Advertising Disclaimer
PEDIATRICS Vol. 58 No. 6 December 1976, pp. 901
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by C., T. E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by C., T. E., Jr.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Facebook   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati   Add to Twitter  
What's this?

THE POWER OF MATERNAL IMPRESSION CAUSES THE ALLEGED FATHER'S NAME TO APPEAR IN LEGIBLE LETTERS IN HIS INFANT SON'S RIGHT EYE (1817)

T. E. C. Jr. M.D.

During the 19th century the question of maternal impressions was still unresolved. A curious example of the putative power of this phenomenon is given below. A similar instance was reported about 1825 by Dr. Munro of Edinburgh who frequently exhibited a child in whose eyes many persons imagined they could read the name and age of his father.

A young woman in Galloway [Scotland] having proved with child, laid the same to a respectable man of the name John Woods, who denied being the father of the same, and persisted in his denial saying that he would never acknowledge the child unless his name was written at full length on its face; and he accordingly gave his solemn oath before the court to that effect. This made so much impression on the mind of the young woman, who was present, that his name and person remained constantly in her mind's eye, and when the child was born, the name of the father appeared in legible letters in the child's eye, the name of "JOHN WOODS," on the right eye, and "BORN 1817" on the left eye. When John Woods, the alleged father, came to know this circumstance, he instantly absconded and has not since been heard of.

This wonderful child has now arrived in this city [Edinburgh], and has been inspected by the Professors and other learned Faculties of this city, and pronounced to be a most wonderful phenomenon of nature, and an astonishing dispensation of Providence in pointing out the truth against the wicked and perjured ways of men.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Facebook Facebook   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati   Add to Twitter Twitter    What's this?