The Atlantic Slope Naturalist. 



Vol. 1. 



NARBERTH, PA., MARCH AND APRIL, 1904. No. 6. 



The Anthropological Aspect of the 



Russo-Japanese War. 



By W. E. Rotzell, M. D., Narberth, Pa. 



The old and familiar expression 

 that ' ' self-preservation is nature's first 

 law," is in the majority of instances, 

 if not in all, true; and the truth of 

 the saying applies not only to man- 

 kind but probably to many of the 

 lower animals as well. As a natural 

 sequence to this familiar expression, as 

 a method for the accomplishment of 

 this "self-preservatiou, " conies the 

 "struggle for existence and the sur- 

 vival of the fittest." 



The application of the principle 

 herein involved begins with the indi- 

 vidual in his efforts tending for his 

 self preservation and the accomplish- 

 ment of his desires. In the case, 

 however, of civilized man, his affec- 

 tious and his duties act as a modifying 

 influence, differing according to the 

 environment and the character of the 

 individual and his feeling for his fam- 

 ily, and thus the struggle of the indi- 

 vidual becomes obscured in the strug- 

 gle of the family. 



From the individual, or the family 

 group; through association the strug- 

 gle for life and happiness manifests 

 itself between other family groups, be 

 it on the farm, in the old-time vil- 

 lage, at the cross-roads, or in some of 

 the great cities of the world, in all of 

 which we find competition. The geo- 

 graphical grouping of certain sections 

 results in the state, and by the union 

 of states the nation results with all of 

 its numerous and varied national and 

 international questions which contin- 

 uously present themselves for adjust- 

 ment and upon which may rest the 



peace and prosperity of the nation. 

 As to the relative importance of 

 questions which may arise for set- 

 tlement, those between individ- 

 uals, as a rule, are of least im- 

 portance and the easiest to adjust ; 

 and, on the other hand, those between 

 nations present sometimes the eravest 

 and most difficult problems which 

 must be handled most delicately in 

 order that the peace of the world may 

 be preserved. 



It must not, however, be inferred 

 that thissruggle for existence between 

 individuals, families, states and na- 

 tions is limited to mankind in a state of 

 war, for such is by no means true. 

 Instead of such being the case, it is 

 an expression which, while it had its 

 origin as a principle applicable in the 

 domain of natural science, like all 

 other scientific facts, is not restrictive, 

 but is universal in its application, its 

 scope including art, language, litera- 

 ture, agriculture, architecture and, in 

 fact, all departments of human knowl- 

 edge, all of which arose in one way or 

 another through competition or synon- 

 omously through "the struggle for 

 existence," the invariable sequence 

 or corollary of which we must always 

 remember is and absolutely always 

 must be "the survival of the fittest." 



A few disconnected and miscella- 

 neous illustrations may be taken in 

 order to facilitate the understanding 

 of this great truth by those who have 

 never given the subject any special 

 consideration. As an illustration of 

 this principle, outside of the domain 

 of biology, literature may be taken. 

 The invention usually credited to Gut- 



