212 Heredity and Child Culture 



ing advanced years. Borland calls attention 

 to many of these cases.^ Verdi was in his 

 eightieth year when he composed "Falstaff"; 

 Oliver Wendell Holmes at seventy-nine pub- 

 lished "Over the Tea Cups"; Victor Hugo was 

 eighty when he wrote ' ^ Torquemada " ; Hum- 

 bolt was in his ninetieth year when he com- 

 pleted his remarkable work *'Kosmos"; Ranke 

 began liis world history when he was eighty 

 and finished twelve volumes before his death 

 at ninety-four; Bancroft did not complete his 

 history until the age of eighty-two; Browning 

 wrote ''Asolando" when he was seventy-six. 



The most recent example of productivity at 

 great age is shown by Dr. Stephen Smith who 

 was my preceptor and with whom I lived for 

 two years at the beginning of my professional 

 career. Dr. Smith is now in his hundredth 

 year and at the recent fiftieth anniversary of 

 the American Public Health Association, which 

 he founded, he made a long address on health 

 matters and is now engaged in writing a book. 

 He recently told me that he believes others can 



1 The Age of Mental Virility — Century Co. 



