110 



THE RATE OF GROWTH 



[CH. 



the stature of the infant, month by month, during the first year of 

 its hfe, as follows : 



Mean growth of an infant, in its first twelve-month 

 (After Russow) 



From these data of Russow's for German children, rough as 

 indeed they are, from Variot's for little Parisians (Fig. 14), and from 



3 10 12 



Age in months 



Fig. 14. Growth of Parisian children (boys) from birth to twelve months old. 

 From G. Variot's data; Russow's German data are also shewn, by x x x . 



many more, we see that the rate of growth rises steadily and even 

 rapidly as we pass backwards towards the date of birth. It is never 

 anything like so great again. It is an impressive demonstration 

 of the dynamic potentiahty, of the store of energy, in the newborn 

 child. 



But birth itself is but an incident, an inconstant epoch, in the 

 life and growth of a viviparous animal. The foal and the lamb 



