in the Animal Kingdom. 357 



no means amounts to the assertion, that either male or female 

 organs may be formed out of the same elements. Now, certain 

 of the sexual organs, because of deficiency in iheir elements, or 

 in susceptibility of structure, may advance less than is normal, 

 towards concentration : certain of them, because of a surplus in 

 their elements, or in susceptibility, may advance^/?/r/*r than is 

 normal : certain of them may take in development a male direc- 

 tion, certain others may proclaim themselves as female, because 

 the male and female elements (or susceptibilities), respectively, 

 of these parts, existed in the same germ. If the surplus relate 

 to the chief organs and to the system generally, there is an 

 excessive development of the sexual character : if the defi- 

 ciency relate to the chief organs and to the system generally, 

 males are less masculine, females less feminine, than is normal ; 

 in other words, there is, in the latter case, an approach to the 

 mean state spoken of before. (See at p. 355 the remarks on fig. 

 13.) What we have said of surplus or deficiency, and of the 

 presence of both male and female elements p- 14 



or susceptibilities, may relate to one side , K 



of the body, or to both sides ; to single or- \ \ / / 

 gans on one side, or on both sides ; all of 

 which varieties are known.* The innate 

 cause of such anomalies, we may perhaps 

 never know ; but the manner of their de- 

 velopment, it does not seem difficult to un- 

 derstand. 



In further proof of the justness of this rea- 

 soning, may be adduced the fact mentioned 

 by Meckel,^ that hermaphrodism is frequent 

 and complete, in proportion as the genital 

 organs are simple, and in proportion as they 

 resemble each other in the normal state ; of 

 which Fishes afford the best example. Now 

 this is just what we should expect. 



For, with a modification of the last figure 

 (13), let DE (Fig. 14), represent, respec- 



* For an account of " hermaphrodites" in detail, see the late work of Isidore 

 Geotfroy St Hilaire. 8vo, 1836. t 1- c. p. 457. 



VOL. XXII. NO. XLIV. APRIL 1837. AE 



