jeeted in our bakehouses, biscuil factories and kitchens, we 

 see thai there is some difference in the food of the presenl day 

 from thai in pasl ages. It may be s;ii<l. however, l!i;it after 

 all the foodstuffs have nol essentially altered. We require 

 proteids, carbo-hydrates, fats, water and mineral matter much 

 in the same proportion as our ancestors, and this is whal we 

 get. 



"There is one change, however, which has gone on, and is 

 ;ii the presenl time going on, til] it has reached a stage which 

 is absolutely detrimental to the well-being of the teeth, stomach, 

 alimentary tract and body generally. There is a gradual elim- 

 ination of all the coarse, fibrous, inert and undissolved earthy 

 matters which are present, more or less, in the Food of savages. 

 The muscles of the jaw are not generally used as much today 

 as when fond was more difficuH to get, and so the nerves of 

 the teeth and the entire bony structure are not usually as well 

 nourished as Formerly. 



"Another effect produced by the elimination of the coarse 

 and fibrous parts of many foodstuffs is to encourage the habit 

 of swallowing the food withoul much mastication. 



'•There are, I believe, many people who are so accustomed 

 to eating food that requires little chewing that they often 

 swallow food imehewed, which otherwise would be subjected to 

 a certain amount of mastication. Of course, in such cases 

 decay of the teeth is liable to be more frequent." 



This statement is of importance to this discussion, as. when 

 followed to its logical conclusion, it appears to demonstrate 

 thai the teeth of man are adversely affected by the refinements 

 of civilization. Furthermore, it may safely be assumed that 

 defective organization, impairment of function, and premature 

 loss of these organs, would keep exact pace with cultural ad- 

 vancement from a state of nature (savagery) to one of ad- 

 vanced civilization. And this is exactly true of races inhabit- 

 ing the earth today. 



The influence of heredity in transmitting physical char- 

 acteristics is also to be considered. Persistence in transmission 

 is conclusive evidence that, foi- a long period of time, successive 

 generations had existed in an unchanged cultural environment, 

 [f these conclusions are correct, it follows that the teeth 

 constitute an index by which the degree and duration id' the 

 civilization of pre-historic races may be comparatively meas- 

 ured. 



1!' 



