1896 
779 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER., 
Breeding for Sex. 
(CONTINUED.) 
following year, the male pigs were very 
largely in excess of the females. For 
years, this had been noted by the hunt¬ 
ers who went out to kill the pigs for 
supplies for the camp. 
It would seem strange if the stronger 
parent should not control the weaker, 
or tend to do so, along all lines of re¬ 
production and transmission of qualities. 
Under ordinary circumstances, it is diffi¬ 
cult to determine which is the stronger 
or more vigorous, since most domestic 
animals are kept entirely too fat for the 
highest physical vigor, therefore the 
apparently weaker parent is often the 
stronger. 
It has also been noticed in France and 
in the Western States, that where large 
numbers of sheep are kept, a large 
majority of the first lambs which are 
dropped are males, and as the yeaning 
season progresses, the sex is about 
evenly divided. During the last of the 
season, a majority of the lambs are 
ewes. It is needless for me to explain 
that, under all such circumstances, the 
male is put in a high condition before he 
is turned in with the flock. In fact, 
every effort is made to make him, by 
feeding and exercise, strong and pre¬ 
potent. Later, after he is weakened by 
use, the females are relatively stronger 
than the male. 
Some years since, I kept 500 ewes, and 
some of my neighbors 1,000 to 1,500, and 
this assertion of the law, that the 
stronger prevails over the weaker in sex, 
as well as in other things, was very 
marked in all of these flocks. Like re¬ 
sults have been reached many times 
with large flocks of sheep in France. 
Cornell University. i. p. bobebts. 
been able to look into the secret, or 
understand the philosophy of sex deter¬ 
mination. I have had very strong, vig¬ 
orous cows that produced heifers nearly 
continuously, and cows rather delicate 
in constitution which produced male 
calves nearly continuously, w. d. hoard. 
The claim made by breeders that the 
sex is determined by the stronger parent, 
was believed by me to be true until I 
had positive proofs a number of times to 
the contrary. A few years ago, many 
theories were advanced, and swindlers 
in some cases reaped the benefit by sell¬ 
ing so-called methods by which any 
one could determine the sex of the young 
animal at the time of service. These 
methods have been experimented with 
by breeders who, I know, were careful 
in giving them every chance to confirm 
such theories. If I am not mistaken, 
the French Government caused careful 
study to be made, and the result was 
nothing of a character that could be 
positively used. From my observations, 
the sexes, year after year, are nearly 
equal in number. Some years, there 
are many more males than females, but 
the average still remains the same. In 
reference to the theory that the weaker 
parent determined the sex, I have seen 
this in swine, being exactly the opposite, 
more times than would make it a mere 
accident. Nature has, evidently, deter¬ 
mined that we shall not know her 
method. Therefore, I put no reliance on 
such theories. wilds a. seward. 
We experimented carefully many 
years, trying all the methods then recom¬ 
mended, to control the sex in breeding, 
and have concluded that all methods so 
far recommended are failures. 
New York. smiths & powell. 
I am satisfied that the sex will more 
than probably be that of the stronger 
parent. I have had five calves since 
August 11, sired by what I would call 
“ a runt of a bull ” (a son of Pedro, sired 
when he was 16 years old), that is small 
and delicately built and, seemingly, 
physically weak, although very vigorous 
in service. Out of the lot, only one is a 
bull, the dams being in these cases the 
stronger of the parents. I have also 
Wine, a strong, large son of Ida’s Stoke 
Pogis, whose calves are more bulls than 
heifers. I have noticed that a young 
cock gets more roosters than pullets, 
and that an old cock mated to strong, 
vigorous hens, will give a majority of 
females. (Is this so, poultry breeders ?) 
Pennsylvania. r. f. shannon. 
Gave Up Experimenting. 
From my experience and observation, 
I am led to believe that the laws of gov¬ 
erning sex are entirely beyond the 
knowledge or control of man. No theory 
proves true, to a sufficient extent to 
be a certainty. In a long term of years, 
the males and females will be about 
equal, varying a little, one year with 
another. Some females will alternate 
male and female with great regularity, 
regardless of the bull; others will, 
usually, have males, while others still 
usually have females, all regardless of 
the bull. Some bulls seem to sire a pre¬ 
ponderance of males, and others females. 
I gave up trying to control sex, several 
years ago. c. M. winslow. 
Vermont. 
Opposed to the Theory. 
In my opinion, there is nothing what¬ 
ever in the theory. The folly of all 
these theories lies in the fact that the 
theorizers seem to think that mascu¬ 
linity or femininity is determined by one 
parent alone. They carry the idea that 
masculinity is determined by the male 
parent, and femininity by the female 
parent. Where, in all the processes of 
nature, can be found any warrant for 
such assumptions ? On the contrary, it 
is just as confidently claimed that the 
male sex is determined by the mother, 
and the female by the father. In all my 
study and experience, I have never yet 
Some Interesting Facts. 
