Heredity of feeble-mindedness / by Henry H. Goddard.

Goddard, Henry Herbert, 1866-1957.

Date:: [1911]

Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Heredity of feeble-mindedness / by Henry H. Goddard. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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TWINS Chart V, B. Chart V is presented in two parts—A and B. It gives us what may be called a natural experiment of extreme suggestive¬ ness. The father of our child was twice married. He himself is alcoholic, otherwise his family seems to be very good. His first wife was a normal woman, but a victim of tuberculosis. The result of that marriage was eleven children, of whom five are known to be normal, the others died young. This man married for his second wife a woman who was alcoholic and feeble-minded, and who had two sisters, a brother, a father, and a mother that were also alcoholic. The result of this union was seven children —three feeble-minded, two that died young, and two that are as yet unknown. It seems to be fairly clear in this case that the father's alcoholism may have caused the physical weakness that led to so many early deaths in the first family, but the mother’s defect has been directly transmitted in the second family, with the result that there are at least three feeble-minded children. We might also add the two others that died young, because, according to the definition of Tredgold, which describes an idiot as “ one who cannot avoid ordinary dangers,” these children were also defective, since they were both killed at play, apparently not being able to protect themselves in a usually harmless game.