8 INFLUENCE OF PARENTAL ALCOHOLISM 



could be described in the language adopted by Professor 

 Marshall and ^Ir. Keynes, what would follow ? Our 

 results would be wholly unaffected until these economists 

 had demonstrated a differentiation in the two classes of the 

 population dealt with. If under a given environment drink 

 produces no marked effect on the offspring as children, 

 there is no reason for supposing that under a different 

 environment also common to the two classes it will do so. 

 The problem, therefore, turns on how far a substantial 

 differentiation can be demonstrated between the tem- 

 perate and intemperate sections of the populations we 

 have dealt with. In our memoir we distinctly said 

 that this could not be definitely answered until we were 

 able to obtain measurements and observations on the 

 physique and mentality of the parents as well as on those 

 of the children. Failing these, we did what seemed 

 possible ; we considered what wages the parents were 

 receiving, and we took a general survey of their occupa- 

 tions, and we found no evidence at all of any class differen- 

 tiation. The question of wages is not at once answerable 

 in the manner assumed by Professor Marshall, i. e. that 

 the wages of the intemperate were merely nominal wages, 

 and that this section were often out of employment and 

 that their average wage was substantially less than that 

 of the temperate. We should, of course, expect that those 

 who drink heavily, and especially the bout drinkers, 

 would be more often out of employ than the temperate ; 

 we should expect on this very account that the families 

 of the intemperate section would be somewhat more 

 frequently in receipt of that charitable relief which is 

 almost indiscriminate in Edinburgh. But in looking 

 through the Report itself it is difficult to find any sensible 

 percentage of the fathers out of emploj'ment at the time 