I have been on a silent, earnest hunt 
to solve this, the most hidden mystery of 
reproduction, for more than 20 years. I 
hoped that I should not be called upon 
to tell how little I know, until I had 
really learned more. Breeders could 
often enhance values greatly if the sex 
of offspring could be influenced or con¬ 
trolled. I have carefully tested every 
theory I have seen advanced in this 
direction, and have several times 
thought, after trial, that I had really 
found it out. The result of trials seemed, 
for a time, to prove the theory, but con¬ 
tinued tests would, in all instances, 
prove only its fallacy. 
There are some things that would in¬ 
dicate that the weakened condition of 
one of the parents has an influence upon 
the sex of the offspring amounting to 
its control, in a majority of cases. I 
will not claim that it does, but in this 
connection, will name some facts as they 
appear in my experience of 20 years. 
In August, 1874, I bought the, then, 
two-year-old son of Hambletonian 10, 
now known as Haw Patch 1140. I had 
one stallion at that time, and the farm 
has never had less than two stallions 
upon it since, and much of the time 
more. Haw Patch got two foals when 
he was two years old ; both were males. 
As a three-year-old, two-thirds of his 
foals were males and the same at four. 
As a five-year-old, a little more than 
half were females. At six and all the 
years that followed until he was 12, 
from 60 to 70 per cent were females. At 
13, males and females were again even, 
the males increasing with each year 
until, in old age, I find nearly all males. 
This has been the result with every 
horse I have handled. 
The immature colt gets a preponder¬ 
ance of males ; in complete, full strength 
of horsehood, a preponderance of 
females. When the vital forces begin 
to wane, when nature starts down the 
plane on the shady side, the lever re¬ 
verses, and at the end, we are again 
where we started. The weak, old sire, 
like the immature colt, has a large pre¬ 
ponderance of male offspring. The ex¬ 
act reverse seems the result when we 
take the female ; her first offspring, if 
she be very young and immature, will 
be female in a majority of instances. So, 
also, will the last of her colts, if she be 
very old. It is claimed by some that 
the reason the produce of the old are, in 
sex, like themselves is because of a law 
of nature to prevent the extinction of 
races. It does look that way, and the 
same law of nature may guard her 
secrets so closely as to prevent man’s in¬ 
terference, for the same reason. 
The constant association of the parents 
would seem to influence sex. Here are 
the cases in point: Ten mares were 
allowed to run during the entire time 
where they could come to the stallion 
paddock at any time. The paddock was 
an open picket fence where they could 
see and commune at will. Seven of these 
mares had female foals, and all looked 
very like the sire, seeming to partake 
more largely of his looks and actions 
than other foals by him. Five other 
mares of our own, bred the same season, 
were kept on a farm two miles away, 
and brought to the stallion only an 
stated periods; four of the mares hat 
male foals, none of which looked as 
much like the sire as the foals of the 
mares kept with him. The thread is 
very tangled. Man has succeeded in 
controlling production in the animal 
kingdom most effectually, some strange 
and interesting things have been done 
in that way, which shows conclusively 
that man is nearly monarch of all he 
surveys. w. w. LATTA. 
Indiana. 
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of 
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LOTS OF EOOS 
when hens are fed green 
cut bone, cat by the 
Improved '96 
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Simple. Perfect , Self-llegulat 
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ii. 1 » uilHimuil, ) Farm.Edgeworth,P.F.W.&C.R.K 
GUERNSEYS. 
Fifty head choice Cows, Heifers 
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ELLERSLIE STOCK FARM, 
KHINECLIFF, N. Y. 
INCREASE the BOTTKR FAT, by using a Bull 
Calf from 
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Registered Guernsey Cattle. 
WILLS A. SEWARD, Budd's Lake, N. J. 
A R ARP.AIN -A fine butter-bred J. C. C. Cow, three 
n untiuniii years old; one eight-months’ old 
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WOODLAND FARM X“?o?S t 4 heep °' 
J. E. WING, Manager, Mechanicsburg, Ohio. 
YORKSHIRES 
LARGE 
ENGLISH 
Excel them all for Bacon and Family 
Pork. Pigs, young Boars and Sows 
and Yearlings for sale. Write for what 
you want. A few Cheshires for sale. 
B. J. HURLBUT, CLYMER, N. Y. 
Yorkshire and Berkshire 
Pigs, registered 
- - ---- and eligible, at 
prices that will get orders. 
FRANK A. VAN NESS, Baldwinsvllie, N. Y. 
RFRKRHIRF piK8, t0 each; six weeks old 
ULIIIVOllinL American Dominique Cockerels, $1 
Mothers—three pullets—laid 60 eggs In 31 days. 
J. B. MILLER. Grantsville, Md. 
Ref?. Poland-C’hlnas, 
Berkshires & Chester Whites 
iChoice Strains: 8-weekPlgs; 
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—The hog for early maturity. 
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A t lowest 
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Cheshires pairs not akin. Most reg¬ 
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Get the best. TRY OURS. Only $1.00 for trial bag. 
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