60 THE TREND OF THE RACE 
parent as one who becomes insane at a later age. The parents, 
therefore, would constitute a group selected on the basis of age. 
More detailed criticism of ‘‘antedating” was made by Heron 
(Biometrica, 10, p. 356) who showed that Mott’s data made no 
allowance for the probability that many of the normal siblings of 
the insane offspring of insane parents might subsequently develop 
insanity. Also the fact that parents and offspring who happen 
to be insane at nearly the same time would be apt to be in the 
same asylum introduces a third source of error, because in such a 
case we should be apt to find insanity developing late in the par- 
ents and early in the offspring. Considering all these statistical 
fallacies involved, the principle of anticipation cannot present 
much claim to acceptance. It would indeed be unfortunate if 
advice concerning marriage should be given on the basis of so 
questionable a generalization. 
SHOULD STRENGTH MATE WITH WEAKNESS? 
In Bulletin No. 9 of the Eugenics Record Office the statement 
is made that the ‘‘proper mating” of a neuropathic person ‘‘is 
with a person in whose ancestry there is no trace of neuropathic 
ancestry,” and that ‘‘if only the matings be carefully made so 
that the immediate children of the neuropathic person shall avoid 
marrying a consort with a neuropathic taint, there will be no 
neuropathic children or grandchildren, and hardly a greater 
chance of neuropathic great-grandchildren than though the 
marriage in question had not been made.” ‘The case may well 
arise,” Dr. Davenport continues, . . . ‘‘where a mentally vigo- 
rous man wishes to marry a socially attractive and beautiful, 
though defective, woman. Such a marriage may be, from the 
standpoint of Eugenics, as from any social viewpoint, quite per- 
missible.” And in speaking of the marriage of epileptics, it is 
further stated that ‘‘there may arise cases where the marriage of 
an epileptic to a person of mentally untainted stock would be, on 
the whole, desirable.” 
The advice that strength may mate with weakness has been 
