(2) Genealogy now is too often looked upon as an end in itself. It would be recognized as a science of much greater value to the world if it were considered not an end but a means to a far greater end than it alone can supply. It has, indeed, been contended, even by such an authority as Ottokar Lorenz, who is often called the father of modern scientific genealogy, that a knowledge of his own ancestry will tell each individual exactly what he himself is. This appears to be the basis of Lorenz's valuation of genealogy. It is a step in the right direction: but (3) The present methods of genealogy are inadequate to support such a claim. Its methods are still based mainly on the historical, legal and social functions. A few of the faults of method in genealogy, which the eugenist most deplores, are: (a) The information which is of most value is exactly that which genealogy ordinarily does not furnish. Dates of birth, death and marriage of an ancestor are of interest, but of limited biological importance. The facts about that ancestor which vitally concern his living descendant are the facts of his character, physical and mental; and these facts are given in very few genealogies. [Illustration: LINE OF ASCENT THAT CARRIES THE FAMILY NAME FIG. 40.--In some pedigrees, particularly those dealing with antiquity, the only part known is the line of ascent which carries the family name,--what animal breeders call the tail-male. In such cases it is evident that from the point of view of a geneticist practically nothing is known. How insignificant any single line of ascent is, by comparison with the whole ancestry, even for a few generations, is graphically shown by the above chart. It is assumed in this chart that no cousin marriages took place.] (b) Genealogies are commonly too incomplete to be of real value. Sometimes they deal only with the direct male line of ascent--the line that bears the family name, or what animal breeders call the tail-male. In this case, it is not too much to say that they are nearly devoid of genuine value. It is customary to imagine that there is some special virtue inherent in that line of descent which carries the family name. Some one remarks, for instance, to Mr. Jones that he seems to be fond of the sea. "Yes," he replies, "You know the Joneses have been sailors for many generations." But the small contribution of heredity made to an individual by the line of descent carrying his family name, in comparison with the rest of his ancestry, may be seen from Fig. 40.