EUGENICS 



iig 



police supervision of prostitutes as we believe such a system is 

 bound to increase rather than diminish the disease, as it leads to 

 secrecy ; and, indeed, it has so far been a failure wherever it has been 

 put to the test seriously. 



With regard to venereal disease, there is no doubt that, although 

 the war has increased the numbers of infections, it has nevertheless 

 acted beneficially in bringing the seriousness of the subject home 

 to the authorities; and, even in England, preventive measures, for 

 male and female alike, are being widely distributed free of charge, 

 and institutes are in existence for the diagnosis and treatment of 

 these diseases. It is impossible to close the section without acknow- 

 ledging, with honour, the great work which New Zealand has done 

 in Europe with regard to this matter. When a country with tradi- 

 tions like England has awakened from its sleep of ages, a sleep 

 -largely due to its religious tendencies, it is possible for tropical 

 countries, unhampered by these religious bands, to do even more 

 than what we see going on around us as we write these lines in 

 London. 



Turning now to tuberculosis, it seems probable that the tubercle 

 bacillus has had an opportunity of infecting every child living in the 

 slums of the large European cities before it has attained the age of 

 twelve years. It would further appear as though tuberculosis was 

 either being better diagnosed or was increasing in many tropical 

 lands. 



There ought to be no slums in tropical countries, and where they 

 exist it is the duty of the Government, forthwith, to formulate a 

 scheme of betterment whereby in the course of years they shall be 

 removed, and State-built, State-owned, and State-regulated build- 

 ings should be provided, where the poor may live in a reasonable 

 condition of sanitation. Further, it should be the duty of the State 

 to take over and to bring up such illegitimate children as cannot be 

 properly provided for, thereby not merely helping in the popu- 

 lation and work questions, but also in the diminution of tuberculosis. 



In the tropics there are two other eugenic problems to which we 

 may invite attention, and these are food and half-castes. 



With regard to food, the low protein dietary of the poorer native 

 population of such regions as India is a great sociological problem, 

 being connected with rc ^ious sentiment. It leads to racial 

 degeneration, as we have already seen, but its remedy is very diffi- 

 cult, and must be done by a social movement on the part of the 

 natives themselves. 



In regard to half-castes, the number of poor Eurasians or Anglo- 

 Indians in India is increasing, and as their children live in the slums 

 of great cities they tend to degenerate. 



After fourteen years of strenuous work Graham has shown that 

 if these children are taken to sanatoria in the Himalaya Mountains, 

 and placed in a new physical, mental, and moral environment, they 

 do not show this degeneration. 



This is a great discovery, and if confirmed and acted upon may 



