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When we study the history of people who present a youthful appearance late in life, and reach an extraordinary old age,—up to 120 or 140, or even 160,—we are surprised at the unmistakable evidence of a strong sexual activity in most of them, which is only possible by being possessed of healthy and active sexual glands; and thus it would appear that the possession of such glands may impart a strong vitality and the best chances for a long life. That such is the case we will endeavor to show by evidence of an experimental nature, and also by facts gathered from observation of the long lives of the patriarchs.

When the sexual glands of a person are extirpated, such castrated people, be it man or woman, soon get old. This we can see in the case of eunuchs who get wrinkled even in their youth, such also get fat, and present other symptoms of premature old age; and the same is observable in women whose ovaries have been removed.

Matthew Paris,^[98] the historian, in his description of eunuchs and the appearance of early old age, tells us that in 1253 Frederick II, Emperor of Germany, married Isabella, sister of the King of England, and he presented to his wife several Moorish slaves who were eunuchs, for servants, who looked like old masks. Pelikan^[99] also mentions that the whole community of castrated Skopze in Russia, has a withered aspect; and in his book Merschejewski relates that their skin is withered and wrinkled, and that they look worn out, aged, and senile.

Besides provoking senility at an early period, castration or a degenerated condition of the sexual glands, especially in women, is able to produce alterations in organs, which are of great importance to the vitality of individuals, and to a long life, such as the heart, stomach, intestines, and liver. Experienced authorities have noted heart troubles in dysmenorrhœa and amenorrhœa, and also neurosis of the heart with long, lasting alterations of the female sexual glands. Professor Kisch^[100] also noted tachycardia in such conditions. Professor Landau^[101] has very often observed a degeneration of the heart after myoma of the uterus. Lehman and Strassmann, in the Berlin Charité, have seen such a degenerated condition of the heart in 44 per cent. of patients with myomas of the uterus.

It has been shown by experiments that there is a close relation between the condition of the ovaries and the heart. Professor Hegar^[102] has demonstrated that castration, or simple tugging of the ovaries, is able to produce a diminution of the heart beats, or even a stoppage of the heart. Lucas Championnière has also noted the same after a tearing of the ovaries, and Mariagalli and Negri have also noted tachycardia after laparotomy.

Very important also are the relations between the ovaries and the digestive organs. Kretschy observed, in a case of fistula in the stomach, that alterations of the female sexual organs regularly produced also alterations of the digestive functions; for instance, during menstruation there is always an increased flow of hydrochloric acid. The same has been found by Fleischer, who noted during this period a sluggishness in digestion, which improved after menstruation.

Tanecki found dyspeptic troubles in cases of retroflexion of the uterus, and Eisenheart has observed the disappearance of acute gastric troubles after a cure of retroflexion.

P. Muller also declares that there are intimate relations between the sexual glands and the digestive organs. He also observed dyspeptic troubles during menstruation; and Professor Leyden has noted neuralgia and hyperæsthesia of the stomach in young girls after menstrual troubles.

Habitual chronic constipation, which is so frequent after a degenerated condition of the sexual glands, points to the existence of close relations between these organs and the intestines.

Based upon clinical observations, we have advanced the theory that alterations of the ovaries are able to produce alterations also of the liver, and the circulation of the bile, with formation of gall-stones. Castration also produces alterations of the thyroid: first, its hyperactivity with increase of colloid substance, and, afterward, its degeneration.

Castrated animals or persons seem to offer less resistance to infection, which may be on account of the connection, as shown by the experiments of Metschnikoff^[103] and others, that the testicles are altered in infections, which has been shown to be equally the case with the ovaries (Professor Cornil). The sexual glands, as the ductless glands in general, have the duty also of protecting the body against the various kinds of intoxication and infections, as already emphasized.

From the foregoing there can be no doubt that degenerated conditions of the sexual glands, by producing alterations in important organs, diminish vitality and the chances of an advanced old age.

This seems also to apply to males, for there is no evidence showing that any eunuch has reached a very advanced age, whereas there is plenty of evidence of persons with strong sexual glands having lived far beyond 100 years. The vitality of persons if totally castrated is, as a rule, diminished.

Again if we study the history of persons who attained the maximum span of life, we find many evidences of the existence of strong sexual impulses. Thomas Parr, who lived to nearly 153, has been accused of having committed a sexual offense in his 102d year, for which he was found guilty and punished. Reaching even a greater age, his sexual appetite does not seem to have diminished, for he married, eighteen years after, a widow, who said she could discover nothing that would betray his great age.

Drakenberg, a Dane, who is buried in the cathedral in Aarhus, Denmark, lived 146 years, and reached this advanced age although he was more often drunk than sober. When he was 111 he married a woman of 60, and after she died he fell in love in his 130th year with a young peasant girl; but this blooming flower of the Jutland peninsula, famous for its fresh and healthy girls, refused her ancient wooer, who, nothing daunted, tried his luck with several other young maidens but with no better success; therefore he had perforce to remain a widower, and he lived an additional sixteen years. Possibly if he had addressed widows or elderly spinsters, he might have succeeded; but it is very instructive that this ancient Methuselah insisted on marrying a young girl, which certainly speaks in favor of strong sexual feelings in so old a man, and, indeed, we may say it is an object lesson to us to observe that these ancients were always anxious to marry again so soon as they became widowers. That it was more than a mere formality, or bond of platonic affection, was attested to by Thomas Parr’s wife when he was in his 130th year.

