376 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



This paper is only preliminary to the real object of my research. 

 We have many books and articles on great men, their genius, their 

 heredity, their insanity, their precocity, their versatility and the like, 

 but, whether these are collections of anecdotes such as Professor Lom- 

 broso 's or scientific investigations such as Dr. Galton 's, they are lacking 

 in exact and quantitative deductions. Admitting that genius is hered- 

 itary, or, what is more doubtful, that it is likely to be associated with 

 insanity, we have only the ' yes ' or ' no ' as our answer. But this is only 

 the beginning of science. Science asks how much ? We can only answer 

 when we have an objective series of observations, sufficient to eliminate 

 chance errors, such as this list of a thousand preeminent men. 



When we have such a series we can use what psychological insight 

 we possess to classify our material. We can seek to distinguish genius 

 from talent, and, having given these terms a more exact signification, 

 can secure quantitative data regarding their relative frequency under 

 varying conditions. We can determine how the man of unusual endow- 

 ment in its various manifestations differs from his fellow men, both in 

 those traits which distinguish him from them and in those traits which 

 he shares with them. With traits that can be measured such as length 

 of life, height, etc., we can readily compare the several classes of 

 eminent men with other classes in the community. In the case of other 

 traits, insanity for example, we must first determine its prevalence, 

 according to a proper definition, in the various classes of eminent men 

 and can then give a definite statement as to its relative frequency among 

 them and a comparison with other classes. Other more intangible traits 

 I am also endeavoring to measure. Qualities such as originality or 

 kindliness are graded on a scale of eight, mistakes are eliminated by the 

 numbers and we secure fairly reliable averages. The different classes 

 of eminent men can then be compared inter se, and with other classes 

 of the community, when the data for these are at hand. Then we have 

 the distinctions on which I have already dwelt. We can only determine 

 the causes of great men and their effects by a careful study of a number 

 sufficiently large to eliminate accidental causes and errors in our esti- 

 mate ; but having done this, our results can be expressed in the definite 

 measures of exact science. 



In conclusion attention may be called to the practical importance of 

 such determinations. Science must precede the applications of science. 

 The father must discover the laws of the pendulum before the son can 

 apply them to the clock. A Faraday and a Henry must investigate the 

 phenomena of electricity before we can have the electric motor. It is 

 evident that applications of psychology and sociology are not as yet 

 numerous or important. But may not this be chiefly because the scien- 

 tific principles are wanting? Education and government are carried 



