| 16. | (new) Vasa: Gustavus I., illustrious founder of the dynasty. |
| Certainly a new variation. Genius amply inherited in Gustavus Adolphus and others. |
These are all the great names found among 3,312. All the quotations are taken from Lippincott's 'Dictionary,' so the work has an entirely impersonal basis. In considering the remaining, 3,296, who, as far as Lippincott's great dictionary is concerned, have left no lives worthy of distinguished merit, we gain an insight into the rarity of such men and women as the Great Elector of Brandenburg or Catherine Parthenay. What of these 3,296? Can it be possible that, living in the highest social position as they did, a very large majority of them did not have abundant opportunities to exercise ability had they been the possessors of it.
What is to be said on the side of heredity? It will be seen that at least seven of these sixteen numbers (2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 13) belong in what may be called the great main mountain chain of royalty, composed of the families Condé, Coligny, Montmorency, Orange, Palatine and Hohenzollern, whose course can be traced from Anne de Montmorency 1493-1562, as far as one generation beyond Frederick the Great in the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Of the other nine, Catherine II. of Russia, alone gives no striking proof of heredity. It is examples of this sort that should be most frequent were environment the main cause. Since wars have been going on during most of the period covered in this book, and since the majority of princes have had positions in the army and cabinet, and have been given fair educations, and since the effects of environment must have been mostly questions of chance, apart from family influence, there does not seem to be any reason why environment should group the great ones together in any way except as regards time or place. But these sixteen are not grouped as regards time or place, but are scattered over the centuries and in various countries. If more than ninety per cent, of them are compatible with all that can be expected from heredity, and the chances are tremendously against such an occurrence owing to the large preponderance of mediocrity, then we must conclude that heredity is far more important than environment in the causation of the above facts.
About half the number are new variations. This is pretty well in line with results in the study of genius in general. That is, the vast horde of mediocrities is just about as likely to produce a great man as the relatively small number of great are likely to perpetuate their own kind. The reason why genius for war and government was maintained through more generations than scientific or literary genius ever has been is probably simply this: leading families in science and art do not in general intermarry in the way that these great governing
