A. Marro.Biology and Eugenics.
aged mother : one whose father was 40 years of age, and the other had as-
father a man of 21. In the total number of young insane people the de
scendants of aged fathers is shown in a proportion of 41% and of 20% for
the mothers ; greater than, as I have already shown, the average of the
insane in general, which proves a greater frequency of generative defect
amongst young insane people.
Amongst general paralytics children of aged fathers are also numerous,
namely, 44%. In this class the children of young fathers are found in the
smallest proportion, 10%. A paralytic, a son of a somewhat young father,
27 years of age, had had amongst his ancestors cases of singular longevity;
his great-great-grandfather on the father’s side had arrived at the age of
116 years, as the wife of the patient told me, and his grandmother, who,
I believe, is still living, is 99. This proves the exactness of the observa
tion of Ball & Regis upon the longevity of the ancestors of this class of
patient, and confirms my notion as regards the influence of the advanced age
of parents upon the appearance amongst the children of various psycho
pathies, including amongst them the tendency to crime.
The marked descent of paralytics from aged parents has been also
proved by MM. Mari & Bonnet, who in 1891, in presenting to the Con
gress at Lyons of 1891 statistics of etiological factors of 300 cases of
general paralysis, noted amongst various factors a late procreation as a
cause of frequent early arterio-sclerosis.
It has also been my fortune to meet numerous cases of longevity amongst
the ancestors of criminals. I recollect two brothers, one a homicide and the
other a habitual thief, whose paternal grandfather had reached the age of
no, and who reckoned other centenarians amongst his family.
Having obtained this result amongst degenerates I wished to carry my
investigations into another field of observation in order to see if I could'
there obtain confirmation of them.
With this end I made appeal to the goodness of the managers of elemen
tary schools, who, after my invitation, without being informed of the
object of the information which I requested, sent me a little abstract upon
the intellectual condition, conduct in class and character of 917 pupils,
of whom they gave me the age of their parents.
Here is the result which I have obtained as regards their conduct at
school :TABLE II.
Conduct at School of Pupils in Relation to the Age of the Father.
Age of the Father.
25 years and below
26 to 40 years42 = 44%
304 = 47%
97 = 5i%
Good.3° = 31% 22 = 23%
216 = 34% 113 = 17%
60 = 3i% 32 = 16%
Mediocre. Bad.
41 years and over
