SOCIAL HEREDITY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 261, 28 July 1908, Page 9

SOCIAL HEREDITY.

- —-— ' At the Unitarian Free. Church on Sunday evening, "beforo a largo congregation, the Rev. ' Dr'. Tudor " Jones spoko on tho subject of "Social Heredity,", and its importance to-day. Dr. Jones emphasised tho need of tho study of biology and sociology, theso two sciences cast a groat deal of light on human life. We know to-day that predispositions to diseaso aro inherited, but until lately this was practically ignored. Men have been too long dwelling in musty volumes and illegible parchments, and too little through tjio microscope. It would well pay tho British peoplo to put asido a million a year for the study of eugenics, but superstition prevails to. a largo' extent evon yet on all the important things of life. . It was true that biology could not explain tho whole of lifo, but it could explain a great deal, and this should bo known by the people. Tho preacher omphasised tho need of a bettor social inheritance, which would bo ' ablo to cbuntcract even physical hereditary tendencies. For it was a, wellknown fact to-day that, the organism was affected by tho environment. Many biologists were' of 'opinion that even tlie germ colls aro affectod by tho environing body. Great emphasis should bo laid on tho need of gotting the bost physical, mental, and religious inheritance. Thus there was a chance of a higher and nobler raco in the future.