RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT 365 
We sometimes find a diminishing stature alluded to as an 
index of phvsical degeneracy. In several localities the stature 
of the population has decreased. It is unusually low, for instance, 
in many English towns (Beddoe), and Ripley has stated that 
in Europe in general it is lower in the cities than in the country. 
In other localities, as in parts of the United States, the stature 
of population has increased. Undoubtedly heredity is a large 
factor in the changes of stature which have occurred in many 
places, but where we find stature diminishing we are by no means 
justified in attributing it to a hereditary degeneracy of the 
inhabitants. 
Many physical characters of man are affected considerably by 
environmental agencies. The latter are especially prone to 
influence strength, longevity, rate of growth, the prevalence of 
various diseases, and to a less extent, stature and weight. Condi- 
tions of life, especially in large industrial centers, have changed in 
such a way as greatly to affect the physique of a large part of the 
inhabitants. The relatively low stature of city dwellers is prob- 
ably due largely to this cause, but, as Ammon has pointed out, 
there may be in certain cases an urban migration of taller stock. 
To a certain extent environment may account for the degener- 
ate condition so frequently observed in the teeth of civilized 
races. Platschick found dental caries in 92 per cent of 12,018 
individuals examined, and Rése discovered among 5,600 recruits 
for the German army only 5 per cent whose teeth were entirely 
sound. The cooked foods, and especially the sweets, which are 
consumed from childhood on doubtless contribute to this condi- 
tion. Many observers have commented on the excellent teeth 
possessed by the primitive races and by men who lived in previous 
epochs. Professor D. J. Cunningham, for instance, in his testi- 
mony before the Committee on Physical Deterioration stated 
that “it is an obvious fact that the teeth of the people at the 
present time cannot stand comparison in point of durability with 
those of the earlier inhabitants of Britain.” Professor Dolomore 
also stated before the same committee that “in ancient British 
skulls not only is the arrangement good, the jaws are well devel- 
t 
