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Mental deficiency, that step-child of psychiatry, has collected around itself a correspondingly unhappy literature, one characterized by vagueness, superficiality and superstitious beliefs. At last we have a book on the subject written on truly scientific lines, and Dr. Penrose is to be warmly congratulated on the success with which he has fulfilled his aims.
The first seven chapters deal with methods of investigation, of which the description of the rigorous mathematical analysis of pedigree work occupies perhaps the most outstanding chapter in the book. Then follow seven chapters on classification and description of various types, that on Mongolism being especially vivid. Epilepsy, dementia præcox, perversion and criminality are also dealt with. In the chapter on treatment, Dr. Penrose deals trenchantly with the supposed panacea of sterilization and does not hesitate to hint at the subjective attitude that so often enters into popular opinions on the subject. The book is well illustrated by photographs, and charts. It will easily leap into the first place as a standard text-book on the subject.