CIVILIZED NATIONS. 139 



fanticide and many other evils, and in civilized nations to abject 

 poverty, celibacy, and to the late marriages of the prudent. But 

 as man suffers from the same physical evils as the lower animals, 

 he has no right to expect an immunity from the evils consequent 

 on the struggle for existence. Had he not been subjected during 

 primeval times to natural selection, assuredly he would never 

 have attained to his present rank. Since we see in many parts of 

 the world enormous areas of the most fertile land capable of sup- 

 porting numerous happy homes, but peopled only by a few wan- 

 dering savages, it might be argued that the struggle for existence 

 had not been sufficiently severe to force man upwards to his high- 

 est standard. Judging from all that we know of man and the 

 lower animals, there has always been sufficient variability in their 

 intellectual and moral faculties, for a steady advance through 

 natural selection. No doubt such advance demands many favora- 

 ble concurrent circumstances; but it may be well doubted wheth- 

 er the most favorable would have sufficed, had not the rate of in- 

 crease been rapid, and the consequent struggle for existence ex- 

 tremely severe. It even appears from what we see, for instance. 

 In parts of S. America, that a people which may be called civ- 

 ilized, such as the Spanish settlers, is liable to become indolent 

 and to retrograde, when the conditions of life are very easy. With 

 highly civilized nations continued progress depends in a subordi- 

 nate degree on natural selection; for such nations do not sup- 

 plant and exterminate one another as do savage tribes. Neverthe- 

 less the more intelligent members within the same community 

 will succeed better in the long run than the inferior, and leave 

 a more numerous progeny, and this is a form of natural selection. 

 The more efficient causes of progress seem to consist of a good 

 education during youth whilst the brain Is impressible, and of 

 a high standard of excellence, inculcated by the ablest and best 

 men, embodied in the laws, customs and traditions of the nation, 

 and enforced by public opinion. It should, however, be borne in 

 mind, that the enforcement of public opinion depends on our 

 appreciation of the approbation and disapprobation of others; 

 and this appreciation is founded on our sympathy, which it can 

 hardly be doubted was originally developed through natural se- 

 lection as one of the most important elements of the social in- 

 stincts." 



On the evidence that all civilized nations were once bwrbarous. — 

 The present subject has been treated in so full and admirable a 

 manner by Sir J. Lubbock,^^ Mr. Tylor, Mr. M'Lennan, and others, 



SI I am much indebted to Mr. John Morley for some good criticisms 

 on this subject: see, also, Broca, 'Les Selections," 'Revue d'Anthro- 

 pologie,' 1872. 



22 'On the Origin of Civilization," 'Proc. Ethnological Soo.' Nov. 26, 



1867. 



