place. Did cases of madness reside exclusively in the mind, a sound state of the brain ought to occur after nearly every death from that disease. I ob- ject to it, 3. Because there are no instances of primary affections of the mind, such as grief, love, anger, or despair, producing mad- ness until they had induced some obvious changes in the body- such as wakefulness, a full or frequent pulse, costiveness, a dry skin, and other symptoms of bodily indisposition."—Rush on the Mind, p. 16. Insanity is still more conclusively proved to be caused solely by cerebral disease, by its being so often cured by resto- rative agents applied to the brain. But this point is too appa- rent and generally admitted to require elaborate argumenta- tion. All who know anything of this matter know that it is caused solely by cerebral inflammation, and can be cured by reducing this its sole cause. We have adduced and proved insanity to appertain to the brain mainly as evidence that it is hereditary. We have shown that the physiology is hereditary—the form of the body, CAUSES of insanity. 103 and all its physical conditions; and that these conditions of strength and debility, sluggishness and activity, and every other physical state, are transmitted. Does not this same law, then, transmit preternatural cerebral action ? Does not that law, which has been shown to transmit being, size, stomatic, opti- cal, cutaneous, muscular, and other bodily conditions and affections, also transmit both the brain and its various states of health and disease ? What prevents ? How can it be otherwise ? But hear Dr. Rush's continuation :— " My reasons for believing the cause of madness to be seated in the blood-vessels of the brain are drawn— " I. From its remote and exciting causes, many of which are the same with those which induce fever and certain diseases of the brain, particularly phrenitis, apoplexy, palsy, and epilepsy, all of which are admitted to have their seats in the blood-vessels. Of thirty-six dissections of the brains of persons who died of madness, Mr. Pinel says he could perceive no difference between the morbid appearances in them, and in the brains of persons who died of apo- plexy and epilepsy. The sameness of these appearances, however, do not prove that all those diseases occupy the same part of the brain : I believe they do not, especially in the first stage. They become diffused over the whole brain, probably in their last stages, or in the paroxysm of death. Dr. Johnson, of Exeter, in speaking of the diseases of the abdominal viscera, mentions their sympathy with each other, by what he very happily calls ' an intercommunion of sensation.' It would seem as if a similar intercommunion took place between all the diseases of the brain. It is remarkable they all discover, in every part of the brain, marks of a morbid state of the blood-vessels. " II. From the ages and constitutions of persons who are most subject to madness. The former are in those years in which acute and inflammatory arterial diseases usually affect the body, and the latter in persons who labor under the arterial predisposition. " III. I infer that madness is seated in the blood-vessels— " 1. From its symptoms. These are a sense of fulness, and sometimes pain in the head ; wakefulness, and a redness of the eyes, such as precede fever; a whitish tongue, a dry or moist skin, high-colored urine, a frequent, full, or tense pulse, or a pulse mor- bidly slow or unnatural as to frequency. These states of the pulse occur uniformly in recent madness, and one of them (that is, fre- quency) is seldom absent in its chronic state. " 1 have taken notice of the presence of this symptom in my introductory lecture upon the ' Study of Medical Jurisprudence,' in which 1 have mentioned that seven-eighths of all the deranged patients in the Pennsylvania Hospital, in the year 1811, had fre- quent pulses; and that a pardon was granted to a criminal by the 104 insanity hereditary. President of the United States, in the year 1794, who was sus- pected of counterfeiting madness, in consequence of its having been declared by three physicians that that symptom constituted an une quivocal mark of intellectual derangement. " The connection of this disease with the state of the pulse has been farther demonstrated by a most satisfactory experiment, made by Dr. Coxe, and related by him in his ' Practical Observations upon Insanity.' He gave digitalis to a patient who was in a furious state of madness, with a pulse that beat ninety strokes in a minute. As soon as the medicine reduced his pulse to seventy, he became rational. Upon continuing it, his pulse fell to fifty, at which time he became melancholy. An additional quantity of the medicine reduced it to forty strokes in a minute, which nearly suspended his life. He was finally cured by lessening the doses of the medi- cine so as to elevate his pulse to seventy strokes in a minute, which was probably its natural state. In short, there is not a single symptom that takes place in an ordinary fever, except a hot skin, which does not occur in the acute state of madness. " IV. From its alternating with several diseases which are evi- dently seated in the blood-vessels. These are consumption, rheu- matism, intermitting and puerperal fevers, and dropsy, many in- stances of which are to be met with in the records of medicine. " V. From its blending its symptoms with several of the forms of fever. It is sometimes attended with regular intermissions, and remissions. I have once seen it appear with profuse sweats, such as occur in certain fevers, in a madman in the Pennsylvania Hos- pital. These sweats, when discharged from his skin, formed a vapor resembling a thick fog, that filled the cell in which he was confined to such a degree as to render his body scarcely visible. " Again, this disease sometimes appears in the typhus form, in which it is attended with coldness, a feeble pulse, muttering deli- rium, and involuntary discharges of faeces and urine. But it now and then pervades a whole country, in the form of an epidemic. It prevailed in this way in England, in the years 1355 and 1373, and in France and Italy, in the year 1374; and Dr. Wintringham mentions its frequent occurrence in England, in the year 1719. "A striking instance of the union of madness with common fever is mentioned by Lucian. He tells us that a violent fever onco broke out at Abdera, which terminated by hemorrhages, or sweats, on the seventh day. During the continuance of this fever, the pa- tients affected with it repeated passages from the tragedy of ' An- dromeda,' with great vehemence, both in their sick rooms and in the public streets. This mixture of fever and madness continued until the coming on of cold weather. Lucian ingeniously and very properly ascribes it to the persons affected having heard the famous player Archilaus act a part in the above tragedy, in the middle of summer, in so impressive a manner that it excited in them the seeds of a dormant fever, which blended itself with derangement, and thus produced, very naturally, a repetition of the ideas and sounds that excited their disease. causes of insanity transmitted. 105 " VI. From the appearances of the blood which is drawn in thia disease, being the same as that which is drawn in certain fevers. They are inflammatory buff, yellow, serum, and lotura carnium. " VII. From the appearances of the brain after death from mad- ness. These are nearly the same as after death from phrenitis, apoplexy, and other diseases which are admitted to be primary affections of the blood-vessels of the brain. I shall briefly enume- rate them. They are— " 1. The absence of every sign of disease. I have ascribed this to that grade of suffocated excitement which prevents the effusion of red blood into the serous vessels. We observe the same absence of marks of inflammation after several other violent diseases. Dr. Stevens, in his ingenious inaugural dissertation, published in 1811, has called this apparently healthy appearance, the 'aimatous' state of inflammation. Perhaps it would be more proper to call it the ' aimatous' state of disease. It is possible it may arise in recent cases of madness, which terminate fatally, from the same retroces- sion of the blood from the brain which takes place from the face and external surface of the body, just before death. But— " 2. We much oftener discover in the brain, after death from mad- ness, inflammation, effusions of water in its ventricles, extravasation and intravasation of blood, and even pus. After chronic madness, we discover some peculiar appearances which have never been met with in any other disease of the brain, and these are a preternatu- ral hardness, and dryness in all its parts. Lieutaud mentions it often with the epithets of 'durum,' ' praedurum,' 'siccum,' and ' exsuccum.' Morgagni takes notice of this hardness likewise, and says he had observed it in the cerebrum, in persons in whom the cerebellum retained its natural softness. Dr. Bailie and Mr. John Hunter have remarked, that the brain in this state discovered marks of elasticity when pressed by the fingers. Mr. Mickell says a cube of six lines of the brain of a maniac, thus indurated, weighed seven drams, whereas a cube of the same dimension of a sound brain weighed but one dram and between four and six grains. I have ascribed this hardness, dryness, elasticity, and relative weight of the brain, to a tendency to schirrus, such as succeeds morbid action or inflammation in glandular parts of the body, and particularly that early grade of it which occurs in the liver, and which is known by the name of hepitalgia. The brain in this case loses its mobility, so as to become incapable of emitting those emotions from impres- sions which produce the operations of the mind. "3. We sometimes discover preternatural softness in the brain, in persons who die of madness, similar to that which we find in other viscera from common and febrile diseases. This has been observed to occur most frequently in the kidneys and spleen. The brain in this case partakes of its texture and imbecility in infancy, and hence its inability to receive and modify the impressions which excite thought in the mind. "4. We sometimes discover a preternatural enlargement of the bones of the head from madness, and sometimes a preternatural 106 INSANITY HEREDITARY. reduction of their thickness. Of two hundred and sixteen maniacs, whose heads were examined after death, Dr. Creighton says, in one hundred and sixty the skull was enlarged, and in thirty-eight it was reduced in its thickness. Now the same thing succeeds rheumatism, and many other febrile diseases, which exert their action in the neighborhood of bones. " I might add farther, under this head, that the morbid appear- ances in the spleen, liver, and stomach, which are seen after death from madness, place it still more upon a footing with fevers from all its causes, and particularly from koino-miasmatic exhalations, and in a more especial manner when they affect the brain, and thereby induce primary or idiopathic phrenitis. In short, madness is to phrenitis what consumption is to pneumony—that is, a chronic state of an acute disease. It resembles pulmonary consumption farther, in the excitement of the muscles, and in the appetite con- tinuing in a natural or in a preternatural state. " VIII. I infer madness to be primarily seated in the blood-ves- sels, from the remedies which most speedily and certainly cure it, being exactly the same as those which cure fever or disease in the blood-vessels from other causes, and in other parts of the body. " I have thus mentioned the facts and arguments which prove what is commonly called madness to be a disease of the blood-ves- sels of the brain. All the other and inferior forms of derangement, whether of the memory, the will, the principle of faith, the pas- sions, or the moral faculties, I believe to be connected more or less with morbid action of the blood-vessels of the brain, or heart, according to the seats of those faculties of the mind. " In placing the primary seat of madness in the blood-vessels, 1 would by no means confine the predisposition to it exclusively to them. It extends to the nerves, and to that part of the brain which is the seat of the mind, both of which, when prematurely irritable, communicate more promptly deranged action to the blood-vessels of the brain. I have called the union of this diffused morbid irrita- bility, the phrenitic predisposition. It is from the constant presence of this predisposition, that some people are seldom affected with the slightest fever without becoming delirious; and it is from its ab- sence that many people are affected with fevers, and other diseases of the brain, without being affected with derangement." This insane tendency always accompanies a highly- wrought, overcharged, general organism, as well as cerebral; that is, an extremely excitable temperament, and consequent liability to inflammation, both cerebral and general. This excitable organism is of course transmissible, else nothing is. Of course its product, insanity, is also hereditary. Is not this our theoretical proof complete ? Nor is our practical less so. SUICIDAL INSANITY. 107 SUICIDAL INSANITY. Many of the descendants of a New Yorker, named A----, have been deranged for five successive generations, yet have been eminently talented. This A----, whom we will christen the Ancestor, was queer, eccentric, fussy, fidgety, and par- tially deranged in the matter of property, being perpetually harassed by fear of coming to poverty, though well off. One of his granddaughters was so far deranged that she was called crack-brained. His daughter B.—a woman of superior intelligence and domestic capability—was subject to periodi- cal derangement on the subject of religion, and suffered every- thing from religious gloom, and the concomitant fear that she was elected to be eternally damned, had committed the un- pardonable sin, and forfeited all hope of mercy. Just before the recurrence of these spells, she would go about the house with her hands clasped on the top of her head, which she often held in the steam, as it issued from the tea-kettle, for relief, because of the intense pain located there, meanwhile moaning piteously, and wishing she was dead; and in this state she often attempted to commit suicide, yet lived to the age of seventy-eight years. She was likewise deranged in her domestic organs. When her husband went to New York, she always insisted on bear- ing him company, because separation was so exceedingly painful; and when he went into the fields, she would watch him as long as he was in sight, and then look every few min- utes to see if he was returning. So eagerly did she cling to him, and so pertinaciously insist on being almost perpetual- ly in his company, that she often vexed her patient and for- bearing consort, rarely ever known to be provoked about any- thing else. One of her daughters, a Mrs. C, whenever any way un- well, was full of conceits—now fancying that her " inside wa^s dead," and that she should expire in a few minutes, that loathsome vermin were crawling upon her, and similar things without number. A son of this B., of course brother of Mrs. C, died sud- denly in the insane hospital at Hartford, probably by his own 108 INSANITY HEREDITARY. hands, after having been more or less deranged for many years, and almost continually threatening his own life; and his son hung himself on account of disappointed love; and another son has lately evinced marked indications of insanity. Another son of B. became deranged, and remained so for years, in consequence of being obliged to repay a small note already paid but not taken up. Whenever company called to see him, he would refuse to be seen, and hide away under the bed or in the closet, constantly alarmed with groundless fears that the constable would take him off to jail, that he should come to abject poverty and starvation, and the like—his derangement thus assuming the same form as that of his grandfather A., and with which his brother who died in Hartford was also afflicted. A highly intelligent daughter of his is extremely sensitive, and probably only lacks due provo- cation to become deranged. Another son of B. was similarly affected, and would walk the floor by the hour, wringing his hands and twisting his handkerchief in great but ideal distress of mind, and was always extremely gloomy. Still another son was similarly deranged in the matter of money, and had also his whims. Thus every child of this deranged B. was more or less deranged, and one committed that suicide which his mother attempted. One of the sons of Mrs. C, and of course grandson of B., became deranged at about his twelfth year—the direct cause was being excessively frightened by fellow-apprentices —and has remained so ever since. He has been an inmate of the Hudson lunatic asylum. His derangement takes on that acquisitive form which appertained to his great-grandfather, the ancestor A., so that he is in constant fear of being robbed or cheated; and also the religious form which obtained in his grandmother B.* Another son of Mrs. C, on becoming dyspeptic, could not be induced to mount any carriage for fear of falling, fancied that he was about to die, and had other conceits similar to the above was written he has hung himself. FACTS. 109 those entertained by his mother. He also has that same de- sire to be all the time in the bosom of his family evinced by his grandmother B., and is all on nettles when absent from them. One of his sisters was so nervous for a long time that a rap at the door, or any unexpected noise, induced extreme trepida- tion, and was temporarily deranged on the death of two of her children. She, too, like her grandmother B., unconditionally refuses to be out of sight of her husband hardly an hour at a time, and often complains of severe pain in the organs of Union for Life—the lower part of Adhesiveness. Separation from children is also extremely painful. She is moreover sometimes subject to extreme depression of spirits—to that feeling of unworthiness, or being in the way, and not wanted, incident to her grandmother—and has also seriously contem- plated suicide. And one of her children makes the greatest imaginable ado over her little hurts and provocations, and often says, " I wish I was dead," as earnestly as if she really meant it. She also mourns the absence of mother very pite- ously. Another child is similarly disposed. Another son of Mrs. C, and grandson of B., evinces in- cipient insanity—is all on nettles whenever separated from his family, and has frequently threatened to kill himself, and also repeatedly suffered delirium-tremens induced by intem- perance. His children evince the same nervous irritability just described as appertaining to the children of his sister. Another son of Mrs. C, who takes after his father, has escaped all signs of derangement—unless unusual irritability may be considered as one—yet some of his children have both the high order of talents, and also the phrenological or- ganization of their aunt, grandmother C, and great-grand- mother B 318. Another granddaughter of B. is extremely sensitive and melancholy, and has small Hope, prodigious Cautiousness, and a most susceptible temperament: and her sister vir- tually and intentionally committed deliberate suicide by de- signedly eating what she knew, in her then existing state, must, as it did, occasion her death. Grief and derangement, 10 110 INSANITY HEREDITARY. occasioned by the absence of her husband, and his not writing to her, and a consequent imagining that she was in his way and not beloved, made her desire death, and take this means to induce it. Another sister died of melancholy. Her friends described her as being " in a strange way." This catalogue embraces nearly all the descendants of the Ancestor. Still, this insane tendency diminishes instead of increases in de- scendants. The Ancestor had a granddaughter named B, who was courted ten years by one man, and ultimately taken advan- tage of, and likely to become a mother; and though the law obliged her guilty paramour to marry her, yet her mortifica- tion, grief, and melancholy caused her death in a few days after the birth—rendered premature by mental distress—of her child. Most of the descendants of a son of A. and brother of B., though eminently talented, and one of them a judge, have their peculiarities and eccentricities, so much so that they are often denominated a " strange set." Peter McKinsley was deranged on the matter of property, and committed suicide because he feared he should come to poverty, and see his family starved ; though, on the settling up of his estate, four thousand dollars were left to each child. One of his daughters, Susan, married a shiftless, improvident man, and apprehensive of coming to the poor-house, tied one end of a halter to a beam, and the other around her neck, and then jumped off, but broke the halter, though its print re- mains. She once ran away and climbed a tree, where she remained one or two days, and could not be found. But in the search her child was carried within her hearing, when its cries penetrated her soul, and she went to its relief. She once got up in the night, and went to a neighboring pond, and jumped into the bulk head, in order to drown herself, but the immersion cured her suicidal fever, and she returned to bed. Of a professional applicant at Syracuse, in 1843, the author predicated excessive elevation and depression of spirits, or ups and downs, and of course liability to extreme melancholy, in- ferred from his immense Cautiousness, small Hope, and extra- ordinary excitability of temperament. He stated, in reply FACTS. Ill that most of his paternal relatives, as far back and laterally as he could trace them, were similarly affected, and added, that his father and one of his uncles and a grandfather com- mitted suicide, and that he at times restrained himself from a similar perpetration only by great exertion, so strong was his tendency to this revolting deed. I had previously known his cousin in B-----, Vt., who by turns suffered intolerably from melancholy, and had threatened his own life. A son had a similar temperament, with deficient Hope. Rush, " On the Mind," narrates the following analogous cases:— " It is a singular fact in the history of suicide, that it has sometimes been hereditary in families. There are two families in Pennsylva- nia, in which three of their respective branches have perished by their own hands, in the course of a few years. Similar instances of this issue of family derangement, are to be met with in other countries. "Captains C. L. and J. L. were twin brothers; and so great was the similarity of their countenances and appearance, that it was extremely difficult for strangers to know them apart. Even their friends were often deceived by them. Their habits and man- ners were likewise similar. Many ludicrous stories are told of people mistaking one for the other 312. " They both entered the American revolutionary army at the same time. Both held similar commissions, and both served with honor during the war. They were cheerful, sociable, and in every respect gentlemen. They were happy in their families, having amiable wives and children, and they were both independent in their property. Some time after the close of the war, Capt. J. removed to the state of Vermont, while Capt. C. remained in Greenfield, two hundred miles from his brother. Within the course of three years, they have both been subject to turns of par- tial derangement, but by no means rising into mania, nor sinking into melancholy. They appeared to be hurried and confused in their manners, but were constantly able to attend to their business. About two years ago, Capt. J., on his return from the general as- sembly of Vermont, of which he was a member, was found in his chamber, early in the morning, with his throat cut, by his own hand, from ear to ear, shortly after which he expired. He had been melancholy a few days previous to this fatal catastrophe, and had complained of indisposition the evening previous to the event. " About ten days ago, Capt. C, of Greenfield, discovered signs of melancholy, and expressed a fear that he should destroy himself. Early in the morning of July 5th, he got up, and proposed to his wife to take a ride with him. He shaved himself as usual, wiped his razor, and stepped into an adjoining room, as his wife supposed, to put it up. Shortly after she heard a noise like water or blood 112 INSANITY HEREDITARY. running upon the floor. She hurried into the room, but was too late to save him. He had cut his throat with his razor, and soon after- ward expired. " The mother of these two gentlemen, an aged lady, is now in a state of derangement, and their two sisters, the only survivors of their family, have been subject, for several years, to the same com- plaint. " Insanity generally attacks in those stages of life in which it has appeared in the patient's ancestors 3I4. A general officer who served in the American army during the revolutionary war, once expressed a wish to a brother officer, that he might not live to be old; that he might die suddenly; and that if he married, he might have no issue. Upon being asked the reason for these wishes, he said he was descended from a family in which madness had sometimes ap- peared about the fiftieth year of life, and that he did not wish to incur the chance of inheriting and propagating it to a family of chil- dren. He was gratified in all his three wishes. He fell in battle between the thirtieth and fortieth years of his age, and he left no issue, although he had been married several years before his death. A similar instance of the disease appearing at the same time of life, in three persons of the same family, occurred under my notice in the Pennsylvania Hospital. It came on in a father and two of his sons between the sixtieth and seventieth years of their lives. " Application was made, some years ago, for the admission of three members of the same family into the Pennsylvania Hospital on the same day. I have attended two ladies, one of whom was the fourth, and the other the ninth, of their respective families, that had been affected with this disease in two generations."—Rush on the Mind. Egbert Foster, a young man in Tennessee, much esteemed by all, committed suicide by shooting himself one Tuesday morning. His father and brother had previously died by their own hands. Joseph Pratt, of Braintree, Vermont, was deranged and hung himself. His mother hung herself, as did also her mother. Mrs. Phillips, of Stockbridge, was deranged, and two of her sons and one daughter committed suicide. A son of one of these persons bored holes into a board, with which he so adjusted a rope as to strangle himself to death. His brother, a promising young physician, prepared a board similarly, which he deposited in his office, but which, in removing, was casually destroyed by those who knew neither of its intended use nor his brother's death. Returning from a professional the purringtons. 113 visit, he was rendered gloomy and miserable by the confusion and breaking up of moving—not illy adapted to engender melancholy-----hunted a long time for his suicidal board, for which he finally inquired, but was informed of its destruction. Though engaged and published to be married, and making arrangements to complete the nuptials, on returning from another professional visit, fixing a bedpost securely into a jog in the chimney, and adjusting a rope around his neck, he threw himself upon it with such force as to alarm his neighbors, and also break his neck, of which he died. One of his sisters was deranged. In Sacket's Harbor poor-house I saw a man deranged on Destructiveness, who had been chained to the floor of his dun- geon many years on account of his fierce and destructive dis- position, having attempted to kill even those who fed him daily. Ignorant of the extent of his mania, I entered his cell, when he flew vindictively at me as if he would have torn me in pieces, but his chain prevented his quite reaching me. His mother committed suicide, and was strongly suspected of hav- ing committed murder. THE PUKEINGTON FAMILY. In 1806 a Mr. Purrington, of Augusta, Maine, horrified the whole country by perpetrating one of the most shockingly barbarous murders on record, and then committing suicide. After evening worship, about ten o'clock, he was reading the twelfth chapter of Ezekiel, in which the phrase often occurs: " And I did as the Lord commanded me." Soon after the children retired, and while his wife was nursing her infant, seizing an axe he killed the child, next the mother, and then fell upon the other eight children, striking them down as they were endeavoring to escape. Two of them, hearing the noise, came down stairs, half-dressed, and sprang for the door, which he had taken the precaution to fasten. While they were delayed in getting it open, he beat out the brains of one, and struck his axe into the shoulder-blade of the other, just as he was escaping, and then cut his own throat, with a razor and laid it in the open Bible where he had been reading. The wounded lad fled in the snow to a neighbor's, and survived to 10* 114 INSANITY HEREDITARY. tell this horrible story, and to eke out a few melancholy, mise. rable years, unwilling to converse, and finally died of the wound inflicted by his father. Captain Purrington, a nephew of this familycide, jumped overboard and drowned himself. A niece of the former and cousin of the latter killed a step. child ; and another niece, after having tried various methods of taking her own life without success, pounded and swallowed some glass, which, having thrown her into extreme agony, consummated the fatal deed. Another niece proved a perfect virago to one of the best of husbands, besides often abusing him most outrageously with her tongue, frequently beat him almost to death with the broom, poker, and whatever else she could lay hands on, and finally left him, but ultimately repented and returned. Joshua Coffin writes as follows concerning— THE SEWELL, BABTLETT, COFFIN, AND OTHER FAMILIES. " Henry Sewell, who came to this country in 1634, was a distin- guished man, but occasionally subject to turns of derangement. In every, or nearly every generation from that time to the present, some one or more of his descendants have been affected in the same way; and there are now living in N----y and B----y several lineal descendants of Henry Sewell, partially or occasionally de- ranged. And what is a little remarkable, they are affected in very much the same manner. They are eccentric, odd, peculiar, but always harmless, though crazy. " An anecdote of one of them will serve as a sample of the spe- cies of derangement to which they are subject. One of them was impressed with the idea that he was elected to be damned eter- nally, and thought that the sooner he entered upon his doom the better. He therefore wished very much to commit suicide, yet entertaining the idea that it was wicked for him to do so, devised the following method of making away with himself, without incur- ring guilt. He thought if he should swim out into the water just as far as he could swim, and then turn round and be drowned while trying to save himself, without being able to do so, he should not be guilty, because he was tiying his best to save himself. He tried this plan, but, unfortunately, his strength held out longer than he expected, and brought him back to the shore. " Sometimes they would shut themselves up for months, utterly refusing to see any one, and pleading as an excuse that they were unworthy to do so. The derangement seemed to be produced by small Hope and Self-Esteem, and prodigious Conscientiousness and BARTLETT, SEWELL, AND COFFIN FAMILIES. 115 Cautiousness. They were all exceedingly pious. Indeed, their derangement seemed to be a religious melancholy, induced by a morbid condition of the moral organs. " The ancestors of another family, first settled in Newbury, many of whose descendants have been, and still are, distinguished for talents—having strong minds in strong bodies—but who have, for many generations, been affected with nervous irritability. At one time they are elated, at another time they are depressed in the extreme, by what they have suffered through life. I could narrate a dozen instances which have occurred in nearly as many branches of this family, which would corroborate the de- scent of this physical peculiarity, from generation to generation. For instance : The maiden name of my grandmother was Sarah Bartlett, a woman of strong mind, great firmness, and self-posses- sion when obliged to act, and yet one of the most nervous persons imaginable. She would sit by the hour together, and wring her hands enough almost to wring them off, plait her apron into narrow plaits, and then spread it out again, and repeat this process for the hundredth time. She would imagine for a long time together that she was unfit for company, because she did not know enough, and should disgrace herself and family; but when obliged to appear in company, no one could appear to better advantage, or do herself more credit. On one occasion, when company had been invited, she could not be persuaded to join them, on account of these gloomy, unworthy feelings, till some one told her that she did not know enough to appear respectably, when she arose with great dig- nity and majesty, replying, 'It's false,' and walked in and became the master-spirit of the occasion. She has a large number of descendants, and out of the whole, I do not know of one who does not inherit, in a greater or less de- gree, this same nervous temperament, except some of them by the name of Coffin. The peculiarities of my own immediate relations by the name of Coffin, (reference is here made to the same ner- vous excitability,) in that respect, on my father's side, are clearly traced to my grandmother Bartlett." The nervous affection mentioned by Mr. C. is evidently a lower species of derangement, as indeed are all nervous af- fections, hysterics, the hypo, blues, spleen, hypocondriasis, and the like, all being caused, in common with downright madness, by the morbid excitability or a diseased condition of the brain, only in a lower degree than complete insanity. A devotedly pious and most excellent student of Amherst College, whose surname was the same with those mentioned by Mr. C, and doubtless a descendant, died in 1829, evidently of extreme religious melancholy. A Coffin was known to the author in L., as being exceed- 116 INSANITY HEREDITARY. ingly gloomy and fidgety, excessively sensitive, and greatly alarmed at trifles. A mountain seemed to him a molehill, and a wrinkle a great misfortune. His brother is deranged. Judge D., of Groton, ex-speaker of the Massachusetts Senate, and an eminently talented man, though not actually crazy, was so eccentric and beside himself as often to advertise a neighbor's farm as for sale, or to propound persons for church membership who had not applied for admission, and when these aberrations were pointed out to him, was accustomed to attribute them to the " Kendrick blood in his veins"—his an- cestors by that name having been deranged. One of his daughters is similarly eccentric, but endowed with superior natural capabilities. " I have attempted to discover whether madness ever passes over one or more generations 218, and have heard of but two instances of it. One of them occurred in a family in the island of Barbadoes, in which four children descended from parents of habitually sound minds became deranged. Perhaps in these cases the diseases had existed in their remote ancestors."—Rush on the Mind, p. 53. 344. PROMISCUOUS CASES OF HEREDITARY INSANITY- In Burford, Canada West, in December, 1840, a clerical applicant for professional examination, on being described as habitually melancholy, confessed the fact, and added, that every one of his name and family, as far as he knew them, were similarly afflicted, and melancholy on religious subjects. The mother of a family of uncommonly intelligent chil- dren, in S-----, R. I., consulted the author professionally, to ascertain whether any of them were predisposed to insanity. Their developments confirmed her fears; their father died insane. An uncle was then confined in jail, because his in- sanity rendered him dangerous at large, and an extremely enthusiastic aunt has hobby after hobby, though generally of a moral and intellectual character. A professional subject near Utica, who has a superior head, excepting small Hope and excessive Cautiousness, is occasion- ally " beside himself," and has deranged relations. Two twin brothers, who reside in a town near Boston, married sisters, lived happily, owned and shared everything in common, were noted for their integrity, made it a fixed FACTS. 117 rule to " owe no man anything," and possessed all the com- forts of life in abundance. At length, one of them became crazy, accused himself of being dishonest, of having imposed on his neighbors, by pretending to be honest when he was not, and imagined himself about to be detected and exposed, and too deeply in debt ever to pay, though he did not owe five dol- lars in all, and foreboded poverty and want to himself and family, though they owned a large farm and dairy, did a flourishing business, and had their thousands in cash. The sane brother became so mortified and grieved on ac- count of his brother's derangement, that he, too, " went crazy." Both insisted on being perpetually together, and by talking continually, and mourning piteously over their imaginary mis- fortunes, greatly aggravated their malady. One of them had been previously deranged on the same points, and a cousin had been in the insane hospital at Worcester. Both parents were sane and healthy, but a grandfather was deranged, on a kindred apprehension of poverty318. One member of a wealthy, influential, refined, talented, and highly moral family, named W-------, in P-------, became more and more abstemious, till, with the utmost persuasion, he could not be induced to take more than a cracker and a tumbler of milk per day, because he considered it wicked to eat more, and even that much. Though his physician, by standing over him, and insisting, could get sufficient food down him to make him gain five and six pounds per week, yet he ultimately died of pure starvation, caused by derangement. He had a splendid head, excepting a deficiency of Hope and Amativeness, and a predominance of Cautiousness and Con- scientiousness. His derangement was aggravated by severe and long-continued mental application. His mother was an exceedingly nervous and also eccentric woman, and so were all his maternal aunts. Her parents and all their children escaped, but one of her grandparents—the young man's great- grandparent—was deranged, the disease having passed over one generation 318. Mrs- c----} a neighbor of the author, while young, was frequently so much deranged as to be put in irons, and one of 118 INSANITY HEREDITARY. her sons was similarly deranged, and all his children intelli gent. This deranged son married a wife who became de. ranged on religion, and whose brother has long been reli. giously crazy, and sister is not sane. This crazy pair, before their derangement, had a most lovely and amiable daughter • as is often the case, extra talents and goodness being frequent concomitants "of mental disease. Sally Jack, a deaf mute, aged sixteen years, was adver- tised as having left home twice, in a deranged state of mind. Her mother was insane several years, and three of this mother's children are deaf mutes. A grandmother has been deranged many years on religious subjects, and her grand- daughter partially so, on the same subject. A woman in New Hampshire was subject, for many years, to religious insanity. She feared she had sinned away the day of grace, and was irrevocably doomed to eternal perdi- tion. One of her daughters was deranged on the same sub- ject; a son was deranged—subject unknown; and another son was crazy on perpetual motion. A tailoress at Barnstable, Massachusetts, became deranged on religion twice, from extra application to her trade. Her pastor, Rev. Chester Field, of Lowell, Massachusetts, heard it remarked, that derangement " run in her family." Mrs. Head, formerly of Boston, died crazy. One of her sons has been in the Massachusetts lunatic asylum some twenty years, in winter, but is rational in summer. Loss of property first occasioned his lunacy. One of his sisters has been crazy many years, and a daughter has been raving dis- tracted by turns, for a long time. Her head, at the crown— Self-Esteem and Approbativeness—is so tender, that pressure there gives her great pain, and sets her crazy. She is a most estimable and interesting woman, and just before being at- tacked, suffers everything from feelings of unworthiness, and apprehensions of being laughed at. Three sisters and a brother, formerly residents of Clare- mont, and Unity, N. H., have each been deranged, and had deranged children and grandchildren. One of the latter is so raving distracted, that chains and strait jackets have often FACTS. 119 been used to prevent his doing damage. This whole family is uncommonly noble and intellectual. Mr. F----, of Andover, Massachusetts, a man of superior intellect and great business capacities, after having amassed great wealth, became dull, stupid, unable to comprehend, and finally deranged, and was sent to the Charleston lunatic asy- lum, where he died. One of his sons, a youth of uncommon natural abilities, prosecuted his studies, night and day, with astonishing success, till insanity supervened, consequent on excessive cerebral action. He has been many years in the lunatic asylum at Worcester, where, in imagination, he is transacting an immense business, writing to foreign mer- chants, making up price-current lists for the papers, and the like. Two of his sisters have been so far deranged as to have been sent to the Charleston lunatic asylum, yet have since recovered. The Bass family, already mentioned as long-lived 3I9, are subject to derangement. Moses Bass, one of the early set- tlers of Vermont, and son, have been so. A nephew has been crazy for twenty years; and J---- Bass is deranged regu- larly every five years. One of the females of this family would stand on the top of chairs, and walk around rooms on the moulding, and like feats, when deranged; and another married a man named M----, several of whose children and grandchildren are deranged. To Samuel Flint, of Vermont, I said, while making a pro- fessional examination, " Take heed, or you will be crazy." He had previously been partially so, and his sister had been deranged, and confined six years in the insane asylum at Brattleboro, Vermont. A brother hadt been two years in an insane hospital, and is not right yet. His uncle General Flint's great-grandmother Walker, was crazy. A son of Rev. Dr. Axtell, of Geneva, was recently adver- tised in a newspaper in the neighborhood, as having left the New York Episcopal seminary, partially deranged. The ad vcrtisement added, that "his mother died in the Hartford insane hospital." Three of a Carter family, in Vermont, have died deranged, 120 INSANITY hereditary. and the only survivor is often out of her head, feeling unwor- thy, as if in the way, and despised. " A. lady who had been three years in the insane department of the Pennsylvania hospital, died week before last, A younger sister, who had for some time attended the picture-room attached to the hospital on Spruce-street, after returning from the funeral was so completely overwhelmed with grief, that her reason was dethroned in about forty-eight hours, and she took the place of her deceased sister in the insane ward. Yesterday morning she ex- pired ! She has a widowed mother, and only sister of fragile con- constitution, to both of whom it is feared this heart-rending blow will be fatal."—Philadelphia North American. GEORGE in. AND QUEEN VICTORIA. We do not endorse the following by copying it, but let it stand on its own evidence, yet those who have been in the company of the queen, say she leaves her seat and company every few minutes, when out of her consort's sight, to look after, him. This has given rise to the impression that she is jealous, but is, perhaps, analagous to the case of Mrs. H. B----343. The quotation is as follows:— "Queen Victoria Insane.—Letters received in Buffalo from a gentleman in England, according to the Commercial Advertiser of that city, state distinctly, what before has been darkly hinted at, that the insanity which so long afflicted George III., is likely to prove hereditary in his granddaughter, Queen Victoria. The symptoms, it is said, are already apparent, producing as yet but little more than what the French term tile monte, but giving rise to painful apprehensions of the result. "The journeys of the queen to Scotland, France, and Belgium, and her frequent short tours in various counties of England, have been made, it is farther said, in the hope that a change of scene, and filling the mind with new thoughts, might break the distem- pered chain, and, if possible, avert the threatened danger. This may be nothing but gossip, but when, as in this case, there is the he- reditary taint of insanity in the blood, there is always reason for apprehension." Mr. H----, of W----, Vermont, has been deranged. His father rendered himself crazy by overdoing. Three of this father's sisters were deranged, and three of their descendants. Mr. R----, and his father, two paternal uncles, and his father's mother, were all deranged. All were also subject to a trembling of the hands. LUNATIC ASYLUMS. 121 " The murderer Spencer, who, with such premeditation, mur- dered his young wife at Jersey City, is a nephew of the Hon. Joshua Spencer. His father was a clergyman, but has been for several years an inmate of the asylum for the insane at Hartford. The murderer has been a politician and stump orator, an office-seeker, a schoolmaster, a mesmeric lecturer, all along a money-borrower, but not a money-payer." I. H----has a brother who has been an inmate of a lu- natic asylum, and he, apprehensive of a similar fate, has already selected a room in the same institution. Mrs. M----, of L. I., became crazy about property, because her farm was perforated by a turnpike. Her son became crazy and shot himself, and her daughter, also insane about property, neglected her household affairs, would rake and scrape everything she possibly could for the New York market, and then go in person and sell it. " Edward Oxford's grandfather had been insane, and his father always subject to destructive and suicidal mania, and his mother affected by nervous delusions. Before his birth, she frequently received from her husband blows which rendered her insensible, and on one occasion was greatly terrified by his presenting a loaded gun at her person. When Edward Oxford, the prisoner, was at large, he would beat children with stinging nettles on their arms, till they were quite blistered, he laughing and crying violently at the same time. He would throw out of the window or break what- ever came in his way."—Sampson, on Criminal Jurisprudence. While making professional examinations in Danvers, Mas- sachusetts, in 1841, a mother brought in her precocious son expressing great anxiety lest he should become deranged, her reasons for which were, that his father died of derangement, and that his paternal grandmother died in the Charleston lu- natic asylum, and that several of his father's brothers and sisters had been more or less deranged. REPORTS OF LUNATIC ASYLUMS. Taking our leave of isolated fanatics, let us canvass a broader field of inquiry. Insane institutions tell the same story, only on a larger scale—communicating summary re- suits without descending to particulars. As far as they report at all, that report may be fully relied upon; yet a far greater 11 122 INSANITY hereditary. number of their parents have deranged relatives than are known to these institutions, and even the relatives of the pa- tients, and more still, have had deranged ancestors318. Yet every institution of this kind unequivocally confirms this great truth, that insanity " runs in families." Some of these statistics are as follows :— At Turin, out of 1,066, 128 inherited the tendency. At the Bicetre, out of 3,446, 343 were by inheritance. At Charleston, out of 1,557, 337 cases were hereditary. At Ivry, out of 431 subjects, 150 were by transmission. On this point, the New York "lunatic asylum, in 1846, re- ports as follows :— " That a predisposition to insanity is very often transmitted, is a fact well established. Thus of 844 patients who have been in this asylum, viz., 431 men and 413 women, 224 were known to have insane relatives. That many of the others were thus predisposed, we do not doubt, but we were not able to learn anything respecting their relatives. 104 were known to have insane parents, viz., 58 men and 46 women. " It would appear from our inquiries, and they have been very carefully conducted, that insanity is a little more likely to be trans- mitted by the mother than by the father, and that mothers are con- siderably more likely to transmit it to daughters than to sons, while the fathers most frequently transmit it to the sons. Thus, out of 58 men, 35 had insane fathers and 23 insane mothers, while of 46 women, 16 had insane fathers and 30 insane mothers. We have known, however, of repeated instances in which insanity was trans- mitted by one parent both to sons and daughters. " But a predisposition to insanity is also transmitted from parents, who, though not actually insane, are remarkable for violent and un- governable temper, eccentricity, wanderings of the imaginations or weakness of mind. Mothers in whom the nervous system pre- dominates, who are prone to hysteria, and who have suffered much from affections of the nervous system, are very apt to transmit a tendency to similar diseases to their offspring, and sometimes to insanity; especially if they have, during pregnancy, experienced violent emotions, such as terror and extreme anxiety of mind. " Children begotten in old age, or when the difference in the ages of the parents is very great, and also the offspring of those that have been very intemperate, are believed to be predisposed to mental disorders. Sometimes great originality of mind in the parent, intense study, and entire devotedness to a particular pur- suit, appear to predispose the offspring to insanity or idiocy." The sixth annual report of the trustees of the Massachu- TRANSMISSION of insanity. 123 setts State lunatic asylum, Horace Mann, chairman, remarks on this point as follows :— " Nearly one-third part of the cases, (say the trustees,) which have been in the Hospital from the beginning, are cases either proximately or remotely of hereditary insanity—tha't is, cases where some near ancestor of the insane subject was insane, and has transmitted the disease to descendants, or rather, has commu- nicated to the system of the descendants, a predisposition to con- tract that disease. One of the highest of human responsibilities was violated by the ancestors, in forming alliance, when they bore a hereditary taint of insanity in the system, and the consequence of that violation is, that the descendants now exist with an organization pre-adapted to incur that disease. We cannot foretell, which of the descendants, in such cases, it will be, as we cannot tell who will be injured when a gun is fired into a crowd of people. But the result is none the less certain. While ancestors continue to violate this law, some portion of their innocent descendants must bear the con- sequences. The transmitted tendency, however, does not in all cases, and by virtue of its own inherent energy, produce the result. Some proximate cause is generally requisite ; some application by one's self of a torch to the train laid by another. No means, there- fore, either of prevention or of avoidance should be neglected." 340 Intellectual reader, remains there the shadow of a doubt that insanity is hereditary, and that even its various forms are so transmitted as to pervade entire families, generation after generation ? A tithe of the facts here adduced is suffi- cient to prove any position taken; and, considered collective- ly, must enforce upon every reflecting mind the conclusion that insanity is hereditary, and also that it assumes the various forms in descendants which it took in ancestors; that is, that like phrenological faculties, are deranged in different families. Nor are these facts more than a drop in the bucket compared with the number that exist. Look where you will, they throng upon you already classified at your hands by nature. The transmission of insanity is as much a law of things as that of scrofula, consumption, longevity, statue, form, or any other characteristic already established. Who will undertake to controvert a principle thus palpable ? What mathematical problem is demonstrated more absolutely ? Or what doctrine is more generally admitted, or less acted on, either by way of preventing, or in the formation of matrimo- 124 insanity hereditary. nial alliances ? And if our argument requires farther proof, it is to be found in its still greater accumulative force324 345. Other diseases are hereditary. Then why not this ? This malady is inherited, then why not all others 1 Though insanity is thus hereditary, yet not all the descend- ants of the deranged inherit this malady. Those who "take after" other ancestors than those deranged, are seldom subject to it, for reasons already given318. And even those who are constitutionally predisposed to derangement can escape by employing those preventives prescribed in " Physiology, Ani- mal and Mental"176. Those children, too, born while their parents were improving in health, and overcoming this ten- dency, will be less predisposed to it than those who received being and character while their parents were gradually be- coming more and more subject to its power. Yet these quali- fications will be found explained elsewhere. But insanity may attack those, all of whose ancestors were perfectly sane. This malady, like all others, can be induced at first341, else it would never have existed. The reverses in business of 1839 and 1842, domestic troubles, wars, and other powerful public excitements, sometimes unhinge the brain and minds of those already overtaxed, who, being more or less insane, are therefore liable to transmit this predisposition to their descendants, perhaps to be augmented by kindred causes as it descends, or to be obviated by right physiological regi- men when it is adopted340. It should, perhaps, be added, that the powerful incentives furnished by our national institutions, greatly enhance this predisposition. Half our population are partially beside themselves—in a perpetual fever of preternatural excitement, and both hungry and thirsty for some newer and still newer stimuli to feed its insatiate cravings. CHAPTER III. mental faculties and characteristics hereditary. SECTION I. the laws which entail the physiology, also transmit the mentality. 