Feminism and Sex-Extinction Part 8

[1] Owing to an interchange of nervous strands, the right half of the brain controls the left half of the body; and the converse. Structural details which need not be considered here, but which have clearly for purpose the closer and more complex a.s.sociation and co-ordination of the Contrasting Traits of the two sides of the body.

CHAPTER V

MASCULINE MOTHERS PRODUCE EMASCULATE SONS BY MISAPPROPRIATING THE LIFE-POTENTIAL OF MALE OFFSPRING

"_The truth, when it is discovered, is what every one has known._"

I

Mendel found that the hybrid plants resulting from his cross-breedings of Dominants with Recessives produced, when mated with similar hybrids, s.e.x-cells of pure Dominant and s.e.x-cells of pure Recessive types, and, moreover, a proportion of s.e.x-cells of mixed type, corresponding to the grey rabbit-offspring of a black rabbit that has mated with a white.

So too, are found among humans, four types of men and women such as might be expected under my application of Mendelian doctrine: _h.o.m.ozygotes_ for Traits, or pure typical men and women--Dominant males and Recessive females, respectively; and _Heterozygotes_ for Traits, or mixed types--Dominant females and Recessive males.

Of the pure Masculine type, are men who are wholly male in body, mind and bent; active, energetic, enterprising; pioneers of material progress; State-builders, city-builders, trade-builders, financiers, explorers, soldiers, men of affairs. Of the Mixed type, are men who, while being virile of body and mind, possess nevertheless a greater admixture of womanly quality than is strictly normal. These are the artists, poets, writers, doctors, priests, philanthropists.

Among women also, are two kindred orders; the wholly womanly--pure unalloyed types of natural woman, wife and mother, sister, friend; and women who, while being wholly womanly too in attribute and trend, possess, nevertheless, underlying manly faculties which give broader scope and effectiveness to abstract and impersonal issues of their own s.e.x-characteristics. These are the artists and poets and writers who present the Woman point of view. They are the Florence Nightingales, the Charlotte Brontes, Mary Somervilles; the philanthropists, reformers, born physicians, teachers, nurses, and so forth; whose part it is to mother, befriend and inspire humanity at large rather than to minister to individuals. Whose part it is, as well, to extend the tender, purifying ethics of Woman and The Home ever further and more deeply into public life, public work, and public administration.

Such men and women possess the characteristics of their own s.e.x fully differentiated, but tinctured and fructified by more than a normal quotum of the characteristics of the other. They are quite normal, however, and are wholly invaluable in their contribution to the world's affairs. Admirably manly or womanly, they bear but little likeness to the hereditarily-defective or to the artificially-manufactured species--mannish women and womanish men. They deviate from the essential Man and Woman types by degrees of overlapping in the higher mental attributes. In all the main characteristics of s.e.x, physical, mental and functional, they are completely men and women. The abnormal mixed types are, on the contrary, more or less degenerate, structurally, functionally and mentally. These persons of natural Mixed Types are Nature's workers rather than the parents of her Races. The daily round is too restricted for them. Their abilities and bent claim wider fields.

The home cannot contain them. It is too round to fit their angles. They are hampered by its reciprocities, stifled by its personal atmosphere, restive beneath its obligations. And not seldom they succeed in making homes as uncomfortable for others as they themselves find such.

These Heterodox--of which mould Genius is--are indispensable to spur and quicken human progress, while adding nothing to the personal evolution of the Human Type. They advance the standards and the ethics of Humanity by creating ideals in Art, in Literature, in Politics, in Reform and Philanthropy. But only too often they fall short, in their own lives, of the standards and ideals they establish for the world at large.

The Advance-guard of Faculty, they break new ground of Mind and Morale for others to cultivate. Although they themselves frequently quarrel with life, they make life in general greater and happier for their fellows. If women, they possess much of the initiative and energy, the intellect and chivalry of men. But they apply these to womanly ends. If men, they possess much of the insight and sympathy, the altruism and creativeness of women. But they devote these to manly achievements.

