Abstract
THE Darwinian theory has a practical side of infinite importance, which has not, I think, been sufficiently considered. The process of natural selection among wild animals is of necessity extremely slow. Starting with the assumption (now no longer a mere assumption) that the creature best adapted to its local conditions must prevail over others in the struggle for existence, the final establishment of the superior type is dependent at each step upon three accidents—first, the accident of an individual sort or variety better adapted to the surrounding conditions than the then prevailing type; secondly, the accident that this superior animal escapes destruction before it has had time to transmit its qualities; and, thirdly, the accident that it breeds with another specimen good enough not to neutralise the superior qualities of its mate. In the case of domesticated animals the progress is incomparably more rapid, because it is practicable, first, to modify the conditions of life, so as to encourage the appearance of an improved specimen; next, to cherish and protect it against disaster; and, lastly, to give it a consort not altogether unworthy of the honour of reproducing its qualities. The case of man is intermediate in rapidity of progress to the other two. The development of improved qualities cannot be insured by judicious mating, because as a rule human beings are capricious enough to marry without first laying a case for opinion before Mr. Darwin. Neither wOiild it be easy, nor, perhaps, even allowable, to extend any special protection by law or custom to those who may be physically and intellectually the finest examples of our race. Still, two things may be done: we may vary the circumstance of life by judicious legislation, and still more easily by judicious non-legislation, so as to multiply the conditions favourable to the development of a higher type; and by the same means we may also encourage, or at least abstain from discouraging, the perpetuation of the species by the most exalted individuals for the time being to be found. Parliament, being an assembly about as devoid of any scientific insight as a body of educated men could possibly be, has not as yet consciously legislated with a view to the improvement of the English type of character. Without knowing it, however, the Legislature has sometimes stumbled on the right course, though it has more often blundered into the wrong. Our free trade policy has furnished special scope and special advantages to the energetic enterprising character, and so far has tended to perpetuate and intensify the type which has given to little England her wonderful prominence in the world. On the other hand, the steady refusal to make a career for scientific men has drained away most of our highest intellect from its proper field, and has subjected the rest to an amount of discouragement by no means favourable to increase and improvement. Our laws and customs practically check the growth of the scientific mind as much as they tend to develop the speculative and energetic commercial character.
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H. Darwinism and National Life . Nature 1, 183–184 (1869). https://doi.org/10.1038/001183a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/001183a0
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