In the year 1825, the Highland Society of Scotland, proposed as the subject of prize essays, the solution of the question, "whether the breed of live stock connected with agriculture be susceptible of the greatest improvement from the qualities conspicuous in the male or from those conspicuous in the female parent?" Four essays received premiums. Mr. Boswell, one of the prize writers, maintained that it is not only the male parent which is capable of most speedily improving the breed of live stock, "but that the male is the parent which we can alone look to for improvement." His paper is of considerable length and ably written--abounding in argument and illustrations not easily condensed so as to be given here, and it is but justice to add that he also holds that "before the breed of a country can be improved, much more must be looked to than the answer to the question put by the Highland Society--such as crossing, selection of both parents, attention to pedigree, and to the food and care of offspring." And of crossing, he says, "when I praise the advantage of crossing, I would have it clearly understood that it is only to bring together animals _not nearly related_ but always of _the same breed_; never attempting to breed from a speed horse and a draught mare or vice versa." Crossing of breeds "may do well enough for once, but will end in vexation, if attempted to be prolonged into a line." Mr. Christian, in his essay, supports the view, that the offspring bears the greatest resemblance to that parent whether male or female, which has exerted the greatest sway of generative influence in the formation of the foetus, "that any hypothesis which would assign a superiority, or set limits to the influence of either sex in the product of generation is unsound and inadmissible," and he thus concludes--"as therefore it is unsafe to trust to the qualities of any individual animal, male or female, in improving stock, the best bred and most perfect animals of both sexes should be selected and employed in propagation; there being, in short, no other certain or equally efficacious means of establishing or preserving an eligible breed." Mr. Dallas, in his essay, starts with the idea that the seminal fluid of the male invests the ovum, the formation of which he ascribes to the female; and he supports the opinion, that where external appearance is concerned, the influence of the male will be discovered; but in what relates to internal qualities, the offspring will take most from the female. He concludes thus:--"When color, quality of fleece, or outward form is wanted, the male may be most depended on for these; but when milk is the object, when disposition, hardiness, and freedom from diseases of the viscera, and, in short, all internal qualities that may be desired, then the female may be most relied on."