these two cases, it must be evident that no rules can be laid
down. In one case the subject recovered fully from a case of extreme
masturbation; in the other-case, a habit that would not be called
extreme resulted in impotence. It must be evident that the practice is
a dangerous one after puberty, as no individual can tell to which of
the above cases his may be similar.

10. _Granting that masturbation is harmful through loss of semen, is
there any compensation for this loss of semen in case of intercourse
with a woman?_

There is no doubt that an emission of semen following sexual
excitement is a draught upon the virile powers of the male animal. If
this sexual excitement is the artificial one cultivated by the
masturbator, the depletion seems to be more marked than is the case
with the normal, natural stimulation incident to sexual intercourse.
Some have suggested that the reciprocal influence of the woman can in
some way compensate for the vital fluid contributed by the male. It
is hardly likely that such a reciprocal influence is other than
psychical, but that is certainly sufficient to account for any
difference in these two forms of sexual gratification.

Nature calls upon the male animal to make a contribution for
procreation, which contribution is, always has been, and, in the very
nature of the case, always must be a certain tax upon the powers of
the male animal. When the intercourse is indulged for procreation
only, the male animal can well afford to make the contribution. Even
with that, the contribution which the male makes to procreation is
incomparably less depleting for him than are the contributions which
the female makes for her.

11. _Will vital fluid flow with every sexual intercourse?_

If vital fluid is present, and if the sexual intercourse is carried to
the point of causing an orgasm, there would, in all normal conditions,
be an emission of semen or "vital fluid."

12. _Is there any way to regulate intercourse so as to control the sex
of the offspring?_

While there are many theories upon this subject no one of them is
generally accepted by medical men.

13. _Will an intense and continuous desire on the part of a young man
for sexual intercourse cause a loss of seminal fluid?_

An intense and continuous desire for sexual intercourse will, without
question, cause an active secretion on the part of the testes, an
increased secretion on the part of the seminal vesicles and an active
secr