345. ARGUMENTATIVE EVIDENCE That progeny inherit the physical conditions of parentage is thus conclusively demonstrated. To the accumulative force of our proof, attention is once more invited324. Proving that likeness and shape are transmitted m, helps to prove that 'statue and strength are also entailed314315; and these positions once established, confirm every preceding, every succeeding position, and prove that marks, longevity, beauty, and all other physical peculiarities are descended from parents to offspring324. Establishing this great principle of hereditary entailment, goes far toward proving that diseases in like manner come under this general law of entailment338, and, besides rendering a far lower order and amount of evidence sufficient to establish this point, greatly increases the force of such proof. So, also, proving that consumption or scrofula is inherited,326327, not only confirms every preceding hereditary law, but also re- doubles the proof that every other disease is equally handed down from generation to generation. Nor would strictly ldgical argumenta:ion require that more than one physical quality or disease be proved to be transmitted; because analo- gy then shows that all others are governed by the same he- reditary laws which govern these—that since one is entailed, all are therefore equally so. 11* 126 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. Yet we have done more. Every position, thus far taken, has been demonstrated by an order and array of facts abund- antly sufficient, considered independently, to prove, beyond all reasonable evasion or doubt, each one in and of itself. How overwhelming the evidence, how absolutely impregna- ble, then, this inductive reasoning considered collectively ? Nor does it end with showing that the physiolgy is trans- mitted. It applies with increased momentum to the entail- ment of the mentality, to which our subject now brings us. Indeed, the preceding has been penned mainly in reference to the succeeding. Though the facts of the entailment of all the physical conditions, and especially of all diseases, are of vast moment in and of themselves, and intrinsically entitled to the practical consideration of every matrimonial candidate, yet they are mainly important by way of proving the far more momentous law, that the mental faculties and characteristics are also transmitted. They have been proved thus conclu- sively, mainly as laying a solid foundation in the nature of man upon which to build our superstructure, that mind as well as body is transmitted. And we have been thus minute and particular in noting these facts which are " known and read of all men," because they furnish such conclusive proof that the whole man is governed by the same laws of entail- ment. The descent of physical qualities has been proved thus incontestibly to be an ordinance of nature chiefly as base lines and angles to be applied to the transmissibility of the mental powers and characteristics. What relation, then, does the hereditary entailment of the physiology bear to that of the mentality 1 Man is an intellectual and moral no less than a physical being. Nor are these two departments of his nature strangers to each other; but are inter-related in the most perfectly re- ciprocal manner conceivable p ls I617 lss 156; and8 ^ 21°. Indeed, the physical was created to subserve the mental. The MiifD constitutes the man—the great object of human creation— while flesh and blood are only its habitation and servant. Since, therefore, the physiology is transmitted, and since the reciprocity between it and the mentality is perfect—since aa CHARACTER AND SHAPE HEREDITARY. 127 is either so is also the other, and since those laws which gov- ern either govern both, the descent from parents to offspring of the body, and all its multifarious conditions324345, necessa- rily implies and conclusively proves that of the mind and all its powers and characteristics. CHARACTER AS SHAPE, AND BOTH EQUALLY TRANSMISSIBLE. Moreover, character is as shape. Given forms of body always accompany certain instincts and mental predilections. Thus, the tiger has a fixed physiognomy or form of body, and also corresponding mental characteristics; and the leopard, lynx, panther, tiger-cat, catamount, and cat, partake of the general shape of the tiger, and all animals which thus resem- ble the tiger type of configuration—the entire feline genus and species—also resemble his type of mentality. And the more nearly or remotely in either, proportionally closely or distant- ly also in the other. Indeed, the cereal, pomological, and en- tire vegetable kingdoms conform to this law. All fish, all ruminating animals resemble all others of their species, and as far as animals approximate toward man in shape do they resemble him in character; of which the monkey, baboon, and ourang-outang tribes furnish pertinent proofs and examples. Do not African, Indian, and Circassian character always ac- company their respective physical conformations ? Indeed, are not all who are human in shape, also human in mentality, and all which is animal or vegetable in conformation, equally so in character ? Besides, can we not predicate character from shape ? Are not idiocy and superior talents, sincerity and cunning, good- ness and selfishness, nobleness and meanness, and most other mental characteristics, indicated in the form, features, and physiognomical expressions of their respective possessors ? And what is this—what all kindred indices of character*—but * See a series of articles on this most interesting subject, entitled " signs of charactkr," in the American Phrenological Journal, vols. VII., VIII., and IX., by the author, who hopes ultimately to prepare a work in eluci- dation of this law of things, aud show what mental characteristics accom- pany given forms of body and face. 128 the mentality transmitted. fixed coincidences between various shapes and their corres- ponding states of mind ? That shape is as structure, and structure as character, and therefore shape as character, is at- tested by universal observation throughout all departments of nature. That certain forms of the head always accompany corres- ponding powers and peculiarities of the mind, constitutes and is established by the science of Phrenology. In its appro- priate place the author has proved this doctrine to be founded in the nature of things—to embody those laws in harmony with which God created all animated nature. Assuming its truth—and this work is founded in such assumption—by prov- ing that family likenesses are transmitted, and of course the forms of the forehead as well as face312, we virtually proved that the forms of the foreheads of parents, as well as of the other parts of their faces, are transmitted to their descendants, and, by parity of reasoning, that the various forms of parental heads, as a whole, and of course the relative size of their phrenological faculties, are equally transmitted. And since given forms of forehead and head are both transmitted, and also accompany certain mental characteristics, of course the latter are transmitted by those same laws which entail the former. In short, the fact already conclusively established, that family likenesses and forms are transmitted, taken in connection with the truth of Phrenology, necessarily presup- poses and proves that the relative size of those various intel- lectual organs which give the forehead its form3'2, descend from parents to children, and of course those intellectual powers and predilections which Phrenology shows to accom- pany these forms. And since the relative size of a part of the phrenological organs, and, of course, relative energy of some of the mental faculties, is thus transmitted, of course all the phrenological organs and faculties, in all their various degrees of development, are equally transmitted. Since one is hered- itary, of course all are. That same law which entails any part, equally, and for the* same reason, hands down all. Indeed, those very laws, in all their respective applications, already shown to transmit the various physical conditions of ARGUMENTATIVE PROOF. 129 parents to offspring, equally transmit their mental likeness, their intellectual capabilities, and their moral character324. Is any farther proof thai mind is transmitted required ? Behold it in the fact already demonstrated of the hereditary descent of insanity. Nor of insanity alone ; but also of that particular form of it found in parentage. The posterity of parents deranged on property, or religion, or the domestic affec- tions, are usually insane on the same topics 344, and if the insan- ity takes on a suicidal caste, it runs in the same channel in the former 343. Every fact adduced to prove that insanity is he- reditary, proves that those same mental organs and faculties which were deranged in the ancestry were deranged in their descendants, and no others. The chapter on insanity demonstrates, by an order and amount of proof both irrefutable and absolute, that the in- sane mental characteristic is transmitted. Then why not all the other biases and powers of the mind ? On what principle one and not all ? How can hereditary law propagate one without therein and thereby entailing all ?324 p-17 The whole or nothing, is nature's universal motto. Moreover, these diversities of character and talents in men must have some cause. Education does not, cannot render one a natural painter, another a poet, another a mechanical genius, another fluent in speech, and others remarkable for other intellectual and moral idiosyncrasies, because they ap- pear prior to and often in the teeth of education. Was Ben- jamin West taught to paint ? Was he not rather whipped for painting, and obliged to steal away into the garret to fol- low his intense passion strong at birth ? Did education ren- der Patrick Henry eloquent ? No, but parentage did. As well argue that ducks love water and hens avoid it because taught to do so, or that education causes the infant to nurse, cry, and even breathe ! Are not hunger,"sensation, sight, cry- ing, affection, anger, laughing, fear, etc., innate, and prior to all education ? Indeed, how can a child without eyes be edu- cated to see, or without muscles to move, or without reason to think ? These, all our primary mental powers, must be created before education can have any data on which to operate. Edu- 130 the mentality hereditary. cation can only develop and direct what is born in and with us. Dr. Nott says, " Give me one hundred boys taken pro- miscuously and I will make then* all brave." Granted, be- cause all have more or less Combativeness by nature, which cultivation can increase; but how much more easily can some of them be renderf f. courageous than others, some mathe- matical, or mechanical, or imitative, or eloquent, or shrewd bargainers, etc., than others? Why? Because, though all human beings possess more or less of all the faculties, yet some inherit some of them, and others others, in greater or less degrees of power and activity. Our hereditary doctrine alone satisfactorily accounts for that almost infinite diversity seen among men. What cause more more appropriate ? And how perfectly in keeping with the es- tablished fact of hereditary transmission ! Everything in man which is constitutional is transmitted, because nature trusts no primitive mental or physical element to education, but renders its continuance certain by entailment. To leave it to educa- tion would be to leave it out; and the omission of any mental faculty, like that of any bone, muscle, or physical organ, would impair all the others, and well nigh spoil this perfect structure, man. No; it will not answer to leave the human mind a blank on which education and circumstances write all that is ; for this would soon obliterate all its primitive powers, to prevent which they are all entailed, and in that relative degree of energy in which they exist in parents. Not that education is valueless. Though it can create no primitive power, yet it can develop and increase hereditary ca- pabilities, as shown in " Education" and " Self-Improvement." But here its power ends. Let neither entailed nor educational influences be overrated, undervalued, neglected, or carried be- yond their appropriate limits, but let both, hand in hand, go on to achieve that greatest of all terrestrial works—human improvement and happiness. HUMAN NATURE ALWAYS ALIKE. 131 SECTION II. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF MANKIND AS A WHOLE, AND OF RACES, NATIONS, AND MASSES HEREDITARY. 346. UNIVERSALITY OF ALL THE MENTAL FACULTIES. But the converging principles, that since the mentality de- pends upon the physiology, and since the latter is hereditary, therefore the former must be equally so, are by no means the main or even the strongest proof of the transmissibility of the mental powers and characteristics. Facts, the most extensive in range and varied in kind, prove the hereditary descent of the mental qualities to be a fixed ordinance of nature. Thus, the entire human family have always evinced the same pri- mary elements as now—the same propensities, moral senti- ments, and intellectual capabilities; the same domestic affec- tions, appetite for food, spirit of resistance, love of money, power and glory, and fear of danger; the same sentiments of justice, kindness, and religious devotion; the same primary faculties of observation, memory of persons, places, colors, and events, as well as reasoning and communicating dispo- sition and capability. This, who questions? As far back as history, sacred or profane, furnishes any record of man, and his desires and pursuits, it shows that they have been from the beginning just what they now are. It shows that in spite of all those ever-diversified modes of government and educa- tion, opposite climates and circumstances, and the like, which have been perpetually modifying human character for so many ages, all races, nations, and individuals have alike bowed submissive at the shrine of beauty, been led willing captives by the all-conquering power of love, relished food and drink, defended rights and life, scrambled after property, loved honor and courted fame, fed and sheltered the benighted stranger, loved their children and friends, hated enemies, wor- shiped a Supreme Being of some sort, conceived and ex- pressed ideas, sung, laughed, adapted ways and means to ends, and manifested every primitive mental faculty now pos- 132 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. sessed. In short, so synonymous is universal human nature, that whoever has learned, or can operate on it at one time or place, can read and move it in all others. And since it has thus far remained fundamentally the same, will it not continue so while the race exists ? But how can this oneness be se- cured or accounted for except by hereditary influences ? Without that inflexible adherence to its original constitution thus secured, different circumstances, climates, educations, etc., would soon warp it, as they have language, so that various masses and nations would differ generically from each other, instead of, as now, being substantially alike. 347. THE MENTAL PECULIARITIES OF THE INDIAN RACE TRANSMITTED. " Lo the poor Indian, whose untutored mind Sees God in clouds, and hears him in the wind." Though this hereditary argument, drawn from the unity of human nature, is perfectly conclusive, yet the characteristics of the five races both furnish additional illustrations, and render assurance doubly sure. Though man's primitive mental faculties are alike, yet different races, masses, nations, and individuals, possess them in different degrees of develop- ment, and hence, while all mankind are alike in all that is fundamental, yet they differ in details of character and capability. Thus, the Indian is always cunning, revengeful, wild, and free. Nothing can subdue him. Enslave an Indian! Who ever saw his proud spirit subclued ? Torture him with your utmost ingenuity, and he laughs in your face, and taunts and defies you—his proud spirit absolutely indomitable. If it had been possible to subdue him, would not Caucasian cu- pidity long ago have pursued him throughout his native for- ests, as it chases the South American horse, and even now been scourging him with the lash of slavery ? You may kill his body, but his lofty soul never surrenders. This love of liberty is innate, as is also his gratitude for favors and re- venge for wrongs. He is always eloquent, but never for- giving. By nature he loves the chase, but hates to work, observes the stars and predicts the weather, but dislikes THE INDIANS. 133 books, and, though beaten " in a mortar with a pestle," yet he is an Indian still—so by birth and mental constitution, as well as physical, and unalterable by any concatenation of circumstances. That these characteristics are innate rather than educa- tional, is proved by his phrenology—always peculiar to him- self. The developments of the infant papoose—and the au- thor speaks from the personal inspection of hundreds from among various tribes—are essentially Indian, and partake of that same shortness from occiput to forehead, low and short coronal region, and breadth in the region of propensity, especially Destructiveness and Secretiveness, as seen in the accompanying drawings of the Indian chiefs Big Thunder and Meche-kele-a-tah. No. 9. Big Thunder. No. 10. Meche-kele-a-tah. An Indian is one at birth, and by nature, before rendered so by education, because papooses are as much Indian in char- acter before education has had time to fully mould their char- acters as they ever are, whereas if this difference were the result of education, their phrenology would resemble that of Caucasian infants, and become more and more Indian the longer they live. Their having Indian heads in infancy proves that they are Indian by nature, and not by training. This hereditary argument is still farther established bv the 12 134 the mentality transmitted. 348. MENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AFRICAN RACE. This race has a form of head peculiar to itself, as much as the Indian. It is long and narrow, while that of the copper. colored race is the reverse. It is also high at the crown, and so is that of mulattoes, in proportion to their African origin. The accompanying engraving of Hewlitt, a mulatto actor, will serve as a good general profile view of the African head. No. 11. Hewlitt, a Mulatto Actor. And this form of cranium appertains to colored infants equally with adults, which show it to be innate, not educational. Their predominant individual organs are Self-Esteem, Appro- bativeness, Cautiousness, Secretiveness, Tune, Language, Individuality, and Philoprogenitiveness, with less Combative- ness and Destructiveness. Hence their proverbial politeness, urbanity, excellence as waiters, love of ornament, swelling and swaggering propensities, timidity, eye-service, fondness for and patience with children, and consequent excellence as nurses, garrulity, and sometimes eloquence, and superior mu- sical passion and talents. And their style of music is so peculiar, that a practiced ear can generally select their songs THE CAUCASIAN AND MALAY RACES. 135 from those of all other nations. The structure of their sen- tences, and their modes of expression, are also peculiar to themselves. Their perceptives are usually strong, Causality less,* and temperament neither fine nor active. In short, they have a distinct mental character of their own, which is more or less apparent in mulattoes, in proportion to the amount of colored blood flowing in their veins, and which is as much innate as are their physical peculiarities308. And this Afri- can mentality will undoubtedly descend from sire to son, throughout all their generations, till this race, like the Indian, yields its place to those naturally superior. THE MENTALITIES OF THE CAUCASIAN AND MALAY RACES Are none the less striking in themselves, and self-evidently hereditary. The latter is coarse-grained, sluggish, and every way inferior throughout all their generations—so congeni- tally—while the former, in all nations and ages, have been bloodthirsty, oppressive, litigious, lecherous, selfish, capri- cious, acquisitive, ambitious, inventive, and intellectual. Who doubts that the various mental peculiarities of both these—of all the races—are as much hereditary—descended from father to son from the remotest ages—as their color, form, or other physical peculiarities?308309310 349. THE JEWISH MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. " And Abraham was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold." The national likeness of this nation has already been shown to be hereditary 3U. Their mental peculiarities are equally so. And their having kept themselves separate from all Gen- * This organ, and also the intellectual organs in general, are somewhat larger, comparatively, in African children than in adults; so that their intellectual inferiority is owing, in part, to want of culture. Yet this dif- ference is not sufficient to modify our hereditary argument, but it shows that we owe a great moral duty to this down-trodden race. The native African head is also superior to those born in this country, especially in the south; so that our republican institutions, every way calculated to improve humanity, actually tend to depreciate one important portion of it. The heads of heathen Africa superior to those of Christian and republican America! 136 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. tile nations, from time immemorial, as well as their possessing more strongly-marked characteristics than any other nation, renders this one of the very best fields for hereditary investi- gation. And our data is the more tangible, because of the great length of time covered by their national history. What, then, were the mental peculiarities of the founders of this race, and what have since been, and still are, their predomi- nant characteristics ? Acquisitiveness.—The first thing recorded of Abraham after his birth, is, that he took his wife and brother's son, " and all their substance which they had gathered"*—thus implying that they had been very industrious in accumulating " substance," and were unwilling to leave anything behind, though going so long a journey—from Egypt to Canaan. The next thing said of him is, that he " was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold."f "And Lot, also, which went with Abraham, had flocks, and herds, and tents. And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together, for their substance was exceeding great, so that they could not dwell together.":}: " And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly, and he is become great; and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men-servants, and maid-servants, and camels, and asses. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and rai- ment.'^ Abraham's " arming his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen," and smiting five kings, in order to restore Lot's " goods" and family, || shows this same all-pervading love of " substance." Isaac also evinced the same love of riches, and success in their accumulation. And Isaac " waxed great, and went for- ward, and grew until he became very great; for he had pos- sessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and great store of servants." The blessing he pronounced on Jacob, shows that he desired nothing but riches and power for his son—" There- fore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of * Gen. xii. 5. t Gen. xiii. 2, 5, 6. t Gen. xxiv. 34, 35. § Gen. xiv || Gen. xxvi. 13, 14. acquisitiveness of the jews. 137 the earth, and plenty of corn and wine." In blessing Esau, he again mentions "the fatness of the earth and dews of heaven ;"* thus showing how intensely he loved property for himself and his sons. And this shows why he became thus immensely wealthy. The old saying, "The gods help those who help themselves," applies to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and all this money-loving race. They were thus " blessed" in their substance, because they loved it with almost all their souls, and therefore put forth vigorous and well-directed—intellect being also large—efforts to accumu- late, and this poured their immense riches into their laps. If they had sat supinely in the shade, think you they had been equally " blessed ?" Laban, another of this acquisitive family, showed the same grasping love of riches in requiring Jacob to serve seven years for Rachel, and cheating him by giving Leah, and then requiring seven years additional, servitude before he could possess the idol of his affections—a hard bargain indeed. It next became Jacob's turn to play the Jew. He had ren- dered himself so serviceable to Laban—ample proof of large Acquisitiveness -f—that Laban bantered Jacob to stay longer, and Jacob shaped the bargain greatly to his own advantage, so that he " increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maid-servants, and men-servants, and camels, and asses."^ Laban's sons evinced the same property-loving disposition in envying Jacob,§ as did Rachel, also, in stealing her father's gods—a great idea this—and then lying to hide it. Joseph's Acquisitiveness stored up in vast quantities the surplus corn of Egypt, and then bought up all the gold and silver, all the cattle and effects, all the lands, and even all the persons of the greatest nation on earth as slaves ; by far the grandest speculation ever made, and this by the son of that shrewd bargainer Jacob, grandson of the richest man of all the east, Isaac, and great-grandson of him who amassed such immense treasures of gold, silver, and cattle.|j His * Gen. xxvii. 28, 39. t Gen. xxxi. 36-42. t Gen. xxx. 27-43. $ Gen. xxxi. 1. 11 Gen. xlvii. 12* 138 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. placing his kinsmen in the fattest of the land of Egypt, is equally in point, as is also the rapid increase of the Israelites in cattle and substance while they remained unmolested. The manner in which this acquisitive people left Egypt, their taking along with them the whole of their substance, " very much cattle," besides " borrowing " all they could of the Egyptians, especially jewelry, so as even to spoil them,* shows that they inherited the Acquisitiveness of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, along with that of the god-stealing Rachel. Reuben and Gad having " very much cattle,"f and the Israelites saving " all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron," at the taking of Jericho, and making them public property by putting them " into the treasury of the house of the Lord ; J Achan coveting and taking " a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold ;"§ the Israelites sparing " the cattle and spoils of Ai a prey unto themselves,"|| and sacking thirty-one kingdoms and cities—murdering all the unoffending inhabitants, and plun- dering all the goods, cattle, and precious metals they con- tained ;H the immense treasures given by David and the elders of Israel to build the temple, namely "seventeen thousand talents of silver, over eight thousand talents of gold, and one hundred thousand talents of iron," and the immense expendi- tures lavished on that, by far the most magnificent edifice ever erected, as well as its having been furnished with many mil- lions of vessels of pure gold and silver ; all these, and many kindred items of Jewish history, show how extraordinary their desire and capacity to acquire and hoard riches, especially gold, silver, precious stones, and cattle, those idols both of their ancestors up to Abraham, and descendants down to our own times. In short, what other nation, ancient or modern, ever possessed Acquisitiveness in a degree at all to be com- pared with this accumulating nation from Abraham and Lot, throughout all their branches, all the way along down their history to the destruction of Jerusalem ? Nor did it cease with that catastrophe, but lives and rages * Ex. xii. t Num. xxxii. 1. t Josh. vi. 24. $ Josh. vii. 21. |j Josh. viii. 7. If Josh. x. and xii. acquisitiveness of the jews. 139 quite as powerfully in modern Jewry. Shakespeare's graphic description of Shylock, is Jewish character to the \ery life, both ancient and modern. Who are the richest men of the old world ? The Rothschilds, and they are Jews. Who is one of the richest men in Philadelphia ? Moss, who began life a street-pedler of thread, needles, toys, trinkets, glass, and the like, yet is now worth many hundred thousands, and his head is broader at Acquisitiveness than any other I ever saw. Who are the richest men of Baltimore ? The Cohens, also Jews. A missionary correspondent, many years ago, wrote that, in passing through the Jewish portion of some foreign city, he was beset, entreated, and finally compelled to purchase of them, and travellers generally attest the same. One can hardly walk Chatham-street, New York, without being asked to purchase, or else taken by the arm, and half coaxed, half forced into one of their shops to make a purchase. Or if he bid a few cents on a knife, or valise, it is struck down, and he required, and every device used to compel him, to pay that number of cents on hundreds of trinkets, which they claim to be also included in the bid ; or the dropped pocket-book game is attempted, and a hundred similar gouge games are proba- bly practiced daily in this street of knaves, on unsuspecting victims. Look again at their pawnbrokers' frauds, their usury, and those innumerable devices to which they resort for extortionary purposes, and say whether they have not inherited Abraham's love of riches, together with Jacob's craft, and Rachel's and Rebekah's deception. And what still farther confirms our argument, that their extraordinary Acquisitive- ness has been transmitted from Abraham's father throughout all their generations to the present day, is, that they now hoard the same kinds of property laid up by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; namely, " gold, silver, precious stones, jewelry,"— doubtless so named because a staple article of Jewish traffic —" lands, flocks, herds, and garments." Who ever knew Jews deal much in other species of property ? And what can be more evident than that this extraordinary desire for acquisition has been transmitted from the founders of the nation, all along down to the Jews as we now see them ? 140 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. Nor excessive Acquisitiveness merely, but also Secretive. ness. Abraham practiced virtual deception in denying his wife,* and she in confirming it, and virtually consenting to be Pharaoh's concubine. Isaac practiced a similar deception in regard to Rebekah,f and she upon Isaac in disguising her fa- vorite, Jacob, and securing that blessing for him, which Isaac meant for Esau.:]: Jacob, too, told a deliberate falsehood and then repeated it, in the face of Isaac's direct question, "Art thou my very son Esau ?"§ She still farther completed her cunning schemes by getting Isaac to send Jacob to Laban under pretence of getting a wife, whereas she desired it to shield Jacob from Esau's contemplated fratricide. || Laban, also, another of this deceitful race, after solemnly pledging Rachel to Jacob, deceived him by bestowing Leah; and Rachel evinced the same cunning both in stealing her father's gods, hiding them under her, and then pretending to be unable to rise. All through life Jacob evinced this decep- tive disposition. Nor had he any real ground of complaint when his sons, after having sold their own brother a slave to foreigners—another acquisitive manifestation—told a prac- tical falsehood—the worst form of deception—by dipping Jo- seph's fancy coat in blood, and sending it to their father, say- ing "This have we found."IT Thus much of the " fathers" of this race: what of their descendants ? Do Jews pretend to tell the truth ? We have already alluded to their deceptions in trade. They rarely pretend to tell the truth where they think they can gain by falsehood. Probably a more deceitful nation never existed, except the North American Indians, who are probably the descendants of the ten tribes. At least the instinctive cunning of both argues a kindred origin. * Gen. xii. 11, 13, 18, 19. t Gen. xxvi. 7, 9. J Gen. xxvii. 15, 16,17. § Gen. xxvii. 22, 24; Gen. xxix. 22-26; Gen. xxvi. 35. H Gen. xxvii. 42-46. H Gen. xxxvii. 31, 32, 33. THEIR DESTRUCTIVENESS AND INHABITIVENESS. 141 THE DESTRUCTIVENESS OF THE JEWS Is and always has been almost equally conspicuous. Abraham put five kings to the sword. Esau plotted against his brother's life. The sons of Jacob would have murdered their own brother in cold blood, but for the intercession of Reuben. Simeon and Levi desperately avenged the indignity offered their sister Dinah. Look at the massacre perpetrated on the unoffending inhabitants of the land they pillaged. David led a lawless, plundering life before he came to the throne, and was a man of war and blood from his youth. Their civil wars, and the massacre of Benjamin, were most horrible. Their internal carnage at the final destruction of Jerusalem is with- out a parallel for barbarity. Shakespeare's description of Shylock's dire spirit of revenge is a faithful portrait of modern Jews. Their anger is terrible, and easily kindled, and their organs of Combativeness and Destructiveness are immense. Is not the unwonted energy of these organs from Abraham all along down to the present day hereditary ? How else can it be satisfactorily accounted for ? MECHANICAL INGENUITY Has been remarkable throughout the entire history of this people. This was evinced in the manufactured those orna- ments and fancy garments sent by Abraham to Rebekah, bestow- ed by Jacob on Joseph, and worn among the Jews in Egypt; in the construction of the most splendid architectural piles the sun ever shone upon; in the carvings upon the walls and ves- sels of these magnificent buildings ; in the manufacture of jew- elry, and in the extraordinary ingenuity of modern Jews. The Jew, whose likeness illustrates the Jewish physiognomy, was one of the best artists I ever saw touch pencil or etching tools. Scarcely a Jew will be found without extraordinary Constructiveness, in head and character—evidently handed down by inheritance from Abraham to 1847, and to be trans- mitted as long as this extraordinary nation survives. THE INHABITIVENESS OF THE JEWS, Ancient and modern, has been equally conspicuous. Abra- ham bought a family burying-ground, in which he buried Sarah, and insisted on being buried there himself. Isaac directed his 142 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. own burial in the same plot, and Rebekah and Leah were also buried there. Jacob made Joseph swear to bury his bones in this sepulchre of his father's, and Joseph, in turn, willed and secured the interment of his own body in the same hallowed spot. Nor did four hundred years of foreign residence efface the love of their descendants for Canaan, but the whole nation sighed for the land of their fathers, and finally undertook and accomplished a forty years journey and desperate war in order to effect their return. How often does their national history mention "the promised land?" How piteous the • lamentations of Jewish captives for their native land? "By I the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down ; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion." " How can we sing the songs of Zion in a strange land ?" The parceling out of their lands and rendering them inalienable in their families, is also in point. And the value set, even now, by this outcast nation upon Jerusalem and Canaan is beyond all price ; nor have they yet given up their always-contemplated return. Nor have I ever observed the inhabitive organ in any Jew, without finding it very large.* THE HOSPITALITY OF THE JEWS Has alway#been conspicuous. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were all remarkable for entertaining strangers.f Lot's hos- pitality to the angels ;$ Rebekah's watering the camels of : Abraham's servants, Laban's generous entertainment of this [ host ;§ the old man whose mal-treatment occasioned the civil ' war almost fatal to Benjamin ;|| their having had no taverns, but inviting all who sat by the way-side after sunset into their tents, and their protection of their guests—all and much more to the same effect, show how remarkable this nation have always been for their hospitality. Whether or not modern Jews evince this disposition, is left for those to say who are ( acquainted personally with their domestic habits touching this point. * The great size of this organ and power of this home feeling in In- dians, goes to confirm the identity of the two races. t Gen. xviii. 1-8. t Gen. xix. 1-3. $ Gen. xxiv. 15-23, and 31-55. || Judges, xix. THEIR MORAL AND INTELLECTUAL FACULTIES. 143 THE VENERATION AND MARVELLOUSNESS OF JEWS, Next to their Acquisitiveness, has ever been, and still is, their strongest national peculiarity. What other man through- out the annals of our race, has ever equalled Abraham for devout piety and close communion with God ? Wherever he pitched his tent, " there he built an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord." To quote all said of his religious faith and observances, would be to embrace his entire history not already cited. Isaac also possessed, undoubtedly by inheritance, this same religious fervor.* And so did Jacob, f of which his wrestling with the angel is an example. ^ The religious zeal of Joseph, and the revelations made to Moses and Aaron, show that they also inherited the same religious predisposition. In short, the scrupulous observance, by this whole nation, of their pass- over, circumcision, sacrifices, and other religious ordinances, as well as their tenacious adherence to the religion of their fathers, all confirm its hereditary entailment. The credulity of this whole nation in marvellous stories is also apparent throughout the Bible account of them. Taci- tus, alluding to some witch story, says in effect: " Tell that to Apella the Jew; he will swallow it all, but we know better." I have found Veneration and Spirituality large in the heads of all the Jews examined. Abraham must have had it immensely developed, as this gave him his vision-seeing capability.§ THE SUPERIOR INTELLECTUALITY OF JEWS. Is equally in point, though it, as it generally unites with Acquisitiveness, gives them their remarkable pecuniary sa- gacity. Their memories are uncommonly retentive. Some of our best oriental scholars and linguists are Jews. They were also among the first to commit their national history to writing, and generally possess clear heads and strong minds. But enough for our argument. What kind, what amount of inductive proof—the highest order of evidence—could * Gen. xxvi. 25. t Gen. xxviii. 16-22. t Gen. xxxii. and xxxv. $ See " Religion, Natural and Revealed," the section on Spirituality. 144 THE MENTALITY TRANSMITTED. more effectually establish any conclusion whatever, than this array of converging facts, transpiring all along down through- out the postdiluvian annals, establishes the principle, that mental qualities are transmitted ? What reasoning mind can doubt this conclusion, much less controvert it ? Does not nature transmit the mentality, as well as the physiology, and along with it 1 Yet to argue this point is superfluous; we pass to its farther elucidation. 350. THE CHINESE AND HINDOOS Have been remarkable for their uniformity or fixedness of character from time immemorial. Modern Chinese are but tran- scripts of their ancestors. Their phrenological developments, also, are remarkably uniform. The principal difference con- sists in those of different avocations. And since father, son, and son's son, throughout all their generations, follow the same occupations, this uniformity is undoubtedly, to a great extent, the product of hereditary laws. * What these developments are, may be learned from Vol. IV. of the " American Phre- nological Journal." This uniformity is sufficient for our present inquiry, and is so marked, that I should know espe- cially the Hindoo skull wherever I saw it. -351. THE FRENCH, SPANISH, DANES, GERMANS, ENGLISH, AND SCOTCH, All have their national form of heads. The French head is generally excessive at Approbativeness, yet deficient at Self-Esteem, and less high and long than the English. The Spanish head is very wide, but short, and high in the crown, and the Portuguese quite like them. The German head is wide, rather short, remarkably full or rounding, large at Combativeness and Destructiveness, fairly developed at the crown, and at Causality and Music, * Minute observations on the developments of the various castes of the eastern world would be most instructive and delightful; and the author does not despair of entering this new but rich field of inquiry, both phrenological and hereditary. Will not phrenologists embrace all poss> ble opportunities of ascertaining the precise developments of these differ- ent castes ? naitonal characteristics. 145 and very wide and broad at Conscientiousness. Cautious- ness is usually very large. I can generally designate Ger- mans by their heads. The Swiss head bears a tolerably close resemblance to the German, also the Prussian and Polish. The Russian is more square in formation. The forehead is generally wide; Causality and Comparison are ample, and the propensities all strong. The Danish head bears a tolerably close resemblance to the English, though the latter, being compounded of Normans, Danes, Scotch, and many other nations, is les^ uniform than that of any other nation, just as are also their national fea- tures, color of hair, and the like. The Welsh head always runs far back in the crown, is often long, and unusually developed at Veneration. This great development of the coronal region gave their ancestors that love of liberty which made them flee to their mountain fastnesses, rather than submit to tyrants. The Scotch usually have ample foreheads, and are well-de- veloped, especially at Causality and Conscientiousness. Hence their love of theological metaphysics, and their sound prac- tical sense. The Irish usually have ample Combativeness, and a fervid temperament. Hence their irascibility. In short, is it a matter of doubt that different nations pos- sess different characteristics ? Or that their respective men- tal traits are transmitted, as their physiognomies have al- ready been shown to be ?310 National educations doubtless contribute to form national character, yet do not alone control it, because, remove a Jew where you will, and educate him as you may, and he is a Jew still. And thus of Irishmen, Spaniards, Chinese, and their children after them. National traits are therefore innate. 13 146 IDIOCY hereditary. SECTION III. IDIOCY AND THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. 352. THE EMERSONS, AND OTHER IDIOTS. No. 12. Emerson, an Idiot. The preceding engraving is an accurate likeness of an idiot who does not know enough to feed himself. He has another brother in the same condition, and two sisters below mediocrity. The two brothers look very much alike, and are very coarsely organized. Their narrow and retiring fore- heads, and coarse temperaments, show that the causes of their idiocy were hereditary conditions. They also illustrate our doctrine of hereditary resemblance, already adduced312. In the Wilmington, Del., poor-house, in 1839, I saw a mother and illegitimate daughter, both idiotic. They resem- bled each other in likeness, and both had deficient foreheads. Causality was scarcely larger in either than in orang- outangs. A man employed in the Bible establishment, New York, said that about ten years ago he knew an idiot in Chester idiocy hereditary. 147 county, Pa., so low in the scale of mentality, that he could neither talk, nor laugh, nor chew, nor even swallow. He lived exclusively on gruel, put into his mouth so as to run down his throat of itself. He made but two noises—a kind of grunt when hungry, and a humming noise, as if attempt- ing to sing—yet manifested no other signs of intelligence, ex- cept that when he heard music he would lay down and roll, as if it gave him pleasure. He was extremely filthy, and moved little. His brother was deficient, and his mother none of the smartest—indeed, considered a flat—and her sister knew barely enough to warm his porridge when he grunted, and pour it down his throat, but did nothing else. One grand- parent was probably a flat318, and hence the inferiority of mother, sister, and son. Mr. Coffin mentions an F---- family, all of whom, for several generations, are stupid, except that one of them mar- ried a smart woman, and has tolerably bright children. Mr. P----, of P----, Pa., said that with his utmost en- deavors he could never teach any of his scholars belonging to one family to read, and that they were all generally regarded as flats. The children of both their parents, by previous marriages, were ordinarily intelligent, yet all the products of this union were simpletons. It deserves remark, however, in this connection, though more fully accounted for in " Parentage"—the next volume— that some unions produce children inferior to both parents, and others superior to either parent, the reason of which is there given. Other causes than hereditary influences often induce idiocy, as will be seen in the author's work on " Maternity," yet this does not prevent hereditary idiocy. Still, here also, as in cases of disease 326 327, when the idiocy becomes so extreme, that its subject cannot enjoy and promote enjoyment, nature inter- dicts his transmitting his unfortunate condition, by rendering him childless, for reasons already given340. 148 the propensities hereditary. 353. AMATIVENESS TRANSMITTED. Unless this element is hereditary, it could neither- be as universally developed as now, nor as prolific. Though all possess it in a greater or less degree, yet some families, gene- ration after generation, are excessively amorous, and other families phlegmatic in this respect. David, not content with scores of wives and concubines, conceived such a passion for Bathsheba, that he plotted and committed virtual murder on Uriah, in order to indulge it; and Solomon's numerous wives and concubines attest the uncommon energy of this impulse. Indeed, the Jews generally, and their kings especially, judg. ing from the Bible account of them, were notorious for their sexual indulgence. The royal family of England, from time immemorial, have been notoriously licentious; and its recent rapid augmenta- tion evinces the continuance of its extraordinary amative energy. AARON BUKR AND HIS UNCLE PIEKFONT EDWARDS Were among the most remarkable men on record, for the power of this passion, and size of its organ. So notorious was the latter, that in New York, where he flourished above half a century ago, his name is still associated with libertin- ism the most unbridled, and profligacy the most wanton—so much so that a recent popular novel was founded on one of his seductions. In this respect he probably had no equal except his nephew Aaron Burr, both of whom boasted that they could seduce any woman, however virtuous, to whom they could gain an introduction. Indeed, many readers will still remember that when the letters, expressive of passion, ad- dressed to him by women in the first circles of the land, were announced for publication, their proposed publisher was re- peatedly threatened with death if he dared to bring them to light. They are said to be more fervid than anything of the kind ever printed. For ages to come will these two names, especially the latter, be coupled with seductions the most art- ful and successful, with sexual indulgence the most gross and unparalleled on record, as well as with the ruin of females AMATIVENESS. 149 the most lovely and unblemished before they encountered these arch seducers. Long may it be before another as foul de- stroyer of chastity again scourges the earth ! That this extraordinary development of this passion was inherited, is evident from their relationship—uncle and nephew—and by the similarity observable in the form of the lower and back portions of their heads, as seen in the accom- panying engravings of both. No. 13. Aaron Burr. In phrenological language, Amativeness was enormously developed in both, and, this science being true, of course the unusual development of their cerebellums, and the consequent power of this passion, was inherited. In several of the relatives of these notorious sinners, whom the author has known personally, and examined professionally, this organ and its faculty have been excessive, and without doubt the same is true of other branches of this lecherous family. The son of a frail woman in New York, at four years old, had this organ enormously developed, and its manifestation 13* 150 THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. No. 14. Pierpont Edwards. was in proportion. The children in our alms-houses and houses of refuge usually have enormous Amativeness, and generally licentious parents; and I have yet to see the first illegitimate child in which this organ is not excessive.* A REMARKABLE CASE. More than a hundred years ago, a man eloped with a woman known to be unusually amorous, when he was ninety-five years old, and had four wives then living ! One of his de- scendants of the fifth generation—a public man of great intel- lectual capabilities—spends many thousands annually on kept mistresses, though near seventy, and has supported an estab- lishment of lewd women, for his own special gratification, most of his life. Every one of his sisters became mothers * See an explanation of the cause of this in " Love and Parentage, Section II. AMATIVENESS. 151 before they became wives, and in every way evinced extreme sexual passion. His niece became a mother before she was fourteen, by her cousin. All the males of this family are ex- cessively sensual, and most of the females. The descendants of the old stock are exceedingly numerous, and their families large. THE INCESTUOUS PROPENSITY TRANSMITTED. A father in Portland, Maine, committed this vile crime with his own daughter, and their heir committed this same crime with his own mother! The product of this double incest, when thirteen, was sent to the State prison for tying up a play- mate and rendering him a eunuch. This was the boy whose head was examined phrenologically by John Neal, before the jury, mentioned in the papers a few years ago, in which Destructiveness was found to be enormously developed. Is not this crime prohibited in the Scriptures because it de- generates and depraves its product as well as its participators ? DEFICIENT AMATIVENESS. This faculty is often found deficient in whole families. All the females of one family declare themselves unable to ex- perience this species of pleasure. Mrs. C. of P----, N. H., made a miserable wife because of its deficiency, and her sis- ter declared her general disgust toward men. Many like cases might be cited, but those already adduced are amply sufficient, both as proofs and illustrations of our subject. It only remains to draw an important practical inference. Those who would possess a connubial partner, highly en- dowed with this essential element of conjugal happiness, may be sure of procuring it, if they choose one from a family en- dowed with it, and if the object of their choice resemble this amorous family. The converse of this rule will secure one deficient or phlegmatic in this respect. THE TWIN-BEARING TENDENCY AND HAVING LARGE FAMILIES Are also propagated. Dr. Kimball, of Sacket's Harbor, after narrating a striking instance of excessive Amativeness in a French woman and her daughter, proceeds as follows:— " The sister ot a man named Boyer, living in B----ville, had twins twice. One of Boyer's sisters married a Mr. Flagg, and died in her first accouchement, being delivered of one living twin before 152 THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. she died, the other remaining unborn. A son of Boyer—and this principle descends in both the male and the female line—married a Miss Hughes, who, after having four or five single births, was de- livered of three children at one birth. Hughes, a brother of this last Boyer's sister, who, after having three or four single births in as many years, had twins, on account of which Hughes left her, and lived clandestinely with another woman, by whom he soon after had three children at one birth." Verily, these Hughes and Boyers fulfil the first command- ment in the Bible, " Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth," with a vengeance. Can it be that the marriage of two families, each of which are accustomed to have twins, causes the birth of triplets ? Blundell says that a lady related to one of his pupils, had four children at one birth, and that three of the sisters of this prolific woman, had either twins or triples. Dr. K. also states, that having twins descends in his own family, and mentions some other cases. But facts of this class are too abundant to require specification; for almost or quite all parents who have twins, will be found to inherit this predisposition from their parents, one or both, or else to be related to those that have twins. Some animals always have twins, and certain sheep and their progeny, generation after generation, bear twins. Even some kinds of fruit-trees have duplicates on one stem; of which the Washington Belmar plum furnishes an example. Daniel Aiken died in Wexford, Canada West, a few weeks since, aged 120 years. He had during his life contracted seven marriages, and had 570 grandchildren and great-grand- children—370 'boys and 200 girls ! Those who belong to large families—especially females— generally have large families themselves, unless the mother becomes feeble ; but where both parents are from small fami- lies, they usually have few children. So, too, whole families, in all their branches, will frequently be found to have just about the same number of children. Of this the descendants of the Alden family, already mentioned3'9, furnish examples, the following being some of the numbers of the children—13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 15, 7, 7, 7, 9, 8, 8, 9, 19, 9, etc. Several kindred examples are interspersed throughout Longevity319. THE SOCIAL AFFECTIONS. 