If many children be considered a sign of sexual activity and capacity, these very old men distinguished themselves in this respect, as most of them had numerous progeny. Several had a score of children after they were 80. Peter Albrecht, who lived to be 123, married in his 85th year, and had 7 children. Another patriarch, Gurgen Douglas, born in Marstrand, near Gothenburg, in Sweden, who reached to 120 years and 7 months, married in his 85th year and had 8 children, one of which was born when he was in his 103rd year. This child was an idiot, but as it is very interesting to note, otherwise physically well developed.

An Italian, Baron Baravicino de Capellis, died in 1770 at Meran, a climatic resort in the Tyrol (Austria), in his 107th year. He had 4 wives, the first of whom he married when he was 14, and the last when he was 84. He had 7 children, and it is an interesting fact that his wife was pregnant when he died.

As an English paper has reported, in 1796 there was a shoemaker, R. Glan, living near Philadelphia, Pa., who died at 114, and never missed a Sunday service. At his decease his third wife was but 30, and his virile powers were normal.

We need not be too skeptical as to the legitimacy of the children of fathers of such advanced age for reasons we will mention later. Examples of fathers at ages above 60 or 70 are not so exceedingly rare. A very good example of this is that of a crowned head of one of the European countries, married morganatically, who, in his 72nd year, was presented by his wife with a child, and nobody who is acquainted with the powerful constitution of this monarch and his predilection for the fair sex will doubt his happiness as a father. He is noted for his marvelous intellect, which, again, is so frequently met with in persons with very active sexual glands.

Several of these ancient patriarchs, at the autopsy, presented a wonderfully good state of preservation of the various organs. Thomas Parr died in his 153d year, and his autopsy was made by one of the greatest physicians in the history of medicine—the celebrated Harvey, the discoverer of the circulation of the blood. Harvey found every organ in this wonderful old man in perfect condition. His death was attributed by Harvey to over-eating, as Parr had always lived a very frugal life. The King of England invited this astonishing personage to London in his 152d year, as he wanted to know this most interesting of his subjects; but the rich food he received in the royal household did not prove beneficial to him, and though his 152 years of frugal life were unable to kill him, nine months of an opposite style of living succeeded in so doing.

We should not wish to omit mentioning again the important fact that, with few exceptions, the persons who lived to such an extraordinary age were married, and some of them three or four times, which again serves to show us the great importance of marriage as a means to reach a good, old age.

We have quoted these instances of longevity from Hufeland,^[104] one of the greatest German physicians of the eighteenth century, of whose truthfulness there can be no doubt. The great German physiologist, Pflüger, also quoted some of the above examples of great age in his address in celebration of the birthday of Emperor William II, at the University of Bonn. When Parr had been found guilty of a misdemeanor in his 102d year facts were adduced in the courts which showed that, as Pflüger says, this “100 jährige durchaus die Eigenschaften eines Kräftegen jugendlichen mannes besass” (the man of 100 years really had the qualities of a powerful young man). Pflüger quotes this from Flourens, and we were pleased to find an account of the autopsy of the celebrated patriarch in a letter from Harvey, himself, to his nephew, published by the Sydenham Society^[105]: “The body was in such a good condition in a man of 153 that the cartilages of the chest bones were not yet ossified.” Harvey put it: “The cartilages were soft and flexible,” black hair on the forearms, and the organs apparently healthy. Probably the fact that the testes, as Harvey says, “were sound and large,” had something to do with it. He was also an affectionate husband, and to quote Harvey again, “His wife told me that until twelve years ago he never ceased to embrace her frequently”; that is, when he was 140 years old! At the autopsy of John Bayley, of Northampton, who died 130 years old, Dr. James Keill^[106] found his testes of large size.

We have also knowledge of a very interesting case, that of an Irishman, an ex-navy man, who, according to the admiralty official statistics, was 113 years old, and whose body was dissected by Professor Cunningham, Professor of Anatomy of Edinburgh University. As Dr. Cunningham, himself, told us, the testes were sound and healthy looking, and the cartilages of the chest bone not yet ossified. Death was not due to old age, but to a prostate abscess, except for which the body was in good condition.

Metschnikoff also mentions in his “Etudes sur la Nature Humaine” examples of old men between 94 and 104 years, who suffered from copious spermatorrhœa, and in whose semen he has found a great quantity of spermatozoa. He and Dr. Weinberg observed similar conditions in old dogs of 18 to 22 years of age, one of whom, just before his death, had shown marked sexual tendencies.^[107] Saverio Spangaro,^[108] examining the testicles of a number of old men, found many of them atrophied, but others showed microscopically no difference to the testicles of younger individuals; there were only slight microscopical changes. This again proves our theory, that old age is not due to the degeneration of one, but of several glands with internal secretion, similarly to other diseases of these glands, like diabetes, acromegaly, etc.

