. The descent of man : and selection in relation to sex. Evolution; Natural selection; Heredity; Human beings. MAMMALS—GREATER SIZE OF MALE. 513 Mr. McNeill, of Colonsay, concludes that "the males do not at- "tain their full growth till over two years old, though the fe- "males attain it ; According to Mr. Cupples' experience, male dogs go on growing in stature till they are from twelve to eighteen months old, and in weight till from eighteen to twenty- four months old; whilst the females cease increasing in stature at the age of from nine to fourteen or fifteen mont
. The descent of man : and selection in relation to sex. Evolution; Natural selection; Heredity; Human beings. MAMMALS—GREATER SIZE OF MALE. 513 Mr. McNeill, of Colonsay, concludes that "the males do not at- "tain their full growth till over two years old, though the fe- "males attain it ; According to Mr. Cupples' experience, male dogs go on growing in stature till they are from twelve to eighteen months old, and in weight till from eighteen to twenty- four months old; whilst the females cease increasing in stature at the age of from nine to fourteen or fifteen months, and in weight at the age of from twelve to fifteen months. From these various statements it is clear that the full difference in size between the male and female Scotch deerhound is not acquired until rather late in life. The males almost exclusively are used for coursing, for, as Mr. McNeill informs me, the females have not sufiicient strength and weight to pull down a full-grown deer. From the names used in old legends, it appears, as I hear from Mr. Cup- ples, that, at a very ancient period, the males were the most cele- brated, the females being mentioned only as the moth- ers of famous dogs. Hence, during many generations, it is the male which has been chiefly tested for strength, size, speed, and courage, and the best will have been bred from. As, however, the males do not attain their full dimen- sions until rather late in life, they will have tended, in ac- cordance with the law often indicated, to transmit their characters to their male off- spring alone; and thus the great inequality in size be- tween the sexes of the Scotch deerhounds may probably be ac- counted for. The males of some few quadrupeds possess organs or parts developed solely as a means of defense against the attacks of other males. Some kinds of deer use, as we have seen, the upp^^^ branches of their horns chiefly or exclusively for defending them- selves; and the Oryx antelope, as I am informed
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