153 354. THE OTHER SOCIAL FACULTIES Are equally hereditary. The author knows a little girl who is passionately fond of cats. To play with them gives her the greatest delight4 and the taking of them from her acute pain. Neither her father nor mother fancy this animal, but her maternal grandmother was extremely fond of them, often took them to bed with her, and was almost cat-crazy. This child takes after her mother, and the mother after her mother, so that the child resembles that grandmother from whom she inherited this feline attachment3'21. Thus it appears that chil- dren inherit not only the relative energy of particular organs, but also their direction—not only large Philoprogenitiveness, but also a love for that particular kind of pet loved by the ancestry. A sister of this girl also loves cats exceedingly, yet takes her form of head and face from her paternal grandfather Yet she inherits extreme sensitiveness from her mother and mater- nal grandmother, from whom she inherits the love of cats— thus taking after both parents. The Israelites, from shepherds Abraham, Lot, and Laban, through cattle-loving Isaac, Jacob, Esau, David, and all their tribes, inherited a strong propensity to rear " flocks and herds," in which they excelled, and on which they mainly subsisted. The love of the Swiss, Welch, and Highland Scotch for their native hills and vales, and the home-sickness so common to the former who leave them, is doubtless in part inherited, as is also the strong attachment of some families to the old homestead, or whatever place they reside, marked instances of which everywhere abound. Some families, as far as they can be traced, evince great affection for one another and unusual love of family, while others care for neither relatives nor friends. Facts in proof of these points are so abundant, wherever observations are made, that isolated illustrations are unnecessary. Our prin- ciple that the relative energy of the domestic affections is hereditary, is indubitable—a law of transmission palpable to 154 THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. all observers. Hence, one of the very best guarantees of affec- tion and devotion to family in a daughter, is a devoted and affectionate mother. 355. COMBATIVENESS AND DESTRUCTIVENESS TRANSMITTED. William Hearn of Little Creek Hundred, Del., murdered his own son by beating out his brains with an axe, in the night, because this destructive son threatened to murder father and mother, and burn the house. PATTY CANNON AND HER FATHER AND BROTHER. This notorious woman shed human blood as lavishly as if it had been water. She procured and held in subjection a desperate gang, whose sole business was to perpetrate the robberies and murders she planned, in which she generally took the lead, and frequently perpetrated murders single handed in order to rob. One of this gang was afterwards executed, and under the gallows disclosed her atrocity. Her excessive Amativeness was her coy-duck with which to allure victims within her reach, and retain them till she could dispatch them. She fitted out a kidnapping vessel to Philadelphia, and with negro stool-pigeons who mingled with the colored people of the city, and under various pretences decoyed them on board, she kidnapped and transported first to her prison castle and thence into slavery hundreds of free negroes. Those who were decoyed on board, but were too old or infirm to bring much, were unceremoniously drowned. And infants, captured with their mothers, which by their cry- ing endangered her safety, were mercilessly knocked in the head with a loaded whip made for this express purpose. Several infant skeletons were disinterred in her garden after her capture. For years after her crimes were publicly known, this resolute woman and her desperate gang kept the officers of the law at bay, but was finally captured after a desperate resistance, and committed suicide in prison. A more atrocious robber and murderess probably never existed, at least in our country. Her Destructiveness, and also Acquisitiveness, as well as Amativeness, were enormous, as seen in the accompanying PATTY CANNON. 155 engravings of her skull, which can be seen in the author's cabinet.* SIDE VIEW. BACK VIEW. No. 16. Patty Cannon. The father of this human fiend, becoming exasperated with a neighbor about some money matters, went into a shop where this enemy worked, and picking up a suitable piece of timber, struck him on the head and killed him, for which he was executed. Her brother committed a crime which the laws then * For a more particular account of this extraordinary woman, see the Phrenological Almanac for 1811, or Journal for 1840. 156 'THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. punished with death, and followed his father to the scaffold, being every way a very bad man. Her sister Betsey, who married Bat. Twiford, was one of the most violent tempered, implacable, and revengeful of women, notoriously licentious, and known to be guilty of every crime but murder, of which she was suspected. Her tongue was the most bitter and sarcastic imaginable, and she was unparalleled, far and wide, for the most foul-mouthed abuse and shocking profanity. Her Amativeness and Destructiveness, like those of her sis- ter Patty, were extraordinarily developed, as seen in the fol- lowing engraving. The resemblance of these skulls to each other is striking. No. 17. Betsy Cannon. One of the descendants of one of these women was tried in Delaware, about 1840, for some aggravated crime—I think for murder. The mother of these depraved women was large and fleshy, and good-natured, yet accused of manifesting undue Ama- tiveness. This passion she transmitted to her daughters, who inherited also their Destructiveness from their father, and hence their wantonness, revengefulness, and murderous ferocity. NERO AND HIS ANCESTRY. What one man, whose crimes history has recorded, ever committed enormities as numerous or aggravated as those perpetrated by this human fiend. What man of wealth or worth did he not doom to death, and his effects to con- nero's ancestry. 157 fiscation ? even his venerable tutor Seneca, the erudite scholar and profound philosopher not excepted ! What good deed did he ever do ? What crime, and in its greatest excess and enormity, did he not perpetrate ! Even his own mother, to whom he was indebted for his crown as well as life, after his repeated plots for taking her life had failed, finally died by the matricidal hands of her monster son ' Nor did he No. 18. Nero. heed her piteous supplications for life. His own wife, too, a most illustrious woman, banished, and then murdered, and supplanted by that notorious harlot Poppea ! All Rome laid in ashes by his command ! The iron empire destroyed by him ! What was, then, his parentage ? Caligula, whose atrocities knew no parallel except in his brothers'son, who wished his whole empire had but one neck, 14 158 THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. that he might cut it off, was his uncle, and Agrippina, the very worst woman on record—most violent in her hatred and revenge, and one who plotted and perpetrated the death of her own children, in order to place Nero on the Caesarian throne—his mother ! His father, Cneius Domitius, was one of the worst of men, and his paternal grandfather, Lucius Domitius iEnobardus, was extravagant, impetuous, proud, revengeful, violent, and cruel. His maternal grandmother, Agrippina, was violent and implacable, and exceedingly am- bitious, and her mother, Julia—Nero's great-grandmother on his mother's side, from whom he inherited most of his vices— was the daughter of Augustus Caesar, and a dissolute, grossly sensual, and abandoned woman. Let it be borne in mind' that the Caesars were rendered what they were, mainly by their excessive propensities, direct- No. 19. VlTELLIUS. BYRON AND OTHERS. 159 ed by unbridled ambition. Their passions were enhanced by the largest possible indulgence, and incessant civil or foreign wars; and it would seem that all the ambition, along with all the ferocity and sensuality of all the Caesars, descended to this last heir of all their vices as well as their crown. The truth of the laws of transmission, under discussion, admitted, what could have been expected of the Caesars but the parents of Nero, and what of these parents but that monster fiend to whom they gave being 1 The glutton Vitellius, who expended at the annual rate of 8100,000,000 on his table alone, and would soon have eaten up the resources of the entire Roman empire, was one of this Caesarian family. He sat down to some 10,000 different dishes at a single meal ! The accompanying engraving of this emperor evinces a general resemblance to Nero, especially in the coarse and sensual form and texture of his physiology. THE INHABITANTS OF NEW SOUTH WALES. Have been parented mainly by criminals, and their general degradation and viciousness is in perfect keeping with our doctrines. THE MOTHER OF BYRON Was most violent-tempered, and his father most sensual and abandoned, and their son inherited the high temper and mis- anthropy of the former, and the sensuality of the latter. Her choler ran so high as to render her sick after any of its out- breaks. The particulars of this case are directly in point, yet, as they are already on record, they need not be repeated, especially as our object is to cite unpublished facts, rather than compile those already in print. ARCHIBALD AND HECTOR M'NEIL, Brothers, who came from Scotland above a hundred yours ago, possessed extraordinary physical strength, great personal courage, and an insatiable love of fighting in the ring. They would go any distance to have a fight, or meet any wrestling competitor who might accept their standing and universal challenge to both, yet found no equals in either. Hector's only son was tremendous in both strength3U and 14* 160 THE PROPENSITIES HEREDITARY. fighting, as were also his sons, many of whom have removed westward. A hale,.hearty, thick-set, strong-muscled, commanding, fine- looking granddaughter of Archibald McNeil, had two sons, both large, thick-set, strong, noble-looking, and powerful men, weighing some two hundred and twenty, and never sick, who disdained to fight, and minded their own affairs, but were highly combative and when insulted, would knock down their insulter instantly, almost while speaking, and unconsciously at the time. They found no equals in wrestling. In examining a son of one of these men, I found unusual Destructiveness, Self-Esteem, and Firmness, and described his character accordingly. This lad, when only five years old, on being denied something he wanted, became enraged, and came swelling and frothing with wrath into the house, exclaim- ing, " I will tear this house down, and I can do it;" and suit- ing the action to the word, he caught up a chair and dashed it upon the floor, as though he would smash everything to pieces. His temper, when once roused, was uncontrollable and outrageous. An- older son, when six years of age, was insulted by a boy of eleven, when, giving his hat and coat in charge of his younger brother above-mentioned, and exclaim- ing, " I'll not take dat," he fell upon this boy, nearly twice his age, with his fists and feet, while this younger brother, leav- ing hat and coat to their fate, commenced to kick and strike with all his might, and thus they vanquished one older than both together. Both these sons resembled their father, and he his mother, and she her grandfather Archibald. A paternal cousin of these courageous lads is exceedingly destructive, and burns, breaks, tears, and destroys all he can lay hold of, beside possessing a most violent temper. Both Archibald and Hector were remarkable for their cool- ness and self-possession in times of danger. So were all their children. So was the matron granddaughter, and both her sons, and the three grandsons mentioned. All the de- scendants, as far as traced, were always cool and courageous. One of these combative descendants married a woman who belonged to a mild and sweet-dispositioned family. One of FREDERICK II. AND SCOTT. 161 their children inherited the resolution, sternness, and violent disposition of the McNeils, along with their corresponding phrenological developments, while the other child possessed the mother's amiability and sweetness, and also small Com- bativeness, Destructiveness, and Hope, together with a melan- choly cast of mind. FREDERICK THE GREAT Inherited his haughty, imperious, harsh, overbearing, and destructive spirit from his father, Frederick William, who was violent-tempered, and treated his son with so much sever- ity, that the latter attempted to escape, but was arrested and thrown into prison by his father, who proposed to try and exe- cute his own son simply because this son loved music and French J The extreme severity of this father toward his son and his soldiers, evinced great Combativeness, Destructive- ness, Self-Esteem, and Firmness in Frederick William, and both the character and the busts and paintings of his son, " The Great," show a development of these same organs altogether unparalleled. COL. J. W. SCOTT'S GREAT-GRANDFATHER Was shot from his horse when on the full gallop, in the bloody battle of Bannockburn, at the age of 110, without ever having known sickness or pain. His son was killed in battle when 60 years old, and his son—the father of Col. J. W. Scott—died at 84. J. W. Scott, though 64, appears as young as men of forty, and says that all his family for two centuries are known to have been deeply imbued with the martial spirit. Is not General Winfield Scott, our present commander-in- chief, descended from this same stock, and does he not inherit the martial spirit which has raised him to his military post, from the same Bannockburn hero? But why swell our pages with kindred examples of this law ? Let those who desire farther confirmation of this doc- trine, that the propensities and their relative energy, are he- reditary, look into those families known to them, in which either parent is remarkable either for temper or amiableness, and they will find those children who resemble a severe father or a scolding mother, to inherit their temper as well as looks, 14* 162 APPETITE HEREDITARY. nor will they ever find a child who resembles a forbearing, good-dispositioned parent, to be morose, but always sweet- tempered, unless rendered fretful by disease—a result of great practical importance to those who would possess themselves of peaceable companions and endearing children. 356. EXCESSIVE AND DEFICIENT APPETITE HEREDITARY. Some of the propensities being thus transmissible, all may be expected to be governed by the same law 324 345. The children of all hearty-eating parents will practically confirm this position. Whole families, generation after generation, will be found to be " good livers "—the men all large eaters, and the women excellent cooks. The latter love good things themselves, and this disposes them to make dishes savory. Every member of the A. and B. families343 love good eating dearly, and though economical almost to penuriousness, yet their tables are literally loaded with choice edibles, which their females are first rate in serving up. Franklin and his father are contrasts—showing that feeble appetite, in common with all other mental and physical quali- ties, is transmitted. Of his father and himself he remarks on this point as follows :— " At his table he liked to have, as often as he could, some sensi- ble friend or neighbor to converse with, and always took care to start some ingenious or useful topic for discourse, which might tend to improve the minds of his children. By this means he turned our attention to what was good, just, and prudent, in the conduct of life; and little or no notice was ever taken of what related to the victuals on the table; whether it was well or ill dressed, in or out of season, of good or bad flavor, preferable to this or that other kind of thing; so that I was brought up in such a perfect inattention to those matters, as to be quite indifferent what kind of food was set before me. Indeed, I am so unobservant of it, that to this day I can scarce tell a few hours after dinner, of what dishes it consisted. This has been a great convenience to me in travelling, where my companions have been sometimes very unhappy for want of a suit- able gratification of their more delicate, because better instructed tastes and appetites." Franklin's walking through the streets of Philadelphia, eat- ing baker's bread, shows that he took after his father in being indifferent to what he ate. This characteristic he ascribed to education, yet it was undoubtedly congenital. INSANITY HEREDITARY. 163 APPETITE FOR PARTICULAR THINGS TRANSMITTED—INTEMPERANCE. Nor do parents entail on offspring their own various degrees of appetite merely, but also love of those specific kinds of food and drink relished by parents. Thus, when parents have a strong predilection for fruit, peppers, pickles, tomatoes, oysters, meat, butter, cheese, or any particular kind of food, or any style of cookery, their children who take after them will generally manifest a kindred relish from the cradle. The cat-loving grandmother and child already mentioned354, are both exceedingly fond of roasted potatoes and butter, and will make meal after meal, day after day, on this dish alone, and prefer it to all other diet. Dr. Kimball's father353 could never endure the taste or smell of butter, and his son, though a grocer, never eats it, is nauseated by its presence on the table, and will not keep it in his store unless perfectly sweet, on account of his aver- sion to its taste and odor, but prefers to lose both profits and custom, much as he loves both, rather than endure its conti- guity- Edmund Bridges can never endure cheese, nor eat bread cut with a knife with which cheese had been cut, unless first washed. LOVE OF ALCOHOLIC DRINKS, Though an artificial, acquired taste, yet often becomes so interwoven with the constitution as to be transmitted. Mrs. Mattock, who once lived in Milltown, near West Chester, Pa., was so notorious a toper that she kept alcoholic drinks by her bed, and often drank a quart in twenty-four hours. All but one of her eight children are confirmed sots, and this one, a daughter, is said to love the worm unduly. One of her daughters, Mrs. O., wife of a former tavern-keeper in Broad-street, Philadelphia, is often too drunk to see company, and keeps her room most of the time from this cause—a beastly daughter of a brutish mother ! Seneca Warren, of Chester, whom, by request, the author examined blindfolded in public, was pronounced underwitted, 164 APPETITE TRANSMITTED. and is so regarded. His mother drank to excess many years, and he has been a hard drinker all his life. His brother is nearly idiotic, and every brother and sister, except the eldest —probably born before their mother's drinking habits became riveted and extreme—have been confirmed sots, and several have killed themselves in consequence. His wife, a son, and daughter are passably intellectual, but another son is foolish and drunken. THREE BROTHERS NAMED DOWNING, Who emigrated with William Penn, and took up land on Chester-creek, which still remains in the family, were all remarkably honest, industrious, economical, temperate, and sober, as have been all their descendants throughout all their families, except those of one " flower of the flock," who was long a state senator, and learned, by being much in public life, to sing songs, crack jokes, and drink wine after dinner, till he felt jovial and merry, yet never to absolute drunkenness. He also treated friends freely. A daughter of his, not known to have loved stimulants, and an excellent woman, had four sons, three of whom were noted and abandoned drunkards 318, and the fourth was fast following in the same steps, but saw his danger, and took in a reef or two, yet would get tipsy on public days. One of these four brothers had two sons, one of whom died at twenty-two, an occasional tipler, and the other is a confirmed sot of the lowest grade. The eldest of these four brothers had five children by a superior wife, two sons of which, in spite of the restraining influences of their gifted mother, formed drinking habits, yet were reclaimed by the temperance move- ment. Thus most of the descendants, as far as known, for five generations, of this wine-loving senator, except one daughter, inherited a love of stimulants, and this love increased as it descended—a point in reserve for future presentation. Isaac Hutton, of New Garden, was an inveterate drinker, and had an illegitimate son, one of whose daughters, though unmarried, becomes a mother nearly every year353, and is sup- posed to drink. Another keeps a tippling house, and is thought LOVE OF STIMULANTS ENTAILED. 165 to treat herself quite often, and has an illegitimate—the drink- ing and amative propensities both hereditary. The Pyle family generally drink. An amiable, excellent, and temperate daughter married a temperate man who kept no spirits in his house, and although he restrained his children from everything pointing towards intemperance, yet one of them killed himself by hard drinking, another is a common drunkard, and a third an occasional tippler. D. F., whose name, if given, would be recognized through- out the religious world, though endowed with great Causality and Conscientiousness, inherited from his father a love of alco- holic drinks, to which he yielded till about twenty, when he determined on total abstinence, and thus saved himself from ruin, yet the appetite for stimulants still remains. In short, few of the children of drinking parents, who resem- ble those parents, can be found who do not experience a hank- ering, not only after strong drink, but after the very kind of liquor preferred by such parent, and a great majority of our inveterate drinkers will be found to have had parents who loved and drank " the creature," though they may never have been dead drunk. Indeed, the drinking habits formed in the •revolutionary and subsequent wars, and propagated in accor- dance with our doctrine, is the undoubted cause of the exces- sive drunkenness of our times, now in part stayed by Wash- ingtonianism. And since this propensity, like all others, in- creases as it descends, parents need not be sots in order to render their children inveterate drunkards. To love strong drink, and occasionally indulge children, is enough to entail on offspring a still greater love of it, and if they indulge, to render them gutter drunkards, though their parents never drank so as to evince intoxication. APPEAL TO PARENTS. Fond parent, what temperance motive stronger than this can possibly be urged ? Your plea for moderate drinking granted—admitted, what is extremely doubtful, that a little does you no damage, and never will—yet it is almost certain to implant an appetite in your children which they may not as 166 APPETITE HEREDITARY. successfully hold in check. At least, are you willing to run the risk—to place them in jeopardy—to say nothing of the inconvenience they will experience in resisting such tempta- tion ? If " Wo to him who putteth his cup to his neighbor's lips," what is it to him who putteth it to his own children's lip's; yea, tempts them in the most effectual manner, all their lives, to form habits of intemperance ? What temptations equal those which spring from entailment ? It is far more easy permanently to reform twenty drunkards, who became so from habit and associations, than one innate drinker. The former, once reclaimed, are likely to remain temperate, be- cause temperate habits will soon cure intemperate habits—habit against habit. Not so with those whose thirst is hereditary. They reform, and intend and struggle to remain true to their solemn pledge. But their hankering is constitutional, and therefore unquenchable. They may smother it for a time, but it is only temporarily. The covered firebrand still smoul- ders in the deep recesses of their souls—smoking and fevering them perpetually, and waiting only some trifling temptation to break out with renewed fury, and consume body and soul to- gether. O ! I pity the drunkard ! Longings within and temp- tations without haunt him perpetually! Yet doubly to be commiserated are those whose hankerings are constitutional, and will therefore follow them to their graves ! If all need to pray " Deliver us from temptation," how much more those who are beset and tortured with temptation night and day, from their cradles to their graves ? 0 ! what can make amends for such a thirst ? The wealth of India ? No, not of a thousand —not all worldly goods besides. And that parent who thus entails this hankering on his children—and it is almost certain to descend also to his grandchildren318, deserves the perpetual execration of every one of his descendants, and also the curses of community, though himself only a moderate drinker. Away, then, with all intoxicating drinks. Even supposing them good for yourself—which I protest they are not—yet forego personal good rather than brand your children and your children's children, with this fire of hell! Leave them poor, leave them as you will, but leave them temperate by nature, APPEAL TO PARENTS. 167 or never dare to become parents ! Even though, ostrich-like, you care nought for your own offspring, yet be entreated to care at least for yourself. Do not bring down your own gray hairs with sorrow to the grave, as thousands of parents have done, and are still doing, by thus rendering your offspring in- temperate. Or, rather, for your own sake, for their sakes, practice total abstinence through life, or if you will drink, be it ever so moderately, be conjured to curse no heirs and their wives and children with this innate tippling propensity! Oh ! parents, remember, that you sow seed in a most suscepti- ble soil, from which those you most love, will reap prolific crops of health and happiness, or of vice and misery. UNMARRIED WOMEN, This subject makes a powerful appeal to you. To be curs- ed with a drinking husband is indeed terrible, but, in addition, to see this depraved appetite—this liquor-loving stream—flow on to generations yet unborn, widening and deepening as it descends, breaking out here, and there, and yonder, and per- haps sweeping your name and race from the earth—O! this is sorrow unmeasured, and woe undescribed! How powerful this motive promptly to refuse the addresses of all who stimu- late in the least ? For in marrying even moderate drinkers, be it only of wine, you incur imminent danger not only of having your affections blighted, past all recovery, if not of fol- lowing him to an early and most bitter grave, but also of see- ing your sons, otherwise your pride and support, become bro- ken reeds and your deepest disgrace—thus redoubling the indescribable miseries of a drunken husband, in those far more aggravated of having besotted offspring! It deserves remark, that when this hankering is derived from the mother, it is more insatiable and inveterate than when inherited from the father. Nor are the children perfectly safe even if the daughter of the drinker is temperate, moral, and intellectual318. At all events, special pains require to be taken to keep the grandchildren of drinkers as well as their children, from all habits and associations calculated to de- velop their latent inclinations. Thus kept buried, these chil- 168 APPETITE entailed. dren and grandchildren may pass through life with the brand of intemperance slowly burning under the ashes of ab- stinence, without its ever breaking out into a blaze, yet all fuel must be kept carefully removed—all temptation to begin to drink scrupulously resisteds 2l5. Nor is the danger of the children becoming drunkards, bad as it is, by any means all. Intemperance in parents impairs the grain or texture of the brain, and thereby deteriorates the general tone of character and cast of mind of their chil- dren. By rendering parents more gross and animal in action and feeling, it similarly depreciates their offspring. Teachers have uniformly answered my question, " Do you observe any difference in the intellectuals and morals of the chil- dren of intemperate parents as compared with those of the temperate?" that the former are worse to manage, less studi- ous, and more difficult to teach, than the latter. And this result harmonizes perfectly with that great physiological law, demonstrated in my work on " Self-Culture," that all alcohol- ics stimulate the selfish propensities more, relatively, than the moral sentiments and intellect8209 2,°. By thus sensualizing parents, it of course deteriorates offspring, and the more so because apt to be begotten while one parent is intoxicated. True, if the other parent possess a high order of organiza- tion, this result is sometimes neutralized, and the children well endowed, and hence their occasional smartness. Yet how much better if this intemperate incubus were obviated ? Maternal longings before the birth of children sometimes impress similar longings on their children, yet such longings rarely occur except where mothers or their parents pre- viously loved spirituous liquors. Yet of this fully in " Maternity." TEA, COFFEE, TOBACCO, AND OPIUM, Taken to excess by parents, stamp a similar craving on off- spring. Since one artificial habit—intemperance—is trans- missible, of course all such habits are equally so m 34S. These narcotics stimulate the system in much the same manner as do alcoholic drinks, so that an inveterate tea, coffee, tobacco, CANNIBALISE- 169 or opium hankering is as likely to stamp its impress on off- spring as intemperance in other forms. Nor is there a parti- cle of doubt but that the excessive fondness of many—yea, of some readers—for one or another of these poisons, indulgence in which is undermining their health, disordering their nerves, enfeebling their minds, and destroying their peace, originated in parental indulgence, and has been entailed. There is no calculating the amount of misery occasioned by these drugs, and by other appetites fastened upon children before they were born! Thank God, my parent never saddled such vitiated tastes upon me, nor will I upon my children. But to dwell upon the evils consequent on these appetites here, is out of place. We repeat, that in common with all other depraved appetites and passions, they are entailed. CANNIBALISM HEREDITARY. In 1841, a girl, taken by two females from the New York House of Refuge, to bring up, was brought to the author for examination. She often called for " man's meat," and fre- quently told how sweet it was; that she used to have plenty of it; that she wanted to kill this and that specified child to eat their meat; and often expressed an insatiable hankering after "man's meat." On being questioned, she said her father and mother killed people to get their meat; described the whole process of bleed- ing them slowly to death, suspended by the heels; told what kind of knives were used—brass-handled, so that blood would not stain them—that the meat of those who had red hair was the sweetest; told how they cut up, dressed, salted, and dried, after they had killed them; how they disposed of the blood and bones; how choice a dainty they regarded the brain, or, as she expressed it, " what was inside the head ;" and related a great many other particulars which showed that she was narrating what she had seen, and all with perfect sincerity and artless- ness. She said that on the death of her mother—the leader in this horrible tragedy—her father broke up house-keeping, brought her in a canoe to New York, and left her on the dock. An air of child-like truthfulness and simplicity characterized 15 170 ACQUISITIVENESS HEREDITARY. her whole story, nor, however cross-questioned, did she ever deviate from her first version. Her insatiable craving after "man's meat"—her constant theme of supplication—was undoubtedly inherited from her parents. Many will discredit this story, but would not if they had heard, as I did, her unsophisticated narration of it. She had enormous Alimentiveness, Destructiveness, and Firmness; large Self-Esteem and Causality; small Secretiveness, Vene- ration, and Ideality; a large frame, and especially abdomen; and appeared to be between six and seven years old. 357. ACQUISITIVENESS TRANSMITTED. Those pamphlets entitled " The Rich Men " of Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, contain many cases of very rich fathers, brothers, and nephews. Thus— Abbot Lawrence, of Boston, has amassed $2,000,000; and his brothers, Amos and William, are each worth $1,000,000. Cornelius W. Lawrence, ex-mayor of New York, and a very rich man, if I mistake not, is related to them. John Parker left one of the largest estates ever accumulated in New England, and his sons, James, Peter, and Charles, are each worth $700,000. S. D. and D. P. Parker are very rich. Samuel Appleton and his brother are worth a million dollars each, and their oousin, William Appleton, a like sum. Daniel Appleton, the immensely rich bookseller in New York, is probably their relative. Peter C. Brooks, the richest man in New England, whose wealth is valued at $6,500,000, has a son worth $300,000. R. S. Brooks, of New York, is equally wealthy. The latter is probably related to the former. John Jacob Astor is by far the richest man this side the Atlantic, and one of the very wealthiest in the world—his possessions amounting to $25,000,000. His son, William B., is worth $5,000,000, and his elder brother died worth $2,500,000—then an immense fortune. And yet all are penurious. John J. Astor is said to have sent to the store THE ASTORS. 171 for a paper of tacks, and returned them because they were two cents higher than the usual price. He lives in perpetual fear of coming to poverty. When Edward Livingston was minister to France, Mr. Astor was at Paris, and complaining that his son, whom he directed to buy a given amount of stock, had not fulfilled instructions, and therefore had made only $40,000 by a certain operation, whereas he might have made $100,000, he told Judge Livingston that he must hurry home, or his son would ruin him. William B. Astor gave a five-years' lease, on a house, to a friend of the author, before the fall of rents, in 1839. My friend requested a diminution of the rent, and argued the case with Mr. A., but to no effect, till he urged that this high rent would certainly break him, and then the property would not lease for as much as my friend would give. This argument prevailed. His wife once bought a one-hundred dollar shawl. Mr. Astor, happening to go to the door when the clerk brought it with the bill, sent both back, saying that he " would not indulge his wife in any such extravagance as that." An inventory of the effects of his sister discovered $30,000, in specie, stowed away among her clothes: another sister lives and rides in the plainest style, to save expense. In general, very rich men have small souls, else they would not be sufficiently saving to accumulate; while those who are liberal are kept down in the world by th'eir gener- osity. How hard it is, generally, to get di*es from the wealthy, because they hold on so tightly to their money! This is one great cause of their riches. W. J. Cornell is worth $200,000 ; R. Cornell, $150,000 ; and P. Cornell, $100,000. Albert Gallatin is worth $150,000, and his son, J. Gal- latin, $100,000. The Harpers all show both financial and economical talents, in a higli degree; having amassed $500,000. Samuel "Leggett has acquired $500,000, and William W. $100,000 ; and Thomas left an estate of $800,000. Jonathan Hunt is worth $1,000,000, and Thomas Hunt $500,000. 172 acquisitiveness hereditary. P. A. Jay left an estate of $700,000, and William owns one of $100,000. Joel Post amassed $1,000,000, and A. and W. Post are rated at $500,000 each. Peter Schermerhorn has accumulated $2,500,000, and J. and A. Schermerhorn $500,000 each. The Stormses are generally rich: so are the Van Wycks. A. T. Stewart is worth $800,000, and L. Stewart $500,000. J. Bradlee owns $450,000; J. W. Bradlee $150,000; J. D. Bradlee $350,000; and the widow of J. D.—doubtless by inheritance—$150,000. J. G. Gray is worth $400,000, and H. and F. C. Gray $300,000 each. Gardiner Green died worth $200,000, and two of his children own $250,000 ; and C G. Green is worth $100,000. Rev. C. Lowell has amassed $150,000, and his nephew, J. A. Lowell, $250,000. George W. Lyman is worth $450,000; his brother, J. Lyman, $200,000 ; and C. Lyman $100,000. The families of the Phillipses, of Boston, are very rich— also of the Pratts, Quincys, Sargeants, Shattucks, Wil- liamses, and many others. So are the Chaunceys, Copes, Cadwalladers, Chan- cellors, Careys, Earps, Fassitts, Fishers, Florences, Fathealls, Harts, Hackers, Ingersolls, McAllisters, Mosses, Ronaldsons, Whites, and many others, of Philadel- phia. These may not all be related, who are of the same name, yet are probably from the same stock; and inquiry will doubtless disclose the fact that many other branches of these families are eminently rich and acquisitive—for one can hardly be the former without also being the latter. Caleb B----'s family, of Brandywine, have long been the richest men in Chester county, Pennsylvania, and are real misers. One of them refused to marry because of the expense attendant on having a family ; and when old lived mostly on gingerbread, which he kept locked up in a cupboard, the key of which he carried in his pocket, and CASES. 173 would crawl out of his bed, after he became extremely feeble, to help himself, rather than trust the key with another, lest they should eat a mouthful of it. His brother married, but kept his family on the most eco- nomical fare ; and when old, though worth several hundred thousand dollars, picked up and pocketed nails and pieces of iron, found about unfinished buildings. The cattle of his son strayed into a neighbor's yard, some three miles off—perhaps because not fed at home—who, not knowing whose they were, weighed out their hay, and charged its usual price, which this acquisitive son of this acquisitive sire refused to pay; to say nothing of the labor of feeding. Many similar stories of his meanness are told of him; and the entire family, for three generations, have been miserly. One of their heads, which I examined, was short, and very broad at Acquisitiveness, but small at Self-Esteem—just the organi- zation which usually accompanies penuriousness. They are all close, though honest; yet give nothing. The W----s, of West Fallowfield, Pennsylvania, in all their numerous branches, are close-fisted and tight in their dealings. The M---- families, of E----R----, Vermont, are ex- ceedingly acquisitive, very penurious, and all rich—so much so as to give rise to the neighborhood proverb, " Any one who has but one drop of M----- blood in his veins is sure to be rich." To keep their money in their families, they have generally married cousins. Facts everywhere abound, in which this desire to get and keep money is transmitted, from miserly father to penurious son, generation after generation, and also extend out and down through all the side branches of their relatives and descendants. Whoever will observe this point, will be sur- prised at the many illustrations of this hereditary law found in every community. And in general, those who most re- semble the old acquistive stock in likeness31*, also take after them in loving money. The converse is generally true of generosity and extravagance. Yet the descendants of the rich not unfrequently squan- 174 acquisitiveness transmitted. der lavishly the earnings of their acquisitive ancestors. This is accounted for in two ways without invalidating this hered- itary law. 1. The children of very acquisitive parents generally love money, yet less than their parents, because, having had all their wants supplied, and not been obliged to earn money, they do not know how to spend it—Acquisitive- ness having decreased from inaction"21s. In their children it is generally still less, while their luxurious style of living has weakened both body and brain, and hence they make a poor use of their fortunes. 2. The second generation gene- rally marry those more extravagant than saving, and this leaves Acquisitiveness weak by inheritance in their children. This provision in nature against the accumulation of pro- perty in the hands of the few, is inimitably beautiful, and confers more good on society than is imagined. LOVE OF PARTICULAR KINDS OF PROPERTY, As of given kinds of food356, is also entailed. This has been already incidentally shown in the case of the Jews M9. George Little, who emigrated from London to Newbury in 1640, and was remarkable for physical strength, great shrewdness and sagacity, and extraordinary power of intel- lect, selected two of the best tracts of land in the town, one of which he and his descendants have occupied above two centuries. The Newbury town records direct that " The Select-men shall take care and see that George Little fences in no more land than his due." "And this passion for ac- quiring landed property in preference to any other kind, has been transmitted unimpaired throughout his descendants to the present time, most of whom own immense tracts of land, of the very best kind. There is hardly any end to their real estate. For two centuries they have also ranked among the first in town for sound judgment and strength of intellect." Similar cases of the descent of love for the same kinds of property from generation to generation, are as common as that of oaks from oaks, or sheep from sheep. THE FORGING PROPENSITY. 175 358. PROPENSITY TO COMMIT GIVEN CRIMES, Also runs in families, and the same families, as in transmit- ted insanity343, generally perpetrate the same class of crimes. Thus Capt. W. G., one of the first settlers of N., a man of superior talents and much influence, in 1676 forged a military account against the State, in order to put money in his own pocket. He left town soon after his conviction. One of his descendants, Col. S. G., cheated a soldier out of his pay, and when exposed, wrote a most humble apology, which is now on file in the Mass. State-house, Boston. Capt. S. G., his nephew, forged a deed of land, and some of his liv- ing descendants still manifest a like propensity, namely, large Acquisitiveness and Secretiveness, and small Conscientious- ness. One of them was examined by the author in 1844, and found to possess this organization. Two Captains and one Colonel in the same line, and their forging military accounts, indicate the transmission of the martial as well as cheating disposition. A FAMILY OF FORGERS. The Barre (Mass.) Patriot, says that " a box containing $125 in counterfeit bills was discovered in the collar wall of Tho- mas Winslow of that town, who was ordered to find bail in the sum of $1000. He has for many years been suspected of dealing in counterfeit money, and has been once or twice arrested for the offence, but escaped for want of sufficient evidence. " The family with which he is connected is n/-'.. a little noto- rious in the annals of crime. His brother, Mark Winslow, was a noted counterfeiter, and probably the most ingenious ever known in that State. About twelve years ago he was sentenced to the State Prison for life, and on the eve of re- moval committed suicide by cutting his throat. Edward, another brother, was also a counterfeiter, and for that and other offences has been an inmate of the State Prison, and of nearly half the jails in that State. He is now at the poor- house in that town. Lucretia, a sister, was connected with the same gang, and signed the bills. She was wonderfully 176 acquisitiveness hereditary. expert with the pen, and skillful in imitating signatures. She married a man by the name of Chapman, who was mur- dered in Pennsylvania some years since. " She then lived as the wife of a noted imposter, Mina, and they were both arrested and tried for the murder. Mina was hung, but she was acquitted, although not without very strong evidence of having prompted or connived at the death of Chapman. She. subsequently wandered through the South, connected with a strolling theatrical company, and died a few years since. One of her children is now in Barre. She was a woman of great talent, if it had been honestly applied, and of singularly winning manners. Another sister of the Wins- lows married Robert Green, and still another married Jesse H. Jones, and both Green and Jones were connected with the gang of counterfeiters that used to infest that region." The parricide Dubarry, recently condemned to death at Tarbes, France, was to have been executed on the 12th Feb- ruary. The criminal archives state that one of his ancestors, named like him, Jean Marie Dubarry, was executed for a similar crime on the 12th Feb., 1764. Singular coincidence of crime, name, and date. A lying girl was brought to the author for phrenological examination, who, when talked to, appeared exceedingly sorry, and often said, " If I could always tell the truth, how many more things I should get by it, which I now lose. I dont want to lie so, but somehow it seems as though I can't help it." Her uncle evinced the same deceptive disposition, even when tr^th would have answered his purpose equally well. Kindred ca^os are to be found in every town and neighborhood, and the annals of crime bear abundant testi- mony to the same point. But why enlarge ? CAUTIOUSNESS AND APPROBATIVENESS ENTAILED. 177 SECTION V. CAUTIOUSNESS, APPROBATIVENESS, SELF-ESTEEM, AND FIRMNESS TRANSMITTED. 359. CAUTIOUSNESS ENTAILED. The author, in his professional practice, has seen thousands of instances in which excessive timidity, irresolution, procras- tination, and cowardice pervade whole families—a parent, and all the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, who take after the timid ancestor. Especially where the mother is full of fear, are her daughters apt to resemble her in this respect. Such mothers should therefore bear in mind, that in their children Cautiousness is almost certain to be too large by entailment, and therefore should not be re-increased by being told perpetually to " take care ;" and also that their own excessive timidity apprehends danger where there is none, and thus perpetually cautions them, whereas they should be soothed and emboldened. Being too large, all possible pains should be taken to diminish it by inaction, instead of still far- ther developing it by being constantly cautioned and alarmed. This direction appertains equally to all the other faculties. Many parents punish their children for faults, which these very children inherited from these punishing parents. In such cases they should punish themselves, and pity their children instead of chastise. 360. APPROBATIVENESS HEREDITARY. The love of praise is likewise transmitted. Excessive vanity, and desire to swell and make a great bluster, also runs in families. Thus Goward, who, in his advertisements, claims to be the greatest teacher of writing, book-keeping, geography, history, languages, painting, music, vocal and on all manner of instruments, dancing, and the whole round of the sciences and accomplishments, has immense Approbativeness, which, unrestrained, boasts and swells; and several of his cousins, whom I have examined, have possessed, like him, an enor- 178 HAUTEUR TRANSMITTED. mous development of this organ—probably inherited from the ancestor by whom they are related. Brandreth has this organ immensely large, which he doubtless inherited, and to which he owes his fortune. How many vain, affected mothers have vanity-tainted children ? Indeed, so common is this result, that where you find the parents proud or vain, you will find their children equally so. And yet such parents generally increase it in their children by rigging them off in ruffles, ribbons, curls, paddings, and the tip of the fashions, which ■still .farther enlarges organs already too large. On the contrary, such children should be praised very little, and then only for moral excellence; and when they say or do things to elicit praise or the laugh of commendation, do not notice, but turn the subject. 361. THE HAUGHTY, OVERBEARING SPIRIT, Often pervades whole families—parents, children, and grandchildren, as far as they can be traced. Everything which such families do or possess is far better than anybody else can do or have. How many instances of hereditary aristoc- racy exist, and of aristocracy founded solely in family pride, not merit. What town is without them ? What city is not thronged with them ? The author once examined an Edwards, in public, whose Self-Esteem and Combativeness were immense, and who was excessively contrary, overbearing, and unpopular, and refused to associate with others. In these respects he resembled his grandfather and father, whom all disliked for their selfishness and hauteur. All his blood-relations were tainted with the same bombastic, aristocratic feelings, though generally poor. LOVE OF LIBERTY AND AMBITION HEREDITARY. That President Harrison was a true lover of liberty and the public weal, friends and foes equally concede. His father was a signer of the immortal "Declaration of Independence," and descended from that Harrison who helped to arraign and condemn the tyrant, Charles I. YULEE AND THE ADAMSES. 170 Entire families, though rich, will be found to be truly demo- cratic, in all their branches; of which the Livingstons, at least the old branch, furnish an example worthy of all praise. Some families love public life, and are aspiring, and calcu- lated to lead; of which Senator Yulee—late Levy—is an instance:— " His grandfather was the First Councillor, or Grand Vizier, of the Emperor of Morocco, of those days. The son of the emperor engaged in a conspiracy against his father's life and authority, which it became the duty of the ancestor of Mr. Yulee to check and punish; and in so doing he was compelled to throw the prince into prison. Shortly afterwards, and while the latter was in confinement, the old emperor died; and his son went from the prison to the throne. His first acts were to cast his father's friend and adviser into the same dungeon, where he died shortly afterwards, and to order the confiscation of his estate. As the sovereign's will was the only law known in Morocco, in such cases, the family, to save their lives, were forced to fly somewhere beyond the authority of the new emperor; and chance favored them with an escape to Gibraltar. Soon afterwards, the father of Senator Yulee, then a young man, went to Cuba, and, changing his name to Levy, entered into com- mercial business. Mr. Yulee was born in that island, and came with his parents to this country about the time of the cession of Florida to the United States, as the world knows. He is, perhaps, the youngest man in the United States Senate, of which he is a most useful and promising member—notwithstanding the fact that his grandsire was as staunch and phlegmatic an old Turk as ever sat cross-legged, or whiffed the hooka."—Richmond Enquirer. John Adams, ex-president, his son, John Quincy Adams, and his son's son, Samuel Adams, now mayor of Boston, fur- nish another instance of the transmission of desire to be in public life. J. Q. Adams has very large Approbativeness, and the physiognomy and natural language of his father evince a great development of the characteristics it begets. The royal and noble families of the old world show the transmission of this arbitrary instinct, which is derived mainly from the organs under discussion in this section. Observa- tion and family history are alone requisite to enable every one to multiply examples, to any extent, in proof and illustra- tion of the transmissibility of these and kindred character- istics. 180 firmness hereditary. 362. FIRMNESS Was large in the head of a criminal whom I examined at Newcastle, Delaware, while under sentence of death, for a murder perpetrated on account of his Firmness and Self-Es- teem. He was honest and very talented, but most inveterate in his hatred, and obstinate in all his purposes. The follow. ing engraving gives a tolerably correct view of his head, on the top, though Firmness rose much higher than is here rep- resented. I have rarely, if ever, examined a head in which these organs were equally developed. FIRMNESS LARGE. No. 20. Negro. His father was strictly honest, much respected, kind, and wealthy, but one of the most stubborn men in the world; and his father—the criminal's grandfather, an African chief- was equally noted for his proud bearing and mulishness. This colored family were the " upper tens " of their race in Wilmington, Delaware. Pride and obstinacy, accompanied with a high sense of honor and justice, and fine minds, char- acterized the whole family. The criminal, after having been thoroughly provoked, threatened the life of his enemy, and was bound over to keep the peace for one year; during which time he restrained his murderous purpose, because he would not bring his security into difficulty. But the very day after the year expired, he committed the deed. What better evi- dence of Firmness than holding to so dire a purpose one year ? the pikes. 