Herbert Spencer held that Genesis (or reproductive power) and Individuation (or Self-development) exist in inverse ratio. Which is because individuation _beyond the normal_ can only be achieved by drawing upon the vital potential of offspring. Hence, these strong individualities of Mixed Type--because reproductive power is diminished in them--but seldom transmit their abilities to offspring. Genius is frequently sterile. Otherwise, its children are of inferior calibre.

It is in imitation, doubtless, of the natural Mixed Types--which may be described as a normal deviation from The Normal--that the cult of the mannish woman is being cruelly and disastrously forced upon our latter-day girls and women; resulting in wholly deplorable developments.

The woman of natural Mixed-type is essentially womanly in aim and bent.

She does womanly work with virile energy and masculine mental grip. But she never (or seldom) a.s.sumes male proclivities or adopts male habits; crazes to wear trousers, to ride astraddle, to smoke, spit, swear, stride, talk slang, or shoot living sentient creatures. Nor does she otherwise exchange the more highly-evolved and delicate morale and manners of woman for those of the male. In Art, in Literature, in Science; in Industry and Reform, her aims and work preserve the womanly mode and outlook.

II

In consequence of doctrine which, for several generations, has trained women to develop for their own uses the masculine potential belonging to sons, many of our present-day boys and girls are seen actually to have exchanged their natural s.e.x-characteristics. Boys are born now, puny, neurotic, and effeminate; while girls are strong and male and masterful.

And it is precisely in the families whereof the girls are strong and male and masterful, that the boys are weakly and effeminate; the degenerative lapse from The Normal expressing itself, in both s.e.xes, in terms of abnormal characteristics of the other s.e.x.

That at thirteen, girls now-a-days are taller and heavier than boys of the same age has been established by the Anthropometrical Committee of the British a.s.sociation.

Dr. J. J. Heslop, after carefully observing the health and the physical growth of children in fourteen elementary schools belonging to the Stretford (Lancas.h.i.+re) Education Authority, has published a striking return of his investigations. The following table shows the average height and weight at this age:

+--------------------------------------------------------------------+ Height. Weight. +-----------------------+--------------------------+-----------------+ St. Matthew's Boys 4 ft. 7-3/4 in. 5 st. 7-3/4 lb. Girls 4 ft. 9 in. 5 st. 10-3/4 lb. Cornbrook Park Boys 4 ft. 8-1/2 in. 6 st. 0 lb. Girls 4 ft. 10-1/3 in. 6 st. 5-1/2 lb. St. Anne's Boys 4 ft. 7 in. 5 st. 3-3/4 lb. Girls 4 ft. 9 in. 5 st. 10-1/2 lb. Trafford Park Boys 4 ft. 7-3/4 in. 5 st. 4 lb. Girls 4 ft. 9-1/2 in. 5 st. 8-1/2 lb. Gorse Hill Boys 4 ft. 8-1/2 in. 5 st. 10 lb. Girls 4 ft. 10 in. 5 st. 11 lb. Seymour Park Boys 4 ft. 8-2/3 in. 5 st. 0 lb. Girls 4 ft. 10 in. 5 st. 11 lb. +-----------------------+-------------------------+------------------+

The most notable development among girls takes place between the eleventh and thirteenth years.

The opposite bias in this abnormal subst.i.tution of alien s.e.x-traits is due presumably, in both s.e.xes, to an antagonising and neutralising of the qualities normal to the one s.e.x by emergence of those of the other.

Thus, the boy is puny and emasculate because his impoverished maleness is too feeble to dominate the Female traits inherent in him, as is normal to males. The girl is big and crude and masterful because her impoverished Womanliness is inadequate to inhibit and refine her inherent Male traits.

The aims of Feminism are being realised in unforeseen developments.

Because in addition to extinguis.h.i.+ng the most beautiful and inspiring order of human qualities, this masculinising of women is burdening the Race and deteriorating type by producing an ever-increasing number of neurotic, emasculate men and boys.

