The Works of William Harvey M.D. / Translated from the Latin with a life of the author

by William Harvey

EXERCISE THE THIRTY-FOURTH.

Of the matter of the egg, in opposition to the Aristotelians and the medical writers.

The position taken up by the medical writers against the Aristotelians, viz., that the blood is not the first element in a conception, is clearly shown from the generation of the egg to be well chosen: neither during intercourse, nor before nor after it, is there a drop of blood contained in the uterus of the fowl; neither are the rudiments of eggs red, but white. Many animals also conceive in whose uteri, if they be suddenly laid open after intercourse, no blood can be demonstrated.

But when they contend that the maternal blood is the food of the fœtus in utero, especially of its more sanguineous parts, as they style them, and that the fœtus from the outset is as it were a portion of the mother, being nourished and growing through her blood, and vegetating through her spirit; so that neither does the heart pulsate, nor the liver compose blood, nor any part of the fœtus perform any kind of independent office, but everything is carried on through the mother’s means, they in their turn are as certainly mistaken, and argue from erroneous observations. For the embryo in the egg boasts of its own blood, formed from the fluids contained within the egg; and its heart is seen to pulsate from the very beginning: it borrows nothing in the shape either of blood or spirits from the hen, for the purpose of forming its so called sanguineous parts and its feathers; as most clearly appears to any one who looks on with an unbiassed mind. From observations afterwards to be communicated, I believe indeed that it will be held as sufficiently proven that even the fœtus of viviparous animals still contained in the uterus is not nourished by the blood of the mother and does not vegetate through her spirit; but boasts of its own peculiar vital principle and powers, and its own blood, like the chick in ovo.

With reference to the matter which the embryo obtains from its male and female parent, however, and the way and manner of generation as commonly discoursed of in the schools, viz.: that conception is produced or becomes prolific from mixture of the genitures and their mutual action and passion, as also of the seminal fluid of the female, and the parts which are spoken of as sanguineous and spermatic, numerous and striking observations afterwards to be related have compelled me to adopt opinions at variance with all such views. At this time I shall only say that I am greatly surprised how physicians, particularly those among them who are conversant with anatomy, should pretend to support their opinions by means of two arguments especially, which rightly understood, seem rather to prove the opposite; viz., from the shock and resolution of the forces and the effusion of fluid which women at the moment of the sexual orgasm frequently experience, they argue that all women pour out a seminal fluid, and that this is necessary to generation.

But passing over the fact that the females of all the lower animals, and all women, do not experience any such emission of fluid, and that conception is nowise impossible in cases where it does not take place, for I have known several, who without anything of the kind were sufficiently prolific, and even some who after experiencing such an emission and having had great enjoyment, nevertheless appeared to have lost somewhat of their wonted fecundity; and then an infinite number of instances might be quoted of women who, although they have great satisfaction in intercourse, still emit nothing, and yet conceive; passing over these facts, I say, I cannot but express surprise at those especially, who, conceiving such an emission on the part of the female necessary to conception, have not adverted to the fact that the fluid emitted is discharged, cast out, and is particularly abundant about the clitoris and orifice of the vulva; that it is seldom poured out within the vulva, never within the uterus, and so as to be mingled with the semen of the male; moreover, it is of a mere serous or ichorous consistency, like urine, by no means thick and apparently unctuous, like the spermatic matter of the male. But how shall we suppose that to be of use internally which is discharged externally? Or shall we say that this humour, as if bidding the uterus farewell, is taken to the verge of the vulva, that it may be then recalled with greater favour by the uterus?

The other argument is drawn from the genital organs of women, the testes, to wit, and vasa spermatica, præparantia et deferentia, which are held to serve for the preparation of the spermatic fluid. I, for my part, greatly wonder how any one can believe that from parts so imperfect and obscure, a fluid like the semen, so elaborate, concoct and vivifying, can ever be produced, endowed with force and spirit and generative influence adequate to overcome that of the male; for this is implied in the discussion concerning the predominance of the male or the female, as to which of them is to become the agent and efficient cause, which the matter and pathic principle. How should such a fluid get the better of another concocted under the influence of a heat so fostering, of vessels so elaborate, and endowed with such vital energy?—how should such a fluid as the male semen be made to play the part of mere matter?—But of these things more hereafter.

Meantime it is certain that the egg of the hen is not engendered from any such discharge of fluid during sexual intercourse, although after connexion, and brimful of satisfaction, she shakes herself for joy, and, as if already possessed of the richest treasure, as if gifted by supreme Jove the preserver with the blessing of fecundity, she sets to work to prune and ornament herself. The pigeon, particularly that kind which comes to us from Africa, expresses the satisfaction she feels from intercourse in a remarkable manner; she leaps, spreads her tail, and sweeps the ground with its extremity, she pecks and prunes her feathers—all her actions are as if she felt raised to the summit of felicity by the gift of fruitfulness.

We have said that the primary matter of the egg does not consist of blood as Aristotle would have it, neither does it proceed from any mixture of the male and female seminal fluids. Whence it truly originates we have already stated in part in our history; and we shall by and by have occasion to speak of the subject more at length when we come to treat generally of the matter from which every conception is originally produced.