From Savagery to Civilization 67 



A tribe or nation which spends much time in the 

 practice of war must necessarily do much men- 

 tal and physical work which would otherwise be 

 undone. This extra work causes, extra mental 

 and physical development, and children coming 

 from such developed persons have better power 

 inheritances. 



Where war spirit and war preparations be- 

 come a part of national existence, as in Sparta, 

 Rome and modern Germany, another factor 

 enters into the matter. The soldier is trained 

 when young and is not permitted to marry at as 

 early an age as his ancestors married. As a re- 

 sult, there is a rise in the average age at which 

 parents produce their children, and the status 

 of any tribe or race of people is determined by 

 that average. The lowest tribes are those which 

 reproduce at the lowest average age, and the high- 

 est are those which reproduce at the highest 

 average age. This is, of course, modified by the 

 degree of activity. Each increase in mental and 

 physical activity on the part of parents causes a 

 corresponding increase in the inherited capabili- 

 ties of the offspring, even when there is no in- 

 crease in the age of the parents at time of 

 reproducing. 



