Plain Facts for Old and Young

by John Harvey Kellogg

It is asserted by good authorities that the reproductive element in man is not so well developed as to be really fit for the reproduction of the species before the age of twenty-four or twenty-five. After the age of forty-five or fifty, the reproductive elements deteriorate in quality, and become again unfitted for vigorous procreation.

The fully developed zoösperms are suspended in a transparent, gelatinous fluid, which, mingled with the secretion of the prostate gland and other fluids which it meets during its expulsion from the body, constitutes the semen.

[The Ovum.]—The female element of generation, the ovum, is produced by an organ called the ovary, of which there are two in each individual. In size and form, the ovary closely resembles the testicle. Like the latter organ, also, it is formed within the body early in the process of development; but instead of passing outward and downward, as does the testicle, it remains within the abdominal cavity, suspended in place by ligaments. It is connected with a duct which receives the ovum as it is discharged, and conveys it to the uterus.

The human ovum varies in size from 1/240 to 1/120 of an inch in diameter, and consists of a single cell. Ova are not formed in such large numbers as zoösperms. As a general rule, in the human female, a single ovum is developed and discharged once in about four weeks, during the period of sexual activity.

[Fecundation.]—It is often asked, and the question has elicited some discussion, Which is the principal reproductive element; the zoösperm, or the ovum? The ancients supposed the male element to be the essential element, being simply nourished and developed by the female; but modern research in biological science does not sustain this view. Probably neither one enjoys especial preëminence; for neither can undergo complete development without the other. In very rare cases, the ovum has been observed to undergo a certain amount of development of itself; but a perfect individual can be produced only by the union of the two kinds of elements, which process is known as fecundation. The instant this union occurs, the life of a new individual begins. All the changes which result between that moment and the birth of the individual are those of development only. Indeed, the same existence continues from the instant of the union of the two elements, not only until birth, but through growth, the attainment of maturity, the decline of life, and even until death.

It is interesting to observe the different methods by which fecundation is effected, both in plants and animals, for this is a process common to both.

[Fecundation in Flowers.]—The great naturalist, Linnæus, was the first to explain the reproductive process in plants. He tells us that "the flower forms the theater of their amours; the calyx is to be considered as the nuptial bed; the corolla constitutes the curtains; the anthers are the testes; the pollen, the fecundating fluid; the stigma of the pistil, the external genital aperture; the style, the vagina, or the conductor of the prolific seed; the ovary of the plant, the womb; the reciprocal action of the stamens on the pistil, the accessory process of fecundation."

Thus marvelous is the analogy between the reproductive organs and their functions in plants and animals. Through this one vital process we may trace a close relation between all the forms of life, from the humblest plant, or even the mere specks of life which form the green scum upon a stagnant pool, to man, the masterpiece of creation, the highest of all animated creatures. In all the realm of Nature there can be found no more remarkable evidences of the infinite skill and wisdom of the Creator of all things.