Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 27.djvu/29

Rh from the rest of the world by the excessive development of the characteristic upon which the selection was based.

If the selection were a wise one, the result would be to the benefit of mankind; but the result would follow just as surely if an injurious peculiarity or a defect were made the basis of the selection, for a natural law produces its effect, whether it is applied wisely or unwisely.

Professor Bell points out that our system of educating the deaf brings all these influences to bear, and that the means which have been adopted by philanthropists and others from the noblest and purest motives to ameliorate the condition of the deaf and dumb are unfortunately the most complete and efficient methods which it is possible to employ for inducing deaf-mutes to marry deaf-mutes, and that it would be difficult to devise a more certain means for increasing the number of unfortunate persons with this infirmity, and for producing by selection a deaf variety of the human race.

We separate them from other children as early in life as possible, taking them away from their homes and placing them by hundreds in institutions where they are isolated from early childhood to the commencement of adult life. Each deaf person is therefore intimately acquainted with nearly all the others of his own generation, while there are few opportunities for the formation of congenial and lasting intimacies with outsiders. The graduates of the institution organize themselves into societies or conventions for the promotion of social intercourse in adult life, and these societies are to be found in all large cities, in rooms where they meet for social intercourse, and for religious worship. They hold State and national conventions, which are attended by deaf-mutes of both sexes from all parts of the country, and they publish newspapers and periodicals of their own which are filled with personal items.

They are taught a special language which is as different from English as French or German or Russian, and they learn to think in the gesture-language, so that English is apt to remain a foreign tongue, while they often write in broken English as a foreigner would speak, so that they are in a great measure cut off from all of our literature except its very simplest forms, and they have imperfect sources of information upon topics which engage the interest of the rest of the community, such as social and political matters.

Although there is no compulsion or infringement of personal liberty, all these influences combine to induce deaf-mutes to select for their partners in life persons who are familiar with the gesture-language, and with whom they have been thrown from childhood. We have, therefore, adopted most of the means which tend toward the formation of a deaf-mute variety of the human race, and time alone is necessary to accomplish the result; but there are still other means which might be employed to hasten it. Professor Bell says that, with