184 Agricultural Gazette of y.S^V. [Mar. 2. 1920„ 



Tele G ON Y. 



TiiERK is a widespread belief amongst breeders that the male with which a 

 female is first mated has an infiuence upon the progeny of the female by a 

 different sire at a later period. Nowhere is this belief more strongly held, 

 than among breeders of dogs, and a pure-bred bitch which has been mated 

 with a dog of another breed is usually regarded as quite worthle.>-s for tbe- 

 purpose of breeding pure-bred stock at any subsequent period. When sifted, 

 however, the evidence offered in support of this theory as to the influence 

 of the first sire generally proves to be unreliable. 



The doctrine of the infection of the germ, now known as telegony, was. 

 more or less firmly believetl in by men of science, as well as breeders, up to 

 the end of the nineteenth century. Beecher, writing at the close of the 

 seventeenth century, says : " When a mare has had a mule by an ass and 

 afterwards a foal by a horse there are evidently marks on the foal of the 

 mother having retained some ideas of her former paramour, the ass." Agassiz, 

 hold that the ovary was so modified by the first act of fecundation that 

 " later impregnations do not efface the first impressions." 



In 1S9.5 Professor Cossar Ewart initiated some experiments- to test the- 

 truth or otherwise of the di ctrine of the infection of the germ. The classical 

 experiment, which is frequently quoted in connection with telegony, was that 

 conducted many years ago by Lord Montagu, when a male quagga and a 

 •seven-eightlis Arabian mare were mated. For this x-eason Professor Cussar 

 Ewart decided to repeat the experiments as closely as possible. The quagga,, 

 however, had become extinct. A BurcheH's zebra was therefore mated with 

 Arab and other mares belonging to difierent breeds and strains, and the 

 mares, after producing one or more hybrids, were mated with Aj-ab and other - 

 stallions. Professor Ewart published an account of his experiments in the 

 "Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland " in 

 1902. Here he stated that, although he started with the belief that there 

 was such a thing as telegony, he eventually came to the conclusion that 

 "there never has bfen an undoubted instance of infection in either docs. 

 rabbits, or horses." Professor Ewart recently pointed out that this view is 

 supported by a statement of Jordan and Kellog, in America, who "think it 

 probable that the phenomena called telegony have no real existence," 



It seems, then, that the views so long held in regard to telegony will have- 

 to be discarded, and that it is quite unnecessary to regard as wr.i' Mess for 

 breeding pure-bred animals those femal<\s which have not been in ti.e lirst. 

 instance mated to pure stock. — G. P. Darnkll-Smith, DSc, F.I.C. , F.C.S. 



The AcTivniEs of Agricultural Colleges. 



I KEENLY recognise that the Agricultural Colleges of the States, like the 

 Federal Department iiself, are now confronted with unusual ditficulties and 

 are labouring under seiious embarrassments; and yet in the midst of these 

 they are called upon to render even more urgent service; I have long had 

 an exalted opinion of the value of these institutions bo our democracy. 

 Recent events have caused me even metre highly to prize them and mttre^ 

 clearly to recognise their necid. They have made it singularly clear thati 

 agricultural institutions must omit no step to add, through research ancL 

 experiment, to the sum of our scientific knowledge. — D. F. Houston,. Secre - 

 tiiry of Agriculture, Washington, U.S.A. 



