The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-07-29
TAILLESS WHITE MICE.
A Story Concerning the Breeding of
Peculiar Rodent Family.
vi

(Ftom the New York Tribune)
remarkable story about breeding race
Of tailless white mice Is discussed In a
recent issue OF THE Medical Record" by
DR.. Charles L. Woodruff, an army sur
geon stationed at Fort Riley, Kas In itself
the matter is Of small Importance, but IL
has a bearing on the theory of evolution
which biologists are quick to see. and on
that account investigation and verification
are called for.
When one makes q comprehensive study
Of the animal kingdom he finds that 1t is
divided into numerous orders, each differ
Ing radically from the other instructure.
The orders are divided into families, the
families into genera and the genera into
species. The differences grow smaller as
one proceeds from the order to the species,
but even in the last subdivision these are
definite enough in the minds of some biolo-
gists to be unmistakable.
Darwin accounted for the perpetuation
of species after It had once been differ
entiated from the rest Of its genus and
family by the law of survival Of the 1T
test" II the individual or species should
possess a characteristic that particularly
adapted 1t to thrive in its environment II
would survive where other individuals or
species would perish. II 1t had a thicker
or proboscis where 1t was necessary to
reach upward for food or, In case OF a
helpless insect il it had coloring like the
leaf or twig that 1t reposed upon, and was
therefore likely to be partly hidden from
it's foes, 1t would be preserved by pro-
cess OF natural selection"
Other individuals and species less ia
vored would perish in the general conflict
between life and adverse circumstances.
Thus a wedding out process would be go
ing on all the time.
But while 1t is comparatively easy to
understand how, by heredity and natural
selection, a species should be perpetuated
after It once has its origin, 1t is a more
difficult matter to tell how the species gets
its start. To be sure, no two children OF
the same parents, no two roses on the
same bush. no two apples on the same
tree, are exactly alike. There is always a
certain amount OF departure from the type
and occasionally this departure is very
marked. What is more, sometimes an in
dividual will not derive his peculiarities
from his parents, but acquire them in
some other way during his lifetime. But
a wide distinction is made between inner
tied and acquired variations, and Weiss
mann and others have held that the latter
cannot be passed along to progeny. They
Of the grandparents and not the new pc
culiarities of one or both parents.
Now, without knowing anything about
the hot discussion Of the scientists over
this question, A. s. shiddeIl, OF Lexington,
KY, undertook some experiments a few
years ago in breeding white mice. Accord
ing to his own statement, he cut off the
tails OF both parents. and before the pro-
geny were allowed to breed he subjected
them to the same treatment. His aim was
to see II he could produce a race of tailless
mice. Well. he declares that after the
sixth or seventh generation some OF the
young were born without tails, Finally, he
says, he obtained a perfect breed of tall
less mice'-by which expression it is pre-
sumable that he means that none OF the
offspring had tails. Unfortunately. he does
not appear to have been content to rest
here. He wanted to see II he could reverse
the experiment. He therefore began cross
ing his tailless mice with those possessing
normal caudal appendages; and after a
time, he asserts, all of his mice had tails
again. During the latter series of expert
ments he mated tailed male with tail
less female, and the next time mated a
tailless male with tailed female.
DR.. Woodruff had understood that some
one else was responsible for this narrative,
and set out TO investigate IT. Colonel
Bruce, OF Turf, Field and Farm" and
others assisted in the enquiry At length
a long letter was obtained from Mr. Shid-
dell supplying details. Inasmuch as Dr.
Woodruff refers to him In the past tense.
II Is probable that he is no longer living.
! DR.. Woodruff is very skeptical about the
truth of the story. He calls It a fake"
And one reason for holding that opinion
is that Weissmann and others have tried
10 do Just what Mr.. Shiddell pretends to
have done. but without securing the same
results. From the Kentuckian's neighbors
testimonials to his responsibility have been
obtained, but he Is said to have been full
of odd conceits. II is possible that he de-
ceived himself.
But his much is obvious Ir Mr.. Shid-
dell could raise race Of tailless mice any
one else can. Were dozen other men to
undertake the experiment and none Of
them to succeed, though he raised twenty
generations, the Kentucky story would be
spoiled for scientific purposes. But If even
one cut Of the dozen eventually succeeded
the matter would assume immense impor-
lance tnom a philosophical point of view.