MILITARY SELECTION. £7 
they are eminent in ancient history) in a great measure to 
this artificial selection. 
Many tribes also among the Red Indians of North 
America (who at present are succumbing in the struggle 
for life to the superior numbers of the white intruders, in 
spite of a most heroic and courageous resistance) owe their 
rare degree of bodily strength and warlike bravery to a 
similar careful selection of the newly-born children. Among 
them, also, all children that are weak or affected with any 
infirmity are immediately killed, and only the perfectly 
strong individuals remain in life, and propagate the race. 
That the race becomes greatly strengthened, in the course 
of very many generations, by this artificial selection cannot 
in itself be doubted, and is sufficiently proved by many well 
known facts. 
The opposite of this artificial selection of the wild Red- 
skins and the ancient Spartans is seen in the individual 
selection which is universally practised in our modern mili- 
tary states, for the purpose of maintaining standing armies,. 
and which, under the name of military selection, we may 
conveniently consider as a special form of selection. Un- 
fortunately, in our day, militarism is more than ever promi- 
nent in our so-called “civilization”; all the strength and 
all the wealth of flourishing civilized states are squandered 
on its development; whereas the education of the young, 
and public instruction, which are the foundations of the 
true welfare of nations and the ennobling of humanity, are 
neglected and mismanaged in a most pitiable manner. And 
this is done in states which believe themselves to be the 
privileged leaders of the highest human intelligence, and to 
stand at the head of civilization. As is well known, in 
