274 THE ABNORMAL MAN. 



descended from parents to children, 359, or 80 

 per cent, were found to be feeble-minded. In 

 the remaining 147 families, in which feeble-mind- 

 edness has been found in but one generation, there 

 were 440 persons, of whom 203, or 46.1 per cent, 

 were feeble-minded." Thus it will be seen that 

 where feeble-mindedness descends from parents 

 to children for more than one generation 80 per 

 cent of the offspring are affected; while in the 

 case of feeble-mindedness descending through but 

 one generation 46.1 per cent are affected. 



According to the figures of Mr. Bicknell, mor- 

 bid heredity is responsible for 63 per cent of the 

 Morbid Heredity, feeble-minded. This estimate, however, is based 

 upon the study of families in which feeble-mind- 

 edness is known to exist as a hereditary taint, and 

 therefore must not be taken as a basis of reckon- 

 ing for the whole population. Out of 10,000 

 feeble-minded persons not over 3,800, or about 

 38 per cent, are born from feeble-minded parents ; 

 the other 62 per cent are the product of other 

 causes. 



My own observations and the careful compari- 

 son of the most reliable statistics obtainable indi- 

 cate that about 95 per cent of the feeble-minded 

 Mindedness. and the epileptic subjects of the country are the 

 product of hereditary taint, hereditary alcohol- 

 ism or prenatal influences. The principal pre- 

 natal influences are severe frights, worry, grief, 

 narcotics and the use of abortive drugs. Of these 

 several causes the last named is by far the great- 

 est. 



Only about 2.5 per cent of the epileptics and 

 feeble-minded are the product of fright, grief, 



