THE PHENOMENA OF HEREDITY. 57 



to be completely freed from these conditions. It is observed among 

 those who lead the most laborious lives, as well as among those who 

 take the greatest care of their health, and it seems to be connected 

 with some inner power of vitality transmitted to individuals from 

 their forefathers. So well known is this fact that, in England, life-as- 

 surance companies receive from their agents statements as to the lon- 

 gevity of the applicants' ancestors. In Turgot's family, the age of 

 fifty-nine was very rarely exceeded, and the man who made that family 

 illustrious had a presentiment, so soon as he had reached fifty, that 

 the close of his life was not distant. Albeit he had all the appear- 

 ances of good health and of great vigor of temperament, still from 

 that time forward he held himself ready for death, and, in fact, did die 

 at the age of fifty-three. 



Heredity often transmits muscular strength and sundry other motor 

 activities. In ancient times there were families of athletes, and the 

 English have families of boxers. The recent researches of Mr. Galton, 

 as to wrestlers and oarsnJen, show that the winners in the contests in 

 which these men engage generally belong to a few families in which 

 agility and dexterity are hereditary. Suppleness and grace in dancing 

 are also transmitted, as is shown in the case of the celebrated Vestris 

 family. The same is to be said with regard to various peculiarities 

 of voice, such as stammering, nasality, and lisping. There are several 

 families who are naturally singers. Children born of babbling parents 

 are themselves babblers by birthright. Dr. Lucas cites the case of a 

 servant-maid whose loquacity knew no bounds. She would talk to 

 people till they were ready to faint ; but she would also talk to ani- 

 mals and to inanimate things. Even when she was quite alone she 

 talked to herself aloud. She had to be discharged ; " but," said she 

 to her master, " I am not to blame ; it all comes from my father. He 

 had the same fault, and it drove my mother to distraction ; and his 

 father was just as I am." 



The heredity of anomalies of organization has been demonstrated 

 in several instances. One of the most singular of these is the case of 

 Edward Lambert, whose whole body, except the face, the palms of 

 the hands, and the soles of the feet, was covered with a sort of shell, 

 consisting of horny excrescences. He was the father of six children, 

 all of whom presented the same anomaly at the age of six weeks. The 

 only one of them who lived transmitted the peculiarity to all his sons, 

 and this transmission, passing from male to male, persisted^through five 

 generations. Mention is also made of the Colburn family, where the 

 parents for four generations transmitted to the children what is called 

 sexdigitism, i. e., hands and feet with six digits each. Albinism, halt- 

 ing, hare-lip, and other anomalies, are in like manner reproduced in 

 the progeny. It has been observed that purely individual habits have 

 a like tendency to repeat themselves. Girou de Buzareingues informs 

 us that he knew a man who, when abed, was wont to lie on his back 



