OARSMEN.
305
OARSMEN.
I PROPOSE to supplement what I have written about brain
by two short chapters on muscle. No one doubts that
muscle is hereditary in horses and dogs, but humankind
are so blind to facts and so governed by preconceptions,
that I have heard it frequently asserted that muscle is
not hereditary in men. Oarsmen and wrestlers have
maintained that their heroes spring up capriciously, so
I have thought it advisable to make inquiries into the
matter. The results • I have obtained will beat down
another place of refuge for those who insist that each
man is an independent creation, and not a mere function,
physically, morally, and intellectually, of ancestral quali¬
ties and external influences.
In respect to Oarsmen, let me assure the reader that
they are no insignificant fraction of the community,—no
mere waifs and strays from those who follow more civilized
pursuits. A perfect passion for rowing pervades large
classes. At Newcastle, when a great race takes place, all
business is at a standstill, factories are closed, shops are
shut, and offices deserted. The number of men who fall
within the attraction of the career is very great ; and there
can be no doubt that a large proportion of those among
them who are qualified to succeed brilliantly, obey the
attraction and pursue it.
For the information in this and the following chapters,
I am entirely indebted to the kind inquiries made for me