181 Of the transmission of Firmness in the Pikes, Joshua Coffin writes as follows:— " Gen. Zebulon Pike, a native of New Jersey, a brave officer in the last war with Great Britian, who was killed at the battle of Queenston, was a descendant of Capt. Pike, who emigrated to New Jersey, from Newbury, Massachusetts, about 1666. This Capt. Pike was brave and intelligent, and noted for his skill and enterprise in the Indian wars. From John Pike, who emigrated to New Jersey, down to their descendants at the present time, nearly all of them have been distinguished for clearness of intellect, firmness of purpose, self-possession, and indomitable courage. Nicholas Pike, the old schoolmaster and mathematician; Alfred Pike, also a schoolmaster and mathematician—now in Newbury- port—a resolute, forcible, bold, energetic man; Albert Pike, Esq., formerly of Newburyport, but now of Little Rock, Arkansas—whose 4 Hymns to Callimachus' have been published in Blackwood's Magazine, with commendation, and which are really splendid specimens of poetry,—these, and many others, are descendants of John Pike. So marked is the Firmness of this family, that the people of Newbury call it ' Pikeism.' " Pike's " Arithmetic," which has doubtless taxed the brains of some readers, for weeks and months, was composed by one of this mathematical family. The martial spirit also runs in it. But why multiply cases ? Is not our proof of each of these points absolute, and our illustration abundantly copious? Nor have we dwelt thus long merely on account of these points themselves, but that we may render our foundation as firm as the laws of nature, so that subsequent conclusions may be proportionably certain and forcible. SECTION VI. THE MORAL FACULTIES TRANSMITTED. 363. GENERAL AND SPECIFIC CAST OF RELIGIOUS FEELING HEREDITARY. Nearly or quite all eminently pious clergymen, of the present and past ages, have had devotedly religious parents, and especially mothers, who, as Hannah did Samuel, have dedicated them to God " from the womb." Many a stream of fervent piety and goodness have had their fountain in a mother's 182 the moral faculties HEREDITARY. prayerful spirit and a father's love of religion. So uniformly is this the case, that I know of no exceptions. Indeed, the biographies of good men generally begin with stating the reli- gious zeal of one or both their parents. Timothy possessed, doubtless by inheritance, "that un- feigned faith which had dwelt first in his grandmother Lois, and in his mother Eunice." Though Bishop Hall, Rev. John Newton, Philip Henry, Herbert, Hooker, Payson, and others, might be cited in con- firmation of this law, yet the case of Dr. Doddridge deserves especial remark. His mother was daughter of Rev. John Bourman, of Prague, Bohemia, who, obliged, in consequence of religious persecution, to renounce protestantism or emigrate, preferred the latter, painful as was the consequent separation from friends and loss of most of his estate, just as he was be- ginning to enjoy both. He was a godly preacher, and left an only daughter, the mother of Dr. D., Who writes thus:— 441 was brought up in the early knowledge of religion by my pious parents, who were, in their character, very worthy of their birth and education; I well remember that my mother taught me the history of the Old and New Testament before T could read, by the assistance of some blue Dutch tiles in the chimney-place of the room where we commonly sat; and the wisk. and pious reflections she made upon these stories, were the m.-ans of enforcing such good impressions on my heart, as never afterwards wore out." As he lost both his parents when only thirteen years old, his moral organs must have been hereditarily large, or they would not have thus imbibed and retained these early religious impressions. HENRY IV., KING OF FRANCE, Was probably the best and most beloved monarch who ever occupied the throne of that empire, and his sister, Catharine of Navarre, led an eminently religious and virtuous life, in the midst of a profligate court. Jane D'Albert was a most excellent woman, and her parents, the illustrious Margaret, Queen of Navarre, and her excellent and talented husband, Henry D'Albert, King Henry's maternal grand-parents, were remarkable for their goodness and religious devotion. THE PERRYS, TAPPANS, AND BASSES. 183 COMMODORE O. H. PERRY AND ANCESTRY, Were eminently religious. Freeman Perry, the commodore's grandfather, heard of his grandson's brilliant achievement, on his death bed, and exulted greatly in the victory, but most of all in the thanks and reliance ascribed by his courageous de- scendant to a Superior Power instead of to his own might, ex- pressed in the few lines of the commodore's dispatch. " It affec- ted him even to tears, so that he required it to be read to him over and over again, and the words, ' It has pleased the Almighty' lingered on his lips and blended with his latest prayers for the prosperity of his descendants." The fact that his father, C. R. Perry, was a captain, that he was remarkably cool in battle, and especially that he stood in cool but eloquent composure to be shot at in a duel by Heath, without returning the fire, indicates the hereditary descent of the martial spirit, if not of courage. Mrs. Tappan, already mentioned under the head of lon- gevity319, was exceedingly devout, as all her letters abun- dantly attest, and the author knows one of her grandsons who is so religious as to be almost fanatical, and prayed so loud and earnestly as to be heard all through his end of the college edi- fice, so as often to be considered a nuisance. His father is also eminently devout, and gives much to benevolent objects, and the moral organs of two of his sisters are very large. Most of her nine children and sixty-two grandchildren—another instance of the entailment of the prolific propensity 3", have been hopefully converted, and are zealous in religion. Most of the Alden family also, already alluded to 319, have been eminent for piety and devotion, and many of the men ministers or deacons. Mrs. Bass, of Vermont, was a most godly woman—one in an age for fervent piety—and most of a very large list of her descendants united with churches at an early age, and have followed in her prayerful footsteps. Nor does the religious predisposition merely run in families, but also, as in the case of insanity 8" m and appetite "6, the descendants manifest the same moral tone and cast of 184 THE R0GERSES. religion evinced in the ancestry. In other words, particular kinds of religious feeling are transmitted. 364. SPECIFIC MORAL FACULTIES HEREDITARY. The Rogers family furnish a remarkable proof and illus- tration of this hereditary law. History informs us that John Rogers, the first martyr in " the bloody Mary's" reign, along with his great religious zeal, declaimed vehemently against the religious abuses of his time, and in consequence was con- demned to the stake. The Marlboro' Hotel, of Boston, the first and for a long time the only respectable religious and temperance house in this country, and the only one I ever knew in which family wor- ship was daily maintained, in which all the boarders were in- vited to partake, was kept by Mr, Rogers, a tenth lineal de- scendant of the martyr. He had a strong desire to preach, but was prevented by an affection of the throat, and is a most benevolent and eminently religious man. He now conducts the Delavan Temperance House, Albany, doubtless on the same religious principles. Nathaniel P. Rogers, former editor of the Herald of Free- dom, and author of the letters in the Tribune signed the " Old Man of the Mountain," one of the most cogent and caustic writers of his day, was from the same stock, and amply en- dowed with the same evil-rebuking and reformatory spirit with the martyr. John R. French thus writes of him :— ,4 Mr. Rogers was a son of Dr. John Rogers of Plymouth in this State, where he was born, June 3, 1794. His father was a highly respectable physician, a man of brilliant intellect and superior edu- cation,—a graduate of Harvard College of the class of 1777, and a son of the Rev. John Rogers of Leominster, Mass., a clergyman in his day somewhat celebrated for his talents and independence in religious faith and rebellion against ecclesiastical domination. Mr. Rogers was able to trace his ancestry back to the Smithfield Mar tyr, through eight or nine generations, by a continuous line of John Rogerses, and with two exceptions, clergymen. Those who have seen both our deceased friend and a portrait of the Martyr, hanging in the halls of the Am. Antiquarian Society at Worcester, could not have failed to have noticed a great resemblance in tbe shape of the face and head, in the eye, complexion, and the general expres- the fields. 185 sion of the two men. Mr. Rogers' mother, an intelligent and quite active old lady, still lives at the advanced age of 86, to mourn the son of her strong affection." It thus seems that he inherits his mentality, as well as looks, from the martyr. In Boston, the author examined his head in public, without knowing him, and found a most power- ful temperament, tremendous Combativeness and Firmness, very large Benevolence, large Destructiveness and Friend- ship, little Secretiveness, and none too much Cautiousness or Approbativeness, with great Sublimity, a powerful intellect, especially large Comparison, and an uneven head, which indi- cates an uneven character. The minister, whose epitaph follows, evinced the same bold, fearless, reformatory, and denunciatory spirit, as well as ad- herence to right, in spite of consequences, which have always characterized the Rogers family. It was copied from a tomb- stone in a grave-yard, in Exeter, New Hampshire. 44 Here lie the remains of the Rev. Daniel Rogers, pastor of a church gathered in this place in 1748, who died December 9th, aged seventy-eight years. He had been, for many years, a tutor in Harvard College; was a pious and faithful minister of Jesua Christ, and a worthy son of the Rev. John Rogers, pastor of the first church in Ipswich, who died December 28th, 1745 ; who was son of John Rogers of the same place, physician and preacher of God's word, and president of Harvard College, who died July 2d, 1684, aged fifty-four years ; who was the eldest son of the Rev. Nathaniel Rogers, who came from England in 1636, and settled in Ipswich, as colleague pastor with the Rev. Nathaniel Ward, and died July 12th, 1655, aged fifty-seven years; who was son of the Rev. John Rogers, a famous minister of God's word at Dedham, England, who died October 18th, 1639, aged sixty-seven years; who was grandson of John Rogers, of London, prebendary of St. Paul's, vicar of St. Sepulchre's, and reader of divinity : who was burned at Smithfield, February 14th, 1555—first martyr of Queen Mary's reign." It thus appears that all his ancestors have been reverends, one possibly excepted. The Rogerses generally, like their progenitor, have large familiesS53. The Field family, from whom Deacon Phineas Field, form- erly of Northfield, Massachusetts, quite extensively known in 186 THE RELIGIOUS AFFECTIONS HEREDITARY. the " progressive " religious world, and Rev. Chester Field, formerly settled in Lowell, Massachusetts, an eminently zeal- ous new-school divine, are descended, are nearly all devotedly pious, and also of the reform stamp. A cousin of Deacon Field was a most godly woman, and though confined to her house, and much of the time to her bed, seven years, by lingering consumption, of which she died, was yet the prime mover and centre of all the missionary and benevolent operations of her town, most fervent in prayer, and wrote religious essays superior to most sermons. She had also, at least, two eminently religious sisters, and many devotedly pious nephews and nieces, and four children en- dowed with strong religious susceptibilities; which, however, partook decidedly of the reformatory type, and of which the author's moral productions are examples. Her husband and his brother were deacons, and both exemplary and highly moral men, as are and have been many of their relatives. Tyndale, the first translator of the Bible into English, was a bold religious reformer, and therefore incurred governmental vengeance ; and many of his descendants have been executed for the same progressive characteristic. His lineal descend- ants, now residing in Philadelphia, are ultraists of the most advanced school; as are also the great majority of this name. CAPT. MILES STANDISH3'9 Was largely endowed with the same religious susceptibili- ties, also of the progressive stamp. He produced a decided change in favor of religious tolerance and liberality, in our pilgrim forefathers, which Cotton Mather arrested and turned backwards. But for this reverend blue-stocking, Salem witch- craft would have been prevented by Standish's liberality, and our whole country presented an entirely new aspect—com- bining all the excellences of Puritanism, with few if any of its deformities. Justice yet remains to be done to this bold moral as well as military chieftain, yet good and truly reli- gious man. One of his .grand-daughters married a Carey, whose de- scendants are generally excellent people, and eminently reli« THE BEECHERS AND THE WESLEYS. 187 gious. I 'saw a Standish offspring, I think a great grand- daughter, in New Bedford, Massachusetts, in 1844, whose Benevolence and Conscientiousness were immense, and who entered with her whole soul into the reform movements of the age. She said her relatives generally partook of the same onward stamp. The father of Dr. Lyman Beecher331 was a staunch dea- con, in New Haven, Connecticut, and rather in advance of his time. So was his son Lyman in his prime, and in some respects still is. So are all of Lyman's sons, every one of whom is a reverend, and new-school to the core; while all his daughters are equally conspicuous for religious zeal of the same ultra stamp. WESLEY AND HIS ANCESTRY. The great grand-grandfather of this bold reformer and de- vout Christian, was ejected from the established church for non-conformity—that is, was an ultra. His son John, Wes- ley's grandfather, was distinguished both for piety and scholar- ship, and was also ejected for non-conformity ; and four times imprisoned, and denied a Christian burial, for being in ad- vance of his "day and generation." His wife, Miss Fuller, John Wesley's paternal grandmother, was a niece of Thomas Fuller, the church historian—a man remarkable for wit and piquancy, as well as for clothing his fine thoughts in beautiful language. Their youngest son Samuel, the father of the founder of Methodism, supported himself through college, married the daughter of an ejected minister, and a woman of great strength of intellect, conjoined with exalted piety and goodness. John Wesley thus inherited his reform spirit from both his paternal and maternal ancestry, and at the same time his wit, superior intellect, and fervent devotion. No wonder then, that such a reform parentage should produce so innovating a son. DAVID BRAINARD AND HIS RELATIVES, For many generations, have been remarkable not only for their fervent piety, but for that peculiar cast of it—humble, 188 THE RELIGIOUS AFFECTIONS TRANSMITTED. self-condemning, ascetic, and desire for "the salvation of souls"—which pervades and almost constitutes the diary of David Brainard. Where do we find a greater manifestation of Veneration, Spirituality, Conscientiousness, and Benevo- lence, or less Hope and Self-Esteem—the organization which, Phrenology being true, he evidently possessed ? The Rev. Thomas Brainard, of Philadelphia, is descended from the same grandfather with David, and has both the same cast of piety manifested by him, the same tender yearnings for the impenitent, and desire for their conversion, and the same overwhelming sense of guilt and self-abasement, together with like religious ecstasy and melancholy. Most of the revivals of that city begin in his church. His temperament is most exqui- site, indicated by exceedingly fine and soft skin and hair, and his head large, high, and long on the top, but narrow between the ears. His Benevolence is immense, Spirituality and Conscien- tiousness rarely equalled, Cautiousness and Veneration very large, but Hope and Self-Esteem small. He says he is ex- ceedingly tormented with that religious gloom and feeling of unworthiness which afflicted David Brainard, and that he knows few, if any, of the Brainards of East Haddam, Connect!- cut, who are descendants or relatives of David, who are not both remarkably devout, and also afflicted with this same self- abasing cast of piety. A Mr. Brainard, grandson, I think, of David, or, at all events, related to him, called on me professionally, in Boston, in 1843, partially deranged on the same point—religious melancholy, and extreme sense of unworthiness and sinful- ness—and then a member of the South Boston Lunatic Asylum. He had studied for the ministry, and his entire waking time was engrossed with religious contemplations of this melan- cholic cast. Let readers who know Brainards, thus related, observe whether they are not pre-eminently pious, and remarkably endowed with the same Christian penitence and humility manifested by David. THE EDWARDSES AND DWIGHTS. 189 THE EDWARDS FAMILY Furnish another illustration, not only of the descent of strong religious faculties, but also of that special direction of them found in Jonathan Edwards, his mother, and his grand- father. President Edwards, besides being pre-eminently de- vout, was also the greatest theologian of the age, and a man SPIRITUALITY AND VENERATION LARGE. No. 21. Jonathan Edwards. of tremendous intellectual power. His work on the " Will " evinces extraordinary reasoning capabilities, and his treatise on the " Affections " breathes a spirit of pure devotion rarely equalled. This union of these two qualities constitutes his distinctive characteristic. But his praise is in all the churches, and need not be recited here. The accompanying engraving of him shows a remarkably high forehead and head, or great intellectual and moral organs. What was, then, his parentage'? 190 THE RELIGIOUS AFFECTIONS TRANSMITTED. His father, Rev. Timothy Edwards, received at his gradu- ation, the collegiate degree of A. B. in the forenoon, and A. M. in the afternoon—" an uncommon mark of respect, paid to his extraordinary proficiency in learning." He taught his college pupils so thoroughly that the professors never thought it necessary to examine them preparatory to admission, and was a scholar of the first order. A sermon of his on the Judgment, is the emanation of a powerful mind. From this source his son Jonathan inherited both talents and morals. President Edwards' mother was a Stoddard, daughter of Rev. Solomon Stoddard, a man of great goodness and superior talents, both which his daughter inherited, for she resembled him 321. " She was tall, stately, dignified, and commanding in appearance, as well as affable and courteous, and endowed with surpassing vigor of understanding and energy of charac- ter. She possessed extraordinary prudence and judgment, a nice sense of propriety, extensive information, a thorough knowledge of the scriptures and of theology, scrupulous Con- scientiousness, elevated piety, and great excellence of char- acter." From two parents thus eminently endowed both with talents and the moral virtues, what children might we expect ? Just such as Jonathan Edwards and his sisters were—the union of superior powers of intellect with great goodness and devout piety. President Edwards also married a superior woman, and his children have rarely had their equals for goodness and talents united. One of them, who married President DwigKt, was probably as gifted a woman as her age produced. She would walk the floor for hours together, knitting work in hand, when she could find listeners, and narrate history, especially Indian events, with a native beauty and eloquence, which, on paper, would have been unrivalled; and probably previous to her death, knew more of the colonial anecdotes of New England than any cotemporary. She married Col. Dwight, an athletic, powerful, noble-bear- ing, dignified, and truly excellent man 312, and one of the fruits of their union was President Dwight, a man, like his father, THE CUTHBERTS. 191 of commanding appearance, superior talents, and exalted moral excellence—" a burning and a shining light" alike in the intellectual and moral world, and well nigh equal to his grandfather, Edwards, as a theological writer. His moral and intellectual organs are also very large, as seen in an engrav- ing of him already inserted 3ia. Many of his descendants are noted for talents and piety, of which his son Sereno E. Dwight is an example, yet physical disability prevents his preaching. The descendants of Jonathan Edwards are also devotedly pious, and endowed with the same kind of religious character —theological, the combination of great moral with large intel- lectual organs—of whom J. J. Edwards, professor in Andover Theological Seminary, and formerly secretary of the Educa- tion Society, is one. The cerebral developments of two of his daughters evince the same moral and intellectual organization. The author once knew a Mrs. Porter, of Hadley, Mass., a tall, dignified, superior woman, of fine intellect and extraor- dinary religious fervor and benevolence, whom he understood to be a descendant of J. Edwards. Long may a race thus talented and good, live to shed their purifying and elevating influences over their fellow men. Yet their cast of piety differs materially from that of the Brainards and Rogerses. VERY LARGE CONSCIENTIOUSNESS HEREDITARY. The Cuthberts, who inhabit the eastern shore of Maryland, with one exception—and he took after his mother's relatives— have very large Conscientiousness. I have rarely ever found this organ as uniformly and largely developed. Its faculty is equally conspicuous in character. The father, having occa- sion to absent himself two days on business of his own, from the Maryland legislature, to which he had been elected, re fused to take pay for the absent days included in his check, and insisted that the clerk should deduct it. The clerk re- plied that the universal custom was to pay all the members for the whole time the body was in session, whether they were present or absent, that his check had been made out for the full time, that if the two days' salary were deducted, it could not go back into the State treasury, and did not belong 192 THE RELIGIOUS PREDISPOSITION TRANSMITTED. to the paying teller, that there was no alternative but to receive the whole, etc. Yet Mr. Cuthbert's large Conscien- tiousness unconditionally refused to take one cent more than he had earned, and accordingly he left the two days salary on the bank counter. He strenuously advocated and voted for whatever measures were right in the legislature, and uncompromisingly opposed whatever he considered wrong, and never gave the least tolerance to anything unjust, either in public or private. Would that we had more such legislators and public men. He bought at auction a piece of furniture for two dollars, which he deemed worth five dollars, and paid its full value, irrespective of his bid. He was noted throughout that part of his State for rigid honesty ; so that the confidence reposed in him was unbounded. Two of his brothers had this organ very large, and faculty likewise conspicuous. So had all his children but one. So had all his grandchildren whom I examined, and they were many, and all were noted for their integrity and moral worth. Does not the reader know like, cases of the descent of rigid moral principle ? Would that all parents were largely en- dowed with this element. THE DESCENT OF SPIRITUALITY. In one of my public examinations in Cattawissa, Pa., I found this organ unusually large and faculty correspondingly active in a devotedly pious old German of that place; and in half a score of his children and a score of grandchildren I found it also very large. This is the more striking, as this organ is generally so deficient. Dr. Sharpless, of Downingtown, Pa., has very small Spir- ituality, while his wife has it large, and often " dreams out" events beforehand. Of their three children, two resemble their mother in likeness, and possess this organ ; the other "takes after" the father, and is deficient in this respect. In Boston, "the city of notions," Salem, of witchcraft noto- riety, and Lowell, the catch-al], of that whole region, and some contiguous places, this organ averages some three or four times WASHINGTON AND HIS ANCESTRY. 193 larger than it generally is. Indeed, in no other places have I found it equally developed, as, Phrenology being true, might previously have been predicted. L. N. Fowler's observations coincide with this general result. BENEVOLENCE HEREDITARY. A portrait of Howard, the philanthropist, in Peale's Muse- um, Philadelphia, shows an immense development of Benevo- lence ; and in all his descendants, examined Phrenologically by the editor, it has also been found to be very large. The Fesessendens, in Maine 31s, Massachusetts, Vermont, and wherever I have found them, have possessed extraordinary Benevolence, both in head and character. Struck with its unusual development in the heads of a large family of children in Charleston, Mass., I turned to their pa- rents and found it largely developed in them also, though less so—its union in both rendering it still larger in their offspring, of which hereafter. Webster has immense Benevolence in organ and manifesta- tion, and his father had a liberal, generous soul, and esteemed property valuable only to give away. Though Daniel should make a princely fortune annually, he will die poor. Yet he somewhat resembles his mother in looks, while his brother Ezekiel, who took more after his father in complexion, voice, and stammering, inherited his mother's economy, and died rich. WASHINGTON AND HIS ANCESTRY. Geo. Combe thus describes this father of his country:— 14 Washington was one of the greatest men that ever lived. Hia temperament seems to have been sanguine bilious ; his head large, and well adapted to every part, the moral sentiments and intellec- tual reigning supreme. He had a constancy which no difficulties could overcome, and an honesty of purpose and ardor of patriotism which no temptation could swerve nor opposition subdue. He always regarded his country before himself, and in him there was no quality of mind deficient—no quality in excess, no false lights and no deficient lights. He, therefore, gave everything its due weight, and no more. He was dignified, courteous, and just, brave, cautious, politic, quick to perceive, and prompt to judge, always acting in the right time and in the right manner. Those who say that Washington was not a great man, can merely mean that be 194 THE B10RAL AFFECTIONS TRANSMITTED. displayed no one quality in excess—that he played off no corusca- ions, but he had that sterling worth, that daily beauty in his life, hat force of character, that grandeur and elevation of the whole man, which renders him far more great and estimable, than the poet, the painter, or the orator." Whatever appertains to the ancestry of such a man, will be read with deep interest, for its history as well as science. The following is copied from the " Enquirer" :— 44 General Washington's Ancestors.—We have been favored, within the last few days, with a highly interesting account of a monument in England, erected to the memory of some of tbe ances- tors of our beloved Washington. The gentleman to whom we are indebted for the account, is Mr. Samuel Fullaway, of this city— but who, being a native of England, returned to that country on a visit to his parents, who reside at Malmesbury, in Wiltshire. The monument in question is in Garsden church, in the same county. 44 The village of Garsden is about two miles from Malmesbury, and the church is an ancient Gothic edifice, situate in the bosom of a rich country, and surrounded with venerable trees. The country people have for many years been in the habit of conducting stran- gers to the church, for the purpose of pointing out the venerable memorial of the Washington Family—in former ages the lords of the Manor of Garsden, and the residents of the Court House, a building of the olden time, gray with the lapse of centuries. 44 The monument was once a superb specimen of the 4 mural' style—and even now exhibits relics of richness and curious work- manship. It is to be seen iu the charnel, on the west side of the altar, and is richly carved out of the stone of that part of the coun- try. It is surmounted with the family coat-of-arms, which form a rich emblazonment of heraldry; and although two hundred years have rolled away since it was erected, they are still burnished with gilding. 44 The following are the inscriptions: 44 To ye memory of Sir Lawrence Washington, Lately Chief Register of ye Chauncerye, Of Renowne, Pyety and Charytie. An Exemplarye and Lovinge Husband, A Tender Father, A Boun- tiful Master, A Constante Reliever of ye Poore, And To Thoas Of His Parish, a Perpetuall Benefactor; Whom it Pleased God to take into his Peace, From the Furye of The Insuing Warrs. Born May XIV. He Was Heare Interrd, May XXIV, An. Dni, 1643. iEtat. Suoe, 64. Heare Also Lyeth Dame Anne, 'Is Wife, who Deceased January XIII; And Who was buryed XVIth, Anno Dni, 1645. (< Hie Patrios cineres, curavit filius urna, Condere qui Tumulo, nunc jaeet ille pius. The pyous Son His Parents here interrd, Who hath his share in time, for them prepard." Washington's ancestry. 195 " The old Manor House of Garsden is now occupied by a respect- able, and, indeed, opulent farmer, named Woody—two of whose sons lately came over to this country in the ship Philadelphia, and are gone back into the State of Ohio. Mr. Woody rents his house and farm of Lord Andover. This ancient seat of the Washington family, is handsome, very old-fashioned, and built of stone, with immense solidity and strength. The timber about it is chiefly British oak, and in several of the rooms, particularly in a large one, which was the old hall or banqueting-room—there are rich remains of gilding, carved work in cornices, ceilings and panels, polished floors and wainscoating—with shields containing the same coat of arms as on the mural monument in the church, carved over the high, venerable, and architectural mantel-pieces. Beneath the house are extensive cellars, which, with the banqueting-room, would seem to indicate the genuine hospitality and princely style of living peculiar to a ' Fine old English gentleman, All of the olden time.' And, indeed, according to the traditions and chronicles of the coun- try, such was the general character of the heads of the Washington family. Soon after the civil war, the family left their ancient seat, and removed to another part of the kingdom—but an old man now living in the village, named Reeves, who is ninety years of age, states that he remembers one of the Washingtons living in that part of the country, when he was a boy; and that his great-grandfather remembered the last Squire Washington living at the Manor House. The walls of the house are five feet thick, and the entire residence is surrounded by a beatiful garden and orchards. In the old parish archives, the Washington family are constantly re- ferred to as the benefactors of the parish; and from the very earli- est recorded times, they seem to have been the Lords of the soil at Garsden, down to the period of their leaving—when the Manor fell into the hands of a family named Dobbs. 44 From the church and Manor or Court-House of Garsden, th.ere are the remains of an ancient paved causeway, extending for about two miles to the far-famed abbey and cloisters of Malmesbury, founded and endowed by King Athelstan—not only celebrated for its power and splendor in Catholic days, but also as being the birth place Jind residence of '4 William of Malmesbury"—one of the earliest of British historians." Thus much of his father's side. Next of his mother's. The following is copied from Geo. W. P. Custis, grandson of Mrs. Washington, wife of Gen. Washington. 44 The mother of Washington was descended from the very re- spectable family of Ball, who settled as English colonists, on the banks of the Potomac. Bred in those domestic and independent habits which graced Virginia matrons in the old days of Virginia, 196 THE MORAL AFFECTIONS HEREDITARY. this lady, by the death of her husband, became involved in the cares of a young family, at a period when those cares seem more espe- cially to claim the aid and control of the stronger sex. It was left for this eminent woman by a method the most rare—by an educa- tion and discipline the most peculiar and imposing, to form in the youth-time of her son, those great and essential qualities which gave lustre to the glories of his after life. If the school savored the more of the Spartan than the Persian character, it was a fitter school to form a hero, destined to be the ornament of the age in which he flourished, and a standard of excellence for ages yet to come. 41 At the time of his father's death George Washington was only twelve years of age. He has been heard to say, that he knew little of his father except the remembrance of his person, and of his pa- rental fondness. To his mother's forming care he himself ascribed the origin of his fortunes and his fame. 44 The home of Mrs. Washington, of which she was always mis- tress, was a pattern of order. There the levity and indulgence common to youth was tempered by a deference and well-regulated restraint, which, while it neither suppressed nor condemned any rational enjoyment usual in the spring-time of life, prescribed those enjoyments within the bounds of moderation and propriety. Thus the chief was taught the duty of obedience which prepared him to command. Still the mother held in reserve an authority which never departed from her, not even when her son had become the most illustrious of men. It seemed to say—41 am your mother— the being who gave you life—the guide who directed your steps when they needed a guardian; my maternal affection drew forth your love ; my authority constrained your spirit; whatever may be your success or your renown, next to your God, your reverence is due to me!' Nor did the chief dissent from these truths; but to the last moments of his venerable parent, yielded to her will the most dutiful and implicit obedience, and felt for her person and cha- racter the highest respect, and the most enthusiastic attachment. The late Lawrence Washington, Esq., of Chotank, one of the asso- ciates of the juvenile years of the chief, and remembered by him in his will, thus describes the home of his mother: 44 41 was often there with George, his playmate, schoolmate, and young man's companion. Of the mother I was ten times more afraid than I ever was of my own parents; she awed meSn the midst of her kindness, for she was indeed truly kind. And even now, when time has whitened my locks, and I am the grand-parent of the second generation, I could not behold that majestic woman without feelings it is impossible to describe. Whoever has seen the awe-inspiring air and manner so characteristic in the father of his country, will remember the matron as she appeared when the presiding genius of her well-ordered household, commanding and being obeyed.' 44 But when the mother, who had been removed to the county of Washington's mother. 197 Frederick, on the invasion of Virginia, in 1781, was informed by express, of the surrender of Cornwallis, she raised her hands to heaven, and exclaimed, 4Thank God, war will now be ended; and peace, independence, and happiness bless our country.' 41 During the war, and indeed during her useful life, up to the advanced age of eighty-two, until within three years of her death, (when an afflictive disease prevented exertion,) the mother set a most valuable example, in the management of her domestic con- cerns, carrying her keys, bustling in her household affairs, pro- viding for her family, and living and moving in all the pride of inde- pendence. She was not actuated by the ambition for show which pervades lesser minds; and the peculiar plainness and dignity of her manners became in no wise altered, when the sun of glory arose upon her house. There are some of the aged inhab- itants of Fredericksburg, who well remember the matron, as seated in an old-fashioned open chaise, she was in the habit of visiting, almost daily, her little farm in the vicinity of the town. When there she would ride about her fields, giving her orders, and seeing that they were obeyed. 44 Her great industry, with the well-regulated economy of all her concerns, enabled the matron to dispense considerable charities to the poor, although her own circumstances were always far fi-om rich. All manner of domestic economies, so useful in those times of privation and trouble, met her zealous attention; while every thing about her household bore marks of her care and manage- ment, and very many things the impress of her own hands. In a very humble dwelling, and suffering under an excrutiating disease, (cancer of the breast,) thus lived this mother of the first of men, preserving unchanged, her peculiar nobleness and independence of character. ■4' She was continually visited and solaced by her children, and numerous grand-children, particularly her daughter, Mrs. Lewis. To the repeated and earnest solicitations of this lady, that she would remove to her house and pass the remainder of her days, to the pressing intreaties of her son, that she would make Mount Vernon the home of her age, the matron replied, ' I thank you for your affectionate and dutiful offers, but my wants are but few in this world, and I feel perfectly competent to take care of myself Her son-in-law, Col. Fielding Lewis, proposed to relieve her of the direction of her affairs: she observed, ' Do you, Fielding, keep my books in order, for your eye-sight is better than mine; but leave the executive management to me.' 44 She was always pious, but in her latter days, her devotions were performed in private. She was in the habit of repairing every day to a secluded spot, formed by rocks and trees near her dwelling, where, abstracted from the world and worldly things, she communed with her Creator in humiliation and prayer. 44 After an absence of nearly seven years, it was, at length, on the return of the combined armies from Yorktown, permitted to the 17* 198 the moral affections transmittA. mother again to see and embrace her illustrious son. So soon as he had dismounted, in the midst of a numerous and brilliant suite, he sent to apprise her of his arrival, and to know when it would be her pleasure to receive him. And now mark the force of early education and habits, and the superiority of the Spartan over the Persian school in this interview of the great Washington with his ad- mirable parent and instructor.—No pageantry of war proclaimed his coming, no trumpets sounded, no banners waved. Alone, and on foot, the marshal of France, the general-in-chief of the combined armies of France and America, the deliverer of his country, the hero of the age, repaired to pay his humble duty to her whom he venerated as the author of his being, the founder of his fortune and his fame. For, full well he knew that the matron would not be moved by all the pride that glory ever gave, nor by all the 4 pomp and circumstance' of power. 44 The lady was alone, her aged hands employed in the works of domestic industry, when the good news was announced, and it was further told that the victor chief was in waiting at the threshold. She welcomed him with a warm embrace, and by the well-remem- bered and endearing name of his childhood; inquiring as to his health, she remarked the lines which mighty cares and many trials had made on his manly countenance, spoke much of old times and old friends, but of his glory—not one word ! 44 Meantime, in the village of Fredericksburg, all was joy and revelry; the town was crowded with the officers of the French and American armies, and with gentlemen from all the country around, who hastened to welcome the conquerors of Cornwallis. The citi- zens made arrangements for a splendid ball, to which the mother of Washington was specially invited. She observed, that although her dancing days were pretty well over, she should feel happy in contributing to the general festivity, and consented to attend. 44 The foreign officers were anxious to see the mother of their chief. They had heard indistinct rumors respecting her remarka- able life and character, but forming their judgments from European examples, they were prepared to expect in the mother that glare and show which would have been attached to the parents of the great in the old world. How were they surprised, when the ma- tron, leaning on the arm of her son, entered the room! She was arrayed in the very plain, yet becoming garb worn by the Virginia lady of the olden time. Her address, always dignified and imposing, was courteous, though reserved. She received the complimentary attentions which were profusely paid her, without evincing the slightest elevation, and at an early hour, wishing the company much enjoyment of their pleasures, observing that it was time for old people to be at home, retired. 44 The foreign officers were amazed to behold one whom so many causes contributed to elevate, preserving the even tenor of her life, while such a blaze of glory shone upon her name and offspring. The European world furnished no examples of such magnanimity. Washington's mother. 199 Names of ancient lore were heard to escape from their lips, and they observed, that 4 if such were the matrons of America, it was not wonderful the sons were illustrious.' 14 It was on this festive occasion that General Washington danced a minuet with Mrs. Willis. It closed his dancing days. The minuet was much in vogue at that period, and was peculiarly cal- culated for the display of the splendid figure of the chief, and his natural grace and elegance of air and manner.—The gallant French- men who were present, of which fine people it may be said, that dancing forms one of the elements of their existence, so much ad- mired the American performance, as to admit "that a Parisian edu- cation could not have improved it. As the evening advanced, the commander-in-chief, yielding to the gayety of the scene, went down some dozen couple, in the contra-dance, with great spirit and satis- faction. 44 The Marquis de Lafayette repaired to Fredericksburg, previous to his departure for Europe, in the fall of 1784, to pay his parting respects to the mother, and to ask her blessing. 44 Conducted by one of her grandsons, he approached the house, when the young gentleman observed, 4 There, sir, is my grandmo- ther.' Lafayette beheld, working in the garden, c lad in domestic- made clothes, and her gray head covered by a plain straw hat, the mother of 4 his hero!' The lady saluted him kindly, observing— 4 Ah, marquis ! you see an old woman—but come, I can make you welcome to my poor dwelling, without the parade of changing my dress.' 14 Much as Lafayette had seen and heard of the matron before, at this interesting interview he was charmed and struck with wonder. When he considered her great age, the transcendant elevation of her son, who, surpassing all rivals in the race of glory, 4 bore the palm alone,' and at the same time discovered no change in her plain, yet dignified life and manners, he became assured that the Roman matron could flourish in the modern day. 44 The marquis spoke of the happy effects of the revolution, and the goodly prospect which opened upon independent America, stated his speedy departure for his native land, paid the tribute of his heart, his love and admiration of her illustrious son, and con- cluded by asking her blessing. She blessed him—and to the enco- miums which he had lavished upon his hero and paternal chief, the matron replied in these words : ' I am not surprised at what George has done, for he was always a very good boy.' 44 Immediately after the organization of the present government, the chief magistrate repaired to Fredericksburg, to pay his humble duty to his mother, preparatory to his departure for New York. An affecting scene ensued. The son feelingly remarked the rava- ges which a torturing disease had made upon the aged frame of his mother, and thus addressed her: 44' The people, madam, have been pleased, with the most flatter- ing unanimity, to elect me to the chief magistracy of these United 200 the moral affections hereditary. States; but before I can assume the functions of my office, I have come to bid you an affectionate farewell. So soon as the public ousiness, which must necessarily be encountered in arranging a new government, can be disposed of, I shall hasten to Virginia, and—' 44Here the matron interrupted him: 4 You will see me no more. My great age, and the disease which is fast approaching my vitals, warn me that I shall not be long of this world. I trust in God I am somewhat prepared for a better. But go, George, fulfill the high destinies which heaven appears to assign you; go, my son, and may hat heaven's and your mother's blessing be with you always.' 44 The president was deeply affected. His head rested upon the shoulder of his parent, whose aged arm feebly, yet fondly encircled his neck. That brow, on which fame had wreathed the purest laurel virtue ever gave to created man, relaxed from its lofty bear- ing. That look, which could have awed a Roman senate in its Fabrician day, was bent in filial tenderness upon the time-worn features of the venerable matron. 44 The great man wept. A thousand recollections crowded upon his mind, as memory, retracing scenes long past, carried him back to the paternal mansion, and the days of his youth, and there, the centre of attraction, was his mother, whose care, instructions, and discipline had prepared him to reach the topmost height of laudable ambition—yet how were his glories forgotten while he gazed upon her whom, wasted by time and malady, he must soon part with to meet no more. 44 The matron's predictions were true. The disease which so long had preyed upon her frame completed its triumph, and she expired at the age of eighty-five, rejoicing in the consciousness of a life well spent, and confiding in the promises of immortality to the humble believer. 44 In her person, Mrs. Washington was of middle size, and finely formed ; her features pleasing, yet strongly marked. It is not the happiness of the writer to remember her, having only seen her with infant eyes. The sister of the chief he perfectly well remembers. She was a most majestic woman, and so strikingly like the brother, that it was a matter of frolic to throw a cloak around her, and place a military hat upon her head, and such was the perfect resem- blance, that, had she appeared on her brother's steed, battalions would have presented arms, and senates risen to do homage to the chief. 44 In her latter days, the mother often spoke of her own good boy, of the merits of his early life, of his love and dutifulness to herself; but of the deliverer of his country, the chief magistrate of this great republic, she never spoke. Call you this insensibility 1 or want of ambition ? Oh, no ! her ambition had been gratified to overflowing. She had taught him to be good ; that he became great when the opportunity presented, was a consequence, not a cause. THE PURITANS AND THEIR DeSCENDANTS. 201 44 Thus lived and died this distinguished woman. Had she been a Roman dame, statues would have been erected to her memory in the capital, and we should have read in classic pages the story of her virtues. 44 When another century shall have elapsed, and the nations of the earth, as well as our descendants, shall have learned the true value of liberty, the name of our hero will gather a glory it has never yet been invested with; and then will youth and age, maid and matron, aged and bearded men, with pilgrim step, repair to the now neglected grave of the mother of Washington." Washington was remarkable for dignity and majesty of mein, for method and management, and for his great goodness and true piety—all which qualities were conspicuous in one or the other line of his ancestry. 365. THE DESCENDANTS OF THE PURITANS Furnish another hereditary fact, on a great scale, of the descent of the moral affections from generation to generation. Mr. Packard's great grandmother, Thayer, when she first landed on Plymouth rock, offered up a devout prayer that all her descendants might be religious, and, to this day, all, ex- cept children, are or have been eminently so. Mr. P. was a deacon, as were also two of his sons, and a great majority of his great grandmother's descendants have been ministers or deacons. New England was settled by the moral sentiments. The most godly of the old world fled to the new, and erected churches in the wilderness, solely that they might worship God " under their own vine and fig-tree." This hereditary law being true, what could reasonably be expected of their descendants but that religious zeal seen wherever New Eng- land's sons and daughters have settled. Puritanism, after having framed our laws after its own model, and been en- throned upon our republic, has conferred on clergymen the mighty influence they now wield, and almost worships them. Behold the swarms from every city and hamlet, which throng our churches at the ringing of the Sabbath bells : and to possess or counterfeit religious devotion, is a sure passport to success in whatever business depends upon the public patronage; where- as infidelity is considered infamous, and is most detrimental 202 THE MORAL AFFECTIONS TRANSMITTED. to the pockets of its possessors. The English, notwithstanding their union of church and state, are no where near as devoted to their religion as the Americans. It does not engross their feelings as it does ours, but is more nominal. Nor do religious vagaries find as many or as enthusiastic devotees there as here. Admitted that this is partly caused by education, yet that form of the heads of the children of devotedly pious parents differ from those of the irreligious, is but a summary of all the author's professional examinations. In fact, the moral devel- opments of the children of the several sects differ from each other so essentially that I can usually tell by examining a child's head, to which sect its parents belonged, provided they were both whole-souled sectarians 2l2. And this general fact, that the relative size of the moral organs is hereditary, besides coinciding perfectly with the entire range of facts and laws adduced in this work, shows that the children of religious parents are constitutionally more susceptible to religious influ- ences than others. Yet the Conscientiousness in the American head averages less than even in the English, and in them far less than in the Swiss, German, and Russian head, doubtless in part, because the Anglo-Saxon nation was founded in Danish usurpation and Norman rapine, and has followed war almost incessantly; and their American descendants have driven out the Indian by wickedness and violence, and are now perpetually preying upon each other, in their selfish scrambling after riches and power. Watch a Yankee, or he will trick you, but Germans, Turks, and Chinese do just as they agree. That a part of this national and sectarian organization is educational, is ad- mitted, yet that it is partly hereditary, is perfectly obvious, especially to every phrenologist. A range of facts establishing the descent of the moral faculties has already been recorded in the case of the Jews , and other ranges to any required extent, might be adduced to show that, in addition to the gross descent of the moral affec- tions, the particular tone and shades of manifestation of parentage are transmitted to offspring—that when the former take a missionary or sectarian turn, so do the latter, that constructiveness hereditary. 203 when the ancestry is generous and hospitable, the progeny will be benevolent; when the former is reformatory, or melan- choly, or theological, or anything else, the latter will be like them—but is it requisite either for proof or illustration, to multiply cases ? What good man or devoted minister of this age, or of past ages, is not a practical witness of this great hereditary law 1 True, we often find the sons of pious parents and ministers to be hardened in sin, yet we hope fully to account for such facts in subsequent pages, and have already virtually done so in " Love and Parentage ;" so that our great doctrine stands on the immutable rock of a fixed ordinance of nature. The converse of this law, that irreligious parents beget irreligious children, is rendered too apparent by our subject to require proof. Confirmations of this, probably every reader will find within the circle of his own observation and acquaint- ance^—a fact which contains a solemn and earnest appeal to all whom it may concern. SECTION VII. CONSTRUCTIVENESS, IDEALITY, IMITATION, AND MIRTHFULNESS TRANSMITTED. 366. CONSTRUCTIVENESS HEREDITARY. To enumerate all the cases which establish the transmissi- bility of Constructiveness, or the mechanical instinct and talent, would be to cite most of the parents and children of New England—of all natural mechanics. The following cases will be sufficient for our present purpose. Dr. Philip Syng Physic was the best of practical sur- geons, one of the main requisites of which is Constructiveness. No other organ is equally essential, and no surgeon can be without it. In all Physic's busts and paintings this organ is extraordinarily developed, so as to form a distinct ridge on each side of the head. See his portrait in the possession of his son, and also his bust. 204 CONSTRUCTIVENESS HEREDITARY. Two of his sons have this organ very large, and faculty powerful, and take their greatest pleasure in its exercise, as well as excel therein. A deceased daughter of one of them had this organ and faculty developed in an extraordinary degree, together with one of the best heads I ever saw. Dr. P.'s father was remarkably ingenious. This faculty is thus traced four generations. Dr.------of Brighton, Mass., nephew of the inventor of the method of manufacturing cards by machinery, has a me- chanical passion, can make almost anything, and is given to inventing. Mr. Taylor, of Lowell, Mass., has invented a gun for the patent right of which he has been offered $60,000, a method of cutting the stamps used to print calico by machinery, which has superceded the old one of cutting them by hand, and made several valuable improvements in machinery. Constructive- ness is very large in him and his two sons, one of whom has already made several valuable inventions. It is large in all his children, but largest in those who most nearly resemble him. Some months before the birth of one of them, he was com- pletely engrossed in perfecting his new gun, and this son, besides having larger Combativeness and Destructiveness than any of his other children, when but two years old, would often steal into the closet and there amuse himself for hours together with the gun—a fact, however, which belongs more appro- priately to ''Love and Parentage," the drift of which is to show that parents impress upon their offspring those par- ticular faculties and characteristics most active in them at the time the former receive being and character from the lat- ter—a subject to which special attention is invited. Observe whom and where we may, there is really no end to the facts which establish and exemplify the descent of the inventive, tool-using propensity and skill from parents to chil- dren, nor its converse, of awkwardness in this respect, yet the nature of our subject does not require additional detail. We shall, however, recur to this point hereafter in proof of another hereditary law. THE DAVISONS--GOETHE. 