SECRETARY'S REPORT. 89 



Relative influence of the Male and Female Parents. The rela- 

 tive influence of the male and female parents upon the characteris- 

 tics of progeny has long been a fertile subject of discussion among 

 breeders. It is found in experience that progeny sometimes 

 resembles one parent much more than the other, — sometimes there 

 is an apparent blending of the characteristics of both, — sometimes 

 a noticeable dissimilarity to either, though always more or less 

 resemblance somewhere, and often, the impress of one may be dis- 

 tinctly seen upon a portion of the organization of the ofiFspring and 

 that of the other parent upon another portion ; yet we are not au- 

 thorized from such discrepancies to conclude that it is a matter of 

 chance, for all of nature's operations are conducted by fixed laws, 

 whether we be able fully to discover them or not. The same 

 causes always produce the same results. In this case, not less 

 than in others there are, beyond all doubt, fixed laws, and the 

 varying results which we see are easily and sufficiently accounted 

 for by the existence of conditions or modifying influences not fully 

 patent to our observation. 



In the year 1825, the Highland Society of Scotland, proposed as 

 the subject of prize essays, the solution of the question, "whether 

 the breed of live stock connected with agriculture be susceptible 

 of the greatest improvement from the qualities conspicuous in the 

 male or from those conspicuous in the female parent ?" Four 

 essays received premiums. Mr. Boswell, one of the prize writers, 

 maintained that it is not only the male parent which is capable of 

 most speedily improving the breed of live stock, " but that the 

 male is the parent which we can alone look to for improvement." 



His paper is of considerable length and ably written — abounding 

 in argument and illustrations not easily condensed so as to be given 

 here, and it is but justice to add that he also holds that " before 

 the breed of a country can be improved, much more must be looked 

 to than the answer to the question put by the Highland Society — 

 such as crossing, selection of both parents, attention to pedigree, 

 and to the food and care of offspring." 



And of crossing, he says, " when I praise the advantage of cross- 

 ing, I would have it clearly understood that it is only to bring 

 together animals not nearly related but always of the same breed ; 

 never attempting to breed from a speed horse and a draught mare 

 or vice versa." Crossing of breeds " may do well enough for once, 

 but will end in vexation, if attempted to be prolonged into a line." 



Mr. Christian, in his essay, supports the view, that the oflspring 



