Students of human history have many times attempted to discover the causes which have determined the peculiar traits of different peoples, but no general agreement has been reached as to the relative importance of racial stock, climate and geographic environment in determining physical, mental and moral attributes. Aside from a small group of sentimental enthusiasts who have discussed the merits of vegetarian practices as contrasted with meat eating, largely on the basis of whimsical evidence, and moral considerations, no one has, however, attributed any great importance to the character of the diet, except as regards abundance or scarcity of food, on the character and physical well-being of peoples. I would not detract in the slightest degree from the importance of inherited characters, or of physical environment as factors in the formation of human qualities, but must insist that students of mankind have hitherto failed to realize the importance of the selection of the food supply as an agency in the improvement of a race.