10 HEREDITY AND SOCIAL FITNESS 



IV. LINE A. 



Founded by Isaac (II-l), eldest son of Aaron and Mary Rufer, bom 

 about 1791, in Germany. He was defective in sense of number and 

 quantity, never able to read or write, but was, however, industrious 

 and capable in rough work. He married, much against his father's 

 will, 1 1 -2, who was from another part of the State. She is described 

 as a "very devil," sexually immoral, violent, vindictive, with no 

 interest in helping her husband and children in any way. When her 

 father-in-law carried out his threat of disinheritance she waited until 

 his barns were filled with the year's harvest, then set fire to them and 

 burned them to the ground. She came from a strain showing much 

 alcoholism and nervous instability, but no marked mental defect. 

 Although Isaac worked very hard for the farmers around him, he never 

 managed to own anything, owing to his wife's wastefulness and indo- 

 lence. She also took $500 in preference to a farm of 75 acres and a 

 yoke of oxen, which might have come to her from her father, and spent 

 the money on herself. For want of warm clothing in the winter, 

 Isaac caught colds, developed tuberculosis, and died. His wife went 

 to live with other men, and their children were scattered. 



Of the children, two sons (III-l, 2) did not grow to manhood, or were 

 so early lost track of that they are dead to the rest of the family. Those 

 remaining were: 



Stephen (III-3), moderately aggressive, very persevering, able to 

 plan and calculate; 



Sophia (III-5), of "limited mental capacity," but chaste, fairly 

 aggressive, persevering and capable in practical things; 



Maria (III-7), of low mentality, sexually immoral, with very little 

 ability to plan and calculate, though fairly aggressive ; 



Jared (III-9), industrious, but slow and stupid, non-aggressive. 



Two members of this fraternity are thus seen to be decidedly supe- 

 rior to the other two. We will now take up these four in turn, consider 

 their characteristics and those of their consorts at greater length, and 

 trace their descendants to the present generation. 



The eldest child was Stephen Rufer (III-3), born 1816, died 1889. 

 Dissatisfaction with his treatment by the family who sheltered him led 

 him to go with his sister to his mother's people in a distant part of the 

 State, whence he returned in 1853 to S., which is 5 miles from the old 

 Rufer homestead. He learned to read and write, took a course in 

 book-keeping, and was able to keep accounts; had habits of industry 

 and sobriety; was a cobbler and farmer, and exceedingly pious. Had a 

 too simple trustfulness, which made him fare ill in a sharp business deal. 



His wife (II 1-4) was famous in the community for her nursing and her 

 great strength. She is described as a great, strapping woman, who 

 could stoop from a bushel measure and shoulder a sack of grain, a feat 



