Origin of Leaders 9 



weakened power of resistance for such disease. But 

 this matter is somewhat foreign to our present dis- 

 cussion. 



Best of all, for our present consideration, is the 

 great mass of evidence sustaining the theory that 

 about ninety-nine per cent of our new-born infants 

 are potentially good in an economic and moral sense. 

 That is to say, this great majority of the young 

 humanity have latent within their natures at the 

 beginning of life the possibilities of development 

 into sound, self-reliant manhood and womanhood. 



So, the writer of these lines would gladly lead rural 

 parents to the point of being very courageous and 

 optimistic about their infant children. He would 

 have them see in the latter all the possibilities of 

 good and efficiency that they may care to attempt 

 to bring out by thoughtful and conscientious train- 

 ing. For that matter, it can be shown that many of 

 the leaders of men are constantly springing up out 

 of the ranks of the common masses and from 

 those of humble parentage. Some of these great 

 leaders, it is true, are what may be called accidental 

 geniuses in respect to their native strength and their 

 persistent life purposes. But many others, and 

 perhaps the majority of them, are merely men and 

 women who have been reasonably sound at birth 

 and who have been trained from childhood to matu- 

 rity in a manner that best served to build up strong, 

 efficient character. 



