200 THE HOUSE 



nourishing young the year before, passed through 

 the winter with powers less impaired than the female. 

 This is the explanation that he gave me for the facts 

 observed. When food became abundant in other years 

 and conditions were improved, the sex of those pigs 

 which were slaughtered was about evenly divided. Were 

 it appropriate, many facts could be cited to substantiate 

 this theory in the human family. 



However, before leaving this subject, it should be 

 said that either the male or the female may be propotent 

 in color alone or some other characteristic and not 

 prepotent in sex characteristics, or either one may be 

 prepotent in sex characteristics alone. We are acquainted 

 with many animals which persist in bearing offspring of 

 one sex though bred to different males, and with some 

 that persist in producing one sex as long as mated with 

 the same male, but when another male is used the sex 

 of the offspring is changed. 



Many theories have been advanced which some- 

 times have appeared to indicate a law; but as yet no 

 law has been discovered for governing the sex of off- 

 spring which holds uniformly true or which is workable. 

 We may sometimes change conditions or change the 

 mating of the animals and arrest the prepotent factor 

 of sex or any other potent factor, and at other times no 

 change of food or mating accomplishes the desired result. 

 We conclude then that the stronger characteristic, 

 whatever it may be, is superior to the weaker. The 

 difficulty consists in determining them. If any one had 

 discovered a method of controlling sex, he would have 

 taken out letters patent on it long ere this. 