III

The present-day Mortality-rate of boy-babies has become increasingly and alarmingly high.

The mortality-rate of males is higher always than is that of females, because of the greater hards.h.i.+ps and dangers of men's pursuits. This is one of the reasons why, although, normally, boys are born in greater number (about 1050 to every 1000 girls) the female (pre-war) population of England and Wales exceeded the male population by the huge majority of 1,205,311.

But the excess of male over female infant-mortality has greatly increased of late years. In 1860 it was only 9 per cent. In 1913 it had leapt to the high figure of 23 per cent. And this diminis.h.i.+ng vital power of males begins before birth even, 180 boys being born prematurely as compared with 145 girls. Of boys born, 7 die from inborn physical defects, as compared with 6 girls. While, before the age of three months, 4 boys die to every 3 girls. Among 1000 infants dying before they are a year old, only 96 are girls, as compared with 120 boys.

Recent statistics show that in rural Westmoreland, 48 boys under a year old died, while only 21 girls of the same age succ.u.mbed. In Wilts.h.i.+re, the ratio was _135 boys to 78 girls_.

To quote from a writer on these startling statistics of the Registrar-General:--

"Tuberculous diseases, convulsions, intestinal troubles, bronchitis and pneumonia, and other maladies, all kill more boy than girl-infants in their first year. The figures are surprising.

Omitting fractions, we find that among 1000 infants of each s.e.x 21 boys die of intestinal troubles to 17 girls; 10 boys die of convulsions to 8 girls; 21 boys die from bronchitis and pneumonia to 17 girls; and 14 boys from other causes to 11 girls.

Whooping-cough stands alone, carrying off 315 girls to 265 boys.

Even when chloroform or ether is given for the purposes of an operation it kills more boys than girls."

It may be objected that, according to my view, the mortality of girls, bred of const.i.tutionally impoverished males, should likewise have increased. But this high mortality among boy-infants and children must so weed out the weakliest males that many of these do not live to become fathers. Moreover, by developing into abnormal dominance the _male_ potential in her, the mother de-vitalises sons more than she de-vitalises daughters.

Further, these crude hoyden-sisters of the weakly boys fail rather in the higher attributes of s.e.x than in mere survival-power. They survive, but they are marred in type by the stigmata of s.e.x-immaturity or abnormality.

Increasing s.e.x-impoverishment is bringing into vogue--almost as a matter of routine--the performance on male infants of an unnatural (and a degenerative) Jewish rite.

IV

Of the many theories advanced to explain the determination of s.e.x in offspring, the true one is, undoubtedly, the relative parental power of the respective parents.

Normally, this being well-balanced, the ratio of the s.e.xes is about equal; the preponderance being on the male side, however, owing to the maternal parental potential being normally greater, because conserved by reason of her less onerous role in life. When parental potential is relatively greater in the father, female offspring is born. When greater in the mother, male offspring results. In the families of men notably virile, daughters preponderate. In those of women notably womanly, sons are in the majority. (Presuming in such case the parent of the other s.e.x to be of average potence.)

The preponderance of male-births during War-conditions is due to the fact that by far the greater stress of these conditions, with consequent depletion of vital reserves, falls upon the males. Hence the women--who although depleted likewise by the increased demands upon them, are less vitally exhausted than the men are--become relatively prepotent in parental potential. The more virile men being absent on military duty, moreover, the less virile members of the s.e.x it is who preponderate in the paternal role.

Other parental factors, as of age, health and circ.u.mstance, which affect the s.e.x of offspring, do so _indirectly_ by their effects upon the relative vital and parental potential of mother and father.

In corroboration of the view that power conserved in the mother engenders Maleness and masculine vigour in offspring, I have received the following letter from the Head-mistress of the village-school of Corley:

"I was much interested in your article _re Boy-babies_. I think my school here is unique, there being 86 children on the roll, of whom 57 are boys and 29, girls. And of the children in the village who will be of age for admission this year, 7 are boys and 3, girls.