THURSDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1869 
DARWINISM AND NATIONAL LIFE 
HE Darwinian theory has a practical side of infinite 
importance, which has not, I think, been sufficiently 
considered. The process of natural selection among wild 
animals is of necessity extremely slow. Starting with the 
assumption (now no longer a mere assumption) that the 
creature best adapted to its local conditions must pre- 
vail over others in the struggle for existence, the 
final establishment of the superior type is dependent 
at each step upon three accidents—first, the accident of 
an individual sort or variety better adapted to the 
surrounding conditions than the then prevailing type; 
secondly, the accident that this superior animal escapes 
destruction before it has had time to transmit its qualities ; 
and, thirdly, the accident that it breeds with another 
specimen good enough not to neutralise the superior 
qualities of its mate. Inthe case of domesticated animals 
the progress is incomparably more rapid, because it is 
practicable, first, to modify the conditions of life, so as to 
encourage the appearance of an improved specimen; next, 
to cherish and protect it against disaster ; and, lastly, to 
give it a consort not altogether unworthy of the honour of 
reproducing its qualities. The case of man is intermediate 
in rapidity of progress to the other two. The develop- 
ment of improved qualities cannot be insured by judicious 
mating, because as a rule human beings are capricious 
enough to marry withoutfirst laying a case for opinion before 
Mr. Darwin. Neither would it be easy, nor, perhaps, 
even allowable, to extend any special protection by law or 
custom to those who may be physically and intellectually 
the finest examples of our race. Still, two things may be 
done : we may vary the circumstance of life by judicious 
legislation, and still more easily by judicious non-legisla- 
tion, so as to multiply the conditions favourable to the 
development of a higher type ; and by the same means we 
may also encourage, or at least abstain from discouraging, 
the perpetuation of the species by the most exalted indivi- 
duals for the time being to be found. Parliament, being 
an assembly about as devoid of any scientific insight as a 
body of educated men could possibly be, has not as yet 
consciously legislated with a view to the improvement of 
the English type of character. Without knowing it, how- 
ever, the Legislature has sometimes stumbled on the right 
course, though it has more often blundered into the wrong. 
Our free trade policy has furnished special scope and 
special advantages to the energetic enterprising character, 
and so far has tended to perpetuate and intensify the type 
which has given to little England her wonderful pro- 
minence in the world. On the other hand, the steady 
refusal to make a career for scientific men has drained 
away most of our highest intellect from its proper field, 
and has subjected the rest to an amount of discourage- 
ment by no means favourable to increase and improve- 
ment. Our laws and customs practically check the growth 
of the scientific mind as much as they tend to develop 
the speculative and energetic commercial character. 
We do not expect for a long time to hear an orator in the 
House of Commons commence his speech by announcing, 
(as a distinguished member of the Austrian Reichsrath 
recently did, in a debate on the relation of the different 
MATURE 183 
nationalities in the empire), that the whole question is 
whether we are prepared to accept and act upon the 
Darwinian theory. But even an average English M.P. 
may be brought to see that it may be possible, indirectly, 
to influence the character and prosperity of our descen- 
dants by present legislation, and none will deny that, if 
this is practicable, a higher duty could not be cast 
upon those who guide the destinies of a nation. 
A glance at the operation of Darwinism in the past, 
will best show how potent it may be made in the future. 
Look at English progress and English character, and 
consider from this point of view to what we owe it. 
There were originally some natural conditions favourable 
to the growth of our commercial and manufacturing 
energy. We hadan extensive coast and numerous har- 
bours. We had also abundance of iron-stone in convenient 
proximity to workable coal. Other nations either wanted 
these advantages or were ignorant that they possessed 
them. These favourable conditions developed in many 
individuals a special adaptability to commercial pursuits. 
The type was rapidly reproduced and continually im- 
proved until England stood, in the field of commerce, 
almost alone among the nations of the world. And what 
is there now to sustain our pre-eminence? Nothing, or 
next to nothing, except the type of national character, 
which has been thus produced. Steam, by land and sea, 
has largely diminished the superiority which we derived 
from the nature of our coast; and coal and iron are now 
found and worked ina multitude of countries other than our 
own, Our strength in commerce, like our weakness in 
art, now rests almost exclusively on the national character 
which our history has evolved. 
Take another example of the character of a people 
produced partly by natural conditions of existence, but 
far more by the artificial conditions to which evil legis- 
lation has exposed it. What has made the typical Irish- 
man what he now is? The Darwinian theory supplies 
the answer. Ireland is mainly an agricultural country, 
with supplies of mineral wealth altogether inferior to those 
of England, though by no means contemptible if they 
were but developed. This is her one natural disadvan- 
tage, and it is trifling compared with those which we in 
our perversity created. For a long period we ruled 
Ireland on the principles of persecution and bigotry, and 
left only two great forces at work to form the character of 
the people. All that there was of meanness and selfishness 
and falsehood was tempted to servility and apostacy, and 
flourished and perpetuated itself accordingly. All that there 
was of nobleness and heroic determination was drawn into 
a separate circle, where the only qualities that throve and 
grew were irreconcileable hatred of the oppressor and 
resolute but not contented endurance. The two types 
rapidly reproduced themselves, and as long as the external 
conditions remained unaltered, they absorbed year by 
year more and more of the people’s life ; as, if Darwinism 
is true, they could not but do. And what is the result now? 
A great part of a century has elapsed since we abandoned 
the wretched penal laws, and yet none can fail to see in 
Ireland the two prevailing types of character which our 
ancestors artificially produced, the only change being that 
the two types have become, to a certain extent, amalga- 
mated in a cross which reflects the peculiarities of each. 
Whether future legislation may so far modify the conditions 