205 367. THE POETICAL GENIUS INNATE. " Poets must be bokn, not made." The time-proved proverb, " Poetry is inherited, not educa- tional," acquires strength by age, and is in perfect keeping with our great hereditary argument, that all constitutional peculiarities are entailed. That the " poetic temperament" —the first great condition of the poetic talent—is transmitted, has already been virtually proved under the former heads, that all the various physical conditions of parentage were entailed 324 345. But to the testimony of facts. Mrs. Davidson, the mother of those stars whose poetic brilliancy, meteor-like, dazzled our nation, and then burst in death, possessed a temperament exceedingly nervous and exquisite, and excessively susceptible to excitement, which she imparted to her daughters, and hence their poetic and intellectual precocity. Did a sluggish* tavern-loafer ever pro- duce such children ? Washington Irving thus describes the similarity between mother and child :— 44 The narrative will be found almost as illustrative of the charac- ter of the mother as of the child; they were singularly identified in tastes, in feelings, and pursuits; tenderly entwined together by maternal and filial affection, they reflected an inexpressibly touch- ing grace and interest upon each other by this holy relationship, and, to my mind, it would be marring one of the most beautiful and affecting groups in the history of modern literature, to sunder them. 44 This maternal instruction, while it kept her apart from the world, and fostered a singular purity and innocence of thought, contributed greatly to enhance her imaginative powers, for the mother partook largely of the poetical temperament of ^the child; it was, in fact, one poetical spirit ministering to another." Goethe and his mother confirm and illustrate this law as seen in the following, from his life by Falk:— 44 It has often been remarked, that great and eminent men re- ceive from their mothers, even before they see the light, half the mental disposition and other peculiarities of character by which they are afterwards distinguished." 44 Thus in Goethe's character we find a most sensitive shrinking from all intense impressions, which by every means, and under every circumstance of his life, he sought to ward off from himself. We find the same peculiarity poetry innate. 206 in his mother, as we shall see from the following curious and char- acteristic traits. They were related to me by a female friend who was extremely intimate with her at Frankfort." 44 Goethe's mother, whenever she hired a servant, used to make the following condition : ' You are not to tell me anything horrible, afflicting, or agitating, whether it happened in my own house, in the town, or in the neighborhood. I desire, once for all, that I may hear nothing of the kind. If it concerns me I shall know it soon enough; if it does not concern me, I have nothing whatever to do with it. Even if there should be a fire in the street in which I live, I am to know nothing of till it is absolutely necessary that I should." 14 Those who were at all acquainted with Goethe's person and manners will instantly agree with me, that much of this amiable temper, and of this vein of naive humor, which nothing in life or death could subdue, flowed in full tide from her veins into his. We shall give further proof of this hereafter from the history of his early years, as well as of his more serious moods, from the latter." Did Schiller owe nothing to parentage above the veriest blockhead or mendicant 1 * Byron, already shown to have inherited his violence of passion from his mother355, partook of her temperament, which, with his father's sensuality, made him what he was. Macau- ley says of him:— 44 Never had any writer so vast a command of the whole elo- quence of scorn, misanthropy, and despair. That Marah wag never dry. No art could sweeten, no draughts could exhaust its perennial waters of bitterness. Never was there such variety in monotony as that of Byron. From maniac laughter to piercing lamentation, there was not a single note of human anguish of which he was not master. Year after year, and month after month, he continued to repeat, that to be wretched, is tbe destiny of all; that to be eminently wretched, is the destiny of the eminent; that all the desires by which we are cursed lead alike to misery—if they are not gratified, to the misery of disappointment; if they are grati- fied, to the misery of satiety. His principal heroes are men who have arrived by different roads to the same gaol of despair, who are sick of life, who are at war with society, who are supported in their anguish only by an unconquerable pride, resembling that of Prometheus on the rock, or Satan in the burning marl; who can master their agonies by the force of their will, who, to the last, defy the whole powers of earth and heaven. He always described himself as a man of the same kind with his favorite creations; as a man whose heart had been withered, whose capacity for hap- piness was gone, and could not be restored ; Jbut whose invincible spirit dared the worst that could befall him here or hereafter. BURNS. 207 44 From the poetry of Lord Byron his youthful admirers drew a system of ethics, compounded of misanthropy and voluptuousness, a system in which the two great commandments were, to hate your neighbor and to love your neighbor's wife." Burns, that poet of nature, also inherited his genius from his mother, of whom his historian thus writes:— 14 The mother of Burns was a native of the county of Ayr; her birth was humble, and her personal attractions moderate; yet, in all other respects, she was a remarkable woman. She was blessed with singular equanimity of temper; her religious feelings were deep and constant; she loved a well-regulated household; and it was frequently her pleasure to give wings to the weary hours of a chequered life by chanting old songs and ballads, of which she had a large store. In her looks she resembled her eldest son ; her eyes were bright and intelligent; her perception of character quick and keen. She lived to a great age, rejoiced in the fame of the poet, and partook of the fruits of his genius." His father was also endowed with sound mind, diversified knowledge, and great strength of intellect. A son of the distinguished writer, Mrs.-------, is exces- sively nervous and fidgety, having undoubtedly inherited from his mother that exalted nervous temperament so indispensable to good writing. If asked, what, in accordance with this hereditary doctrine, have become of the descendants of Milton, Shakespeare, and other poetical geniuses? the answer is two-fold. First, as to raise a good crop, requires good soil .as well as seed, so to produce poetic or distinguished offspring, requires highly en- dowed mothers as well as fathers, yet great men often marry most unfortunately. Milton wedded a woman of pleasure and frivolity, weak, fashionable, vain, and incapable of parenting children of genius, and his children accordingly sunk to medi- ocrity. This is equally true of the wives of many other great men. Poetical talents also usually accompany a predominance of the mental temperament and cerebral action over the phys- ical strength, which too often enfeebles poets, as in the case of Pope and Cowper, and leaves their children too weak in body to become distinguished—that is, precocious—which confirms our hereditary law. But more of this hereafter » 208 MIRTHFULNESS TRANSMITTED. Ideality, besides conferring an essential ingredient of poetry, also bestows taste and refinement in general, grace- fulness and polish of manners included. Several instances of the descent of superior personal carriage or manners, have already incidentally been given. Perry's noble, manly, magnificent bearing and mein were inherited from his father, whose " features were regular and striking, his person elegant and commanding, and his manners exceedingly prepossessing." Ansart, a French physician, who emigrated to this coun- try, was eminently polished, and by nature a perfect gentle- man—every action graceful, every motion elegant. His son and this son's daughter inherited these personal attractions. That whole families will everywhere be found who are naturally genteel and refined in manners and conversation, while other families are naturally awkward, ungainly, and clownish, as well as wanting in propriety and good manners, is apparent to every observer. That the mimicing disposition and capability are heredi- tary, is equally supported by facts, apparent to all observers; yet we will not protract by giving details. 368. MIRTHFULNESS Is also transmitted. Witty parents almost always have witty children, and sedate parents serious children. General Peters, though an eminently religious man, would neverthe- less take and make every opportunity to crack jokes, and tell laughter-moving anecdotes. In his head the organ of Mirth- fulness is large, as seen in the accompanying engraving, copied from a bust cast on his face, I think after death. His brother, who resided in Connecticut, though he is reli- gious, and mourns over and strives to subdue his joking pro- pensity, will nevertheless have his fun. Two sons and a daughter of Gen. Peters are also noted for the same disposition and capability. In 1837, Rev. Absalom Peters, formerly editor of the " Biblical Repository," sub- mitted his developments to the author's manipulation. Mirth- fulness was found to be a leading organ, and the reasoning GENERAL PETERS. 209 MIRTHFPT.NESS LARGE. No. 22. General Peters. faculties were large; and hence he was described as endowed with a disposition to argue by ridiculing. He afterwards stated that his uncontrollable disposition to regard things in a ludicrous light, and make fun even on serious occasions, was his besetting sin, and troubled his conscience more than any- thing else he did. Yet, as similar cases are abundant, we hasten onward. 18* 210 intellect transmitted. SECTION VIII. INTELLECT, ITS KIND AND AMOUNT, HEREDITARY. 369. TALENTS IN GENERAL DESCEND. That accumulative force of our argument, already pre- sented324 Mi,, renders details., by way of proving this point, comparatively unnecessary; and our proof that "idiocy is hereditary" ^ implies its converse—that superior talents are also transmitted. Those, however, who require specific cases, will find them in the parental history of every distinguished man of the nation, of the age, of the world. What son of genius was ever born of dolts ? We will not swell our pages by cases already recorded, but introduce an extract from the manuscript of Joshua Coffin, whose genealogical knowl- edge, as well as general memory, like that of his ancestors, is most extraordinary, and whose conversation is full of biographical and hereditary anecdote. " Men distinguished for their native strength of intellect have always been descended from mothers of strong powers of mind, or, in other words, no woman who is weak or deficient in intellect ever had a child distinguished for talents. If the father is a man of talents, so much the better; but, be the father who he may, unless the mother has talents, the children will not—I might almost say cannot—be distinguished. It is not so much the seed as the soil* from which the husbandman expects to obtain a good crop; but let him take what pains he may, in every respect, he cannot anticipate, nor will he obtain, anything worthy of notice, unless the soil is deep and rich. As a proof of this assertion, we must depend not on theory, but on facts, which, as saith the proverb, are 4stubborn things.' And, from long and careful observation, I have never yet read of or known an instance of any person of superior intellect, whose mother was not blest with strong powers of mind. Take a few examples : Sir William Jones's mother was a woman of extra- ordinary talents, so was Napoleon Bonaparte's, so was Walter Scott's, so was the mother of Chief-Justice Parsons, of Schiller, of Rev. Richard Cecil; and, in short, of so large a number, that time would fail me to recount them. Both the parents of Dame' Webster were distinguished for their talents; and, as a striking proof of the position I take, it will interest you to know that Col. * We want both good seed and good soil, to produce a good crop, as well iu the animal kingdom as in the vegetable.—Author. THE WEBSTER AND TAPPAN FAMILIES. 211 Ebenezer Webster, father of Daniel, was twice married. By his first wife, a Miss Smith, he had several children, not one of whom was above mediocrity—in that respect resembling the mother. By his .second wife, a Miss Eastman, he had three children: Daniel, Ezekiel—who was, in every respect, equal in point of intellect to Daniel—and a daughter, who was the mother of Professor Had- dock, of Dartmouth College, and William Haddock, Esq., who died in Lowell. Daniel's grandmother Webster was a woman of extraordinary talents, which her son Ebenezer, Daniel's father, inherited. Her maiden name was Bachiler. I mention her name in order to state a fact—namely, that there is one physical peculiarity which has descended from the Rev. Stephen Bachiler to Daniel Webster317. Trace, then, if you please, the genealogy of the Webster family, and you will find that certain traits have descended from father to son in the male line, but that, in every case, where there has been any indication of superior talent, it has proceeded from the mother. The mother of Col. Webster was a woman of extraordinary talents, and his second wife, the mother of Daniel, was likewise talented. So it is, as I think, in nearly every case—that is, peculiar traits will descend in a family, from generation to generation ; but whether they are or are not distinguished for their talents, depends upon who their mothers were. Let me illustrate. 411 presume you know Lewis Tappan, and his peculiar temper- ament. Talented, ardent, frank, honest, firm, undaunted, per- severing, and industrious, he exhibits just such' traits as have distin- guished his ancestors for five or six generations. Abraham Tap- pan came to Newbury in 1634. His oldest son, Peter, was a physician in Newbury, and a noted man. The records of our court give ample evidence of his peculiarities. One of his sons was the Rev. Dr. Christopher Tappan, of Newbury, dis- tinguished for his talents, and his frank fearlessness in avowing his sentiments364. I will mention one or two instances of his peculiari- ties : A Mr. Pettengill and his wife once brought up a child for baptism. The woman was a devoted Christian, but the father was irreligious. On baptizing it, Mr. Tappan said, with a clear, loud voice, ' I baptize this child wholly on the mother's account On another occasion, during the excitement of 1742, he carried a whip into the church, one Sunday, in order, as he said, to scourge out the enthusiasts. I ought to mention that he was a little de- ranged at that time, but it shows the disposition of the man. His descendants, down to the present time, have been distinguished for talents and progression. "Hon. Mr. Atherton, of New Hampshire, now in Congresses one of them. The Rev. Christopher Tappan's nephew, Benjamin, was minister in Manchester, Massachusetts-a superior man, whose son, David, was professor of divinity in Cambridge College David's son, Benjamin, is now minister in Augusta Mame-an able man. David, of Cambridge, was an uncle to Arthur, Lewis, 212 TALENTS INNATE. and Benjamin—the latter being now a Senator in Congress from Ohio—and John and Charles, of Boston. All of them are superior men. I could mention many others of the same family. Concern- ing the Tappan race, two things are observable :— 44 Abraham Tappan had two wives. Dr. Peter Tappan was son of the first wife, and the other four sons, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and John, sons of the second wife. Now, while the descendants exhibit many of the traits of the family, the superior talents are al- most all confined to the posterity et Peter. You will ask how I account for this. Could the truth be known, I entertain no doubt that Abraham's first wife was a woman of superior talents. 44 His descendants in the line of Peter, for four generations, or down to Lewis Tappan's father, all married women of superior talents, as I happened to know. We, therefore, have a right to expect children to be intelligent, when both their parents possess superior intellect3r9. With the history of this family, I am well ac- quainted, as my mother was a Tappan, and my grandmother Tap- pan was a woman of superior mind. I shall say nothing of her descendants. Charles Tappan, of Philadelphia—the engraver—is one of her grandchildren. But enough of this family. 44 Let me mention something concerning the Coffin family. Tristram Coffin came to this country in 1642, with his wife Dionis, and left five sons and a daughter, in 1660. He went, with three of his sons, to Nantucket, where their descendants, or many of them, still reside. One son, Peter, lived in Dover, New Hamp- shire, and the other in Newbury, Massachusetts. I shall say nothing of my own relations, except a few things in corrobora- tion of two points—namely, that family traits are hereditary, and that talent proceeds from the mother. Tristram Coffin's wife was a superior woman. Her son Peter was chief-justice of the supreme court of New Hampshire, and her daughter Mary, who married a Starbuck, of Nantucket, was a woman of extraordinary talents and influence. For proof of this, see John Richardson's 4 Journal.' He was a Quaker preacher. See also the novel called 4 Miriam Coffin,' which is founded on fact, and of which the greater part is true. In that book you will find some verses written many years ago, and descriptive of the peculiar traits of each family in the island. One verse, as near as I can remember, runs as follows:— " ' The Coffins noisy, boisterous, loud, The silent Gardners plodding, The Barkers proud, the Mitchells good, The Macys eat the pudding.' 44 Although the Coffins in Nantucket have been separated from the Coffins in Newbury ever since 1660, there is even now a striking family resemblance in looks and other traits. They are all very sociable, are great talkers, have good memories, love to travel, and have a great deal of curiosity. They are to be found in every State of the Union, and in every quarter of the world where OTHER CASES. 213 ever a ship can sail; so that the name of Capt. Coffin is as familiar to an American ear as John Smith. But enough of our family. 44 The family of Moody, the descendants of William Moody, who came to Newbury in 1634, have been and are now an excellent family, noted for good sense, honesty, and religious principle. So of the descendants of Thomas Hall, and many others whom I could mention. The conclusion to which I have arrived is this, that like produces like—that physical peculiarities are propagated, and descend from one generation to another, in the male line—that strength of intellect depends on the mother, and that, if the father be a person of talents as well as the mother, the children stand a much better chance of being intelligent than they would do if the mother alone were possessed of superior talents; but if the mother had a weak intellect, you may be assured that the children will not—I might almost say caivnot—be otherwise than weak. 44 As far as I can ascertain, from a somewhat extensive knowledge of the people of New England, I agree in sentiment with C. C. Baldwin, that those families which were respectable in the first settlement of each town, are respectable now ; and that those fami- lies which were not of any note then, are just so now. To this general principle I would make the following exceptions : First, where a man of respectability and talent marries a woman of small intellect and low family, or marries a blood-relation, there the family are almost sure to fall into the lower ranks. On the other hand, where a man of no rank marries a woman of respectable family and good talents—the talent and the character coming from the mother—the family are elevated of course. I have noticed another thing—viz., that nearly all our distinguished men in New England, are descended from the first settlers. I mention this last fact merely as such, which may or may not be of use to you. 44 The Sewall family, for two centuries, have been distinguished for talents, and nearly the whole time from 1690, down to the present generation, some one or other of them have been chief- justice of the supreme court, either in New England or Canada." The author has found the intellectual and moral lobes of several of the members of this gifted family uncommonly large. One of them was chief-justice in Salem witchcraft enactments, and a descendant, I think great-grandson, an eminent lawyer of Boston, who was the abolition candidate for governor, has very large Causality, Comparison, Benevolence, and Conscientiousness, and large Mirthfulnesss and Ideality. JOHN QUINCT ADAMS AND HIS ANCESTRY AND DESCENDANTS, Still farther illustrate this hereditary law, that talents are transmitted. Eloquent above almost any of his contempora- 214 TALENTS LNNATE. ries, even at the advanced age of eighty; possessing more political and general information than any other man on this continent; remarkable for retentiveness of memory, intensity of feeling, bitter and scorching sarcasm, intellectual clearness and discrimination, and superior in debate to any other man on the floor of Congress—the " old man eloquent" is the won- der of the age ! And who is his son ? A rising legislator, who bids fair to do honor to his illustrious line, as several of his literary productions, legislative speeches, and general intel- lectual capacities, abundantly attest. And who was his mother ? Eminently intellectual, as well as pious363. And who was his father ? Let the infant history of our country answer. The following biography of this dis- tinguished family is in point:— 44 Joseph Adams, great grandfather of John Q., son of Joseph and Hannah Adams, was graduated at Harvard College in 1710, and that same year kept the town school in Braintree. The 16th Nov., 1716, he was settled in the miuistry at Newington, N. H., which station he sustained for sixty-seven years, and died 26th May, 1783, aged ninety-three years. 44 Allen's Biographical Dictionary mentions him as a 4 minister remarkable for longevity'—and notices two of his sermons that were published. He was, while he lived, eminent in his profession, and there are respectable descendants from him still residing in New Hampshire. 44 John Adams, son of John Adams, senior, and the father of J. Q. Adams, was born 19th Oct., (old style,) 1735. His life was one of the most eventful recorded in the annals of history, and his name will ever be remembered among the benefactors of his country, and among the glorious asserters of the rights of man. When quite young he was not distinguished for an ardent love of learning, to which he afterwards so severely applied himself. Study was rather an irksome task to him; and to those acquainted with his youthful spirit, books seemed but the fetters of a mind, in coming years des- tined to work wonders in the cause of freedom. It has been most' justly observed, that man is in a great measure the creature of accidental circumstance, and never perhaps was this remark more clearly illustrated, than in the history of the early life of John Adams. 44 To those who knew anything of the last days of this great man, it is wholly unnecessary to mention how great were his conversa- tional powers, and that to all who were so fortunate as to listen to him, the fund of anecdote from which he drew for their instruction, no less than entertainment, was inexhaustible. It was his delight to speak of interesting incidents which he had been connected with THE ADAMSES. 215 himself, not through vanity or ostentation, for these were not a part of his nature, but to bring conviction to the mind, that of much that was considered abstract truth, there were found sensible illustra- tions in common life. The following anecdote related by him, even to the last days of his life, with all that good humor which was so characteristic of him, it is presumed, has not yet passed away from the minds of many who have heard it from his own lips. A few only of his strong expressions are remembered:— 44 4 When I was a boy, 1 had to study the Latin grammar, but it was dull, and I hated it. My father was anxious to send me to college, and therefore I studied the grammar till I could bear it no longer; and going to my father, I told him I did not like study, and asked for some other employment. It was opposing his wishes, and he was quick in his answer. 4 Well, John,' said he, 4if Latin grammar does not suit you, you may try ditching, perhaps that will;—my meadow yonder needs a ditch, and you may put by Latin and dig.' This seemed a delightful change, and to the meadow I went, but soon found ditching harder than Latin, and the first fore- noon was the longest I ever experienced. That day I eat the bread of labor, and glad was I when night came on. That night I made some comparison between Latin grammar and ditching, but said not a word about it. I dug the next forenoon, and wanted to re- turn to Latin at dinner, but it was humiliating, and I could not do it. At night, toil conquered pride, and I told my father, one of the severest trials of my life, that if he chose, I would go back to Latin grammar. He was glad of it, and if I have since gained any distinc- tion, it has been owing to my two days' labor in that abominable ditch.' 44 He was prepared for college in the school of Mr. Joseph Marsh, then a distinguished instructor in this place, and was graduated at Harvard University in 1775. After leaving college, he kept a school in the town of Worcester, studied law with Col. James Put- nam of the same place, and while engaged in this study, wrote his famous letter, so prophetical of the greatness of his country. 44 In his profession he became early distinguished, and was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He was foremost among that band of patriots who laid the foundation of the independ- ence of our country. His conduct in the cause of Preston, with his friend Josiah Quincy, Jr., would of itself have made his fame enduring. 44 He was a member of the first Congress iik:1774, and was the bold adviser of the Declaration of Independence. He was chosen on the committee to draft that paper, and eloquently defended it. He was sent Minister Plenipotentiary to the court of France, the same to the United Provinces, and was many years the American Minister in France and England. In 1789 he was chosen Vice President of the United States, and in 1797 was chosen President. In 1817 he was chosen one of the electors for the choice of Presi- dent. In 1820 he was sent by his native town to the Convention for the purpose of amending the Constitution. He was elected 216 TALENTS HEREDITARY. president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; had been a member of various other societies—filled the most important stations in the gift of the people, and received the highest honors from our universities and colleges. The latter part of his life was spent in private retirement. As an orator, he was one of the most powerful his country ever beheld. It was the remark of Thomas Jefferson, that on the subject of the colonies, John Adams, by his eloquence, 4 moved us from our seats.' In learning, he was pro- found, and in religious knowledge surpassed the theologians of his age. He died at 6 o'clock, P. M., on the 4th of July, 1826, in the 91st year of his age. 44 The remarkable circumstance of his death, as well as that of his compatriot and friend, Thomas Jefferson, are too well known to need further remark. It may be worth while to mention, that pre- vious to the 4th of July, he had been solicited to give a sentiment for his fellow townsmen, at that day's celebration. 4I will give,' said he, 4 Independence forever.' On being asked if he would add anything, he answered, 4not a sylable.' This sentiment was drank amidst the united acclamations of his fellow townsmen, per- haps at the very moment when his spirit was returning to God who gave it."—(History of Quincy, by Rev. Geo. Whitney.) Jedediah Adams, son of Peter, grandson of Joseph, and great grandson of Henry, the ancestor of this family, died 1799, in his 89th year, and the 53d of his ministry. Nearly or quite all the Adamses of note are descended from Joseph, the eighth and last son of the ancestor. He married a Baxter, through whom, probably, the Adamses receive their talents, had twelve child- ren, and died at 83—two indices of great physical vigor. Professor Adams, of Vt., the first scholar in the author's college class, is from the same stock. 370. ORDER HEREDITARY. Few likenesses evince a greater development of this organ than that of Elias Hicks, and few persons possessed the cor- responding faculty in as prominent a degree. His business, religion, everything, was perfect clockwork, and this pecu- liarity is equally conspicuous in the organizations and charac- ters of several of his grandchildren and great grandchildren. His physiological conformation, in common with the one already given, indicates longevity32'. Mrs. Gibson, mother of Dr. Gibson, formerly editor of the U. S. Telegraph, Washington, D. C, had an extraordinary ORDER HEREDITARY. 217 No. 23. Elias Hicks, organ and faculty of Order, so much so that the least thing out of place annoyed her excessively. Her son, Dr. G., had but little, and his wife not a great deal, but his little daughter " took after " her grandmother, and even before she could put things in place, evinced great uneasiness at every trifling instance of disorder. As soon as she could walk she went about the house, grandmother-like, setting chairs and everything to rights. Thus this faculty passed one genera- tion 318. 371. SPECIFIC INTELLECTUAL TALENTS AND CALCULATION Are also innate. Of this the transmission of the mathemati- cal talents furnishes an illustration. I found large Calcula- tion in the head of Mr. B., of Woodbury, N. J., and described him accordingly. He said he never found his equal, except in his father and grandfather. id 218 CALCULATION TRANSMITTED. To Mr. Pratt, while examining his head professionally, I said, " Your father had a mathematical turn of mind." He at first thought not, but was soon reminded of the fact by his wife, and added that his uncle was equally so. Such cases are common in my public and private examinations. The data on which predictions are made, has already been given321. Mr. Baker, of London, Canada West, has large Causality and Calculation, together with superior mathematical powers. His father does not possess them, but his grandfather and uncle do318. Mr. H., near W., Pa., has great mathematical organs and talents, which have descended four generations. A cousin is a celebrated mathematical teacher, and a public surveyor of Columbia Co., Pa. This talent is most developed in the male line. A son of the author of " Colburn's Arithmetic,"—a work which has now remodelled, because vastly superior to the old method of teaching figures, and shows its author to have been endowed with very large Calculation—has this organ also large, together with a literal passion for this class of studies. He is a surveyor and civil engineer. Zera Colburn, that mathematical prodigy, who, at six years old, could solve mentally almost any problem pro- pounded to him, so as to astonish the great men of his day, was probably related to the author of Colburn's arithmetic. Both doubtless derived their extraordinary mathematical genius, in common with their names, from one common an- cestor.' Zera's younger brother, and a nephew, have this organ large, and faculty powerful. Anecdotes of Zera's father indicate that he too possessed this organ and gift, Mr. Tappan, of Newbury port, almost equalled Zera Col- burn in mental arithmetic, and his father, a broker, excelled in figures. Dr. Lee, of London, Canada West, possesses superior mathematical organs and powers, as have also his ancestors for three generations, and his children have large Calculation. It comes through his mother and her father, whose names THE LEAVITT FAMILY. No. 24. Herschel. were H«.ll, of Connecticut. This talent has thus been trans- mitted FIVE GENERATIONS. Herschel's organ of Calculation was extraordinary, as was also its faculty, as seen in the accompanying excellent like- ness of him; and his grandson, Herschel, inherits the same kind of astronomical talents in an eminent degree. The Leavitt family are generally remarkable both for strong common sense and mathematical genius. Dudley Leavitt, for a long time the almanac maker of New-Hamp- shire, was an eminently scientific and profound man, and a great general scholar, though his forte was mathematics. His numerous relatives and descendants have been noted for superior intellect, excellent judgment, profound research, literary attainments, and especially mathematical genius. A Massachusetts branch of this talented family are all charac- terized by these qualities, of whom Joshua L., ex-editor of the New-York Evangelist, the Emancipator, and some other papers—a powerful writer and clear-headed reasoner—is one. This family, also, are generally staunch reformers, and noted for moral worth and progression 3ei. Similar cases are constantly occurring in the author's pro- fessional practice, and are observable by all. The descend- 220 MEMORY HEREDITARY. ant of every mathematical parent, and of all deficient in this power, furnish proofs and illustrations of this hereditary law. 372. MEMORY HEREDITART. Elihu Burritt has probably the best historical, lingual, and general memory of any man living. Besides under- standing over fifty languages, he has at command the literary lore of the whole ancient and modern world, and accordingly has the largest organs of Individuality, Eventu- ality, and Form, the author has ever seen. His maternal grandfather, Hinsdale, was a remarkable man, intrusted with town offices, a great reader, and with only ordinary advantages possessed himself of an extraordi- nary fund of knowledge. Burritt's brother, author of that excellent astronomical treatise, the " Geography of the Heavens," inherits a like insatiable thirst after knowledge, and facility in acquiring it, besides being extensively erudite. A sister and a maternal nephew are also endowed with a similar power of memory, and passion for reading, as well as capability of storing their minds with knowledge. One of this learned family, I think Elihu's brother, literally killed himself by study, in which he progressed with aston. ishing rapidity. This wonderful love of learning, and capa- bility of retaining it, will undoubtedly be found to have been handed down to the Hinsdales, and throughout the various branches of their descendants, as far as it can be traced. 373. THE MUSICAL PASSION AND TALENT TRANSMITTED. Benj. Lamborn manifested a musical ear and voice when only two years old; at four, his neighbors often gave him money because he sung so charmingly. He learned Log Cabin songs, Yankee Doodle, etc., by hearing them sung only vwo or three times. Tune is so very large in his head that he author had a cast taken. His brother has the same capacity and passion, as have also every one of his four brothers and sisters. His father could never turn a tune, but his mother and her father were musical geniuses. THE musical passion transmitted. 221 The Coffins are generally excellent singers. Joshua Coffin and all his children have superior musical ears and voices, which they inherit from his grandfather Coffin, and he from his mother, a Morse. This grandfather had twelve children and over forty grandchildren, all of whom sing, as do all their children and grandchildren. This musical passion and talent has thus descended six generations. The Swans of Northfield, Mass., are generally excellent singers and great readers—characteristics which have been transmitted to several generations, and in several lateral branches. A grandfather in Newburyport, all his children, and most of his grandchildren, are highly endowed with tho musical passion and talent. Mrs. Brevort had a nice ear and natural turn for singing, as well as a delightful voice, all of which she transmitted to several of her children, if not to all. One of her sons is one of the very best of singers, and has commanded high salaries as chorister and teacher. His sister is a natural musician, as are all of her children. They catch tunes by simply hearing them sung at concerts; are endowed with sweet voices, and sing much of their time, as well as learn instrumental music with great facility. Both the parents of Mrs. B. were natural singers of surpassing excellence, and one of her nieces is a splendid performer. Several others have inherited this faculty from these singing parents. THE HASTINGS FAMILIES, Wherever located, possess extraordinary musical genius, and especially a discriminating ear. The one stationed in New York has become celebrated throughout the musical world for harmony, composition, and execution. He is an albino, and his brother of Rochester, also an albino, has a like ear, taste, and passion. They can endure no music but the very best, and are thrown into perfect agony by discord, but enjoy good music beyond description. Another albino brother resembles them in all these respects; but the other brothers and sisters, though musical, are less so. A parent or else 222 intellect innate. grandparent, also albino, possessed this musical faculty in a pre-eminent degree. It is traceable four generations, and probably extended farther back, yet has increased, probably by exercise 2IS, as it descended. Mrs. Hastings, the best female teacher of music in Detroit, Mich., in 1838, had two most delightful musical daughters, to whom singing and playing came as natural as breathing. They execute as well as any others of their age to whom I have ever listened. Similar cases of the descent of this faculty abound every. where. For musical parents to have musical children, is as natural and as universal as for a long-lived, or consumptive, or acquisitive, or pious ancestry, to have long-lived, or consump. five, or penurious, or religious offspring319 326 367 362. This law governs even birds—Canaries for example—much more may we calculate on its application to man. Why should not this faculty conform to that great hereditary principle, " like begets like," which this whole work proves and illustrates in so great a number and variety of particulars ? It does; and those who marry sweet singers may safely calculate that all the off- spring which "take after" the musical parent, will also be musical; while most of those children which resemble a parent who cannot sing or discriminate tunes, will be equally deficient in these respects. But we shall recur to this point again in illustration of another hereditary law. Henry Clay's oratorical powers are the admiration of his country. His developments indicate that he " takes after" his mother 321, and his maternal cousin, Mrs. Cole, who keeps one of the best of boarding-houses at No. 8 South Fifth street, Philadelphia, has a forehead formed after his model, an ample development of Language, elegant conversational powers, great fluency and dignity of style, and excellent business capacities. She is every way a superior woman. Her son has the Clay form of forehead, yet lacks constitution. A knowledge of Clay's parentage will doubtless show this communicating capability in ancestors, relatives, and descend- ants. So will probably that of Forrest. Patrick Henry furnishes another striking proof of this franklin's parentage. 223 law ; yet it is held in reserve, to illustrate another most important application of it, soon to be adduced. Yet few readers will need to go far from home for kindred examples. The children of great talkers are generally " chips of the old block ;" and one of the best evidences that yonder mute and bashful girl will, when grown, be a great talker, is, that she resembles her talkative mother. That son, too, who " takes after" a parent gifted in speech, is almost certain to possess the natural talents of an orator. 374. THE REASONING POWERS TRANSMITTED. Benjamin Franklin was one of the world's great men. For practical wisdom, and power of diving deeply into the principles of things, only a very few have ever equalled him. In sound philosophy, strong common sense, facility of adapt- ing ways and means to ends, and whatever involved the reasoning powers, none at or since his time compare with him. He also possessed great mechanical talents, of which his improvement of the printing press is an example. His mathematical talents, conjoined with his Causality and Con- structiveness, analyzed and brought electricity from the clouds, invented the lightning-rod, and successfully prose- cuted both astronomy and the whole range of natural science. Of such a man, what was the parentage ? Let his own pen answer:— 441 suppose you may like to know what kind of a man my father was. He had an excellent constitution, was of a middle stature, well set, and very strong. He could draw prettily, and was skilled a little in music. His voice was sonorous and agreeable ; so that when he played on his violin, and sung withal, as he was accustomed to do after the business of the day was over, it was extremely agreeable to hear. He had some knowledge of mechanics, and, on occasion, was very handy with other trades- men's tools. But his great excellence was his sound understanding, and his solid judgment in prudential matters, both in private and public affairs. It is true he was never employed in the latter, the numerous family he had to educate, and the stra.tness of his circumstances, keeping him close to his trade ; but I remember well his being frequently visited by leading men, who consulted him for his opinion in public affairs, and those of the church he belonged to; and who showed great respect for his judgment and advice. 224 INTELLECT INNATE. 44 He was also much consulted by private persons about their affairs, when^ any difficulty occurred, and frequently chosen an arbiter between contending parties." Yet he probably owed still more to his mother than father. Her father, Peter Folger, was a man of great strength of intellect, soundness of judgment, and moral worth ; as were also his father and his father's brothers. His descendants, too, down to the present time, evince those very mental character- istics which Franklin possessed, as well as resemble him in looks323 and form of head. Walter Folger, a lineal descendant of Peter, of Nantucket, is a truly great man, whether we consider his remarkable ability to acquire and retain knowledge, or his mechanical and inventive genius, or his astronomical and philosophical powers, or his strong common sense, or all combined. When only 22, he invented and constructed the most remarkable clock in the world. It shows the time of day, day of the month, rising and setting of the sun and moon, the year, the revolutions of the planets, one of which it requires 120 years to perform, and many kindred astro- nomical phases, and is so ingeniously constructed that he offers to give it to any one who will take it apart and put it together again right. At exactly 12 o'clock of every new year, the 18 remains, and the 38, or 40, or 47, or whatever the new year may be, appears in place of the old, and thus of the other things it chronicles. He constructed a telescope, even to the grinding of his own lens—the very nicest piece of mechanism imaginable— with his own hands, with which he has discovered things in the moon and stars not discoverable even with Herschel's great telescope, and is one of the greatest—probably the first— astronomer in the world. By a rigid and most intricate mathematical calculation, he invented the form of barrel which allows the greatest amount of oil to be stored in the smallest space, whieh has saved millions of dollars to his native island alone. His descendants are also great mathe- maticians, and remarkably ingenious, as are all the Folgers in Nantucket. BACON'S ANCESTRY. 225 Lucretia Mott, " the Quaker preacher," was a Folger, descended from the same Peter Folger, and has the same high, broad, and capacious forehead, or prodigious organs of Causality, which characterize Franklin's head, and apper- tain to the Folgers generally. She also stands unsurpassed by any of her sex for power of thought, discrimination, rea- soning, and general strength of intellect. Thus this Folger family, as far as it can be traced, is distinguished for those same mental powers which constituted the prince of American philosophers. Lord Bacon also inherited his mighty intellect. For powers of reasoning no age has ever produced his equal. His maternal grandfather, Sir Anthony Cook, distinguished himself for his universal genius and talents. Besides being a perfect master of the languages, he excelled in history, poetry, and the mathematics. Of Anne, Lord Bacon's mother, Macauley remarks thus :— 44 She was distinguished both as a linguist and a theologian. She corresponded in Greek with Bishop Jewel, and translated his Apologia from the Latin so correctly, that neither he nor Archbishop Parker could suggest a single alteration. She also translated a series of sermons on Fate and Free-will, from the Tuscan of Bernardo Ochino." 44 Her parental care of her two sons, Anthony and Francis, two of the most extraordinary men of her time, or, indeed, of any time, is, possibly, the best test of her powers, which was deeply felt by Francis, who in his will says : 4 For my burial, I desire that it may be in St. Michael's church, near St. Alban's—there was my mother buried.' In Birch's Memoirs of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, the extra- ordinary vigilance used by Lady Anne in superintending their conduct long after they were adults, may be seen." 44 Sir Nicholas Bacon," continues Macauley, 44 was no ordinaiy man ; but the fame of the father was thrown into shade by that of tbe son." 44 Sir Nicholas Bacon," says Lloyd, 4l was a man full of wit and wisdom. He had the deepest reach of any man at the council-table ; the knottiest head to pierce into difficulties ; the most comprehensive judgment to surmount the merits of a case; the strongest memory to recollect all the circumstances at one view; the greatest patience to debate and consider, and the clearest reason to urge anything that came in his .way in the courts of chancery. His favor was eminent with his mistress, and his alliance strong with her statesmen. He was Lord Keeper of the Great Seal during the time of Elizabeth. He was, in a word, father of his country, and of Sir Francis Bacon." 226 INTELLECT INNATE. And now, reader, in the name of inductive reasoning, is it necessary to extend these proofs or illustrations, that the entire mentality, as well as physiology, is transmitted ? What reader, of common observation, has not seen analogous facts sufficient, not only to establish every point adduced in this treatise, but to enforce the strictly inductive inference, that EVERY PHYSICAL CONDITION, EVERY FACULTY OF MIND, EVERY ELEMENT OF OUR COMPLICATED BEING, IS INHERITED by offspring, and in that degree of relative energy in which it exists in the parentage ? All the observations I have ever made on parents and their offspring—and my practice has been neither small nor restricted in range—has proved this law, in its application to the phrenological organs, and therefore, this science being true, to the mental faculties. Biography is replete with proofs of this principle. Every race, nation, city, town, hamlet, and family, in the whole world—the entire human family attest, in ever-living, speaking facts, the great truth of hereditary descent, of which this volume is the humble exponent, and to question it is to contradict the plainest truths of natural science, and deny our own senses and selves. Every human being is nature's witness that 4'like begets like," in the world of mind as in that of flesh and blood. Nor general example merely, but also specific ; for, since some elements are transmitted, of course all physical conditions, and all the shades and phases of character, are equally so324 345. Behold the accumulative force of these proofs and illus- trations, acquired by that vast range of facts embodied in this volume, and scattered throughout universal nature, and learn therefrom the great practical lesson it teaches, namely, so to select companions as to secure beauty, health, strength, and high intellectual and moral excellence. MARRYING IN AND IN DETERIORATES PROGENY. 227 SECTION VIII. THE OFFSPRING OF KINSMEN INFERIOR TO THEIR PARENTS. 376. THE CHILDREN OF COUSINS. Though the correctness of this general law, that offspring inherit the mental and physical characteristics of their parents, is unquestionable, yet it is modified by several sub-laws, or other hereditary principles, one of which is that the children of near relatives either fall far below their parentage, or else are mal-formed or idiotic. That all kinds of domestic animals are improved by " crossing the breed," but deteriorated by 44 bending in and in," is a fact known experimentally to every tyro in stock-raising. This law also governs even seeds—all that propagate. That this ordinance also governs man, is rendered apparent, not only by nature's absolute requisition, that every human being should have two parents, four grandparents, eight great- grandparents, sixteen great-great-grandparents, thirty-two of the next, and sixty-four of the next anterior generations, one hundred and twenty of the next, and two hundred and forty of the next, etc.—except where and as far as the offspring of one common ancestor marry each other—but especially by facts. The following illustrative cases were furnished by Joshua Coffin. 441 will now relate such facts as have come under my own ob- servation, concerning the consequences of marrying blood relations. Whatever may be the cause, the fact is undeniable, that those fami- lies who are so foolish as to intermarry with blood relations, very frequently, if not always, degenerate, both physically and mentally. Independently, therefore, of the divine inspiration of the laws of Moses they are founded on strict physiological principles, which we should do well always to bear in mind, as they cannot be viola- ted with impunity. . " N P of W., Mass., a fine-looking and intelligent man. ot good sense, married his own cousin, and what a set of children! One of them is clump-footed, another has but one eye, and all three of them are very weak in intellect, small in person, and have heads shaped like a flat-iron, point turned downward, flat on top, and their chin making the point. 228 THE CHILDREN OF COUSINS. 44 When engaged as a scool-teacher, in M., Mass., in 1829, I had several scholars, among them two sons, by the name of E., one of whom was nearly an idiot, and the other not to be compared to either father or mother in point of intellect. On returning, one evening, from visiting the family, I inquired of my landlady, if Mr. and Mrs. E. were not blood relations; she said yes, they were cousins. I told her I thought so, solely from the fact that the chil- dren were so deficient in intellect. On stating this fact to Dr. Wisner, pastor of the Old South Church, Boston, he made the fol- lowing observation :—4 Do you recollect, Mr. Coffin, that singular- looking member of my church, who has the St. Vitus' dance? His parents were cousins.' You never saw such a looking object in your life. He appeared not to have any command over any muscle in his whole body. 44 A family in N. B., Mass., where were a number of foolish children, were the offspring of cousins. The Rev. Mr. Duffield, formerly of Philadelphia, mentioned two or three families in the interior of Pennsylvania, who, for the sake of keeping their pro- perty among themselves, have married 4 in and in' for several gene- rations, till their posterity are nearly idiots. There is a family in E. D., in fact, there are several families of the name, who have intermarried so often, that there is one or more idiots in almost every branch. In fact, no point is better established than this, that breeding 4in and in' deteriorates the race of men and the breed of cattle, both physically and mentally. 44 Those young men, therefore, who wish to have intelligent chil- dren, must obtain intelligent women for wives, who are not blood relations." Mr. Hale, cousin of Joshua Coffin, furnishes the follow- ing :— 44 H. L., of N., Mass., married his second cousin, has one daugh- ter of fourteen, nearly an idiot. 44 T. A., married his cousin's daughter, had five girls, no boys, two were complete cripples, and very deficient in intellect—almost idiots—one was quite so—one daughter was married, and died childless. The other two married—the children of one of them are apparently below mediocrity. 44 S. L., of N., married his cousin, Miss S. A., they were second cousins,—that is, their parents were own cousins—had eight sons and two daughters—all living, 1841—two sons and one daughter are unable to walk, and are hauled about in carriages made for the purpose,—their younger child is deaf and dumb, besides being born like the others mentioned. A. L. once told me that he was born well, and that, in early years, he lost his sense of feeling in his toe joints, which afterwards became numb, and, in process of time, to use his own expression, they 4 lapped,' and so it was, joint after joint, upwards in his arms, as well as his toes and legs, till evert joint was affected in his whole frame. Perhaps he was about OFFSPRING OF KINSMEN INFERIOR. 229 twenty when he became utterly helpless, and then took to his car- riage—the others grew lame in the same way. J., though now twenty-two or three, can walk a little. 