244 The Descent of Man. Part II. 



variable in structure than fhe female; and variations in im- 

 portant organs would generally be injurious. But the size of 

 the body, and especially of the head, being greater in male than 

 female infants is another cause; for the males are thus more 

 liable to be injured during parturition. Consequently the still- 

 born males are more numerous ; and, as a highly competent judge. 

 Dr. Crichton Browne,"^ believes, male infants often suffer in health 

 for some years after birth. Owing to this excess in the death- 

 rate of male children, both at birth and for some time sub- 

 sequently, and owing to the exposure of grown men to various 

 dangers, and to their tendency to emigrate, the females in all 

 old-settled countries, where statistical records have been kept,"" 

 are found to preponderate considerably over the males. 



It seems at first sight a mysterious fact that in different 

 nations, under different conditions and climates, in Naple.s, 

 Prussia, Westphalia, Holland, France, England and the United 

 States, the excess of male over female births is less when they 

 are illegitimate than when legitimate."* This has been exp I ained by 

 different writers in many different ways, as from the mothers 

 being generally young, from the large proportion of first preg- 

 nancies, &c. But we have seen that male infants, from the large 

 size of their heads, suffer more than female infants during 

 parturition ; and as the mothers of illegitimate children must be 

 more liable than other women to undergo bad laboure, from 

 various causes, such as attempts at concealment by tight lacing, 

 hard work, distress of mind, &c., their male infants would 

 proportionably suffer. And this probably is the most efScient 

 of all the causes of the proportion of males to females born 

 alive being less amongst illegitimate children than amongst the 

 legitimate. With most animals the greater size of the adult 

 male than of the female, is due to the stronger males having 

 conquered the weaker in their struggles for the possession of 

 the females, and no doubt it is owing to this fact that the two 

 sexes of at least some animals differ in size at birth. Thus 



^'^ ' West Riding Lunatic Asylum Paraguay, according to the accurate 



Reports,' vol. 1. 1871, p. 8. Sir J. Azara (' Voyages dans rAinerique 



Simpson iias proved that the head merid.' torn. ii. 1809, p. 60, 179), 



of the male iufant exceeds that of the women are to the men in the 



the female by 3-8ths of an inch iu proportion of 14 to 13. 

 circumference, and by l-8th in '■' Babbage, ' Edinburgh Journal 



transverse diameter. Quetelet has of Science,' 1829, vol. i. p. 88 ; also 



shewn that woman 3 born smaller p 90, on still-born children. On 



than man; see Dr. Duncan, 'Fe- illegitimate children in England, 



cundity, Fertility, Sterility,' 1871, see 'Report of Registrai-Gcnerai 



|>. 382. for 1866,' p. xv. 



" With the savage Gnaianys of 