The above facts of the preservation of the sexual glands in advanced old age, proves also the important fact that though the actual age be there, the symptoms of it may not be very pronounced if but the sexual glands are in good order. Of course the condition of the other ductless glands is of importance, for old age must be regarded as the consequence of the degeneration of the different ductless glands, and not of one gland alone.

When we consider the splendid health enjoyed by most of these patriarchs and the good condition of their organs, why should we deny the possibility that they were disposing of at least one lively spermatozoön, and thus we shall have no reason to doubt their happiness as fathers.

We must also add that the truth of the extraordinary age of these persons has been proved, in most cases, by documents, sometimes even in courts of law; also by the recollections of very old people who, in their own early childhood, personally knew them.

That people with strong sexual impulses very often reach a very advanced old age, we can often observe. There are plenty of examples in the history of the world. Thus, the greatest debauchery did not prevent Louis XV becoming very old, and the Emperor Tiberius lived to be 78 after his notorious life. However, in the same way as with alcohol and tobacco, we would here repeat “Quod licet Jovi, non licet bovi” (or, “what suits Peter may not suit Paul”).

We may also refer to a few instances coming under our own observation. A few years ago one of our confrères at Carlsbad died, 96 years of age. His intellect was perfect, and a few months before his death we had a consultation together about a patient who was 83, at which he gave evidence of a wonderfully clear intelligence. In his behavior toward the fair sex (whom he much admired) he showed a chivalry and gallantry outvying men of half his age. Up to the last he never failed to attend a theatrical performance when there was an operetta or a ballet. There was nothing to prevent his attaining a greater age, but, falling in his room, he contracted a fracture of the femur, followed by pneumonia, which put an end to his medical practice, for this wonderful old man in his advanced years paid his daily visits, which he only intended to cease, as he said, when he reached 100.

A prominent member of the aristocracy of one of the northern countries of Europe, who is at present 90 years old, having been reproached several years ago by his relatives for his amorous advances to the fair sex, gave the answer, “You do not know what it means to be an old man with the body of a young man.” This old man still rides on horseback and still goes shooting. The fact that he looks a handsome man of 60 may be explained on the basis of our above observation.

In advanced old age the preservation of the sentiments toward the opposite sex, which allows us to presume the presence, and not yet extinction, of an internal secretion of the sexual glands, is often found in combination with a high intellect. This is also proved by the example of Goethe in his 83d year, for in his old age his intellect would have been creditable to a man of 30. When he was over 81 he astonished his audience by the uninterrupted current of his ideas, also the extraordinary richness of his inventions.^[109] Commenting on the above, Moebius, in an interesting biography on Goethe, says: “From the physiological standpoint the astonishment evoked by the works of this old man is almost greater than that about his juvenile activity.” He finished the second part of “Faust” when he was over 82. As Metschnikoff says: “It is love that was the greatest stimulant of the genius of Goethe,” for it is well known that Goethe was an ardent admirer of the fair sex. When he was 74 he was passionately in love with Ulricke Lewetzow, who was still in her teens. He danced like a youth when in her company, and it was at this time that he wrote to his son that he had never, up to this, felt so well in mind and body. He wanted to marry the young girl, and the Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar asked in Goethe’s name for her hand; but the mother was not willing to allow a marriage between persons of such divergence in age. So much was Goethe in love with the young girl that his disappointment contributed to develop a serious illness (Eckermann). Even when he was much older he again renewed his relations with Miss Marianne Young, and was then, to a certain extent, consoled for his disappointment over Miss Lewetzow. He preserved his admiration for the fair sex until his death, and even in the closing day of his life in his delirium he called out, “Look at that beautiful woman’s head with dark curls on a black background!”^[110]

A similar retention of the sexual sense we see in the advanced years of Victor Hugo, whose admiration of the opposite sex continued till his death. Ibsen, the celebrated Norwegian dramatist, kept up a well-known correspondence with a young lady whom he met at Marienbad a short time before he died in advanced old age.

Sometimes in women of extreme age instances are quoted that would seem to indicate that in them also the activity of the sexual glands may not have been extinct. It is stated that Ninon de l’Enclos^[111] was in her 90th year still so beautiful that a young abbé fell desperately in love with her. We know an Italian lady of 69 who is still good-looking, presenting the appearance of 45, and she still menstruates. That she was sexually active is shown by the fact that she has 12 children. There is more fire in the eyes of this Italian matron than in many women of half her age. That the possession of active sexual glands influences the looks very much can also be proved by the pale, yellow-gray and aged looks of even young women suffering from serious chronic diseases of the sexual glands, and also of women who have caused these organs to degenerate owing to sexual excesses.

The fact that persons who have attained advanced old age in robust health and perfect intellect often show signs of preservation of the sexual glands, permits the inference, especially considering the foregoing examples, that a perfect condition of these glands is an important factor toward vitality and long life, for which reason we devote a long chapter to the best hygiene of the sexual glands (see Chapter XLIX).