44 Dr. F. A. Pinckney, of Key west, says he has seen many of the inhabitants of the Bahamas, and that all of them were deformed in body, and deficient and dull in intellect. He had never been there, but had understood that the specimens which he saw were but fair representations of the inhabitants of these islands. They generally are employed in the meanest occupations, and have not capacity enough to take the lead in any pursuit. Dr. P. under- stood and supposed that the cause of their physical and mental infirmity was owing to intermarriage, and to that only. 44 Dr. P., knows a family in the town of P., in N. Y., where the parents were cousins, and all of the ten children were fools; he also mentioned several other cases. 44 The J. family at C. S., affords some melancholy cases of the bad effects of intermarriage. 44 C. H., of N., Mass., a clear-sighted, shrewd man, married his own cousin, lost three children while young, has four living, eldest fourteen, all under mediocrity, parents sound; the father died in 1837. 44 Mr. E. S. and wife, of N., Mass., were own cousins, both of them of strong mind, firm nerve, and sound health. They had seven daughters and one son; three daughters deranged, the rest of feeble health, and very nervous. 44 Mr. P. P., of B., married his second cousin; their oldest child is too deficient in mind to take care of himself; the other children are not what are called bright, though fair. 44 Dr. H. W., of B., N. H., now of B., knows four men, who married cousins, each of whom had a fool for a child. The other children were below par. 44 Mr. N. G., from D., N. H., said that he and his mother count- ed about twenty-five families in D., who had intermarried, and of all their children, not one could they remember of ordinary capacity! 441 was told that a Mr. P., of Me., married his own cousin, Miss W., both now dead, leaving five boys and three girls,—two girls and three boys blind—parents' eyes good. 44 J. L. A., of N., married a cousin's daughter, has three chil- dren, apparently healthy, but heavy-minded. 44 ft. D., of B., Me., had for his first wife his cousin's daughter, a Miss G., of H., N. H., their oldest child is lame in the hip,—the other two'are of feeble health and failing. 14 Dr. C, of N. M., N. H., son of Prof. C, married his cousin, Miss B., of U., Mass., had two children, both dead,—Dr. C. died 1840, in N., Mass., having lately removed there—his widow is at her father's. . ~- , . , .,, 44 J. P. of W., married his own cousin. Of their children, one died an idiot, two sons died at the age of twenty-three, of feeble 20 230 THE CHILDREN OF COUSINS. bodies and irritable minds, and one girl has diseased eyes. Some of the boys are club-footed, wry-necked, etc. One daughter, mar- ried lately, to a cousin, I think—he lived a year or two, then died —had one child. 44 Mr. E., of M., Mass., married his cousin—had five daughters and three sons. One of the daughters is an idiot of so painful a sight, that the parents board her out. Two of the other daughters are foolish—the other two are weak—one son weak-minded—has been made lame—one son ran away with some of the town's money —the other son is a worthy, upright man, but unfortunate in all he lays his hands to. 14 Rev. Mr. B., Episcopal clergyman in B., N. Y., married his own cousin, Miss B., of N., N. J.,—her health has declined, though sound before—had two children,—both are dead. 44 A Mr.------of W., M. county, N. Y., married his cousin, had many children, all crippled, none could walk, all bright. 14 Mr. D., of O. county, married his cousin, bad thirteen or four- teen children—all dead but three, and those invalids. The father became deranged some years before he died. 44 Mr. W. H., of M., married a cousin—has had several children —do not know their condition—the mother has been deranged for many years in the Charlestown Asylum. 44 T. C, of P., married his cousin ; their only son is an idiot- have six daughters of ordinary minds—I think I understood that they all had a hard squint in their eye, taken from their mother. 44 Judge C, of H., 0. county, N. Y., was married to a cousin, had several children who died idiots—of the two now living, but one can be said to have common sense. 44 Mr. N. S., of N., married his cousin, a .Miss Pettingal,—they are not over bright, and their children are decidedly under bright, so as to be a by-word. 44 Mr. J. O'B., of P., married his cousin, H. O'B., of B., Me., and lived a year and a half afterwards, and died in 1839. 14 E. M. married his cousin, M. A. M., both of G., Me., moved to III.,—she died a few days after giving birth to the first child. 44 The Bradstreets and Giants of G.. Me., have intermarried, and I am told the children show it. 44 N. and S. W., of T., brothers,—one married his cousin, his children are full of mishaps, feeble in body and mind, blear-eyed, etc. The children of the other brother are upright, manly, hand- some people." These facts would seem to indicate that debility and sick- ness attend these parents as well as their children—an infer- ence rendered probable, by that great law of harmony which pervades nature, and renders whatever is beneficial or injuri- ous to offspring, equally so to parents. GENERALLY INFERIOR. 231 Mr. Needham's aunt married her double cousin, and one of her children is a partial idiot. C. W., has six children by his cousin, one boy and five girls, of whom three are deaf and dumb. The King of Hanover, cousin of Victoria, and the off- spring of cousins, is blind. The noble families of the old world are fast running out, and their deterioration is generally ascribed to their aristocratic custom of marrying blood relations. It is doubtful whether the present royal nurslings of Albert and his cousin Victoria, will ever astonish the world by their talents. Mr. B., of Meredith, N. H., married his cousin and had eight children, four of which are dead, one kept his cradle till five years old, when it died, three had moderate capacities, two are complete idiots, and one, the only bright one of the eight, has no legs, and only a stub of the right arm. Mr. B. by a second marriage, had two bright children. Mr. N., and his cousin, both intelligent, married, and out of seven children, three were crazy, two flats and simpletons, one barely passable, and one fair. D. H.'s parents were cousins, and two of his brothers became blind young, while he had a small head and Causality, and a sluggish organization. W. G., of S----, Mass., brother of Professor G., of New- Hampshire, married his cousin, and all his children are lame, or some way out of joint. Mr. B., a man of considerable sagacity, lived as a husband with his niece; and his children, numbering some eight or ten, were much inferior, physically and mentally, to either of the parents. Four were helpless, and two, a male and female, had uncommonly large, but diseased heads. The male's measures about thirty-six inches in circumference, the female's a trifle less. Mr. Foster, teacher in the deaf and dumb asylum, Phila- delphia, says that of seven children of first cousins whom he knew, six were idiots, and one a mute, but smart; and of another family, two were mute idiots, and three mute but smart. 232 THE offspring of cousins James I., that weak and timid monarch, was the product of cousins, Mary Queen of Scots, and Darnley. C. Cooper, of P----, Pa., married his cousin, and has two albino children. Blennerhasset, connected with Burr s conspiracy, and defended by Wirt, ran away and lived with his niece. A New-York editor stated, in 1840, that B.'s son was then a vagabond idiot, wandering about the streets of that city. Mrs. Maurice, of Boston, said that while living in a neigh- boring town, the strange and foolish speeches of some of her son's school-mates, as reported by him, arrested her attention, and inquiry disclosed the fact that they were made by the children of cousins, and that out of five pairs who married cousins, four had idiotic offspring, and the children of several of the others were none the smartest. Sarah Blair, of Portland, Me., reports the following as having transpired within the circle of her observation, where the parents had married first cousins. Mr. B., of Westbrook, had two children both deaf and dumb. Mr. L., also of W., had two that were deaf, dumb, and blind. D. L., also of W., has two children too deficient to render themselves of any service, walk like drunken persons, and have the St. Vitus's dance. Two others are deficient. J. H., of W., had two natural fools. Mr. D., of Cape Elizabeth, had three hermaphrodites. S. H., of Poland, had three natural fools, so low in the scale that they could not talk, or feed themselves, had to be fed with spoon victuals, and could not even chew their food. The youngest cannot walk, though twenty-seven, but only hitch along. One of Mr. H.'s children is only half-witted. Miss Blair adds that she knows other cases less aggravated, where the marriage was between first and second cousins. A valued friend of the author fell in love with his double cousin—their fathers being brothers, and mothers sisters—and though remonstrated with by the whole family, and this law pointed out. yet they married. Three years elapsed before GENERALLY INFERIOR. 233 the birth of their first child, which died fifteen minutes after- wards. The son of a P. O., at A----, handed a letter to the author in a very polite manner, and after he left, the following dialogue ensued:—4'A smart boy that." " How old do you think he is ?" " About ten." '4 He is seventeen, and has a brother proportionally small." " Then were not their parents cousins ?" " They were." Opposite the principal tavern in Adams, Jefferson Co., N. Y., I examined the heads of two idiots, the offspring of cousins. That of the eldest measured only nineteen inches, though twenty years old, and of the youngest only seventeen —less than infants' heads. They could barely swallow, but could neither feed themselves nor walk. One of this un- fortunate family had just died, and another some time pre- viously, both total idiots. Only one escaped either idiocy or death in infancy, and this one had barely sense enough to take care of himself. An anxious mother in D----, Pa., who had lost all her children but two, who had lax muscles, yielding waists, and feeble constitutions, called to consult me professionally touch- ing their health. She married her cousin. Dr. Kimball, of Sacket's Harbor, states that a partial idiot, the product of cousins, residing some three miles east of that village, is too simple to take care of himself, yet memorizes with astonishing facility. The inhabitants of Martha's Vineyard are said to have married " in and in," f'11 many of them are blind, deaf, dumb, or deformed, and some all four. My informant related the case of two blind girls whose parents heard and saw, yet Were cousins. A family of eleven children, whose parents were cousins, all married cousins to keep property in the family 357 —a most mean and despicable motive—and one child was a total idiot, and several others were none the smartest. Yet see if the stupidity of their offspring does not run out the property thus attempted to be kept in the family by thus violating nature's laws more effectually than if these parents had married poor 20* 234 THE offspring of blood relations. consorts. " It is in vain to kick against the pricks." One of this family argued the point that sometimes the offspring of cousins escaped idiocy and deformity, yet could not prove even this ; but his very argument implied that most were de- ficient. Some such families do indeed escape, because of the natural superiority of their parents, yet the children of all cousins will be found to fall far below their parents in health and talents, and unless the latter be highly endowed, the for- mer will be deficient, mal-formed, or idiotic. To this list of facts any required number might be added but a principle proved by almost every marriage of cousins will hardly be questioned, and if so, let Lawrence, Combe, and Walker, be consulted. THE MARRIAGE OF STILL NEARER KINDRED, As of brothers and sisters, produces results still more disas- trous, a most disgusting illustration of which occurs in Clark Co., O., the details of which are truly revolting, though both parents were respectable for talents, and also church members. The Mosaic law forbade the marriage of near kinsmen by blood, doubtless because it produces those melancholy results just illustrated ; for these laws are generally based in some obvious principle of diatetics, government, morals, mind, or whatever they relate to. The General Assembly of the Presbyterian church is at loggerheads concerning the marriage of a brother or sister of a previous marriage. Such unions violate no known physiological law, and are therefore right; and to waste so much breath and ink, and divide the churches on a point no way essential, is weak and wicked. AGE IN PARENTS. 235 SECTION IX. AGE, AND OTHER CONDITIONS IN PARENTS, AS AFFECTING OFFSPRING. "AH, BUT MINE ABE LIONfl." 377. THE OLDER THE PARENTS, THE MORE MENTAL AND LESS ANIMAL THIER ISSUE. By a law of things fully established in Self-Culture m M0, where its reason is given, the physiological functions and ani- mal propensities are stronger in all while young, than during the meridian or decline of life. Since, then, children resem- ble their parents, and since parents are more animal and less mature, intellectual, and moral, while young, than as they advance in life, of course, the younger the parents, the more sensual and less talented their offspring. That some are more mature at twenty than others at thirty, is admitted, yet, in conformity with a well-known and general law of nature, those who ripen early decay proportionally soon, and are less strong, though more brilliant. They are therefore less fitted, while young, to sustain the drain of energy consequent on marriage. There is a proverb among all classes, and in all sections of the country, differently worded among different nations and in various places, yet of this general purport, that " The youngest children are the smartest." The reason is that since the animal is relatively stronger in youth than in mature age, and since children take on the respective quali- ties of parents existing in the latter when.the former received being and character, of course the eldest children, born while their parents were yet wild, rattle-brained, frolicsome, impulsive, and swayed by various animal passions, are more animal and less intellectual and moral than the younger children, who are born after the higher faculties of their parents have assumed the reins of government. Nor is this important conclusion left to this mere inferential proof, but is fully established by facts, and confirmed by the parental history of every man and woman distinguished for talents or worth. A few cases. 236 AGE IN PARENTS. Franklin was the youngest child of the youngest child for five successive generations, and that on his mother's side, from whom, more than from his father, he inherited his talents375. He was the fifteenth child of his father and eighth of his mother. Benjamin Johnson was born when his father was above 70, and his mother about 42. Pitt, Fox, and Burke, were each the youngest child of their respective families. Daniel Webster is the youngest by a second marriage. Lord Bacon was the youngest by a second marriage, born when his father was 50 and mother 32. Benjamin West was the tenth child of his parents. Washington's mother was 28 at his birth, and father much older, and Thomas Campbell's father over 70 at his birth. Sir Wm. Jones's father was 66 when this intellectual prodigy first saw the light. Doddridge was the twentieth child, by one father and mother, and his mother's mother was very young when her father died, aged 62, which would make his grandfather above 50 when his mother was born. His father was at least 43 when his son was born. Judge Story's mother was about 44 at his birth. Alexander Hamilton was the youngest son by a second marriage. E. Lewis's mother was 33 at his birth. Baron Cuvier's father was 50 at his marriage, and of course still older at the birth of his illustrious son. All history abounds in similar facts. The Bible is espe- cially laden with them. The father of Abraham was 70, of Isaac 100, and his mother 90 ; and of Jacob, Joseph, David, and a host of others, old people when these respective worthies were born. In short, this range of facts will be found only a sample of those which establish this principle. Nor are there any exceptions. Where is the distinguished man, born before both his parents had arrived at full maturity—say twenty-five or over ? Let the reader subject this doctrine to the rigid ordeal of the widest observation, and AS AFFECTING OFFSPRING. 237 the more he investigates the •more he will be convinced that the OLDER THE PARENT the MORE MORAL AND LESS INTELLEC- TUAL THE OFFSPRING. Yet this law is modified by this condition, that in case the health of one or both parents declines as their family increases, the eldest children will be the smartest; because a powerful physiology is indispensable to intellectuality and morality, and when that wanes in parents, it leaves their younger children less vigorous, and hence less highly endowed. This exception is especially observable where the health of the mother declines as her family multiplies. The reason is too obvious to require comment, yet does not invali- date the law involved. A similar exception and reason occur in case one of the parents is in the decline of life. When both parents are about alike in point of age, nature ordains that, they shall cease bearing just as soon as they begin to decline, and even before ; for Amativeness wanes before any other power of body or mind, or, rather, takes on a higher and purer tone of function. Yet where one parent is younger than the other, and this faculty excited beyond what it would be if the parties were of the same age, it may continue to beget offspring after both the mental and physical powers of one begin to wane, which would cause the youngest children to be the poorest. Other kindred exceptions may possibly occur, that is, other laws may sometimes slightly modify the action of this law ; yet, obviously, it is a general ordinance of nature, that the mature are born of the mature, and the green of the green, as well as the strong of the strong, and weak of the weak : although unripe seeds never reproduce. THE AGE MOST SUITABLE FOR MARRIAGE. This law warns youth not to rush headlong into wedlock, under penalty of immature and perhaps sensual offspring. Children should never give being to children. By develop- ing the sexual instinct later than any other, and then ordain- ing its decline before any other has begun to wane, and thus compelling man—all that reproduces—to propagate only 238 YOUNG MARRIAGES. during the period of the greatest physical vigor, nature very clearly teaches and practically enforces the law in question; and wo to those who violate it, and to the offspring of such violation. On finding the two elder children of a family deli- cate, puny, spindling, loosely put together, and wanting in judgment, though endowed with memory, while the youngest was every way their superior, I expressed surprise, and was informed that the mother married at sixteen, and had become worn out at twenty-eight. Youthful alliances ought to be prohibited and punished by law. Yet the number of years is less material than maturity. Some, like the Juneating, ripen early, while others do not be- come men or women till nearly twenty; yet, like the winter- apple, keep the longer, and can bear late in life. Hence, many a woman is. neglected because on the wrong side of thirty, whereas she is younger in constitution than others at twenty, and will continue not only to bear, but to manifest all the elements of the woman long after the " Early Annes" have become superannuated. Yet nearly all marry too young, and many a reader has doubtless cursed his whole life with many sorrows, by his hot haste to sip the sweets of early marriage. Still, the great error, after all, lies in THE PREMATURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SEXUAL INSTINCT. Let nature have her perfect work, and she will not implant this element till the subject is ripe for marriage. But our youth are put into a perfect hot-bed of lust by heating meats and drinks, and by cultivating this passion in a variety of ways; and this hurries them into love and wedlock while yet in their teens, long before they have become perfect men and women. Even though they may have attained a good growth, the system requires to be filled up and strengthened, after it has been laid out. In fact, men ought to grow broader and heavier, if not taller, long after they are thirty, which, how- ever, early marriage prevents, by diverting the energies from their legitimate channel, and expending them in sexual grati- fication, and the labors and watchings incident to the family. We will not here show the causes or evils of too early love, LARGE FAMILIES. 239 marriage, and sexual pleasure, in all its forms, because this subject has been treated in " Matrimony " and in " Amative- ness ;" but charge all youth, by the value they set upon do- mestic happiness, to postpone this whole matter till they are past twenty, and twenty-five is a better age, provided the affections can be controlled; yet even then matrimony, and especially parentage, can be postponed. But of this in its appropriate place. What we wish here to enforce is, that young parents cannot possibly produce anything but green offspring. LARGE FAMILIES AND OVER-POPULATION. A fox once boasted to the lioness, that she produced the most offspring. " Ah ! but mine are lions," replied the lat- ter. In general, our families are too large. Most farmers commit the egregious error of buying more land than they put under first-rate cultivation. As from less land, well tilled, much more can be raised, and with much less labor, than from more land half-tilled, so, far more happiness can be secured by having no more children than can be taken first- best care of, than by a greater number of inferior ones. The rich can better afford to have large families—yet in general the debility consequent on luxury renders them small—but for poor parents to usher human beings into the world, to grow up uneducated, grovelling in their habits and feelings, poorly clad, almost in danger of starvation, and obliged to be sent from under parental care, to sea, or to trades, young8221, or perhaps become paupers or criminals, subjects both parents and children to numberless burdens and miseries, and is intrinsically wicked. How foolish for a cottager, who has barely pasture enough for one cow, to turn in several, and thus starve them all ? Parents are under imperious moral obligations from which they cannot possibly escape, to pro- duce no more children than they can support well, and fur- nish with all requisite means of physical comfort and mental improvement. How infinitely better to produce one lion than scores of foxes—one Franklin than regiments of common men ! Let each child be considered and made a great and distinct 240 distinguished men labor, in its generation, carriage, nursing, and education, till fitted to take care of itself; and man will become almost a new creation! Besides, our world will soon be full, and as it costs just as much to feed and clothe poor specimens of humanity as those of the highest natural endowments, it becomes us to parent those capacitated for the highest possible enjoyments. Yet this subject also can be more appropriately and forcibly dis- cussed hereafter. 378. DISTINGUISHED MEN FROM A LONG-LIVED STOCK. That longevity, and of coure its conditions, are transmitted, has already been fully established319. Its principal cause is a great amount of vital stamina, or a powerful constitution. No man can live to an advanced age without great vigor of heart, lungs, stomach, and muscles. Now this same condition is indispensable to both intellectual greatness and moral excellence. The brain, whatever be its inherent powers, can put forth no farther than it is sustained by corresponding power of the vital apparatus. The more powerful the brain, the stronger must be the body; else the former breaks down the latter, and death ensues. This prin- ciple and its reason have been fully demonstrated11162, and an- other application of it ins 212. Though invalids, by a strict ob- servance of the laws of health, may be distinguished for mind, yet they had powerful constitutions in the start, and could have been far more talented if they had always kept their health unimpaired. But we will not stop to demonstrate either the law that strong bodies are indispensable to strong minds, or that the same condition—great vital power—which secures longevity, is indispensable to talents, but proceed at once to canvass facts—our sole guide throughout this work. Commodore Perry's grandfather was eighty-three at the time of his grandson's victory, and his father was fifty-five; and 4' still retained much of that strength and activity for which, in his younger days, he had been distinguished." This shows that his ancestry was uncommonly strong and vigorous. FROM A LONG-LIVED STOCK. 241 The father of Ovid, the poet, lived to be 90 ; and Gracchus, the grandfather of Petrarch, lived to be 104. Judge Story's mother, after whom he took, at his death exceeded 90, and yet retains her intellect unimpaired ; and the judge, notwithstanding his herculean labors, and the extraordinary energies he put forth through life, was sprightly, and showed no marks of decrepitude at 60, and finally died at 66 of an intestinal obstruction, though yet in the prime of life. Lord Wellington is from a very long-lived race. The surviving members of the issue of Gerald Wellesley, Earl of Mornington, are as follows : 44 The Marquis Wellesley, Lord Marlborough, Lady Ann Culling, the Duke of Wellington, the Hon. and Rev. Gerald, of Wellesley, and Lord Cowley. Their united ages make four hundred and forty-three years—average ages 75, and all yet alive—showing extraordinary longevity in one family ; and since March, 1794, no death has occurred in the family excepting that of their mother—a thing unprecedented in the annals of the British peerage." John Wesley was from this long-lived pedigree. The papers stated, about 1845, that Dr. Nott, the venerable and talented President of Union College, was about eighty- six. And yet how remarkably he retains his faculties! For illustration of this, see his temperance sermons—the product' of a man over 80 ! They added that he had a brother in Farmingham about ninety-seven. Both of these facts show that these brothers were from a long-lived race. The Rothschilds are also distinguished men. Their success in amassing wealth shows that they were endowed with great physical and mental stamina. Nothing short could have sustained them through their arduous and long. continued labors. This they must have inherited. The present advanced age of their mother, and the still remaining energy of her mind, as evinced in the following sensible and witty reply to her physician, shows that she possesses great vigor of both body and mind :— " Madam Rothschild.—This venerable Madam, of Frank- fort, Germany, now fust approaching to her one hundredth 242 the parentage of great men aged. year, being a little indisposed, remonstrated in a friendly way with her physician on the inefficiency of his prescriptions. ' Indeed, madam,' replied the doctor, ' unfortunately we cannot make you younger.' ' You mistake, doctor,' rejoined the witty old lady, ' it is older, not younger, that I desire to become.' " The mother of Joe Smith, the Mormon prophet, is still alive, and about 90. That Burns's mother lived to be very old, and retained her faculties to a great age, is evinced by an extract already quoted 367. Washington's mother was found at work in her garden at 82, and died at 85. Franklin's father died at the advanced age of 89, and his mother at 85, nor had either ever any sickness except their last. O'Connell is from an exceedingly long-lived stock. Some of his ancestors have exceeded 100, and he is hardly past his prime, though above 70. Charles G. Finney's father was about 84 at his death, and his mother exceeded 80. A brother of his father was recently alive, aged over 96, De Witt Clinton's ancestors and their relatives were very aged people, and so have been many of their descend- ants. John Quincy Adams's great grandfather attained the great age of 93 !19, was a preacher over sixty years, and retained his mental powers to the last; and John Adams, his father, died aged 91, and so smart, up to the very day of his death, that he expected to have gone from Quincy to Boston on that day to celebrate 4( Independence." The Adams family have generally been long-lived 3I9. Webster's ancestry lived to be aged. So did that of Dr. Johnson, and also that of Dr. Bowditch. The settlers of New England were generally very long. lived, because all but those endowed with extraordinary constitutions died in beooming acclimated. Hence one cause of the great energy of their descendants. THE COMBINATION OF POWERS. 243 This law enforces one great practical inference—the impor- tance of health in parents. Longevity is the product of a strong constitution, and the latter is indispensable to talents, so that those parents who abuse their health thereby entail mental debility on their offspring, as well as physical326327. Let parents, then, remember, that every violation of the laws of health in the,m deteriorates their offspring, and that what- ever promotes the former re-endows the latter. O how many parents have ignorantly yet effectually cursed their children with imbecility by a wanton abuse of health; whereas they might, by a little care, have blessed them with a high order of health, talents, and morality. Let those who love their children heed this momentously important suggestion. SECTION X. general application of hereditary laws to human im- provement. 379. THE COMBINATION OF POWERS IN THEIR PARENTS. Since all the respective qualities, physical and mental, when powerful in one parent, are subject to transmission324 345, they are much more so where both parents possess the same qualities in a high degree. Indeed, in such cases, unless the result is modified by the intervention of other hereditary laws, these qualities, as streams below the junction of two others, which embody the waters of both, take on the degree of power which exists in both parents collectively. A few examples. Patrick Henry was probably the greatest natural orator the world has ever produced. Demosthenes and Cicero were eloquent, yet they studied and practised incessantly; whereas Henry's eloquence burst forth spontaneously, not only with- out culture, but in spite of almost insuperable barriers, and even then doubtless far eclipsed theirs. He was probably the first publicly to advocate our separation from the mother 244 THE UNION OF DISTINGUISHED PARENTS. country, as he was the first to break the solemn silence of the first congress; and undoubtedly contributed more, by firing the whole country with the spirit of liberty, to achieve our national independence than any other man, Washington alone excepted. But this is not the place for a panegyric* From what source did he derive his transcendent gift of speech ? From both his parents, of whom Wirt, in his " Life of Henry," thus remarks :— 44 He was the orator of nature ; and such a one as nature might not blush to avow. If the reader shall still demand how he acquired those wonderful powers of speaking, which have been assigned to him, we can only answer, that they were the gift of Heaven—the birthright of genius. 44 It has been said of Mr. Henry, with inimitable felicity, that 'he was Shakespeare and Garrick combined!' Let the reader then imagine the wonderful talents of those two men united in the same individual, and transferred from the scenes of fiction to the business of real life, and he will have formed some conception of the eloquence of Patrick Henry. In a word, he was one of those perfect prodigies of nature of whom very few have been produced since the foundation of the earth was laid. 44 Mrs. Henry, the widow of Col. Syme, as we have seen, and the mother of Patrick Henry, was a native of Hanover county, and of the family of the Winstons. She possessed, in an eminent degree, the mild and benevolent disposition, the undeviating probity, the correct understanding and easy elocution, by which that ancient family has been so long distinguished. Her brother William, the brother of the present Judge Winston, is said to have been highly endowed with that peculiar cast of eloquence for which Mr. Henry became, afterward, so justly celebrated. Of this gentleman, I have an anecdote from a correspondent, which I shall give in his own words: 41 have often heard my father, who was intimately acquainted with this William Winston, say, that he was the great- est orator whom he ever heard, Patrick Henry excepted; that during the last French and Indian war, and soon after Braddock's defeat, when the militia were marched to the frontier of Virginia, against the enemy, this William Winston was the lieutenant of a company; that the men, who were indifferently clothed, without tents, and exposed to the rigor and inclemency of the weather, dis- covered great aversion to the service, and were anxious, and eveu clamorous to return to their families, when this William Winston, mounting a stump, addressed them with such keenness of invec- tive, and declaimed with such force of eloquence, on liberty and patriotism, that when he concluded, the general cry was, 4 Let us march on; lead us agaiust the enemy !' and they were now willing, * See " American Phrenological Journal," for 1847—Arts. IV. and XX PATRICK HENRY'S ANCESTORS. 245 nay, anxious to encounter all those difficulties and dangers which, but a fev» moments before, had almost produced a mutiny. 44 Patrick Henry, the second son of John and Sarah Henry, and one of nine children, was born on the 29th of May, 1736, at the family seat, called Studly, in the county of Hanover, and colony of Virginia. His parents, though not rich, were in easy circum- stances ; and, in point of personal character, were among the most respectable inhabitants of the colony. 44 His father, Col. John Henry, was a native of Aberdeen, in Scotland. He was, it is said, a first cousin of David Henry, who was the brother-in-law and successor of Edward Cave, in the pub- lication of that celebrated work, the 4 Gentleman's Magazine,' and himself the author of several literary tracts; John Henry is also said to have been a nephew, in the maternal line, to the great his- torian, Dr. William Robertson. He came over to Virginia, in quest of fortune, some time prior to the year 1730; and the tradition is, that he enjoyed the friendship and patronage of Mr. Dinwiddie, afterward the governor of the colony. By this gentleman, it is reported, that he was introduced to the elder Col. Syme, of Hano- ver, in whose family, it is certain, that he became domesticated during the life of that gentleman; after his death he intermarried with his widow, and resided on the estate which he had left. It is considered as a fair proof of the personal merit of Mr. John Henry, that, in those days when offices were bestowed with peculiar caution, he was the colonel of his regiment, and for many years the principal surveyor of the county. His surviving acquaintances concur in stating that he was a man of liberal education ; that he possessed a plain but solid understanding; and lived a life of the most irreproachable integrity, and exemplary piety." Mark, inquiring reader, that confluence of hereditary con- ditions here stated. Patrick Henry's paternal grandfather Henry was maternal nephew of the great historian, Dr. Wil- liam Robertson, and son of the conductor of "that celebrated work," the " Gentleman's Magazine." Here was then a union of two literary families in the parentage of John Henry. We may, therefore, fairly conclude from his parentage, as from his history, that Patrick Henry's father was a man of great strength of mind and extraordinary command of lan- guage, because his maternal uncle was so splendid a writer, and his father so distinguished a literary genius. This product of the confluence of two great developments of Language, married into the Winston family, distinguished for their <4 easy elocution," as well as correct understanding- married the sister of " the greatest orator " of his time, eclipsed 246 THE combination of powers. LANGUAGE AND SUBLIMITY LARGE. No. 25. Patrick Henry. only by Patrick Henry. Or, figuratively, the two rivers of the Robertsons and Henrys united in the person of Patrick Henry's father, and this lingual river united with that of Winston eloquence, and the confluence of all three produced the most eloquent man of his age, and probably of the world ! THE HUTCHINSONS. 247 To what but the combination of three extraordinary powers of communication can we ascribe a result thus magnificent! And that Henry owed his forensic gifts to nature, not art— to parentage, instead of cultivation—is too evident, from his early history, to require argument, as well as confirmed by his phrenological developments, which are exactly those required to secure natural oratory, as seen in the preceding engraving of him. What these organs were, it would not be in place here to state, but may be learned from the analysis of his character already referred to, as given in the " Phrenological Journal." THE HUTCHINSON FAMILY Furnish a kindred illustration of this law of confluence, in its application to music. To say that they are the best sing- ers to which the author has ever listened, is as just as it is exalted a tribute to their musical genius. And that this talent was inherited, is evinced both by the extraordinary size of Tune in all their heads, and by the naturalness and musical pathos which characterize their style of execution. They sing from the soul, and to the soul, because Tune is so spon- taneously active and powerful. Unconsciously, in doors and out, before company and when alone, they sing; and that they sing with remarkable sweetness and harmony, the many thousands who have heard them are ear-witnesses. Nor are " the Quartette " probably better natural musicians than the others, only trained to sing in concert. In short, the entire family possess musical genius of the highest order, both phre- nologically and practically. Whence was it derived ? Let the following extract answer:— " Judson, John, Asa, and Abby, are the four youngest of the twelve now living, out of sixteen children of the Hutchinson Fami- ly Their maternal grandfather, by name Leavitt, lived in Mount Vernon in New Hampshire, and was a builder by trade. He built many houses in Boston, but he most prided himself upon beine the builder of many churches and meeting houses in divers towns and villages in the State. He was a stout republican, zealous in the cause of his native land, and one of the firmest supporters of her liberty against the aggressions of the mother country. In character he was deeply religious, and being possessed of great 248 the law of confluence. natural musical talent, was extremely fond of psalmody and church- music. His two youngest daughters, Sarah and Mary, inherited from him this gift in a still more remarkable manner, and their singing in churches and meeting houses was celebrated far and wide. Nothing could be more simple and primitive than the life they led; they spun and wove their own and the family clothes; practised their songs over the wheel and the loom, and on Sundays or meeting-days sung in the church or the meeting house. Mary was very beautiful, and had many lovers; but Sarah had the finer voice, and her skill in church-music was so great that she would take any part, and people came many miles to hear her sing. One day, when she was from home, she went to sing in a church at some distance, and being on a visit, was dressed somewhat differ- ently to what she was when at home; her father, however, hap- pened also to be at the same church, and was astonished by the beautiful voice of the singer, whom he saw, but did not recognize. 4 Who is that,' he asked, turning to a neighbor, 4 who sings so like an angel V 4 Do you not know your own daughter?' was the reply, which so much affected him that he could not help weeding. 44 Mary, also, when she was singing one day in a village choir, stole the heart of a young man from Milford, in the same State. This was Jesse Hutchinson, the son of a farmer, a veiy religious man, and a deacon of the Presbyterian church. This youth, also, like her, had been from his boyhood remarkable for his musical talent. He had a brother also gifted like himself, and they too were celebrated through the whole country for their musical powers. But though their father was a rigid Presbyterian, and a deacon of the church, his sons were famed for the fun and merriment which they brought everywhere with them. They were full of the joy and gayety of youth, and wherever they went they were welcome, not only because of the gay and merry songs which they sung, but because their violins were a summons to a general dance, which always lasted till day-break. From some cause or other, however, a great change came over his mind ; he considered this, life of gay- ety to be sinful, and regarding his violin as an incentive to it, cut the offending 4merry bit of wood' in two, and made it up into to- bacco-boxes, and from that time permitted himself only to practise sacred music. It was soon after this change, and about four-and- forty years ago, when, in his home-spun suit, and his hair tied in a queue behind with a black ribbon, aud a broad beaver on his head, he presented himself to the beautiful young singer in the character of a lover. She was then not sixteen; too young to be married, she said, and was hard to persuade. Her father, who thought very highly of the young man, who had borne a most excellent character, and who was come of so excellent a stock, pleaded for him; but she would not consent, and leaving him in tbe parlor, she went to bed. He sat up alone all night in the room, and the next morn- ing when she went in, there she found him. But she was still resolute, and he set off to Salem, thinking that time and absence THE HUTCHINSONS. 249 might operate in his favor; and he was right. On his return she was glad to see him, and though still young, she consented to be married. These were the parents of the 4 Hutchinson Family,' the 4 good old-fashioned singers,' as the family-song says, who still can 4 make the air resound.' 44 On his son's marriage, old Deacon Hutchinson gave up his house and farm to the young couple, and retired to a small house near them; and Sarah, whose voice and character were like those of an angel, went with her sister to her new home. A word or two must be permitted here on this most heavenly-minded young woman, who, being one that the gods loved, died young; and that principally because, though her life was so short, her spirit seemed always to be present in the family, exercising, as it were, a purify- ing and ennobling influence on all. She was one of those gifted creatures who seem to be sent only to show how beautiful is youth, talent, and goodness; and who in departing leave a ray of glory behind them, ascending from earth to heaven. The children of the family who knew her, adored her; and those who were born after her death, from always having heard her spoken of, believed that they had known her. It often has seemed to the family as if her angelic voice was heard singing among them—a spirit-voice singing as no earthly voice ever sang; and who shall deny that it is so? The very idea is elevating and beautiful. 14 Jesse Hutchinson and his young wife were among the first Bap- tists in Milford, and were the introducers of their peculiar religious opinions into the neighborhood. They frequently opened a large barn as a meeting house, and endured no little persecution. In those days carriages were not used, except by the wealthy; and these excellent people, who had fourteen miles to go to their meet- ing house, rode on horseback, in the old-fashioned way of saddle and pillion, she often with a young child on her lap. The country round their home was hilly and woody, and of a peaceful, pleasant character; and their life within doors was singularly happy and united. It was a home of affection, comfort, and prosperity ; and here fourteen children, twelve of whom were sons, were born. Sorrow, however, will enter, even in the most blessed of earthly homes. The angelic-minded Sarah died, and so did the eldest child, when only nine years old. This child, like all the rest ot the family had a wonderfully fine voice, and was remarkably beautiful. He was always first up in the morning, and was heard through the house singing like a lark. His death was very affecting. His father and uncle were at a saw-mill, at some distance, where he was «ent each day with their dinners. While they sat and ate, the little fellow amused himself by playing among the sawn boards which were reared up to dry : one day a Budden w,nd rose, and blew down the boards upon him, which caused his death. "Years went on; the elder children grew up to man's estate, and the Place was too strait for them. The parents and younger chudrenf therlfore, removed to one ef the valleys below, on the 250 THE CONFLUENCE OF FACULTIES. banks of the Souhegan river, to a place called Burnham Farm; and thenceforth the former family residence took the pleasant name of the Old Home Farm. At this new home the two younger children, Asa and Abby, were born. 44 The father of the Hutchinsons has all his life been in principle a non-resistant, and has carried out his opinions so far into practice as never to sue a man for debt. He is an abolitionist, and a de- cided liberal in politics; and has, as might be expected, suffered greatly for the maintenance of his opinions. He is described, by those who know him, as a man of noble and independent character, full of kindness, and remarkable for hospitality, even in a country where hospitality is not so rare a virtue as with us. But the guests that he most warmly welcomes are the poor and friendless; these he entertains bountifully, and then speeds on their way. From their mother, who likewise is a person of much boldness and deci- sion of character, combined with great tenderness and affection, they learned singing as children: she had fine taste, as well as natural power; and afterwards the younger branches of the family were trained by two of the elder brothers, who devoted part of their time to this purpose."—People's Journal. Mark here, also, the confluence of musical genius in their parentage. Yet the British magazine does not, by any means, relate all those hereditary conditions which united to transmit to this gifted family their genius for music. Their maternal great-grandfather, William Hastings, was one of the first singers of his time, and especially remarkable for singing war-songs, in consequence of which he often received considerable presents. His voice was clear, melo- dious, and very powerful. He often sung when passing through a wood, to the great gratification of his neighbors, because his voice was so shrill, flexible, and possessed such a ringing echo. His son also possessed similar singing gifts, and likewise excelled in singing martial songs, by which he greatly promo- ted the " Revolution," and, being crippled by a shot, made a part of his living. William Hastings had also an eminently musical wife, who, however, preferred psalm-tunes, and was of a sad, melancholy cast of feeling, yet was at times all animation. This was the Hutchinsons' maternal grandmother. One of their daughters married into the Leavitt family, already cited for their musical genius 373. Here; then, was the union of the THE HUTCHINSON FAMILY. 251 musical passion and talent of the Hastings and Leavitt fami- lies, in the production of the mother of this Hutchinson family. Nor was Mrs. Hutchinson the only product.of this musical union. The singing capacities of one of her sisters, were still more remarkable. She was reputed the best singer in New Hampshire, and gave out and pitched tunes by ear, like a regular chorister. Peter Woodbury, a devotedly pious old man, usually came fourteen miles past his own church "just to hear Sally Leavitt sing." He said she would make the cold chills run over him one minute, and a warm glow the next—elevate him to the very skies, then suddenly sink him into a most solemn and awe-struck mood—would make him crawl all over, feel as if his hair stood on end, and fill him with perfect ecstasy of happy religious feeling. She was sent for from all parts of the State to sing on public occasions, and considered unequalled. She married a Mr. Averill, who drank to excess, had fifteen children—Mrs. Hutchinson had fourteen 35S—all of whom ex- celled in music, and some of them were geniuses; and died by her own hands—probably by the gloomy cast inherited from her mother, who loved to sing psalms and plaintive music, and was subject to extreme elation arid depression of feeling. This is on the Leavitt or maternal side of the Hutchinson's ancestry. The author has heard Mrs. Hutchinson sing on " the home farm," and can truly say that he has never heard her sur- passed for musical voice, pathos, and expression, by one of her advanced age. She, too, prefers plaintive or religious music, and inherits her mother's melancholy and extreme nervous excitability. The father and grandfather of the Hutchinsons are natural musicians. The latter sung by ear, and was choris- ter without ever having learned to read music, and learned his notes at the same school with his son; and all their rela- fves as far as known—and many of them are scattered throughout that region—are great natural singers. Of twenty or more examined by the author, every one possessed very large Tune. Many years ago, quite a rivalry existed be- 252 THE CONFLUENCE OF FACULTIES. tween " the Hutchinson family " and their paternal cousins, as to who should take the lead of their church music—that is, which family were the best musicians; but those who inher- ited their genius from the Leavitts as well as the Hutchin- sons, finally carried off the palm awarded by the popular de- cision, doubtless because of this confluence of the musical capacity in both their parents, as well as in at least three of their grandparents. One other characteristic, transmitted from their great-grand- father Hastings, already implied, deserves more especial remark, because it contributes greatly to their musical genius; namely, an extremely excitable temperament. Great sus- ceptibility of feeling, and the keenest sensibilities, are indis- pensable to good music. I never saw a good musical artist without them. These the Hutchinsons possess in a pre-emi- nent degree. They are all feeling, and liable to those same extremes of elation and depression which characterize their mother, caused their aunt Sally to commit suicide, and pre- vailed in their grandmother Leavitt, and was doubtless the consequence of the extreme irritability of their great-grand- father Hastings, who was a most passionate and violent-tem- pered man—a quality not unknown to some of his descendants. Mrs. Hutchinson resembles her father Leavitt. He was a natural singer, and in his element when singing. He and his wife—the Miss Hastings who preferred psalm tunes— often sat up till after midnight to sing. He died in August, 1846, aged ninety-four. His great desire previously was to see his grandchildren return from Europe, and as soon as he saw them, he said he was " ready to go," and dropped off. THE CHENEY FAMILY Furnish still another illustration of the increase of the mu- sical passion and talent, by this law of confluence. The fol- lowing, from the father of that branch and generation which have given concerts in our cities, is in point:— 44 Friend Mason : Agreeable to your request, and my promise when at Windsor, Vermont, I attempt to give you a short account of my own experience in relation to singing. In the first place, THE CHENEY FAMILY. 253 my parents were a little more than common singers." They, how- ever, knew nothing of the rules of singing. All the knowledge they had of it was by rote, or what they learned of others by hearing only. Their voices were first-rate, and they were in the constant habit of singing in the family. Here commences my little educa- tion, or knowledge in singing. 441 do not remember when I began to sing for the first time, but as long back as anything is recollected by me, I was singing with my father and mother. To my mother, however, I am much more indebted for the first impressions on my mind, in relation to music, than to my father. Seven of the first years of my life were passed off mostly with my mother, who was constantly singing to her little ones. Nothing is like a pleasant singing mother to learn little children to sing. I thank God for a singing mother and a singing father; and as little children are with their mother more than with their father, I am of a strong belief, both from my own experience and observation, that much more depends on the sing- ing mother than on the father. I cannot recollect of one case where a singing mother has failed of raising singing children. But I can at once call to mind many singing fathers who have raised large families, without, a singer among them,—I mean if the mother did not sing at all. My mother raised up nine children—four sons and five daughters—and not a single failure of an easy singer among them all; and all have arrived at the years of manhood. My own family are the same in number, with this difference,—five are sons and four are daughters. All are of age, and all are singers; and 1 trust all are yet alive. The mother of my children has been as easy and as natural a singer as any one of my acquaintances. I believe it rare that she ever took a child in her arms without singing to it. That was not all—singing was always interwoven with all her domestic labors in the house. 