THE LESSON OF HEREDITY 



"altogether good," " wholly bad" and the like have 

 no real meaning as applied to the complex mind of 

 man. 



It may be conceded, of course, that if we were to 

 classify all human tendencies by an ethical standard 

 into two groups, every mortal must, at a given moment, 

 strike a balance for good or evil, though most of us, I 

 fear, would be very close to the line at best. But in the 

 light of heredity of atavism it can never be conceded 

 that any mortal has been or can be born into the world 

 who has not inherent tendencies that are good as well 

 as those that are bad. From which follow the warning 

 corollary that no mortal can be above the possibility 

 of temptation, and the cheering one that none can be 

 beyond the pale of hope. 



And this is, to me, the great lesson of heredity. 



He has but poorly read the lesson who will attempt 

 definitely to forecast the future of any human being. 

 Only a false prophet could, in the name of heredity, 

 deny all hope to the child even of the most depraved 

 criminals. As it lies there in its cradle even amidst the 

 squalor of poverty and vice, no one can deny that it is 

 a sweet and innocent morsel of humanity; and if con- 

 templation of its parents causes us to shudder for its 

 future, we may obtain a vision equally valid and far 

 more cheering by letting our mental retrospect extend 

 to include the worthier members of a conglomerate 

 ancestry. 



Of a certainty there are good tendencies as well as 

 bad welling up into that nascent mind. Not improb- 

 ably there are many evil currents sweeping in one direc- 



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