EDITORIAL. 
11 
“ Action of the Suprarenal Glands Upon the Determination 
of Sexes. —Dr. R. Robinson believes that the suprarenal glands 
must have a primordial influence upon the organism of the egg 
and the sex of the embryo. Various kinds of facts are advanced 
in favor of this opinion. 
“ i. Adrenaline has a reducing influence upon the cardiac 
beatings of the foetus, and it is known by numerous observations' 
that if the number of foetal cardiac beatings varies between 136 
and 150 per minute the sex is feminine 68 times out of 100, and 
is always feminine if above 150. Therefore, by giving adrena¬ 
line to a mother in the first days of pregnancy there is every 
chance to influence the circulation, as well as the formation of 
the sex of the embryo. 
“ 2. It is to be noticed that the superrenal glands seem to 
act, after birth, if not upon the sex at least upon some of the at¬ 
tributes. In female subjects having during life exhibited some 
of the masculine sexual attributes, such as beard, moustache, 
thick coat of hairs on the body, masculine tone of voice, etc., the 
post mortem has revealed alterations of the superrenal glands. 
“ 3. Finally, having made researches for the presence of 
adrenaline in the blood and the urine of pregnant women, Dr. 
Robinson has observed that he could prognosticate with certainty, 
from the fourth month of pregnancy, the sex of the child to be 
born. When adrenaline is found—that is, when the functional 
condition of the superrenal glands of pregnant women is good—* 
there is a male production; in the other condition it is a female.” 
The field of experiments is open; there is certainly something 
which deserves attention; and yet it is not without some hesi¬ 
tancy that one can advance a positive opinion in the present con¬ 
dition of the question. If there is a possibility to arrive at the 
results indicated, experiments, and very careful, at that, will be 
the only way to settle it. 
* 
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Bibliographical Items. —Drs. L. Van Es, E. D. Harris 
and A. F. Schalk, chief and assistant veterinarians to the North 
