nse, of motherhood, to relieve
the father of any of his moral or parental obligations. These obligations
will be justly defined, and as previously stated, will be the subject of
special state legislation. No legislation of an economic character can
detract from the performance of a moral obligation, and by no process of
sophistication can modern statesmanship accomplish the dethronement of
motherhood. The duty of the father is to support his children and the
mother of his children, and the duty of the state is to see that this is
done. The fundamental law of the eugenist must be to recognize that
fatherhood is a deliberate and responsible act, for which a fixed
accountability must be maintained. Whatever legislation is undertaken in
this connection must be with the object in view of strengthening the
efforts of the right kind of father and husband, and of rendering more
difficult the path of the irresponsible father and husband. If the supreme
duty of a state is the maintenance of justice, its whole effort in the
future will be to legislate in harmony with the eugenic principle.

* * * * *

[21]
CHAPTER III

"I hope to live to see the time when the increased efficiency in the
public health service--Federal, State and municipal--will show itself
in a greatly reduced death rate. The Federal Government can give a
powerful impulse to this end by creating a model public health
service."

EX-PRESIDENT TAFT.

EUGENICS AND EDUCATION

THE PRESENT EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IS INADEQUATE--OPINIONS OF DR. C. W.
SALEEBY, ELLA WHEELER WILCOX, LUTHER BURBANK, WILLIAM D. LEWIS,
ELIZABETH ATWOOD, DR. THOMAS A. STORY, WILLIAM C. WHITE, DR. HELEN C.
PUTNAM--DIFFICULTY IN DEVISING A SATISFACTORY EDUCATIONAL
SYSTEM--EDUCATION AN IMPORTANT FUNCTION--THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH
SCHOOL--THE HIGH SCHOOL SYSTEM FALLACIOUS--THE TRUE FUNCTION OF
EDUCATION.

The fundamental law of eugenics demands that all education be exerted for
parenthood. We have proved that the child is not only essential to the life
of the state, but is the state. Consequently any function other than
parenthood is a non-essential so far as organic existence is dependent upon
it. Education can, therefore, have no higher or more righteous motive than
as a contributory agency in the perpetuation of the function upon which all