LIKE PRODUCES LIKE. 83 



again, and I wish that all those who take an interest in this 

 matter would repeat these experiments, so as to satisfy them- 

 selves that here is one thing worth considering. I have exper- 

 imented upon two species of animals — upon dogs and rabbits. 

 I kavc myself raised at will gray rabbits from white ones ; I 

 have obtained occasionally black rabbits and white ones again 

 almost when I pleased. With dogs I have not made so many 

 experiments, but enough to know that this influence of the 

 grandparents is one which is constantly returning. 



Let me point out what arc the facts. Suppose you have a 

 white rabbit that is not absolutely an Albino ; that is, a white 

 rabbit which may have some color in it, or instead of red eyes 

 may have blue eyes, or a little bit of black on the tips of the 

 ears. You connect two such rabbits with one another, and one 

 or other of the offspring will have the color more intensified — 

 darker eyes, perhaps, or more color in the hair. Now, if you go 

 on multiplying without selecting your parents, you will continue 

 to breed, generally, white rabbits ; but suppose that, in the first 

 instance, you take a male rabbit that has more color than the 

 other, which has black spots over the body, the offspring will 

 contain a few individuals which will have more color than the 

 parent, and perhaps there may be a black one. Now, if you take 

 that black one and multiply either with his own mother or his 

 sister, you will get more color into the offspring, and you will 

 return these animals to their primitive gray color very rapidly. 

 You see that here is the evidence that the character of the male 

 acts so much upon the progeny that you change the whole 

 appearance of the progeny if there is a marked difference 

 between the male and the female. That is the result among 

 animals about the ancestors of which you have no information. 

 If you take animals which are much alike, you continue to have 

 a breed which is of the same kind. I have never been able to 

 make any experiments where the female was changed, because 

 that is more difficult ; but, by changing the male, you see you 

 obtain a change in the breed. 



The next point is to see how the ancestorial relation will be 

 manifested. Suppose you have a female and male which are 

 widely different. Take, for instance, a black rabbit with a 

 white one. Out of them you get a great variety of tints ; you 

 may get gray ones ; you may get mottled ones ; you will hardly 



