THE GENETIC EFFECTS OF THE WAR FN HUNGARY 1 



THEODORE SZEL 



Hungary 



By the " genetic effects" of the Great War which was concluded nearly a 

 decade and a half ago we mean the changes in the composition and peculiari- 

 ties of the population traceable to the War, which afflicted not only those 

 living at the time of the War but still afflicts the generations coming after, 

 and through which the quality of the future generation and its distribution, 

 according to the different demographic standpoints, changes. In our days, 

 when nearly a generation has passed since the conclusion of the War, these 

 genetic effects are becoming apparent. Therefore it is opportune to speak 

 of them today. 



There is no doubt that owing to the great depopulation and demoralisa- 

 tion accompanying the War, of these effects those harmful to the future 

 generation, the so-called dysgenic effects, are preponderant and especially 

 so in Hungary which, besides the War loss of nearly 500,000 men, has also 

 through the Treaty of Trianon been bereft of 71.5 per cent of her territory 

 together with 13,000,000 inhabitants, i.e. 63.6 per cent of her total popula- 

 tion. It is merely a matter of scientific accord to look for eugenic effects, 

 that is to say for effects which would be advantageous to the future genera- 

 tions, alongside the extraordinary harm done to the number of the future 

 generation and to their development. Before analysing the harmful genetic 

 effects we shall also briefly summarise the eugenic effects of the World War 

 which may crop up or be inferred from the items of the science of heredity. 

 The most important of these eugenic effects of the War are the following: 



1. During the War, owing to the absence of the men at the front and sub- 

 sequently to the killed, missing and prisoners, the older age groups generated 

 in a larger proportion and played a greater role in the increase than previ- 

 ously. In accordance with the items of the science of heredity, however, the 

 older age groups have greater resistance and are exempt in a greater pro- 

 portion from pathological inclinations than are the younger. Thus, by this 

 means, according to the Chromosoma theory, the proportion of those 



1 Extract from the report entitled "Eugenic and dysgenic effects of the War, with special 

 reference to Hungary," introduced at the Third International Eugenic Congress convened 

 at New York in August, 1932. 



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