If men
were properly instructed in the results of their actions or
pretermissions, in matters of this nature, and made fully conscious of
the responsibility which those results entail upon them, there would
soon be a marked decrease in physical suffering, disease, and premature
deaths. The average duration of life, in civilized countries, has
probably already been lengthened by the increased knowledge and the
increased sense of responsibility which have even now been attained.
Closely connected with these considerations on the diminution of death,
disease, and suffering by improved sanitary arrangements, is the
delicate subject of the propagation of hereditary disease. It is a
commonplace that the most important of all the acts of life, is that on
which men and women venture most thoughtlessly. But experience shews,
unmistakably, that there are many forms of disease, both mental and
bodily, which are transmitted from the parents to the children, and
that, consequently, the marriage of a diseased parent, or of a parent
with a tendency to disease, will probably be followed by the existence
of diseased children. In a matter of this kind, everything, of course,
depends on the amount of the risk incurred, that is to say, on the
extent of the evil and the probability of its transmission. The former
of these data is supplied by common observation, the latter by the
researches of the pathologist.
Pages:
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120