148 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. IX., No. 211 



having taken an unjustifiable step. We are dis- 

 posed to believe that these papers must have been 

 among those whose activity was curtailed at the 

 meeting in question. One of them, for example, 

 naively inquires whether it is "a worse crime to 

 exhibit and explain a book at an educational gath- 

 ering than to show the use of a plow at an agri- 

 cultural fair." We would point out that this 

 analogy is fallacious. The end and aim of an 

 agricultural fair is to see and examine all the new 

 agricultural implements and products, and the 

 demonstration of the virtues of a certain plow is 

 precisely what the spectators have come to see. 

 An educational gathering, on the contrary, is not 

 called together once a year, or once in six months, 

 to examine and compare books and papers, but to 

 study and discuss, under the guidance and leader- 

 ship of appointed speakers, questions pertaining 

 to the theory and practice of the teacher's profes- 

 sion. If an exhibit of text-books and school-jour- 

 nals can be arranged so as not to interfere with 

 the proper carrying out of the object of the meet- 

 ing, let it be done. Such an exhibit can do little 

 harm, and may do much good. But the repre- 

 sentatives of publishing houses do not always stop 

 here. They make themselves a good deal of a 

 nuisance, and interfere with the work of the asso- 

 ciation. We fancy that it was this feature of the 

 exhibit that was objected to in Massachusetts, and 

 we heartily commend those in charge of the ar- 

 rangements for the meeting, for putting a stop to 

 it. 



LEFT-HANDEDNESS. — A HINT FOR EDU- 

 CATORS. 

 Dr. Daniel Wilson, president of the Eoyal 

 society of Canada, has lately contributed a paper 

 to the Proceedings of that society on the subject 

 of left-handedness, to which he has managed to 

 give an unexpected and very practical interest, 

 affecting all who have children or who are con- 

 cerned in their education. The author had written 

 previously on this subject, but not with such full 

 and effective treatment. He reviews the various 

 causes to which the general preference of the 

 right hand has been ascribed, and also those to 

 which the occasional cases of left-handedness are 

 attributed, and finds them mostly unsatisfactory. 

 He shows clearly that the preferential use of the 

 right hand is not to be ascribed entirely to early 

 training. On the contrary, in many instances, 

 where parents have tied up the left hand of a 

 child to overcome the persistent preference for its 

 use, the attempt has proved futile. He concludes 



that the general practice is probably due to the 

 superior development of the left lobe of the brain, 

 which, as is well known, is connected with the 

 right side of the body. This vietv, as he shows, 

 was originally suggested by the eminent anato- 

 mist. Professor Gr&tiolet. The author adopts and 

 maintains it with much force, and adds the cor- 

 relative view that " left-handedness is due to an 

 exceptional development of the right hemisphere 

 of the brain." 



A careful review of the evidence gives strong 

 reason for believing that what is now the cause 

 of the preference for the right hand was original- 

 ly an effect. Neither the apes nor any others of 

 the lower animals show a similar inclination for 

 the special use of the right limbs. It is a purely 

 human attribute, and probably arose gradually 

 from the use, by the earliest races of men, of the 

 right arm in fighting, while the left arm was 

 reserved to cover the left side of the body, where 

 wounds, as their experience showed, were most 

 dangerous. Those who neglected this precaution 

 would be most likely to be killed ; and hence, in 

 the lapse of time, the natural survival would 

 make the human race, in general, ' right-handed,' 

 with occasional reversions, of course, by ' ata- 

 vism,' to the left-handed, or, more properly, the 

 ambi-dextrous condition. The more frequent and 

 energetic use of the right limbs would, of course, 

 react upon the brain, and bring about the excessive 

 development of the left lobe, such as now gener- 

 ally obtains. , 



The conclusions from this cotirse of reasoning 

 are very important. Through the effect of the ir- 

 regular and abnormal development which has de- 

 scended to us from our bellicose ancestors, one 

 lobe of our brains and one side of our bodies are 

 left in a neglected and weakened condition. The 

 evidence which Dr. Wilson produces of the in- 

 jury resulting from this cause is very striking. 

 In the majority of cases the defect, though it can- 

 not be wholly overcome, may be in great part 

 cured by early training, which will strengthen 

 at once both the body and the mind. " When- 

 ever," he writes, "the early and persistent culti- 

 vation of the full use of both hands has been ac- 

 complished, the result is greater efficiency, with- 

 out any corresponding awkwardness or defect. 

 In certain arts and professions, both hands are 

 necessarily called into play. The skilful surgeon 

 finds an enormous advantage in being able to 

 transfer his instrument from one hand to the 

 other. The dentist has to multiply instruments 

 to make up for the lack of such acquired power. 

 The fencer who can transfer his weapon to the 

 left hand, places his adversary at a disadvantage. 

 The lumberer finds it indispensable, in the opera- 



