Heredity of the Sentiments and the Passions. 9 1 



Jean Chretien, the common ancestor, had three sons Pierre, 

 Thomas, and Jean-Bap tiste. i. Pierre had a son, Jean-Francois, 

 who was condemned for life to hard labour for robbery and 

 murder. 2. Thomas had two sons : (i) Francois, condemned 

 to hard labour (travaux forces) for murder, and (2) Martin, 

 condemned to death for murder. Martin's son died in Cayenne, 

 whither he had been transported for robbery. 3. Jean-Baptiste 

 had a son, Jean-Frangois, whose wife was Marie Taure' (belong- 

 ing to a family of incendiaries). This Jean-Frangois had seven 

 children : (i) Jean-Frangois, found guilty of several robberies, 

 died in prison ; (2) Benoist, fell off a roof which he had scaled, 



and was killed; (3) X , nicknamed Clain, found guilty of 



several robberies, died at the age of twenty-five ; (4) Marie 

 Reine, died in prison, whither she had been sent for theft; (5) 

 Marie-Rose, same fate, same deeds ; (6) Victor, now in jail for 

 theft ; (7) Victorine, married one Lemaire : their son was con- 

 demned to death for murder and robbery. 1 



We have given this instance because it cuts short all explan- 

 ations drawn from the influence of education and example. 

 Doubtless it is difficult in many cases to determine what is due to 

 education, and what to nature ; and the children of thieves are not 

 very likely to be trained to honesty by their parents ; but still 

 nature is always the stronger agency. Sundry authors, and among 

 them Gall, have given instances of a disposition to thieving, where 

 any parental influence was impossible. He gives one instance still 

 more curious that of two conflicting heredities : one good, from 

 the mother, and one bad, from the father. 



In 1845, the Cour d'Assises of La Seine condemned to severe 

 and degrading penalties three out of the five members of a family 

 of thieves. The father of this family had not found in his children 

 the dispositions he desired. He had been compelled to use com- 

 pulsion with his wife and his two eldest children, but they, to the 

 last, refused to obey him. His eldest daughter, on the other hand, 

 trod instinctively in her father's steps, and was passionate and 



1 Despine, tome ii. p. 410. Several facts of a like kind may be found in 

 this work. Observe the tendency of such families to unite, thus conferring the 

 hereditary transmission. See also Lucas, i. p. 480, seq t 



