DEPARTMENT OF GENETICS. 117 



and Leake and Watts Orphan House. In many of these measurements I 

 was assisted by Dr. Govaerts. About 1,500 boys were measured altogether. 

 Acknowledgment is made of the cordial cooperation of the chief officers of 

 these various institutions, who appreciated the need of developmental data 

 for studies in inheritance of somatological characters. The analysis of the 

 hereditary factors involved is nearly ready for publication. 



Heredity of Multiple Sclerosis. 



At the request of the Association for Research in Nervous and Mental 

 Disease, I undertook to work up data on multiple sclerosis from the racial 

 standpoint. With the aid of Miss Nelson, a number of families in New 

 York City who show the disease were studied, and with the valuable assistance 

 of Miss Mabel L. Earle a number of family histories referred to in the litera- 

 ture were discussed. Clear evidence was found of the presence of genetic 

 factors. 



The Heredity Factor in Human Tuberculosis. 



During 7 months of the past year, Dr. Albert Govaerts, secretary of the 

 Societe Beige d'Eugenique, was a guest of the Eugenics Record Office. Dr. 

 Govaerts brought to the office a special training in seriology which led him 

 to undertake some experimental work on the effect of lens cytoloysins on the 

 offspring of rats, with negative results. He paid special attention to a 

 statistical study of tuberculosis as distributed in the families recorded at the 

 Eugenics Record Office. A paper giving the results of this investigation is 

 about to appear in the American Review of Tuberculosis. The main finding 

 is clear evidence of the insufficiency of the contact theory to explain the high 

 incidence of tuberculosis in certain families. The view of an inherited sus- 

 ceptibility to tuberculosis seems to be demonstrated by all of the facts of 

 family history. 



Assortative Mating in Man. 



An analysis of the data on head-form, published by Frets, was carried out 

 by Dr. Harris in cooperation with M. Albert Govaerts. It shows that for 

 head-length, head-breadth, and cephalic index the coefficient of assortative 

 mating is very low. The result is of importance in the general theory of 

 assortative mating in that it shows that a character which has been regarded 

 of considerable racial significance is not of importance in mate selection. 



Variation, Correlation, and Racial Differentiation in the New-born Infant. 



Dr. J. A. Harris and Dr. C. C. Little have under way an investigation of 

 the characteristics of the new-born infant when the parents are of various 

 nationalities. About 10,000 records from the Sloane Hospital, New York 

 City, are being considered statistically. 



GENETIC CONSTITUTION OF THE AMERICAN POPULATION. 

 Comparative Social Traits of Various Races. 



On the hypothesis that racial traits are hereditary traits, an attempt was 

 made by the Director to secure measurements of 10 such traits of different 

 races represented in the New York City high schools. Two groups of data 

 were obtained: one for 51 girls secured by the kind permission of Principal 



