VIRILE SENTIMENT 91 



demanded the return of one of their children from 

 the Wandsworth Home of the Board, and the Medical 

 Officer has appended the recommendation that 

 " This is one of those cases which suggest most for- 

 cibly the advisability of having the control of children 

 of this mental condition for a fairly long period." 

 And he adds : "It will be interesting to follow his 

 case in the future, and see whether his mental con- 

 dition improves or deteriorates." Why does the 

 Medical Officer recommend that this child shall be 

 under his control for a " fairly long period " ? Is it 

 expected that any control, however prolonged, is 

 going to transform the processes of heredity, or 

 turn aside by a hair's -breadth the immutable processes 

 of Nature ? Let us examine the case and see how 

 futile is the hope. 



The father of this family had phthisis, and was 

 insane ; the mother was laid up for four months 

 before the boy's birth with spasmodic paralysis, and 

 afterwards lost the use of her legs for some months. 

 The paternal grandfather died of phthisis, and the 

 paternal grandmother, who is still alive, is in an asylum 

 with mania and religious fancies. The maternal 

 grandmother died of consumption (phthisis). Nothing 

 appears to be known of the maternal grandfather, 

 but, since the mother suffered from paralysis, it may 

 be that it was transmitted from her father. Now 

 let us examine the children of these parents, first 

 prefacing our statement with the remark that menin- 

 gitis in this case is a form of phthisis not attacking 

 the lungs, but the membranes of the brain. No. 1, 



