Taz laws governing the growth, devolopment and term of life of individuals have always attracted a large amount of attention, sharing in the curiosity whioh biological problems have never failed to excite, and being also, in a very evident manner, of intrinsic importance. Of late, systematic observations on an extensive scale have been undertaken, especially in France, and elaborate reports have been drawn up embodying the results obtained and arranging them as far as possible under general heads of classification. Macaulay noticed long ago that the fame of a Cambridge senior wrangler vanishes with the year which witnesses his triumph, and although this is somewhat of an exaggeration, it la very remarkable how few of the calculating machines that hend the mathematical tripos are ever again heard of in the world, Whoever possesses a recent Cambridge calendar can verify this for himself, and will not fail to be surprised an we were when we ander-took to test Macaulay's statement. Everybody remembers the disastrous results of Dr. Blimber's hot-house treatment of his young gentlemen. There was not the right taste about the premature productions of their intellect, and they did not keep well. Mr. Toots, we know, suddenly left off blowing one day and remained in the establishment a mere stalk, In France, too, experience shews that the precocious youths who begin by carrying everything before them in the Ecole Poly-technique and other nation stati prove good for little or nothing later in life. This, it is contended, is merely a special case under a comprehensive rule that precocity is a sign of biological inferiority, There is no difficulty in establishing the fact that throughout the vegetable and animal series inferior species develope more rapidly than the superior. Man is the slowest of all animals to reach his full development, and if we divide the genus into its constituent races, those are the more precocious which stand lowest in the moral and intellectual scales. Here climate exerts a disturbing influence for tropical races, an duals of other races accidentally subjected to tropical conditions reach maturity, although an imperfect maturity, more quickly than races whose habitat is in the zones. It is supposed that n to high temperature for prolonged periods acts indirectly rather than directly on race development, and especially on the mental development of a race. And this by lowering the brain nourishing itself with rapidity at the expense of other organs when nutrition is defective, but becoming unstable in its constitution, feeble and uncertain in its acti Normally, the inferior organs an tissues are the earliest avd quickest formed, while the brain is the latest to perfect itself, and the intellectual centres Latest of all. Bringing together, then, the facts that the children of inferior races, whether Negro or Esquimaux, are at an early age more advanced than children of the higher races, the rale is Inid down that within wide limits precocity varies inversely as the degree of race evolni also inversely as the condition dividual nutrition. Taking any single race, it is found that as evolution the growth and development duals become slower. If this be generally trae, we may perhaps console ourselves for the fact that the regulation height for recruits is being progressively lowered all over Europe, by considering that it indicates a progress in the evolution of the Caucasian family. Further, the less intelligent classes reach the full amount of development whereof they are capable soever than the more intelligent classes. As an example (to which, however, we would not attach too much faith in oar ignorance of the colour of the reporter's political views) the skulls of adult members of the old French nobility are smaller in capacity than bourgeois skulls. Lastly, of the same class the less highly evolved sex reaches maturity both mental and physical, more quickly than the other sex. Between the ages of eight and twelve, girls gain in weight one pound per year more than boys, and up to their twelfth or thirteenth year beat boys most thoroughly in all the French mixed schools.
Turning to the other end of life, the speed of decay is proportional to the speed of growth, That is to say, life is long or short, accidents apart, according og development is slow or rapid. Hence longevity is directly proportional to the degree of evolution and of nutrition; it is favoured by good food, moderation in everything, and cold climates; it is greater among higher races than among lower, among men than among women, among the cultivated than among the uncultivated. The average length of life enjoyed by a French academician is seventy-one years and five months, but then are not academicians "tha Imuortals?" It is consolatory no doubt to think that the more highly cultivated we are, the longer shall we live. But we must bear in mind that however trae this may be when assorted of averages drawn from large number, very many disturbing influences are imported into individual cases. Thus the anxieties, inseparable from the straggle for existence, fall with greater weight on highly developed individuals, who are by accident heavily handicapped, than on men of less tightly strung mental organisation, and these anxieties, when keenly felt and long continued, act in no capricious manner on the expectation of life.
@utports.
PEKING, Of late there has been much wind and the air has been full of dust, The heat has also been great the last few days, A slight shower this evening has laid the dust, and brought a pleasant coolness and moisture into the atmosphere.
Of news there seems to be very little just now. The danger of war, however, between Russia and China does not seem to be wholly past. There is no doubt in regard to there being a strong war party here; and it seems probable that only the inability of Russia to engage in further conflict will avert the calamity. The situation is somewhat like it was after the Tientsin massacre, with this exception, that the: China was torrid fied, now she is bold and presuming. Now, as then, her antagonist is brave but crippled, Cl'ung How is still in prison, under going the process of being thoroughly fleeced. It is quite generally thought that his head will pay the forfeit of doing the best he could in a difficult business, which his Government did not understand, and concerning which he had no instruc: tions. He belongs to a family which has rendered valuable services to this dynasty in past years—all of which are most ungratofully forgotten now. 4 The missionaries of the American Board have just closed their annual meeting in this city. This society occupies five stations, viz. Tientsin, Peking, T'ung-chow, Kalgan'and Pan-ting-fu. A' new station has been made in Shantung, near'Teh Cho, where great success has attended the labours of the missionaries during the last three years. The mission reports a membership over 600 in connection with all its stations, This year is the 50th anniversary of the beginning of missions to the Chinese by this Society. Its first missionaries were sent to the Chinese resident in the islands lying south of China. The opening sermon, delivered by Dr. Blodget on Sunday, 25th April, was historical, and presented a mest valuable series of facts and incidents connected which the work done and the labourers sent out by this Society. We hope the discourse may be given to the public, 8th May.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.