of malodorous free love, and their hands go up in holy
horror at the intimation of a scientific regulation of this ancient
function.

Unfortunately, the popular mind has received the impression that this
incident constitutes the sum total of the eugenic idea, while the truth is
that the eugenist is only slightly concerned with its modus operandi. This
feature has been so magnified by widely published disingenuous discussion
that it has assumed the aspect of a test problem, a judgment on which shall
decide the utility of the science itself. Should this decision be
unfavorable, it would seem, according to its exponents, that it would not
be worth while promulgating the doctrines of the science beyond this point.
It is as though we were asked to deny ourselves the inspiration and
pleasure of a trip abroad because the morning of the day on which the ship
sailed happened to be cloudy.

It is certainly no part of the function of the eugenist to uproot [xxii]
instinct, or to trample into the dust age-long rights, though the instinct
is simply the product of an established habit, based on an erroneous
hypothesis, and the so-called rights simply acquired privileges, because
the intelligence that would have builded differently was not awakened.
Eugenic necessity will render imperative the state's solution of this
fundamental problem, for the reason that civilization will be driven to
demand its just inheritance--the right to exist. The eugenist will not be
compelled to open the door; it will be opened for him. We can afford,
therefore, to wait with supreme confidence, because the good sense of the
people will not always submit to the tactics of the jester when it needs a
saviour.

The eugenist does not seek to interfere with the liberties of the rising
generation: a boy may choose whom he will; the girl may select the one who
appeals to her most, and they may enjoy all the vested rights and romance
that custom has decreed the lover; but, when they resolve to marry, _the
state must decide their qualifications for parenthood_. This must be the
crucial test of the future. The life of the state depends on it. The
continuance of the race must be the supreme object of all future
constructive legislation. We must recognize that "life is the only wealth,"
and that every other criterion of an advanced civilization must measure its
success according to its wealth in worthy parenthood.

The eugenist does not even dictate what the test