Then, again, in the treatise "De Superfoetatione"
there occurs the following distinct statement: "If a pregnant
woman has a longing to eat earth or coals, and eats of them, the
infant which is born carries on its head the mark of these
things." This statement, however, occurs in a work which is not
mentioned by any of the ancient authorities, and is rejected by
practically all the modern ones; according to Ballantyne, there
is, therefore, no absolute proof that Hippocrates was a believer
in one of the most popular and long-persisting beliefs concerning
fetal deformities.
In the explanation of heredity, Hippocrates states "that the body
of the male as well as that of the female furnishes the semen.
That which is weak (unhealthy) is derived from weak (unhealthy)
parts, that which is strong (healthy) from strong (healthy)
parts, and the fetus will correspond to the quality of the semen.
If the semen of one part come in greater quantity from the male
than from the female, this part will resemble more closely the
father; if, however, it comes more from the female, the part will
rather resemble the mother. If it be true that the semen comes
from both parents, then it is impossible for the whole body to
resemble either the mother or the father, or neither the one nor
the other in anything, but necessarily the child will resemble
both the one and the other in something.
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