THE HEREDITY OF TALENT.
Noteworthy Families. By Francis Galton and Edgar Schuster, (J. Murray. 6s. net.)—Dr. Francis Galton's researches into the laws which govern the heredity of human ability have been long - known, and are now supplemented by the publication of the interesting little book in which, with the aid of Mr. Edgar Schuster, he tabulates certain suggestive facts as to the prevalence of what he calls "noteworthiness " in the families of a number of Fellows of the Royal Society. It will be obvious that researches of this kind are conducted under considerable difficulty, and cannot lay claim to the exactness of other scientific work ; but they deserve encouragement, if only because they may help to throw some light upon the obscure questions of human develop- ment. The day is not yet in sight when we shall be able to adopt the suggestion of certain thoroughgoing social reformers, and breed men and women, as we already breed cattle and horses, with an eye to the maintenance and improvement of such characteristics as are likely to be advantageous to the race. We shall have to get rid of a considerable body of prejudice—some may call it by a more honourable name—before that possibility is reached. At present the nearest that we can come to selective breeding is due to the attraction which like often has for like in the matrimonial market, so that a clever man usually marries a clever woman. Unfortunately, the most promising unions are often sterile. How interesting it would have been to watch the growth of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Grote, or of Thomas and Jane Welsh Carlyle ! But this opportunity is denied us. Still. it is commonly recognised that brains run in families, and Dr. Gallon has worked out some striking statistics as to sixty or seventy Fellows of the Royal Society, who are taken as a con- venient standard of "noteworthiness." Thus we find that the proportion of distinguished fathers in these families is as 81 to 337 of the generality, whilst among their first-cousins we find that noteworthy persons are more than seven times as frequent as in an ordinary undistinguished family. A similar proportion exists everywhere. Of course some families provide a much larger number of noteworthy persons than others. Dr. Galton's own family occupies three pages, and another more than four, whereas the average space allotted to each of the chosen families is only about one page and a fifth. But the general conclusion as to tha hereditary nature of such talent as qualifies a man for Fellowship of the Royal Society is indubitable. Dr. Galton's introduction gives a useful account of the principles which must guide those engaged in similar inquiries, and this little volume makes an excellent beginning for the work of the Eugenics Record Office of the University of London.
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