Correlation and Application of Statistics to Problems of Heredity 121 



arise as frequently from the mediocre stirp as from the able stirp, they will 

 occur albeit in smaller numbers. I see no reason for terming such occurrences 

 "sports" (see our pp. 78-9, 102-3 above). 



Galton's Preface was written when he was 84 years of age ; it was 

 written at a time when he was feeling keenly that he could no longer under- 

 take the lengthy accumulation of data and their reduction. Nevertheless 

 it is remarkable in its discovery of new problems to be solved and in the 

 suggestions of how they may be solved. The rest of the book is somewhat 

 ephemeral in character, and its judgments of noteworthiness open to 

 criticism, but I think Galton's contribution deserves to be preserved, and 

 I have therefore abstracted it at length here. 



Miscellanea. Closely allied to the endeavour Galton made to obtain a 

 register of noteworthy scientific families was a schedule he prepared entitled : 

 "Register of Able Families," with a view to collecting material on a broader 

 basis than that of the Royal Society. The object of the inquiry was "to 

 collect information concerning a large number of exceptionally able families 

 in all ranks of society." Ability and exceptionality are therein defined as 

 follows : 



"Ability refers to the powers of mind or body, to character, and to every quality which 

 makes a person valuable to his country or to the society in which he lives. It is shown by an 

 artisan who becomes a foreman or an employer, by a clerk who rises to a position of trust, by a 

 private soldier who gains a commission, by a student who wins scholarships and university 

 honours, by those who educate themselves in the absence of other opportunities of instruction, 

 and by all who have fairly achieved honourable distinctions." 



Exceptionality, we are told, refers to the middle classes : 



"The same amount of ability that is exceptional among them would be very much more 

 exceptional among the lower classes, but not very uncommon in the most distinguished circles of 

 society. The interpretation of the word in each particular case is left to the judgment of the 

 correspondent." 



Then comes a characteristically Galtonian paragraph : 



"The merit of a family as a whole falls under three distinct heads: (1) Its number, large 

 families being more valuable than small ones when the individuals are of equal merit. (2) The 

 average merit of the individuals. (3) The absence of serious drawbacks in respect to character 

 or physique. Civilised man being at present the worst bred of all animals, it is extremely rare to 

 find families who are unstained by any moral or physical blemish*. Correspondents should, there- 

 fore, not err on the side of diffidence in proposing names; it will be the business of the office to 

 examine the returns that ai - e received and to select the best." 



This circular was issued, but probably not in large quantities. What 

 returns Galton obtained I do not know. At any rate no filled-in copies were 

 among the papers that reached the Laboratory named after him. He may 

 have destroyed what he received as worthless, or recognised before its issue 

 that the circular must fail of its object. Exceptional ability is the last to 

 recognise itself under that name, and if you ask mediocrity to register ability 

 you will find that even if it can recognise its existence, it cannot appreciate 

 its degrees, and will almost certainly underestimate its national importance. 



* Italics the biographer's, 

 para 16 



