1902 Editorial 5 



in connection with which he has made so many experiments 

 during the last few years. After discussing age, ripeness of 

 germ-cells, condition of the body, change of habitat, and 

 intercrossing and interbreeding as causes of variation, he 

 turned his attention to maternal impressions and telegony. 

 Both these latter are believed by man}^ to be causes of 

 variation in offspring, but Professor Ewart's experiments 

 give no support to either theory. He sums up the result of 

 these experiments — ranging over hundreds of animals during 

 the last six years — thus: "Not a particle of evidence have 

 I found in support of the maternal-impression doctrine." 

 This belief, which is held by some naturalists, a few phys- 

 icians, and many horse-breeders, is of course associated with 

 the shepherd who peeled wands and exhibited them to the 

 ewes ; and amongst the poorer rural classes it is almost 

 universally held to-day. Every child that is born with a 

 birth-mark or any deformity is at once accounted for by the 

 mother having witnessed some peculiar or dreadful sight 

 during her pregnancy — often long after the child must have 

 been well advanced in development. It is a case oi post hoc, 

 therefore propter hoc, and a belief which will doubtless die 

 hard. 



Professor Cossar Ewart argues strongly also against 

 telegony or infection being regarded as a cause of variation. 

 *' Telegony," he says, "means that not only the immediate 

 parents, but also the previous mates (if any), contribute to 

 the character of the offspring ; that, e.g., a mare which had 

 produced foals to, say, Ladas and Persimmon, might there- 

 after give birth to a foal by Flying Fox, to which Ladas and 

 Persimmon, as well as the actual sire, contributed some of 

 their characteristics." This doctrine of infection has long 

 been held by breeders, but in this case, too. Professor Cossar 

 Ewart sums up : " The results of my experiments, not only 

 with the Equidse, but also with other domestic quadrupeds 

 and birds, all point to the conclusion that there is no such 

 thing as telegony ; and the same conclusion has been inde- 

 pendently arrived at by Baron de Parana in Brazil." I 



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A research which may have very valuable results, and 