441 make this digression in my narrative, because it is what 1 porsonally know, both of my father's family and of my own. ****** 44 Here I must close for this time. I only wish to indulge a few words about that blessed yearly singing convention at Windsor, Vt., 22d last month, [May.] „ - O what a blessed season. Both my body and soul have felt better'ever since. I came home singing on the way. Trying to make some such sounds as I heard there especially 4 Jerusalem Jerusalem,—O, Jerusalem, my happy home.' Ah! 1 do not wonder there is no sickness in heaven, there is so much singing 7heve There may all we singers meet. And those who have never learned here, may they meet and learn there, and all be one. " Your humble servant, my dear «•-*-^NEy „ Moses Cheney married a* Leavitt, of the same singing family with Mrs. Hutchinson ; and both of her parents were 22 254 THE COMBINATION OF FACULTIES. superior singers. In this case, then, both of the parents of Mo- ses Cheney, and both of those of his wife, a Leavitt, were ena- mored of music,, and excelled in it. What, then, in harmony with this law of confluence, may we expect in their children ? Simeon P. Cheney, of Montpelier, Vermont, is a teacher of music, and endowed with very superior musical capabilitk-s of which that whole section of country is witness. His phre- nological organ of Tune is also very large, as the author knows by personal observation. He is also reputed to sing like his grandfather Cheney—which is considered no small compliment—whom he resembles in looks and manners. Simeon Cheney's sister sings so beautifully that Lowell Mason, the great musical umpire of New England, passed very high encomiums oh her musical genius. All her broth- ers, sons of Moses Cheney, are excellent musicians; and so are all their uncles—the brothers of Moses Cheney—three of whom are music teachers. In short, the entire Cheney family are full of the musical inspiration, and first-rate in execution. Even their children—those of Simeon and his brothers—sing delightfully ; so that music not only " runs in the family," but throughout it, and increases as it descends. But enough of this class of facts. Remains there the shadow of a doubt but that, where both parents possess any one faculty in an eminent degree, their children will inherit it in a greater degree than either parent 1 And why not 1 Why should not the river, below its junction with another, be larger than above ? Reason, as well as fact, support this conclusion, the practical importance of which is indeed incal- culable ! But of this in its place. 380. THE COMBINATION OF DIFFERENT FACULTIES IN PARENTAGE. As might be analogically inferred from the preceding, and from the entire tenor of the work, whenever one parent pos- sesses one faculty in a strong degree, and the other another, their offspring will generally inherit the predominant propen- sities and powers of both parent* Of this law, a conspicuous example occurs in— THE LEWIS FAMILY. 255 ENOCH LEWIS AND FAMILY. Enoch Lewis, of New Garden, Pa., has very large Calcu- lation and Causality, and is the Almanac-maker of Pennsyl- vania, and reputed to be the ablest mathematician in that ma- thematical State, as well as a profound general reasoner. His mother, a Meredith, possessed the same talent and love of figuring, and often propounded sums and problems to him while a boy, running about the house. Her father, John Meredith, too, excelled in figures and in general intelligence and reasoning capacity, as did likewise Enoch Lewis's mo- ther's uncle, and likewise a son of his. His wife was also a superior woman. Enoch Lewis's children, girls as well as boys, are all eminently mathematical, and have the corresponding phreno- logical organs all large. One of them has taught a mathe- matical school, and is considered, for his age, superior to his father. When only nine years old, he was a perfect master of Algebra and Geometry, and at twelve, besides having gone through with the higher branches of the mathematics, had even mastered Fluctions and the Integral Calculus, which few men are capable of doing. What lad, but one descended from the most gifted of mathematicians, could have achieved all this ? And every descendant of Enoch Lewis inherits this talent in a surprising degree. E. L.'s maternal uncle and a cousin, who died young, inherited the same mathematical powers. Mrs. Lewis possesses very large Constructiveness, and its corresponding ingenuity in making things. Her father, Wil- liam Jackson, and her paternal uncle, Isaac, were endowed with a like gift, for which they were so noted as to be toe mechanics of their times and places. The author saw a most excellent clock made by her father, with no other tools than a jack-knife and gimblet; and several who have known him, mention his extraordinary ingenuity. If any difficult piece of mechanical invention or execution was to be done any where near where Isaac Jackson lived, he was called upon to do it. 256 THE COMBINATION OF FACULTIES. Now, though Enoch Lewis has no mechanical ingenuity, yet his children inherit his mathematical organs and capa- bilities, along with Mrs. L.'s mechanical genius. Here, then, is a confluence of two powers. Thus, the Mississippi of the mathematical capacity of Enoch Lewis formed a matri- monial junction with the Missouri of the mechanical capacity of Mrs. L., and the waters of both not only flow on to their offspring, but will continue to endow unborn generations with both these capabilities. Mark, reader, this concatenation of hereditary conditions. Enoch Lewis's maternal grandfather, his two children, his grandchildren, and his great grandchildren are all en- dowed with mathematical and general reasoning capacities of a high order. A descendant of this line marries into a con- structive line, and their progeny take on the talents of both. Nor are kindred cases rare. On the contrary, nearly every individual distinguished for talents or moral excellence, fur- nishes an example. It was a like confluence of great strength of intellect in both the parents of Franklin, as already shown 369, which gave birth to this intellectual sun of his age and after ages. And did Lord Bacon receive all his gifts from one parent ? So far therefrom, both of his maternal grand- parents, and at least his father, possessed extraordinary powers of mind, and hence his mother was one of the very first of women, and his father was endowed with more Causality 44 than any other man in the kingdom." 369- It required this confluence of conditions to produce the greatest mind of the world, and these same conditions parented a brother nearly his equal. Webster furnishes still another illustration of this law of combination. " His grandmother Bachiller," says Coffin,4' was a woman of extraordinary talents." His mother, Eastman, was also eminently talented. So was Col. Webster, his father. No man in town at all compared with him for intellect, espe- cially for judgment, and the kind of mind conferred by Caus- ality. For a long time, he was the principal assessor of his town; and, after ascertaining how much money was to be raised the current year, he would say to the clerk from mem- OTHER DISTINGUISHED FAMILIES. 257 ory, "Put Mr. A. down for so much, Mr. B. for so much," and so on, and generally came out within a trifle of the exact sum required. The confidence reposed in him was unlimited. This leads us to conclude that his parents were highly en- dowed. At all events, Webster's father, mother, and a grand- mother were all very strong-minded people. Hence this intel- lectual star of the first magnitude, and a younger brother Ezekiel, still more gifted. Jonathan Edwards and President Dwight were both the offspring of a like confluence of great intellectual and strong moral faculties. Edwards's maternal grandfather Stoddard was a man of strong mind, and from a highly talented family, as well as of great practical goodness and fervent piety. Pro- bably he had a superior wife, and certainly a most gifted daughter, Edwards's mother. Jonathan Edwards's father was a man of extraordinary scholarship and strength of mind, as already seen 364. Un- doubtedly his parents again were distinguished ; but, be this as it may, Jonathan was the son of superior talents on both his father and mother's side, as well as on that of his maternal grandfather. His wife, again, was a superior woman ; and, as might be expected, his daughters were also distinguished both for in- tellect and morals. One of them married into another power- ful lineage—the Dwights ; and the product of this union was another moral and intellectual star, in the birth of President Dwight. The others did not marry as fortunately, and their issue degenerated. Milton's parentage was eminent on both sides; but he married an ordinary woman, and had only common-place offspring. Doddridge, likewise, was not the product of one gifted pa- rent, but of two, both of whom were highly endowed, intellectu- ally'and morally. In short, every person of intellectual and moral eminence, whose parentage is recorded in these pages, has been the product of this law of confluence. One parent, however eminent, whether father or mother, cannot produce a rifted heir As we require both good seed and good soil to b 22* 258 THE CONFLUENCE OF VICES. bring forth a great vegetable crop, so to parent an intellectual or moral giant, requires superior endowments in both parents. Much has been said of the necessity of talented mothers to bear gifted sons. Granted that all great men have great mothers; they always have had, always must have, strong- minded fathers likewise. As no ordinary woman ever bore an extraordinary son, so no common father ever begat an un- common son. Nor is a distinguished parentage alone sufficient; the grand- parentage must likewise be superior, and on both sides. Every intellectual, every moral prodigy, must have, not two parents merely, but two distinguished parents, and each of these must have two superior parents; so that it takes a confluence of power in four grandparents and two parents to pro- duce a son or daughter of true genius. As a John must pre- pare the way for Christ, so it always has required, always will require, two generations—one to prepare the way, and the other to produce, a distinguished offspring. This also holds true touching age. Daniel Webster's grandfather died aged 83, and was 36 when D. W.'s father was born, and Col. W. was elderly when D. was born. But this law is a two-edged sword, and brings forth offspring worse than either parent, whenever there is a confluence pf propensity. Thus, let two parents possess Amativeness in unusual energy, yet not so large but that both govern it, they are in great danger of entailing on their issue more, relatively, than either parent singly possesses; and hence virtuous, but passionate parents, may have very licentious offspring. I strongly suspect it was this confluence of Amativeness which produced that notorious sinner, Aaron Burr. That the brother of his mother was one of the most libidinous of men, has al- ready been shown 353. This would lead us to suppose that Burr's mother was highly endowed with this faculty, which her higher faculties, however, held in subjection. And this conclusion is strengthened by the fact, to which the author is personally knowing, that some of the descendants of the sister, who married a Dwight, are strongly given to venerial indul- gence. Burr's father, there is every reason to believe, was a APPLICATION OF THIS LAW. 259 man of lust, and it was doubtless this confluence of powerful Amativeness in both parents which produced this master sen- sualist. The fact is " known and read of all," that the children of two who are respectable, and even religious, are sometimes notorious sinners, that manifest exceptions sometimes occur to our great law that '4 like begets like." This law of con- fluence shows how such exceptions can occur, without any invalidation of this great law of descent. Such apparent ex- ceptions even confirm the law. By inheriting the strongest faculties of both parents collectively, offspring are of course better than either parent where one good quality distinguishes both parents, and worse where any given propensity is pow- erful in both. Thus, F. K., of B., murdered his wife with- out provocation, and would have wreaked his vengeance on others, but was prevented. Both his parents were violent tempered, yet less so than he was. All his children inherit his ferocity. An aunt asked his eldest boy to get up and make a fire, when he threw a shovelfull of coals into her bed. So, when Acquisitiveness, or Secretiveness, or Combative- ness, or all three, are so large in both parents that they bearly avoid committing overt acts of dishonesty, or duplicity, or as- sault, their offspring receive a double portion of propensity, and perhaps still less of the moral or restraining faculties— which may be rather weak in both—and hence become bad, though their parents are both nominally, perhaps really good. Behold how simple, yet how perfect, this explanation of bad offspring from good parents ! Behold, moreover, 381. THE MOMENTOUS IMPORTANCE OF THIS LAW. Mark well the practical warning it so powerfully enforces. It tells those who have as large Destructiveness, or Comba- tiveness, or Secretiveness, or Acquisitiveness as they can manage, or as little Conscientiousness, or Veneration, or Be- nevolence, or Causality, as barely suffices to keep them from sinkfng into sin, not to marry those of equal extremes, under penalty of producing still greater extremes in offspring, so as 260 INCREASE OF POWERS TRANSMISSIBLE. to destroy the balance, and give the reins to propensity. How many parents, by neglecting this injunction, have planted thorns under their pillows for life, and suffered incalculably in consequence of the depravity of their offspring. On the other hand, it shows those who choose to avail them, selves of its advantage, how to render themselves most happy in their offspring, and likewise how to confer an order and amount of endowment—intellectual, moral, musical, mechani- cal, literary, or any other, and even all combined—greater by far than the world has ever yet beheld. Not only can matri- monial alliances be so formed as to enhance the musical inspiration and capacity every successive generation as long as time continues; but this faculty can be combined with one, and another, and still another gift, at pleasure. Of this confluence, the Hutchinsons furnish an example. Large Tune alone can never make a good musician, but must be aided by an exquisite Temperament, large lungs, great Imitation, Constructiveness, and Ideality, and the more general the power of body and mind the better. All these conditions com- bine in this gifted family. They have strong constitutions, inherited from several of their ancestors—most of whom have been long lived 378—most exquisite and susceptible tempera- ment, inherited from their great grandfather Hastings 379, in- creased by combination with the high organization found in the Leavitts. To this they add very large Ideality, Imitation, and Language, inherited from the Leavitt side, and hence they make poetry, as well as compose and sing tunes. They likewise inherit large Constructiveness from both father and mother—a faculty indispensable to musical execution. They moreover inherit large Spirituality from their mother and both her parents, and the reform cast of religion from their father, and hence their known radicalism. By forming matrimonial alliances of the right kind, it is in their power to confer on their offspring all which they have inherited, besides adding to them whatever marked characteristics their companions may possess, or they can marry ordinary consorts, incapable of transmitting their exalted capabilities, and thus, in common with most distinguished personages, degenerate their issue. WHAT TEMPERAMENTS SHOULD AND WHAT NOT UNITE. 261 And thus of any and all other persons distinguished, no mat- ter for what. 382. SPECIFIC APPLICATION OF THESE LAWS J OR, WHO SHOULD MARRY WHOM. This subject would hardly be complete without a more spe- cific application of these respective laws to individual cases. Many, convinced of the importance of putting these hereditary principles into practice, anxiously inquire, 44 What qualities, mental and physical, in a companion, united with mine, will endow my prospective offspring with good bodies, strong minds, and exalted morals? My physiological and phrenological developments being such as they are, what qualities, in a companion, will prevent our offspring from being diseased and vicious, on the one hand, and, on the other, impart to them the most favorable physical, intci'ectual, and moral constitu- tion ?" Momentous, yet difficult, questions these; because, here as elsewhere, " what is one's meat is another's poison." Those who, united with given individuals, would parent supe- rior offspring, if married .o others, would, of necessity, produce a sickly, or precocious, or stupid, or animal issue. Now, if these principles can be so applied as to teach individuals how to select, as matrimonial partners, those best adapted, in con- nection with themselves, to endow their offspring, the mines, and lands, and even crowns of the earth, are trifles compared with the value of this kind of knowledge. This information these principles furnish, and, in so doing, will enrich those who possess and apply it more than the possession of the whole tvorld; for what can at all compare in value with a splendid Jiild ? WHAT TEMPERAMENTS SHOULD, AND WHAT SHOULD NOT, UNITE. Since the mentality of offspring depends mainly upon their cerebral organization, and this upon their physiological, the 'irst inquiry, respecting a prospective companion should be, 4 Is his or her temperament adapted to mine ? Would the anion of two such organizations produce a better issue than some others?" 262 WHO SHOULD NOT MARRV Let us consider this eventful question negatively first, and see who are not adapted, conjointly, to produce children en- dowed with strong and healthy organizations. And, first, extremes of temperament should not unite; because, the law of confluence, already demonstrated 3;9, will produce off- spring having still greater extremes; whereas balance is the great law of perfection and happiness, as shown in " Self- Culture" 212; which the reader will do well to peruse in this connection, as the point discussed is fundamental, and this condition of perfection in offspring peremptory and absolute. Hence, two, each of whom have small or weak lungs, should not marry; because their issue will inherit lungs still smaller and weaker, and thus be strongly predisposed to consumption 325 326. But those whose lungs are deficient in size or strength should marry those whose lungs are large and strong, because their issue, being more liable to take on the strong than tlio weak organs of parents 379, will be more likely to inherit tho strong lungs of the one than the weak ones of the other. Nor have I a doubt but that a full understanding of this whole sub- ject would enable parents, in such cases, to render this result certain, and thus leave small lungs and all other weaknesses and defects behind; that is, to gather whatever of good both parents possess into the vessels of offspring, but cast all their defects and deformities out of their issue, and their descend- ants. This law applies equally to all physiological organs and conditions which may be deficient in either parent. For this reason, two, both of whose stomachs, or livers, or muscles, or nerves, etc., are either weak or partially inflamed, or any way diseased, should not unite ; but such should sel ct com. panions of opposite organizations, in order to offset, and thus neutralize their respective excesses or defects. WHAT PHRENOLOGICAL ORGANS SHOULD, AND WHAT SHOULD NOT UNITE This law applies equally to the phrenological organs. Those should not marry, both of whom are deficient in Con- scientiousness, or Reason, or Idealty, or Amativeness, or Benevolence, or any other important organ; because the ac- WHAT PHRENOLOGICAL ORGANS SHOULD NOT MARRY. 263 tion of this law would render their issue still more defective in these several respects. In short, this direction is of uni- versal applicability, and harmonizes perfectly with the moral, " He that hath, to him shall be given, and from him that hath not, shall be taken away even that he hath." All de- fects, physical and mental, in either parent, should be neu- tralized by a full development in the other of the defective quality. Yet, this offsetting should not be carried to the other ex- treme. Very great defects should never unite with great opposite extremes. This would be like marrying the lion to the lamb. The union of such extremes*nature has taken pains to prevent, by ordaining that those shall not love each other who are opposite in character. The offspring of such will of course have no unity of character, but be divided within themselves. Thus, if a coarse-grained man should marry a finely-organized woman, the grossness derived from the father would conflict with the fineness inherited from the mother, and internal war would be the consequence. To prevent this, and secure harmony of character in offspring, nature ordains, that birds of a mental feather, like those of a literal plumage, shall flock together, and love each other, except where marked excesses and defects exist, the entailment of which nature seeks to counteract, by ordaining that those who are so highly organized as to suffer in consequence, shall find relief and comfort in associating with those less highly organ- ized ; because the latter draw off that superabundant action from the former which oppresses them. Hence, a quick, fiery, active, excitable, feverish, impulsive temperament, should never marry one similarly organized; because each ^ will then still further surcharge the other, and produce off- spring still more excitable 879, and liable to die prematurely, because their action is too great for their strength p 262; but such should marry those, sitting by and conversing with whom renders them quiet, calm, ease-loving, and perhaps even indolent and sleepy; that is, those who draw off their superabundant action. To determine experimentally who does this is perfectly easy, and need not take an hour. Even ^ 264 WHAT unions are best. the movements furnish data quite sufficient. Those whose motions are quick, turns short and sharp, and speech rapid, are all excitement, and should marry those whose motions are more uniform and steady; whereas those whose motions are more circular, and waving, are less highly charged, and may marry those more active than themselves. But, I repeat, in making these offsets, opposite extremes should not unite. While the sluggish should not marry the sluggish, lest their offspring should be doubly tame and indolent, nor the extra nervous those equally excitable, lest their offspring should be feeble, yet precocious, still the wide-awake should not marry the dull, nor those*of low organizations those highly wrought; but those given to extremes should marry those less extreme. Accordingly, spare persons should marry those rather full favored, and those a little too fleshy, those rather lean favored. Nor should those having light complexion, hair, or eyes, etc., marry those equally light, nor yej those very dark, but still those darker than themselves. And thus of size, height, and all other physiological conditions. Yet offspring, one of whose parents has a powerfull, and rather an animal organization, and the other great nervous susceptibility, a clear mind, fine taste, and feelings, often take on the animal power of the one and the mental action of the other, and thus become dis- tinguished. And if this whole matter were duly understood, such unions of extremes might probably be made with great advantage. But the best unions are those both of whose temperaments are similar, and well balanced. If the very small should not marry the small, or the very large the large, or the very tall the spindling, or the very active the fiery, or the very fleshy those who are fat, etc., it does not follow that those who are ave- rage in these respects should marry either extreme. Those who are medium, or about right in any respect, should marry those similarly constituted. This law applies equally to the various phrenological or- gans and characteristics. Thus, extremely large Cautious- ness should not unite with the same extreme, lest their offspring be still more timid ; nor yet with this organ small, WHICH SHALL TAKE PRECEDENCE. 265 but with it about medium, so as to equalize the extreme. And thus of all the other faculties. Nor should those having two or more of the propensities, the combination of which forms a strong vicious tendency, unite, lest their children take on this unfortunate union 280; and the more so in case any of the restraining moral organs are rather weak in both, lest their offspring are left still weaker in these respects ; but a judicious offsetting should be made. I say judicious, because otherwise this attempt, like a sharp tool, must be rightly handled or it will cut the wrong way. The author knew one in whom Acquisitiveness was small, who married one in whom it was very large, and this difference first alienated their affections, and ultimately produced a final separation. Yet, the application of this law to marriage as such, is discussed in the author's work entitled 44 Matri- mony." Suffice it to say, that the laws here illustrated, are general in their application, and certain in their results; yet, to fol- low them out in all their detailed and almost infinite ramifica- tions, as applicable to various individuals, is unnecessary ; be- cause, after knowing their own specific organizations, readers can apply the principles here explained to their own individ- • ual cases. This subject, of course, requires study, but the results will well repay an expenditure of years in obtaining the required knowledge. If the question should here be asked, Which shall take pre- cedence, superior connubial or excellent parental qualifica- tions ? the answer is, that the two are generally united. Those who are adapted to render each other happy as companions, are generally therefore adapted to each other for becoming parents. As parentage is the only ultimate object of mar- riage, it might reasonably be inferred that those who are best calculated for each other in either respect, are therefore adapted to each other in both. Nature never wars with her. self- on the contrary, every one of her functions and opera- tions in any way related to each other, promote one another. This her settled and universal policy, teaches us that those whose respective qualities and characteristics prepare them to 2<3 266 PARENTS CAN TRANSMIT THEIR POWERS INCREASED. love each other the best as husbands and wives, are thereby reciprocally adapted to becoins parents of bstter children than could be produced by their union with others. In short, those unions most promotive of connubial love, are therein the most promotive of the physical and mental endowment of their joint offspring. Any other supposition, charges God foolishly, and accuses nature of warring with herself. One most important direction should be put in vigorous practice by those, any of whose physiological or phrenological organs are weak, namely, to cultivate and strengthen them. Since the increase of the organs in parents is transmitted to offspring, how all-important that those defective organs be im- proved in parents, so as to leave their offspring less defective than themselves—a point enforced by the entire tenor of our work. 383. PARENTS CAN TRANSMIT THEIR POWERS INCREASED. The fact that all our faculties, physical and mental, can be increased by habitual exercise, will be found fully established in " Education and Self-Improvement," of which Volume I., on " Physiology," shows how to improve the various physical powers; Vol. II., on 4< Self-Culture," teaches how to aug- ment and restrain all the propensities and moral affections; and Vol. HI., on " Memory," points out the means of strength- ening the intellectual faculties. The necessity of some law which shall so modify the great hereditary principle, " Each after its kind," is apparent. Otherwise, every human being must have been exactly like its parents, and they like theii parents, so that every one who has been, is, or ever shall be, must have been precisely like every other in every physical, every mental, every conoeivable respect. This would have prevented all that vast range of improvement now consequent on different minds running on and excelling in different sub- jects, cut off most of the pleasures and advantages of con. versation, and even prevented our recognition of each other. The benefit of diversified countenances is incalculable ; much more of diversified characters; and the evils of sameness ab- solutely intolerable. From a monotony thus every way oppres. illustrations. 267 sive, nature kindly relieves us by allowing different climates, educations, occupations, etc., together with the various states of the mother's physiology and mentality prior to the birth of her offspring—of which, in 44 Maternity"—to modify this great law, " like begets like," and produce different charac- teristics among men. One mode of producing this required diversity, is this law of the increase of qualities by exercise in parents, and the transmission of such increase. An illus- tration :— As, in raising water by means of the pump, one stroke after another raises it higher and still higher, while the valve catches and holds it, so one parent, endowed with only ordi- nary musical genius, can increase that gift by exercise M-5to, and transmit it thus increased to his offspring. They, too, can still further increase it by cultivation, and thus endow their offspring with natural musical genius far superior to what they inherited, and so on for ever. Or, to carry out our figure, we can raise any or all our powers by cultivation just as we raise water by one stroke of the pump, and then the valve of parentage transmits them thus raised to posterity. The next generation can likewise re-increase them by cul- ture, and then parentage transfers both the first and second increase to posterity, to be still farther re-augmented and again transmitted by every generation who choose to avail themselves of the advantages proffered by this infinitely wise provision. Many illustrations of the value and power of this principle are incidentally scattered thoughout this work. Of this the singing talents of the two singing children of the De- troit music-teacher 373; the increase of mathematical talents in Enoch Lewis over that of his mother, and of his son over him ; the increase of tune in Moses Cheney over his parents, in consequence of his mother's singing so much, and many kindred cases, are examples. This is of course true of every human power and faculty. Nor is there any limit to that aug- mentation of human capability, excellence, and happiness proffered to man by this God-invented law. During the first few generations of our race, before this and other diversifying causes had wrought many changes, a very 268 THE LAW OF CONFLUENCE considerable sameness must have characterized all mankind; but after changes had once been introduced, they continued to reproduce new combinations of talents and character by every new marriage. An example drawn from the pomological world will best illustrate this whole matter. The tree which springs from no kind of seed or pit, reproduces a tree which bears exactly the same kind of fruit with that in which it grew ; because, to be fruitful, every seed must be fructified by some foreign pollin. Suppose the seed of a good sweet apple, to have been fructified by the pollin of a rich tart apple, it will produce a tree which will bear neither the sweet apple of the one parent, nor the sour one of the other, but a compound of the two, per- haps combining the excellences of both and the defects of neither, or perhaps the defects of both, but at all events a new variety, differing from all other apples which ever existed ; because its parentage differed from all others. For a like reason, other seeds out of the same apple are likely to repro- duce each another variety, and hence that almost infinite diversity and astonishingly rapid improvement of fruits now in progress in all their kinds, cognizable to our own tastes. Nor is the end yet—only the smallest beginning. As all these new and exceedingly rich flavored varieties of the apple, peach, plum, cherry, etc., which now regale our palates, sprung originally from varieties altogether intolerable to the taste, just by the application of this law, in conjunction with that of cultivation; so, from these fine varieties, all coming time will continue to reproduce new and re-improved kinds, each differing from, and many superior to, all other varieties, till our descendants will luxuriate on those incomparably more delicious than any thing we now enjoy, just as we feast upon those superior to any tasted by our fathers. The means for securing this diversity, and consequent improvement, are incorporated into the very nature of their production; nor has it any limit. So with man. Propagated by a like union of two parents, both of which differ from each other, and from the whole hu- man family, of course their issue must be a compound of APPLIED TO MASSES. 269 the qualities of both, and consequently unlike any other hu- man being. For example: The first child ever born of a Caucassian and African parentage differed in shape, color, physiology, and mentality, from all other human beings. The intermarriage of this issue with either race must of course parent a cross-breed, unlike either parent, and differing from both races, and from all who ever have been, are, or ever will be. And thus of every additional intermarriage, and of every inter-propagation of every race, every nation, tribe, family, and married pair, from the beginning to the end of time! This diversification often proceeds on national scales, and for many generations, as in the cases of full-blooded and inter- mediate-blooded Persians marrying Caucassian wives; the overrunning and intermarriage of the Romans, Normans, Danes, and others, with the English; and also the native Picts, Irish, and English, with each other; the Creole system now proceeding on so large and diversified a scale throughout the new world, by the inter-propagation of the French and English at the north, the Spanish and Indians at the south, and the Anglo-Americans with Africans and mulattoes in the States. The conquest of India and China by the Eng- lish, and their consequent inter-propagation, will produce phy- siologies and mental characteristics hitherto unknown, which, instead of dying with those who originated them, will both live and spread throughout the countless millions of their de- scendants, and likewise form new bases in every one of them, for the reproduction of other and still other characteristics now unknown and inconceivable. This law, besides render- ing every human being unlike every other, will continue to recombine all these new characteristics with other new ones, and thereby extend this diversity and consequent improve- ment inimitably, and forever ! Not that new primitive faculties will thus be created, but new combinations of existing ones, together with new temper- aments, and consequently new traits of intellect and disposition, and therefore new virtues and vices, mental and physical, as well as beauties and deformities of body and mind before un- known. Indeed, as no two members of the human family are 270 THE law of confluence exactly alike in size, countenance, shape, motion, etc.—a diversity produced by this very law under discussion—so no two now alive, or who ever have existed, or may exist, have been, or will be exactly like any other one who ever has been, is, or ever will be, in mind and character. The momentous importance of this law requires its full elucidation by a few examples. Take its application to dis- eases. Previous pages have shown that offspring often inherit one disease from one parent or grandparent5'8; another from another; and another from a third 338, etc. Of course, the union of these diseases forms a new physiological and patho- logical compound, along with a new disease. The fact that new diseases frequently make their appearance, is apparent to every physician; the cause is here apparent, namely, this union of certain diseases in parents produces new diseased combinations in their offspring, often of peculiar aggravation, and wholly incurable. And there is a certainty that, as long as men continue to violate the laws of health, and thus contract various diseases 349, so long the union of these diseases in parentage will develop other forms of disease now unknown, the recombinations of which will continue to reproduce others, and these others still, to torture the living, and multiply the dead. What end is there to facts illustrative of this point, yet assuming, in detail, innumerable amplifications and rami- fications, as they flow on to unborn generations ? Nor is there any salvation from these awful results, but for prospective parents to obey the physical laws 341, or else in the extinc- tion of those families thus loaded with disease, according to a wise provision already specified 340. This law applies equally to mental diseases, vices included. Human depravity has not yet reached its acme, nor assumed its last hideous variety or monstrosity. The marriage of two eminently depraved in different respects, besides rendering their offspring pre-eminently wicked, develops a new kind of de- pravity380, just as the commingling of two colors produces a third, unlike either, yet compounded of the qualities of both. Thus, where one parent is licentious and the other deceitful, or one proud and the other revengeful, their offspring, besides in- APPLIED TO DEPRAVITY. 271 heriting both forms of vice separately, like Patty Cannon355, will form new compounds of these and other depraved elements which the marriage of these offspring with others differently depraved—and 44 birds of a feather flock together"—the sinful prefer to marry brother or sister sinners—will still farther re- combine with other new forms of wicked propensity, only to disfigure their posterity with other and still other forms of depravity now unknown and inconceivable, and far more aggravated than any with which our race is now cursed. Fortunately, however, here also death exterminates the issue of aggravated sinners, in like manner as it does of the offspring of complicated diseases 34°, and thus arrests the trans- mission of results thus soul-sickening. Virtue and longevity are twin sisters; so are likewise vice and premature death. 44 The wicked shall not live out half their days," nor their seed remain to curse mankind. An early grave is the penalty affixed to the violation of the mental as well as physical laws. Infinitely better that " the wicked die before their time," and " their seed perish from the earth," than live to corrupt mankind by " evil communications," and to transmit their sinfulness and consequent suffering, re-diversified and re-augmented, throughout all coming time. Behold an arrangement infinitely wise, infinitely benevolent! Let, then, the wicked die, and their race perish with them; but let those who would live, and leave a happy posterity upon the earth, both cultivate goodness themselves, and also select as parental partners those who are moral in conduct, and also from a highly virtuous parentage. " Be not thou united" to any whose near rela- tives are given to any moral delinquency or deformity. Parents give ear to one solemn admonition enforced by our subject. You are often distressed beyond measure by one or another manifestation of depravity in your children, for which you chastise them repeatedly with many stripes. Look into the interior of your own souls, and those of your wife or husband, and see if you do not find those depraved elements, the blending of which thus afflicts yourselves and curses your offspring. You may, perhaps, find that you are the cause of vour children's vices, and that they are more sinned against 272 the law of combination than sinning. You may find that you deserve the stripes in- flicted on them, and that they are entitled to pity instead of punishment. And many of us may, perhaps, trace our " easily besetting sins" to our parents. Not, however, that this justifies our errors, because, by the law of " INCREASE BY EXERCISE, and DECREASE BY INACTION," already alluded to8213214215, these depraved tendencies may and should be overcome. All good predispositions should be augmented, all bad ones diminished ; and the stronger the lat- ter, the greater efforts should be put forth to effect this end. But, to proceed. The confluence of this principle of illimitable combination, with this law of improvement by cultivation, inimitably beau- tiful and perfect as are all nature's works, constitutes the " top stone" of human hope and Divine wisdom and goodness. To contemplate what provision of nature is more delightful to the philosopher and the philanthropist, than either of these separately ? Then, how incomparably more so both com- bined ! Their united operation may fairly be styled the great deliverance of our race from its present low estate, and the grand instrumentality for placing it on its exalted pinnacle of prospective destiny and enjoyment. A few examples: Longevity, and its conditions, are transmissible3'9. They are also capable of increase by a rigid observance of the laws of health 321378. Let, then, two unite in marriage, each of whose ancestors lived to be 110—an age often attained—and, of course, themselves capable, by living as their ancestors did, of attaining an equal age. But, these ancestors became thus aged in spite of numerous and aggravated violations of the laws of health, because wholly ignorant of Physiology. Let their offspring study and obey these laws, and they can attain 130 with less difficulty than their ancestors did 110, and im- part to their offspring the strength of constitution which shall capacitate them to attain a like age. Then let the third gene- ration still farther improve their original powers of life, and also marry companions who have had a like parentage, and they can easily live to 150, and parent children equally tena- cious of life. Let their children pursue, and marry those APPLIED TO LONGEVITY. 273 who have pursued a similar course, and thus re-increase their already powerful hold on life, and they can both live still longer, and also endow their offspring with capacity to live to a still greater age. As, in case the children of the rich should intermarry only with the wealthy, and thus re-augment their patrimony, and moreover still father amass fortunes by vig- orous and judicious efforts, the riches of their descendants could be inimitably enhanced; so the mere marriage of the long-lived with the long-lived will increase and re-increase the age of every succeeding generation, and such marriage, con- joined with a rigid observance of the laws of health, will re- double the tenacity of life more and more every succeeding generation, till the strongest of our race will be weak, and the oldest mere babes, compared with those who might be made to inherit the earth. In fact, no bounds can be set to the age which man cannot, by the right and long-continued use of these means, pass. Our race is yet infantile in everything but depravity. Inconceivable is the range of human improve- ment proffered by this hereditary law. Is not longevity trans- missible 319 ? Reader, are we on doubtful ground ? Does not the union of two long-lived parents produce offspring still lon- g*er-lived379 ? And cannot this tenacity of life be increased by a full knowledge and rigid observance of the physical laws ? Let " Physiology, Animal and Mental," answer. Then what is to prevent mankind from living to be as old as Methuselah ? What man has been, man can be. Who hath set bounds to the nature of man which cannot be passed ? Shall space be illimitable and shall not human progression be equally bound- less ? Is man doomed to die just as he begins to live ? " My people shall not plant and another eat thereof. They shall not build and another inhabit." " As the days of a tree, shall be the days of my people, and mine elect"—those who obey all my laws—" shall long enjoy the work of their hands." This prophecy will yet be literally fulfilled by the action of these two laws under discussion. These conditions of mar- riage and observing the laws of health, men will understand and fulfil and when they do, "the child shall die an hun- dred years old," and if those a hundred years old are to be 274 the law of confluence mere children, pray how old will their aged men and women be ? As old as trees ! This is no hyperbole. The seeds of all this and 44 even greater things than these," are planted in the primitive constitution of humanity, and will eventually grow and bear fruit to the glory of God in the infinite happi- ness of his children. This law is equally applicable to the increase of beauty. The marriage of a most beautiful woman with a truly mag. nificent man, if both obey the physical laws, produces a still higher order of beauty in their offspring 2 38°. These children can re-augment their beauty by a variety of means, especially by the improvement of health and moral excellence, and, by intermarrying with others also alike beautiful, and endowed with other touches of beauty, transmit to their offspring not only a still higher order of beauty, but new varieties and combinations of beautiful elements, to be again transmitted, re-augmented, and re-combined, to generation after generation of their descendants inimitably and forever, till those most beautiful now would be comparatively homely, and till human vision shall be regaled with almost angelic loveliness! This principle applies equally to strength of muscle, power of heart and lungs, and to every conceivable condition of physical excellence and physiological perfection. Suppose, for example, the Caucasian race to possess one remarkable condition of physical power or perfection—and they are en- dowed with several—and the Mongalian variety with another. Their extensive intermarriage will retain them both380, and also develope one or more new physical excellencies now unknown, which the hereditary laws expounded in this work will transmit, to be re-combined, and our race re-perfected, as long as time continues, and till the human physiology shall be almost infinitely perfected, in every conceivable respect. But this combination of these laws will not stop with per- fecting man physically. It applies with still greater range and power to the perfection of the human mind. Indeed, the physiology cannot be improved without thereby improving the brain, and of course its product, the mind, because of the per- fect inter-relation of the three. As the entire body and all its APPLIED TO INTELLECT. 275 complicated contrivances were created simply as instrumen- talities by which to manifest the soul—the only constituent element of man p 19,—of course all physical improvement must enhance the mental capacities and enjoyments—" the chief end of man." And since its faculties are so numerous and its capabilities so infinitely multifarious, consequently its range or scale of perfectibility is correspondingly extensive and diversified. To each of these, this all-perfecting law ap- plies with augmented power. As there is no end to the num- ber and variety of the mental functions and characteristics possible, so each of these can be improved and re-improved illimitably by the conjoint application of these two laws. A few illustrations. We have already seen several lingual rivers produce a Patrick Henry, with his unrivalled powers of eloquence 379. Suppose he had married a daughter of Jonathan Edwards, endowed with all the intellectual and moral powers and ex- cellencies of both the lines of her illustrious parentage; the union of such gigantic powers of intellect with such exalted moral sentiments, conjoined with all the eloquence of a Henry, must, in accordance with those hereditary laws already de- monstrated in this volume, have produced an issue endowed with far greater and more diversified gifts than any ever yet conferred on mortal man! And even these only intellectual and moral babes compared with what the right and long-co.:- tinued application of this law is capable of producing! Suppose, again, that these sons and daughters of genius and moral worth, should marry an issue of Franklin, endowed with all the intellectual might of this prince of modern states- men and philosophers, and suppose, moreover, that Franklin had married one every way his equal, so that their issue had retained all his powers, and even re-increased and diversified them, the world would have beheld a race of giants in intel- lect, united with moral virtues more illustrious than mortals ever yet experienced. Franklin's transcendent genius was crippled by his inability to speak, and Henry's by his incapa- city to write, but, since progeny take on the strongest faculties of Roth parents380, the issue of this union of Henry's elo. 276 THE COMBINATION OF FACULTIES. quence with Franklin's philosophy, adorned, as above sup- posed, with the high moral excellence of an Edwards, and re-increased by confluence with his giant mind, would have clothed even more than the rich mine of Franklin's thought, with more than a Henry's transcendent eloquence! And all this sanctified by a proportion ably high order of moral excellence, and expended in urging forward great and good works of human improvement! What throngs would press around such apostles wherever they should open their mouths, chained and charmed by their eloquence, instructed by their wisdom, and almost transformed by their moral appeals! Mortal ears never yet saluted by such bursts of eloquence, nor human souls ravished by such heavenly-minded aspira- tions ! Suppose this issue, retaining every excellence of every line into which their ancestry had inter-married, to unite their diversified and transcendent gifts with the musical powers of the Hutchinsons, and their issue to add, by a well-concerted series of intermarriages with other lines remarkable for other physical, and intellectual, and moral powers, capacity to ca- pacity, and virtue to virtue, at the same time each generation redoubling them all both by self-cultivation, and by augment- ing power by the union of two strong faculties in parents3T9, " behold, O heavens, and be astonished, O earth," in view of the almost angelic capacities and virtues of these veritable " sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty!" Behold our world become once more the garden of Eden, and man a» race of angels! And all this only -the merest beginning of those endow- ments of which humanity is capable! and which man will yet attain. God did not create our race for naught, nor will he allow it always to remain what it has thus far been. The contrivances and functions of the human body—how efficient, how wonderful ! Those of the mind, how much more beau- tiful and even God-like ! The human soul, the master-piece of divine invention and execution ! Shall this greatest work of God continue to proye as abortive as it now is and always nas been ? Did he expend his wisdom and power to pro- the prospect. 277 duee a work thus marred throughout with all the physical " ills that flesh is heir to," and all the hideous moral deformi- ties now so rife ? Granted that man is left to his own choice between virtue and happiness on the one hand, and vice and wretchedness on the other, shall the practical workings of God's crowning piece of workmanship, continue forever thus to disgrace its Architect ? No, he will not suffer the work of his hands thus to come to naught. " He shall see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied." He did not thus " create man in his own image and likeness" for nought. That like- ness shall not always remain thus trodden into the slough of depravity. No, thank God! these two mighty moral levers under discussion, will surely raise it up out of the mire, and bear it aloft far beyond what " eye hath seen, or ear heard, or it hath entered into the heart of man to conceive." Are the principles of this volume fables? What one has not been demonstrated to be an ordinance of nature ? Has a single point been left doubtful ? And are not these perfecting results the legitimate and necessary products of these laws? Review the ground previously surveyed, ye who question these infer- ences, or even think them over.rated. Re-canvass every point adduced. Re-test all in the crucible of fact. We did not dwell thus long on previous positions for their own sakes merely, but mainly to lay foundation stones on which to erect this glorious superstructure. These conclusions are sure. Even without any specifie application on our part, they still go on to work out these man-perfecting results. See what they have already done in the spontaneous production of Ba- cons, Franklins, Henrys, and a host of stars in the firmament of humanity. And will they stop here ? Will not republican- ism give them a new and powerful impetus ? Left to them- selves, they will produce, as time rolls on, all we have sup- P°But they will not thus be left. Principles like these are too apparent not to be perceived, and too momentously import- ant not to be seized upon and carried out in practice. We live in a utilitarian age—an age which will not suffer such mines of human happiness to remain long unworked. Reader, 24 278 the parental qualities discernible. if you do not apply these laws, others will. A generation or two may come and go before a knowledge of them shall have become diffused, and their importance and feasibility fully appreciated, but the time will come—is even now at the door—when matrimonial candidates will not blindly leap into the dark, but when a scrutinizing canvass will be instituted into the parental as well as matrimonial excellencies and defects of every prospective companion. Nor, when instituted, will the issue be doubtful. .If a man cannot tell beforehand what kind of a prospective mother this and that young woman will make, and if a woman cannot predicate with certainty what sort of a father this and that beau will be, and even what kind of children he or she will parent—whether they will be healthy or sickly; and if the latter, to what diseases predis- posed ; and also whether they will be bright or stupid, and for what mental characteristics they will be remarkable, and in what deficient—it is simply because they do not know how to tell what can be told with ease and certainty. Show me a man or woman, and I will tell for certain what kind of a father or mother they will make; or show me two parents, and I will tell you the leading characteristics of their offspring. Why not? Are not the principles developed in this volume infallible guides, and the predicating data easily observable 1 They can be easily and certainly applied to longevity,3i0 con- sumption, etc., and with equal ease and correctness to every form of disease, every physical defect, and every physiological excellence. And by the aid of phrenological science, they are even more easily and surely applicable to all the mental characteristics. To ascertain what cerebral developments, and of course mental characteristics, predominate or are defi- cient in given individuals, is perfectly easy to the Phrenologist. Of course, then, he can tell, from this data, the characteristics of their prospective children ; and by observing both prospective parents, he can tell what phrenological developments and men- tal characteristics their issue will possess, about as well before the latter see the light as after they arrive at maturity. Nor will knowledge as infinitely valuable as this long remain hid- den or unapplied. Improvement is the watchword of our age, parentage must precede education. . 