[Enclosure]

Descent of Man p. 130. 2nd Edition. “It is extremely doubtful whether the offspring of the more sympathetic & benevolent parents or those who were the more faithful to their comrades would be reared in greater numbers than the children of treacherous and selfish parents belonging to the same tribe. He who was ready to sacrifice his life as many a savage has been rather than betray his comrades, would often leave no offspring to inherit his noble nature. The bravest men who were always willing to come to the front in war & who freely risked their lives for others would on the average perish in larger numbers than other men. Therefore it seems hardly probable that the number of men gifted with such virtues or that the standard of their excellence could be increased thro’ natural selection i.e. by survival of the fittest.”²

If this were true the more a tribe fought the less fitted it would become for fighting. The more it conquered the less fitted for conquering. Ceteris paribus this is quite opposed to the Evolution hypothesis. The progress of societies would be impossible under such conditions.

Now it is very evident that the tribe which produced the larger number of unselfish & noble natures would survive. The question is can the type be maintained.

Let it be remembered in the 1st place that whatever causes produced these noble natures are still at work. Let the young savage show his courage and he is at once respected. He can in some tribes obtain many & choice wives: he will probably receive the best food, by no means an insignificant circumstance when taken in connexion with the number & strength of his offspring; and in case of scarcity would certainly receive presents from those who could spare. If the tribe were cannibals he certainly would not be eaten.

Altho in battle he naturally presses to the front, yet he becomes the especial care of his fellows, they fight round him & it is a marked honour to any one who saves his life. If injured he would receive the best & most careful attention. The proneness of men to awe and worship would certainly assist his preservation in all difficulties. The fact that such men would certainly be men of the largest vitality (success would be the outcome of courage—i.e. a high circulation—and ability; nobility would imply large mental & emotional power to picture the sufferings of others & to be true in the present to hopes for the future.) must influence his offspring. His children would be well fed, would be cared for in his absence & in case of his death would not be neglected. Remembering also the power of example upon the acknowledged imitativeness of savage tribes also the power of praise and blame, we may fairly conclude that all these circumstances would when balanced with the other tendency of nobility & courage to self-destruction, leave a surplus of influences in favour of the of the development of noble natures within the tribe itself.