I am not implying that poorer mothers are entirely inadequate, simply that they do not have the same means to control the circumstances under which the children are born. Certainly I have known of nobles who did horrible things by their children [a chuckle as he remembers a particularly satisfying kill], but I always thought those abuses must be somewhat easier to endure in a feather bed, when one is not worrying where the next meal will come from.

To be perfectly honest, I cannot mourn overmuch for the idea of humans who struggle to upkeep their population in such a way. In fact, considering the thousands of years humanity has spent very nearly crushing elves, destroying their culture and lands until they're forced to live as servants or wanderers, I find the thought of a similarly bleak future rather amusing.