RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT 365 



We sometimes find a diminishing stature alluded to as an 

 index of phvsical degeneracy. In several localities the stature 

 of the population has decreased. It is unusually low, for instance, 

 in many English towns (Beddoe), and Ripley has stated that 

 in Europe in general it is lower in the cities than in the country. 

 In other localities, as in parts of the United States, the stature 

 of population has increased. Undoubtedly heredity is a large 

 factor in the changes of stature which have occurred in many 

 places, but where we find stature diminishing we are by no means 

 justified in attributing it to a hereditary degeneracy of the 

 inhabitants. 



Many physical characters of man are affected considerably by 

 environmental agencies. The latter are especially prone to 

 influence strength, longevity, rate of growth, the prevalence of 

 various diseases, and to a less extent, stature and weight. Condi- 

 tions of life, especially in large industrial centers, have changed in 

 such a way as greatly to affect the physique of a large part of the 

 inhabitants. The relatively low stature of city dwellers is prob- 

 ably due largely to this cause, but, as Ammon has pointed out, 

 there may be in certain cases an urban migration of taller stock. 



To a certain extent environment may account for the degener- 

 ate condition so frequently observed in the teeth of civilized 

 races. Platschick found dental caries in 92 per cent of 12,018 

 individuals examined, and Rose discovered among 5,600 recruits 

 for the German army only 5 per cent whose teeth were entirely 

 sound. The cooked foods, and especially the sweets, which are 

 consumed from childhood on doubtless contribute to this condi- 

 tion. Many observers have commented on the excellent teeth 

 possessed by the primitive races and by men who lived in previous 

 epochs. Professor D. J. Cunningham, for instance, in his testi- 

 mony before the Committee on Physical Deterioration stated 

 that "it is an obvious fact that the teeth of the people at the 

 present time cannot stand comparison in point of durability with 

 those of the earlier inhabitants of Britain." Professor Dolomore 

 also stated before the same committee that " in ancient British 

 skulls not only is the arrangement good, the jaws are well devel- 