279 and shall such capabilities of augmenting human happiness and perfection be long concealed under the bushel of neglect ? Shall men apply these laws to the improvement of stock so advantageously, and long neglect to apply them to human perfec- tion ? Be entreated, O reader, to seize upon this treasure, and both apply it to the perfection of your own offspring, and per- suade others to "go and do likewise;" for, unlike buried gold the more there is taken the less is left, the more this mine of human improvement is worked the greater will be its yield, and the greater the number of those who can enjoy and diffuse its exhaustless mental riches. Men will not long prosecute education as vigorously as now without going further back and improving the original stock of humanity. They will see that the same educational labors bestowed on children highly endowed by nature will produce as much greater harvests of intellectuality and morality as the rich prairie does more than the barren heath. Education can never create talents, only develop what nature has furnished at her hands. It can never make a sap-head a Bacon, but only polish the marble created by parentage. Man will soon see and know that to "make a silk purse" they must have silk materials to begin with. Parents dearly love their offspring, and intensely desire their improvement. What emotion is stronger ? What string of reform can be pulled with equal effect ? What equally gain their ear and reach their conduct ? This ruling passion will virtually compel them to learn and apply these laws of hereditary descent to the production of as perfect specimens of humanity as possible, that education may produce its richest possible yields, and gratify to the fullest extent their parental ambition. Would to God I could live to see the glorious day when these perfecting principles shall be nut in diversified and successful practice. I should then see my race regenerated—delivered from those physical and moral maladies which now crush it into the mire of depravity, and torture it with suffering. But since I cannot, let it be my humble, happy lot, to lay the axe of reform at the root of the trees of vice and misery, and plant in their stead those of human perfection and happiness, by lecturing and writing on 280 responsibilities of parents. the means of improving the stock of humanity—of sowing the seeds of virtue instead of depravity in the primitive con- stitution of mankind. Let me sound the tocsin of alarm in the ears of parents, and warn them that their sinful indulgen- ces, besides corrupting themselves, transmit depraved pre- dispositions to those they most dearly love, which mar and curse them for life, whereas by the right application of these laws, they can just as well parent offspring endowed with supe- rior temperaments, diversified and powerful intellectual capa- cities, and transcendent moral affections. Let others labor hard and accomplish little, in other fields of reform, but let me show my race how to perfect the germ of humanity. Other efforts at reform will do good, yet will only lop off a few branches of the great tree of sin and suffering, while this lays the axe at its root, by showing parents how to cast their off- spring in the primitive mould of goodness and greatness. That early impressions are deeper and more controlling than subsequent ones, is universally conceded, and the earlier the more so. This principle applies pre-eminently to the first, the creating impress. This impress I would feign show my fellow men how to stamp in the best possible manner. And if I do not live to see my race regenerated by the application of these laws, others will. I may die before the seed thus sown germinates, but it will grow till it becomes a great tree, and overshadows the earth. The study of these hereditary laws is yet to become the great study, and their application the great labor of man. Helpers will be raised up. This kind of knowledge will be increased. This great work will progress, and I shall behold it—perhaps from afar—but I love my race too dearly not to watch its progress " While being lasts Or immortality endures." A brighter day will soon dawn on man. The day-star of promise is just rising above the mountains and peering through the trees. That star consists—not in modern discov- l eries in science, and improvements in mechanics and the arts \ —not in building churches and compassing sea and land to make religious proselytes—not in the temperance reform, or * CONCLUDING APPEAL. 281 the moral reform, or any other philanthropic movement—but in the attention just beginning to be paid to hereditary influen- ces. The momentous destinies which throng it, are just be- ginning, like distant thunder, to break upon the human ear. This sound will wax louder and louder till its deafening roar shall wake up the whole race, and completely regenerate mankind in every conceivable respect. Its interests are par- amount, and will soon be so regarded. M,en are just begin- ning to inquire, what kind of children will this one and th'at parent ? And they will soon learn, by the application of these laws, so to regulate their matrimonial choice as to produce offspring endowed with whatever qualities may be desired. Then will a new order of beings people the earth—a race endowed by nature with all that is noble, great, and good in man, all that is virtuous, lovely, and exquisitely perfect in woman, marred with few defects, enfeebled by few if any diseases, defaced by few moral blemishes, and corrupted by no vices. Then will they indeed and in truth be the worthy 44 sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty," and reflect his image, instead of outraging his laws, and wallowing in de- pravity. Then, but not till then, will the sun of millennial glory and happiness rise upon our world—then shine in all its morning beauty and meridian effulgence. Then shall God be glorified in the perfect holiness and inconceivable happiness of all his creatures, and earth become a perfect paradise ! CONCLUDING APPEAL. And now, prospective parents, be entreated to pause and con- sider this whole subject. Does it not commend itself to your investigation and application? And is it not the imperious duty of every prospective parent to study and apply it ? As our possession of eyes, muscles, reason, speech, etc., imposes on us a solemn obligation to use them, so nature's proffer of such exalted blessings, renders us guilty if we neglect them. Are the temporal and eternal destinies of your dearly beloved children indeed so trifling ? Though you may " neither fear God nor regard man," yet be entreated to regard " the bone 282 APPEAL TO PROSPECTIVE PARENTS. of your bone and flesh of your flesh." The destinies of your own dear prospective children lie completely at your control. Nay, you must control them. Behold in the bearing of these hereditary laws, how happy or how miserable you are com- pelled to render them. How, then, can you look them in the face if you entail evil passions or physical maladies on them ? And how infinitely valuable the patrimony of high intellectual and moral endowments! Nor to them merely, but to your children's children, to the end of time ! " Multitudes which no man can number," likely to issue from your loins, will rise up to call you blessed or accursed, according to your choice of a joint parental partner. Nor do the destinies of your descendants alone hang sus- pended on this choice, but also your own. None but parents can form any adequate conception of the extent to which their enjoyments and sufferings are influenced by the health or sickness, the virtues or vices of their offspring. What anguish compares with that of watching around their sick-bed, unless it be the agony consequent on their death ? Yes, there is one other far greater—that of seeing them become wicked ! Rather many deaths, than one profligate. From such a lot " Good Lord deliver us," by teaching us to marry so as to prevent it. And what thrills of py equal those consequent on seeing the idols of parental love growing up healthy, tal- ented, and lovely—always meeting you with smiles of love and kisses of affection ; always amiable and universally be- loved, endowed with exalted capabilities and crowned with heavenly virtues. How little, ye matrimonial candidates, do or can ye realize how inconceivably more happy you, they, and all around will be rendered, by their goodness, but how miserable, if they should be ill-natured, thievish, deceptive, licentious, curses to themselves and you, and pests to society. Oh, consider the momentous responsibilities consequent on this " tide in the affairs of life." Well might archangels shrink from incurring them. In proportion as becoming parents necessarily effects your and their happiness for life, should they be regarded with deep solemnity, and consumma- ted with deliberation and wisdom. Yet how many form APPEAL TO THE UNMARRIED. 283 them as thoughtlessly as though they were funny pastimes— mere toys with which to play away an idle hour. O, thought- less youth, be implored not to make light of these fearful realities, but to employ all possible means to ascertain what, in a parental partner, will secure to your offspring those qualities which you may desire, and avoid those you dislike, and choose accordingly. Do not " get in love" first, and rush-headlong upon these fearfully momentous relations; but examine be- forehand what influences the partner of your choice must exert upon the children of your yet undeveloped affection. What right have you to entail painful diseases and still more pain- ful vices upon them ? No more than to mutilate their bodies or burn off their limbs. Since inflicting causeless suffering on them after they are born is wicked, hew much more so to entail upon them, along with their existence, far more aggra- vated miseries ? If " he that provideth not for his own household is worse than an infidel," how much more wicked to entail diseases and vices upon them, and# how imperious the auty of parents to employ all the means put into their hands of endowing them with every possible condition of perfection and enjoyment ? Are those guilty who usher human beings into the world without providing them with food and raiment, and are they not far more so who bring forth those feeble in body and poorly endowed in mind ? Are not parental obliga- tions as much greater and more binding before birth than after, as parental influences are more prolific of happiness or mis- ery than educational ? Strange, that we should think so much of our children after birth and so little before—that we should labor so hard to cultivate poor soil, when a tithe of this labor, applied to parentage, would produce infinitely more. True, this ought to be done, but that not to be left undone. We should produce splendid children by making a right choice in the first place, and then follow up with energetic educational efforts. " First make the tree good, then will the fruit be good also." The original bias or impress derived from parents is the root and trunk, and these are as the parentage. Make them what you wish your offspring to be, and educational efforts will produce a hundred-fold more and choicer fruit 284 DUTY OF ALL than if the parentage is defective or bad. Nor are those worthy of gifted offspring who neglect to avail themselves of this inimitably wise and infinitely beneficent provision of nature. Nor will they, unless they chance to stumble on them. Shall the pedigree of a horse be required to have been extraordinary for beauty, speed, strength, bottom, action, and much more, before allowed to sire a farm horse, and shall no inquiries be instituted concerning the lineage of the prospect- ive father or mother of your own dearly beloved children, as well as boon companion ? This is penny wise and pound fool- ish with a vengeance—is wisdom in trifles, but consummate folly in matters of eternal moment. True, a fine horse is valuable—worth all the pains taken to produce it—but how infinitely more so asplendid child ? Then shall no pains be taken with its parentage ? Candidates for matrimony inquire most rigidly concerning the paltry patrimony of this one and that, and choose the richest they can obtain, though most defective as companions and utterly incapable of parenting decent children, and even certain to entail consumption, or insanity, or other diseases, or even deceit, theft, vindictiveness, licentiousness, and other aggravated forms of depravity—chil- dren of which monkies ought to be ashamed—provided they can get a few dollars by the financial operation, yet treat with cold neglect those who are every way capacitated to pa- rent offspring of a high order of beauty, strength, talents, and moral excellence! Those from a diseased, miserly, bad-tem- pered stock are taken just as quickly—no more so, for no attention is paid to this matter—as those whose ancestors are remarkable for longevity, talents, and moral worth! Strange but true ! O, when will men learn practical wisdom in these eventful matters ? Should not ministers, the acknowledged expounders of duty, preach on this subject ? They preach on the moral training of children, then why not on what so infi- nitely facilitates such training? Do they now preach any thing more important intrinsically, or half as promotive even of morals and religion ? As the people look to them for their whole duty, if they should expound hereditary laws and facts, and admonish and instruct the young with all the solemnity TO STUDY AND APPLY THESE LAWS. 285 and unction of their exalted' station, besides wielding their tremendous influence with most beneficial effect, they would soon effectually re-model society, almost banish vice and crime, and infinitely adorn and bless mankind. " But our mission is Christ crucified and nothing else," say they. Granted; but should you not prepare the soil by showing parents how to produce children highly endowed with moral sentiments, in order that your preaching may take root and bear sixty or an hundred-fold of morality and happiness ? And are not these parental duties not only moral duties, but among the highest obligations we owe to our offspring and our God ? How can we " love the Lord our God with all our might, mind, soul, and strength," while we entail on his image physical maladies and moral blemishes and disorders ? How " love our neighbors as ourselves"—and what neighbors nearer than our own offspring—while we enfeeble their bodies and blight their souls ? Nor can clergymen " declare the whole council of God" without enforcing on parents this their high- est grade of moral obligation. Yet, alas! they will probably be the very last even to admit, much less to proclaim them. Then who will mount this breach for God and humanity ? Doctors should, but are too intent on curing diseases to fore- stall them—on dosing out pounds of cures—? kills—to admin- ister ounces of prevention, by sowing correct hereditary seed. Lawyers, likewise, are too busy taking fees for telling lies, and scrambling over their fellow men after pelf, to give such subjects a moment's attention. Merchants are too greedy after copper, the rich in playing fool, young women in catch- ing beaus, and married women in cooking dinners and tending children, to heed this subject. But there is a select band of Gideon's chosen few, culled out by test after test, who will blow the trumpet of reform on the one hand, and on the other, distribute this kind of knowledge. To such this work is com- mended. Take and urge it upon married and single, espe- cially upon those on the matrimonial look out, and more espe- cially upon young women. Warn and remonstrate with them not to deck their persons attractively, nor cast looks of love, till they have learned their duties as prospective mothers, or 286 WHAT MAN WILL YET BECOME. how to parent superior offspring. Thoroughly imbue every matrimonial candidate with the cardinal principles of heredi- tary descent embodied in this work, and rouse all to the im- portance of LEARNING AND FULFILLING THE LAWS OF TRANS- MISSION. Teach mankind how to parent, and then how to educate humanity, and you transform the world ! Then shall the garden of Eden cover the whole earth, and all who in- habit it be rendered incalculably holy and happy! Then will the current of human capability and progression widen and deepen as it flows on from generation to generation, irri- gating the valley of time as it meanders through it, and pour- ing exhaustless blessings upon all mankind, till it empties into the boundless ocean of infinite perfection and eternal bliss, multiplying countless throngs, marred with no intellectual de- fect, stained with no moral depravity, full to overflowing, in every department of their complicated nature, with every pos- sible perfection, every conceivable felicity which the power and wisdom of God can bestow, and the nature of man enjoy ! 0 merciful Father, open thou the closed eyes of thy children, to see these things in their true light, and quicken their con- sciences, till they shall dare to slumber no longer on the verge of such momentous consequences for evil, and so exalted a means of good. And may this work go forth to promote so glorious an end! But parental duty is not complete when the right companion is chosen. Much, very much depends on the particular states of the minds and bodies of these parents at the time they stamp the impress of being and character upon their offspring. This subject the author has deemed so all important that he has devoted an entire volume to its consideration, entitled " Love and Parentage." Those, therefore, who derive interest or profit from the perusal of the subject of this volume, will derive still more from its continuance in that. APPENDIX. "THE FAMILY BIOGRAPHER AND GENEALOGICAL RECORDER." The following prospectus of a work by the author was written in 1843, but has lain unpublished in his desk because he could not spare time and strength to carry it into execution, and is now published, not because he contemplates its imme- diate execution, but to call attention to the importance of pre- serving and recording this species of history : " Biography is more interesting and instructive than any other species of reading, because •' The greatest study of mankind is man," and because it constitutes the cream of history. The Natural History of animals is a pleasant and profitable study, but that of the characteristics, achievements, attainments, and virtues of nations and individuals, is as much more so as its subject—man—excels brute. What else can teach lessons equally instructing or profitable to all, and especially the young ? " Since individual and national history is thus useful, how much more so that of families, from generation to generation, and throughout all their branches and individuals ? Hence, most biographies open with some ac- count of the parents of their heroes. How much, then, would a short history of the grand and great-grandparents, and of other blood rela- tions, add to its interest and profit ? And what could equal, in thrilling interest and useful knowledge, short biographies of many or most of the individuals of remarkable families, in all their branches? What could equal, in value, sketches of the ancestors and relatives of the Franklin, Edwards, Henry, Webster, Clay, and other families, merely as a matter of knowledge ? All facts are full of interest and instruction. Behold the almost boundless power exerted by Washingtonian biography over the public mind ! Like a fire on the prairie, it swept all before it, simply because personal narratives compel admission into the human mind, where nothing else can penetrate. Such is the nature of mind. Stories " tell the story." Other genealogical works record the names of ances- tors and descendants, but we require also to know what they did and were- 288 APPENDIX. Now add Science to fact—illustrate general laws and great moral principles by these histories of individuals — and no reading, no spe- cies of knowledge, would compare with it in value and instruction. Besides, the moral of biography is of the very highest order. And, then, the combination of all these conditions of interest with those of heredi- tary descent, and their application to human improvement, would con- stitute the very climax of utility and value, which would be enhanced by the fact that all this anecdote, science, and moral relates to us and ours. Mankind have a sort of passion to know all about their ancestors and relatives. " To secure all these most desirable ends by one instrumentality, it is proposed to establish a periodical which shall embrace short biographies of persons and families any way remarkable for any thing and every thing, and also of their ancestors and all collateral branches, as far as they can be traced, including the bearing of all these facts on transmission, especially as illustrating the various laws of combination, improvement, deterioration, etc., etc. The record of current marriages, births, and deaths, in a permanent form, for future reference, will, of course, be one of its leading features, so that it will be designed to be a national record of family and individual statistics—confessedly a very great desideratum. " Again ; our nation is cosmopolitic. Families are " moving" and re- moving from all parts to all parts, by which all attempts at genealogical records are rendered abortive. This evil the Family Biographer will partially obviate, by containing tables which can be filled up, one by one branch and others by other branches—the compilation of which would 'give a vast amount of most useful and instructive genealogical sta- tistics. This would also be putting this species of knowledge in a per- manent and tangible form for future reference. The memories of our old people contain vast stores of most interestiug and invaluable facts and anecdotes of this class, which, unless rescued from oblivion, must die with them. Such rescue this work will greatly promote, by furnishing a place, and also facilities, for such record, and by keeping this subject perpetually before the people. " There is also required a central depot—a national focus—to which all can communicate, and from which all can obtain, a knowledge of their respective ancestors and descendants, and in which can be recorded that vast range of hereditary facts perpetually transpiring all over the world. Nor will mothers in their maternal capacity be overlooked, or directions touching the choice of suitable parental partners be omitted. In short, this most important subject is designed to be treated so as to be of great practical advantage to the entire community." P. S.—If time can be spared, and proper assistance obtained, the above plan, somewhat improved, may hereafter be taken up and carried out by the Author. N. B.—A kindred periodical, entitled the Genealogical Register, has just appeared in Boston. We heartily commend it to public patronage. ¥0 RJL& ON TBE NATURAL SCIENCES, FOWLERS AND WELLS, PHRENOLOGISTS, NO. 131 NASSAU STREET, NEW YORK. FOR SALE BY OUR AGENTS, AND BOOKSELLERS GENERALLY THROUGHOUT THE UNION. a----------------------------------a WORKS ON THE NATURAL SCIENCES, PUBLISHED BY FOWLERS AND WELLS. O. S. & L. N. FOWLER. PHRENOLOGY PROVED, ILLUSTRATED, AND AP- PLIED, Accompanied by a Chart, Embracing a Concise Ele- mentary View of Phrenology, with Forty-three Illustrative Engravings. Thirty-sixth Edition, enlarged and improved. 12mo. Cloth, $1 00; leather, $1 25. "This is a Practical Standard Work, and may be described as a Complete System of the principles and practice of Phrenology. The authors have taken great pains to illustrate the Science by an innumerable number of facts, which they have accumulated after years of patient investigation. Besides important remarks on the Temperaments, it contains a description of all the primary mental powers, in seven different degrees of developement, together with the combinations of the faculties; also the location of the organs in the* head, with a view of the moral and theological bearings of the Science. In short, we regard this work as not only the most important of any which has before been written on the Science, but as indispensably necessary to the Student, who wishes to acquire a thorough knowledge of Phrenological Science."—New York Review. O. S. FOWLER. HEREDITARY DESCENT: ITS LAWS AND FACTS APPLIED TO HUMAN IMPROVEMENT. A new and improved Edition. Illustrated with Twenty-five Engravings. 12mo. Cloth, 75 cents ; paper, 50 cents. " That the physical, mental, and moral qualities are transmissible, no one will deny. How important, then, that we understand the conditions of the body and mind, which produce either favorable or unfavorable impressions on the yet unborn. Ihe import- ance of this subject is immense, and should be examined by all."-Literary Messenger. " This work developes those laws which govern the hereditary tendencies of our nature, and classifies under their appropriate heads, the diseases which are frequently transmitted from parent to offspring proving conclusively Aat Insanity, ScrolMm, ADODlexy Consumption, and other diseases, as well as Vices, Vutues, lalente ot Various Kinds, etc., etc, are inherent throughout famihes and nations. The ob- jecTof the work is to show how to improve offspring, by producing qualities the most desirable. Every parent should possess a copy.' — Daily Globe. DR. ANDREW COMBE. THE PRINCIPLES OF PHYSIOLOGY APPLIED TC THE IMPROVEMENT OF PHYSICAL AND MEN- TAL EDUCATION. To which is added Notes and Obser- vations, by O. S. Fowler. From the improved Edinburgh Edition, with illustrations. 8vo. Cloth, 75 cents. America that it is P03.81"1" \" , „ _.w ^.j jmnroved Edition, which is by far superior *£%%£ WS^«% W^^ * read by every Man, Woman, and Child in' the land."—K Y. Tribune. _____ <3- FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. O. S. FOWLER. RELIGION, NATURAL AND REVEALED: OR THE NATURAL THEOLOGY AND MORAL BEARINGS OF PHRENOLOGY, Including the Doctrines Taught and Duties Inculcated thereby, compared with those enjoined in the Scriptures, together with a Phrenological Exposition of the Doc- trines of a Future State, Materialism, Holiness, Sins, Rewards, Punishments, Depravity, a Change of Heart, Will, Foreordina- tion, and Fatalism. Tenth Edition, enlarged and improved. 8vo. Cloth, 75 cents ; paper, 50 cents. "The momentous inquiry, 'What is the true religion?' is answered in this work, by showing what religious "creeds and practices harmonize, and what conflict, with the nature of man, as unfolded by this Science. If ever our various religious opinions are to be brought into harmonious action, it must be done through the instrumentality of Phrenological Science."—Christian Freeman. B7 THE SAME AUTHOR. PHYSIOLOGY, ANIMAL AND MENTAL; APPLIED TO THE PRESERVATION AND RESTORATION OF HEALTH OF BODY AND POWER OF MIND. With Twenty-six Engravings on Wood. 12mo. Cloth, 75 cents; mail edition, 50 cents. " This will be found a more valuable work for the use of the people generally, than any other which has yet been written. It is free from technicalities, and may be easily understood and applied by every individual. The whole subject of Physiology is thoroughly examined, and all the necessary information relative to our physical well-bein? imparted. ■___ "The author takes strong grounds against the use ot Tobacco, Tea, Cottee, Liquor, and stimulant ingredients generally. Those portions relating to the effects of different kinds of food on the body and mind are particularly valuable. The causes and cure of Consumption should be read by every youth in the land. By understanding the laws of life and health contained in this work, much agony and suffering might be avoided, and many valuable lives prolonged. Although but recently published, this work has already passed through several editions."—Hunt's Merchant's Magazine. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. SELF-CULTURE AND PERFECTION OF CHARAC- TER ; INCLUDING THE MANAGEMENT OF YOUTH., Improved Stereotyped Edition. 12mo. Cloth, 75 cents ; paper, 50 cents. " Self made or never made," is the motto of the author. This is a capital work, and in our opinion the best of the kind in the English language It is really a genv No individual can read a page of it without being improved thereby. We wish it were in the hands of every young man and woman in America, or even the world. The ereat beauty of this work consists in the fact, that it tells us how to cultivate oi restrain the organs of the brain, and establish an equilibrium. With this work, in connection with Physiology, Animal and Mental, and Memory and Intellect- uai Improvement, we may become fully acquainted with ourselves, (they being related to each other,) comprehending as they do, the whole man. We advise all to read theso works."—Common School Advocate. a----—----- --------s FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. MRS. HUGO REID WOMAN: HER EDUCATION AND INFLUENCE; WITH A GENERAL INTRODUCTION BY MRS. C. M. KIRKLAND. Illustrated with thirteen portraits of distin- guished Women. 12mo. Cloth, extra gilt, 75 cents : paper, 40 cents. "Can man be free, if woman be a slave 1" is the motto adopted by the author. "To improve and elevate woman, is but to elevate and improve man. By nature, our rights, interests, and privileges are one. For either to assume the supremacy would be only to degrade the other. "That our spheres are different, no one will deny. Woman is the natural educator of children ; and if it be a fact that " education forms the common mind," then the question as to who exerts the greater influence, may at once be solved. How important, then, that woman be properly qualified to discharge this most responsible obligation. " Multiplying books on this subject will have a tendency to facilitate the great cause of human progression and advancement. " This work has been translated into the principal European languages, and has gained for the author an enviable reputation. Mrs. Kirkland's introduction, together with the beautiful illustrations, are decidedly great additions to the work, and will render it much more interesting to the general reader."—Introduction. " Woman wields the Archimedean Lever, whose fulcrum is childhood, whose length is all time, whose weight is the world, and whose sweep is eternity."—American Phrenological Journal. LOUIS CORNARO. A SOBER AND TEMPERATE LIFE : WITH NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS BY JOHN BURDELL, Dentist. Containing directions as to the quantity of food necessary to pro- long life to an hundred'years. 18mo. With numerous illustra- tions, and a likeness of the author. Price 25 cents. "It has been translated into nearly every language, and is really a superior work. Most of our modern Physiologists have derived their most important principles from this author. Those who read it will live more in accordance with the laws of nature. —Newark Daily Advertiser. "The author, by his temperate habits, attained the remarkable age of 104 years, and was one of the best men of the age. Be wise and read this work."-Montreal Signal. JUSTUS LIEBIG, M. D., F. R. S. CHEMISTRY APPLIED TO PHYSIOLOGY, AGRICUL- TURE AND COMMERCE. With additions by Dr. John Gardnkr. Large octavo. Best edition, paper, only 20 cents. «It contains a vast amount of chemical information relative to almost every depart- ment of industry and wealth."—New England Cataract. « Nn farmer mechanic, or manufacturer should be without it. Its extreme cheap- ness^lacesTwlrtnnTthe reach of every individual, and notwithstanding its low price "only 20 cento^it is printed in the very best manner."-Scam^ Amerimn. »it illustrates the necessity of a knowledge of Chemistry to advance and perfect A^cuto'rof the Arts and Sciences generally. It may be sent by mail at a trifling postage."—Star of Temperance. a- —------------------------------------------------------------j? FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. JUDGE E. P. HURUBUT. HUMAN RIGHTS AND THEIR POLITICAL GUAR- ANTIES; FOUNDED ON THE MORAL AND INTEL- LECTUAL LAWS OF OUR BEING. Phrenology adopted as the true philosophy of mind. With Notes and an Appen- dix by George Combe. New and enlarged edition. Cloth, 75 cents : paper, 50 cents. " This is the production of a distinguishsd Phrenologist, a strong mind, an honest judge, and a man of great moral worth. He is a phrenological judge, and of course, beiim also a man of uncommon natural capabilities, takes comprehensive and correct views of human rights. Soaring infinitely above the petty technicalities of legislation, he descries—as none but a legal Phrenologist could descry—the inherent, inalienable rights of humanity; and being most happy as a writer, it is easy to see why and how his work becomes possessed of uncommon merits. No Phrenologist can read proba- bly a page of this work without literally exulting in the truths it embodies. It might be called condensed truth. Our laws are faulty : He shows wherein. The inaliena- ble rights of humanity are by no means all secured, and many of them-are tyrannically violated, by our laws. He shows what. He shows how to secure them. Kspecially, he shows woman's constitutional rights, particularly as regards retaining the control of her own property after marriage. His strong sympathy, and still stronger reasonings, in behalf of downtrodden woman, will- at least secure him a reading by the advocates of " woman's rights." indeed, no true republican should deny himself the rich intellectual and moral feast he serves up."—Amer. Phren. Jour. tCS- Mr. Hurlbut is now Judge of the Supreme Court iu the city of New York. DR. JOHN B. NEWMAN. FASCINATION: OR THE PHILOSOPHY OF CHARMING. ILLUSTRATING THE PRINCIPLES OF LIFE IN CONNECTION WITH SPIRIT AND MATTER. 12mo. Improved and stereotyped. Beautifully illustrated in the highest style of the art. Cloth, extra gilt, 75 cents : paper, only 40 cents. " The author, (a medical man of some eminence,) pretends to have established the truth and utility of Magnetism, on the natural laws of our being. He proves con- clusively, the fact, that the mind may act independently of the body, and states numerous cases where Clairvoyance has been produced by artificial means, and many of the most wonderful experiments performed, and is the most interesting work on the subject of Mental Electricity:'—Southern Patriot. L. N. FOWLER. SYMBOLICAL HEAD AND PHRENOLOGICAL CHART. IN A MAP FORM. Designed to convey at-one view the natural language of each organ of the mind. Price, 25 cents. " This map is highly ornamental, and in every way suitable for framing. Every parlor and office should have a copy of this beautiful and instructive picture. It is a lithographic print, executed in the highest style of the art. Each organ is illustrated ! by a familiar design, which conveys a correct impression of the functions of each organ. | For example: Firmness, No. 14, is represented by a mule whipped by one man, and pull- ! ed by another, but obstinately refusing to go either way. Veneration, No. 18, by a person in the attitude of prayer. Benevolence, No. 19, by the good Samaritan."—Express. a- FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. O. S. FOWLER. MEMORY AND INTELLECTUAL IMPROVEMENT: APPLIED TO SELF-EDUCATION AND JUVENILE INSTRUCTION. Twentieth edition, enlarged and improved. With twenty-six engravings. 12mo. Cloth, 75 cts.: paper, 50 cts. "The subject of Mental and Physical Education is beginning to attract public atten- tion. Many of the old-fashioned systems have already passed away, and no more plausible or reasonable plans have yet been adopted than those presented by Mr. Fowler. The science of Phrenology, now so well established, affords us important aid in developing the human mind, according to the natural laws of our being. This, the work belbre us is pre-eminately calculated to promote, and we cordially recommed it to all. A good memory cannot be overrated."—Democratic Review. MRS. L. N. FOWLER. FAMILIAR LESSONS ON PHYSIOLOGY AND PHRE- NOLOGY: DESIGNED FOR THE USE OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH IN SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES. Illus- trated with sixty-five engravings. Stereotyped edition. 12mo. Cloth, $1 : school edition, in boards, with embossed leather back, 75 cents. " The above are the titles of two distinct books, each complete in itself; yet being but parts of one great subject, they may be appropriately classed and studied together. Tlwse works are prepared for, and adapted to, the comprehension of children, and we hope to see them immediately adopted as text books in all our common schools. The natural language of each organ is illustrated by beautiful wood cuts, and the books are brought out in a style well adapted to the family circle, as well as the school room."—Teachers' and Parents' Companion. ' " We acknowledge having drawn many precious hints from their pages, by which we have been enabled to correct some important errors. A single leaf from these works is worth a million yellow-covered novels."—Vermont Phatnix. tCS- The price of Physiology, cheap edition, is 25 cents; Phrenology, do., 50 cents.. L. N. FOWLER. MARRIAGE: ITS HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY; WITH A PHRENOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL, EXPOSITION OF THE FUNCTIONS AND QUALI- FICATIONS FOR HAPPY MARRIAGES. Twelfth edi- tion, amply illustrated with engravings. 12mo. Cloth, 50 cents : paper, 37£ cents. " It contains a full account of the marriage forms and ceremonies of all nations and rrih^s from the earliest history, down to the present time, some of which are curious, ntulVxtremelV interesting. As a matter of history, we deem it worthy a place in everv oublic and private library. Besides the history, a phenological and physiological exposition of the male and female organizations are fully given; also, iHustrationa showin" what temperaments are by nature best adapted to each other. Those who havpnot vet entered into the matrimonial relations, should read this book, and those who Save^ mTy p?orit by a perusal. An excellent present for either sex."_iV. Y. Illustrated Magazine. 0 -8 a FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. DR. J. O. SFURZHEIM. EDUCATION: FOUNDED ON THE NATURE OF MAN; WITH AN APPENDIX BY S. R. WELLS. Containing an illustrated description of the Temperaments, and a brief analysis of all the Phrenological Organs. With a por- trait of the author. 12mo. Embossed muslin, 75 cents; mail edition, 50 cents. " We regard this volume as one of the most important that has been offered to the public for many years. Every page is pregnant with instruction of solemn import; and we would that it were the text book, the great and sovereign guide, of every male and female in the land, with whom rests the responsibility of rearing or educating a child."—Bost. Med. and Surg. Jour. " It is worth its weight in gold."—Evening Gazette. " We hope soon to see it introduced into all the libraries, public and private. The beautiful style in which it is published, renders it in every way suitable for a pres- ent, nor could a more valuable one be given."—iV. Y. State Journal. APPROVED BY FOWLER AND WELLS. THE PHRENOLOGICAL BUST. DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR LEARNERS : Showing the exact location of all the Organs of the Brain fully developed, which will enable every one to study the science without an instructor. It may be pack- ed and sent with safety, by express, or as freight, (not by mail",) to any part of the globe. Price, including box for packing, only $1 25. " This is one of the most ingenious inventions of the age. A cast made of plaster of Paris, the size of the human head, on which the exact location of each of the Phrenological organs is represented fully developed, with all the divisions and classifications. Those who cannot obtain the services of a professor, may learn in a very short time, from this model head, the whole science of Phrenology, so far as the location of the organs is concerned."—AT. Y. Daily Sun. REV. JOHN BOVEE DODS. LECTURES ON THE PHILOSOPHY OF MESMER- ISM AND CLAIRVOYANCE. With instruction in its process and practical application. Illustrated with a likeness of the author in the act of producing magnetic sleep. New and enlarged edition. l2mo. Muslin embossed, 50 cents : cheap edition, only 25 cents. " The merits of the work may be inferred from this fact: an audience of oveb two thousand people, composed of the most intelligent citizens of New England, was held six evenings in succession, chained in the most profound silence, listening to these truly philosophical lectures, and witnessing surgical operations without pain; and other experiments, at once convincing, and full of great practical utility to every '• This work has been recently re-published in England, and has been favorably received by the most scientific men of Europe." g------__--------------— ■ ---------------------------------g FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. O. S. FOWLER. LOVE AND PARENTAGE: APPLIED TO THE Im- provement OF OFFSPRING; Including important directions and suggestions to lovers and the married, concerning the strongest ties and the most sacred and momentous relations of life. 12mo. Illustrated. Price, 25 cents. " To all who have ever tasted the sweets of Love ; or felt its sting, or consummated its deUghtful union, or who anticipate its hallowed cup of tenderness, or expect to fold its " dear pledges" in parental arms—more especially to woman, the very embodi- ment of this angelical emotion—to all who would enjoy its heavenly embrace, avoid its pangs, or render their prospective children healthy, and talented, and lovely, I dedicate these love-inspiring pages."—The Author. " As the title indicates, it is a work of great importance, relating, as it does, both to the present, and the rising generations."—N. Y. Emporium. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. AMATIVENESS: OR, EVILS AND REMEDIES OF EXCESSIVE AND PERVERTED SEXUALITY; In- cluding warning and advice to the Married and Single. Being a Supplement to " Love and Parentage." 12mo. Price, 124 cents. '• The object of this work is to spread information in regard to the regulation and legitimate exercise of one of the most, if not the most important faculties of the human organization, the perversion of which has produced more misery than can possibly be estimated."—Publisher. " While a prudish delicacy has covered up the subject, and seemed shocked at the bare mention of it, this under-current has been wearing away the health and happiness of individuals and the community, till it absolutely forces itself upon our attention, and calls loudly for a remedy. Silence and ignorance have been tried and they are found to favor the evil: the only reasonable course, then, is to diffuse knowledge in regard to the matter. Let all have light; let the evil be thoroughly-exposed, and proper motives be brought to bear against it, and its prevalence will soon be sensibly diminished The object of this work is, to aid in spreading such information as may serve to prevent disease and restore health."—George Gregory. ^ BY THE SAME AUTHOR. TEMPERANCE AND TIGHT LACING: FOUNDED ON THE LAWS OF LIFE, as developed by the sciences of Phrenology and Physiology; Showing the injurious effects of stimulants, and the evils inflicted on the human constitution, by compressing the organs of animal life. Illustrated with appropriate engravings. 8vo., one volume. Price, 12£ cents. -Natural waists or no Wives," "Total abstinence, or no Husbands," are the m°ThSis°fisthnotUon°y the most profound Temperance document we have ever seen, buUteprincSs wUl apply with equal force to every thing heating and stimulating ^Th^se wiSld &cei in the pews of every church throughout the length -i h™aHrh of the land. The two curses, intemperance and bad fashions are de- and breadth otthejana , other ^ ^ an.cst ^^ ^^ mttey(^eaTworhkrwfll render "effec&al aid."-2». Beecher. -B FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. O. S. FOWLER. MATRIMONY: OR PHRENOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY APPLIED TO THE SELECTION OF CONGENIAL COMPANIONS FOR LIFE. Including directions to the married for living together affectionately and happily. Illustrated. Octavo. Price, 25 cents. " The objecfis to show the influence of the domestic affections over the weal or wo of man ; the nature and conditions of true love, how to make a proper choice of husband or wife, how to conduct courtship, and augment the affections of a companion. Were this work more generally read, and its principles applied, much matrimonial discord would be prevented."—Hunt's Merchant's Magazine. " Judging from the popularity of the work, (rising of 60,000 copies having been sold in the United States, besides having been republished in London,) we can only say, no man or woman, married or unmarried, should fail to possess a copy of the work."—Saturday Visitor. This work has recently been republished in London, and several editions sold. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. SYNOPSIS OF PHRENOLOGY : DESIGNED FOR THE USE OF PRACTICAL PHRENOLOGISTS. Amply illustrated. Of which one hundred and seventy-five thousand copies have been sold. 12mo. Price, single copy, 6i cents. " The proportionate size of the Phrenological organs of the individual examined, and, consequently, the relative power' and energy of his primary mental powers; that Wfjiis moral and intellectual character and manifestations, will be indicated by the written figures, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7: figure 1 signifying very small ; 2, small ; 3, mod- erate ; 4, average ; 5, full ; 6, large ; 7, very large. In order to rc.Dder the indications still plainer, these figures will be written in the table opposite to the organs marked, and in the perpendicular column headed " Full," " Large," or " Small," according as he has the organs full, large, or small. Adjoining these written figures will be references to " Phrenology Proved," &c, where he will find not only his individual faculties described in that degree in which he possesses them, but, also, the result produced by their combined action—he reading as descrip- tions of himself, those combinations which he is found to possess."—Preface. L. N. FOWLER. THE PHRENOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL ALMA- NAC. PUBLISHED YEARLY. Containing illustrated descriptions of many of the most distinguished characters living. The annual sales of which are 200,000 copies. Price, per dQ- zen, only 50 cents : single copy, 6£ cents. " This is a comprehensive year book, containing all the usual chronological matter, together with the application of Phrenology to some of the most interesting characters of our times, and is the richest annual for six cents we ever saw."—Chronotype. " We heartily recommend it to every family, being as good an Almanac as any, and possessing a valuable collection of Phrenological facts."—World's Index. " It contains an amount of reading equal to many a half dollar book."—N. H. Oasis. h- —■------------------------------:------------------& 9 ---------------------------------9 FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. O. S. FOWLER, EDITOR. AMERICAN PHRENOLOGICAL JOURNAL AND MIS- CELLANY: DEVOTED TO PHRENOLOGY, PHYS- IOLOGY, MAGNETISM, SELF-IMPROVEMENT, AND GENERAL PROGRESSION. To be published monthly, each number containing thirty-two large octavo pages, and illus- trated with portraits of distinguished individuals. Terms, per year, in advance, only $1. "No mother who is rearing a family should be without this work."— N. E. Cataract. "It occupies a place which is filled by no other work, and has acquired a reputation which nothing but real worth can secure; and what is more important, its articles are perfectly adapted to the wants of society."—Primitive Expounder. "It is one of the ablest works ever published."—St. Mary's Sentinel. " Messrs. Fowlers & Wells, the celebrated Phrenologists of New York, probably understand the science better than any other men now living, and the promptness with which they fill all contracts, leads us to believe that bump No. 15 is well de- veloped."—O. Tocsin. GEORGE COMBE AND ROBERT COX, EDITORS. MAGAZINE OF MORAL AND INTELLECTUAL SCI- ENCE, AND EDINBURGH QUARTERLY PHRE- NOLOGICAL JOURNAL. Containing Essays upon Phre- nology as a department of physiological science, exhibiting its varied and important applications to the most interesting questions of social and moral philosophy, to legislation, medicine, and the arts of life. 8vo. Each number will contain ninety-six pages, beautifully printed, with illustrations. Price, per year, in ad- vance, $2 : single number, 50 cents. " It will be remembered that this is the first periodical ever commenced, devoted exclusively to phrenological science. It has ^already been more than twenty years before the public, and may be regarded as the phrenological pioneer of the old world. By the republication of this profound and philosophical work, the American public will be brought in a close and regular mental communication with the leading Phre- nologists of Europe." DR. JOHN BURDELL, DENTIST. THE TEETH: THEIR STRUCTURE, DISEASE, AND TREATMENT, WITH THE CAUSES OF EARLY DECAY. With directions in relation to their care and preser- vation. 12mo. Illustrated with one hundred engravings. Bound in muslin, gilt, 40 cents: cheap edition, in paper, only 12£ cents. "This work is designed to convey all the necessary information relative to the Teeth It is adapted to the use of every individual—Man, Woman, and Child—who may by careful usage, preserve, until a good old age, those indispensably necessary organs. The suffering and excruciating pain now so common might be avoided hy due attention to the Teeth." " It is a scientific, practical, thorough, and popular treatise on the useful and orna- mental or"ans of mastication, which are now too frequently suffered to become a disgrace and a nuisance in many a 'human face divine.' Read this book, and neglect your Teeth, if you dare."—Boston Daily Chronotype. FOWLER AND WELLS' PUBLICATIONS. L. N. FOWLER. THE PHRENOLOGICAL GUIDE: DESIGNED FOR THE USE OF STUDENTS OF THEIR OWN CHARAC- TERS. Containing the first principles of the science, togeth- er with an illustrated description of the temperaments. Twenty- ty-fifth edition. 12mo. Price, 124 cents. " Most of the organs are illustrated by two engravings, showing each organ large and small, also a representation of a perfect male and female head and body. An excellent work for beginners, who will usually read a small work, rather than a larger volume. We cheerfully recommend it, especially to students."—Island City. BY THE SAME AUTHOR SYNOPSIS OF PHRENOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY: COMPRISING A CONDENSED DESCRIPTION OF THE BODY AND MIND. Also the additional discoveries made by the aid of Magnetism end Neurology. Small quarto. Illustrated with forty-two engravings. Price only 124 cents. 'This work is calculated for, and adapted to, those who are yet unacquainted with their phenological and physiological organizations. It is written with a view to instruct, and teach us how to apply these principles to ourselves and others. The simple and familiar manner in which it is written, will render it easily understood, by all who read it. PROFESSIONAL EXAMINATIONS, WITH VERBAL OR WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS OF CHARACTER, GIVEN WHEN DESIRED. Including directions as to the most suit- able occupations, and the selection of partners in business and congenial companions for life. Price, for a verbal description, with a chart, $1 00 : for a full written opinion, $3 00. " These examinations will be found most valuable, as well as exceedingly-interest- ing. The advice given in relation to health, regulating the propensities, appetite, hab- its, and so forth, is worth more than many times the cost of the examination. Prob- ably in no other way can a small amount be spent to an equal advantage." THE PHRENOLOGICAL CABINET AND MUSEUM, NEW YORK, CONTAINS A VAST NUMBER OF PHRENOLOGICAL SPECIMENS, and is always free to visitors, by whom it is continually thronged. "This collection consists of a great variety of skulls, both human and animal, from all nations and tribes, amounting to several thousand, to which a constant addition is being made, by travellers in our own. and voyagers to other countries." N. B. Any works named in this Catalogue may be ordered and received by return of the first mail, at a trifling expense, by enclosing in a letter the requisite amount, and directing the same, post paid, to FOWLERS AND WELLS, 131 Nassau Street, New York. ECS" Small coin, from six to fifty cents, or severn! bank notes, may be enclosed in a letter, and sent by mail to the publishers, without increasing the postage. MAY 21958 0& ■■■■ NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE NLI1 DEEMhbDT M NLM022466094