desire, within physiological limits, within the bounds of physiological necessity.” _Löwenfeld_ asserts that in the life of woman the sexual functions play a comparatively much greater part than in the life of man, woman’s thoughts and feelings are, that is to say, much more powerfully influenced by sexual matters than those of men; but none the less he is of opinion that in the normal woman the desire for sexual satisfaction is on the average less keen than in the normal man. Distinctly greater in woman is the erotic element only, the need to love and to be loved after an ideal manner, which is excited by the reproductive glands just as much as is the simple sensual desire. Very frequently, manifestations of this ideal need are erroneously attributed to the sensual impulse, yet this latter may be entirely absent in cases in which the erotic element is strongly developed. According to _Löwenfeld_, the sexual impulse is altogether wanting in young girls before the time of puberty, and in elderly women (in the case of the latter we consider this assertion most questionable); this lack of the sexual impulse persists in girls for an indeterminate time even after puberty, as long as they remain free from all experience of sexual stimulation. In this respect they offer a notable contrast to males of the same age. In normal girls, according to the same author, erotic dreams and similar occurrences are entirely wanting, and specific sexual sensations therefore remain absolutely unknown to them; hence it follows that the sexual impulse cannot, properly speaking, arise in such individuals, and in so far as they experience any desire for sexual intercourse it can only take the form of a craving for some enjoyment, the nature of which is entirely unknown. The absolute lack of the sexual impulse (complete frigidity) persists, according to _Löwenfeld_, in a not inconsiderable proportion of women even after their introduction to sexual intercourse—_Effertz_ estimates that such complete frigidity is permanent in 10 per cent. of all women—and in a still greater proportion of women the sensual impulse never exceeds a certain minimal intensity (partial frigidity). It is probable that in the higher classes of society, inherited predisposition, education, and perhaps also higher intelligence, combine to diminish the intensity of the sexual impulse. In contrast with these women of frigid temperament, however, we meet with women, certainly in very limited numbers, whose sexual passions are extremely powerful, and whose needs no man can satisfy.