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I was much interested in the letter of Mr. Goodenough concerning the sterilization bill. As far as I could see he gave no good reason for not passing it but only tried to appeal to the emotion. In fact the whole letter was hysterical.
The history of the Kallikak family is sufficient evidence for the passing of a bill rendering the people not mentally responsible impotent to produce their own kind. For the insane, feeble minded, or even those slightly deficient do not have normal children. And many of the normal people are forced to limit their families to one or two children at most in order to be financially able to pay taxes to support the huge families of the feeble-minded.
Martin Kallikak was a normal man, but during the Revolution he became the father of a son whose mother was feeble-minded. From this son there were 430 descendants, 30 per cent of those have been traced and studied, and only 9 per cent were normal. There were alcoholics, criminals, degenerates, and many infant deaths. After the war Martin Kallikak married a normal woman. Of their 496 descendants none were feebleminded and all were good citizens; two people, a half of one per cent, were alcoholic.
There is no question but that feeble mindedness is inherited. What person is living who would choose to bring a feeble minded child into the world? Who wishes to have feeble minded nephews, nieces, or neighbors?
Every thinking person will agree that it is far better to protect these feeble minded people against their own uncontrolled desires than to permit them to have children who are a burden to society. If the state of Iowa had sterilization laws a hundred years ago and used them on a very few of its criminals and insane patients, it would have been saved millions of dollars, and if that has been proved in one State, it can be assumed to be true in Vermont.
Our State spends huge sums each year to care for the insane, the feeble minded, the criminal and the delinquent. Sterilization would cut this sum very greatly over a period of years twenty or more would be needed.
Mr. Goodenough says: "Even to such as these the legislators may come the curse of a diseased brain or their offsprings may be feeble of understanding and what then?" That is the exact purpose of this bill, to prevent more feeble minded offspring. And I am very certain every advocate of this bill would be as ready to refrain from giving life with a crippled brain as they are in advocating it for others. And this applies to their attitude toward their children.
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