130 MR. MILLER CHRISTY ON THE 
another plant (which, as likely as not, will be long-styled), to repeat the 
cycle all over again. 
Yet, surely, it is quite impossible to accept seriously the view that the 
flowers of any species of Primula can be intended to be pollinated, in an 
irregular, casual, and even accidental manner, by a small beetle or any 
similar insect. If such were the case, it would be hard to explain how the 
remarkable phenomenon of heterostylism could ever have originated, what 
necessity there can ever have been for it, and what use it can be now ; for, 
in that case, all its highly-specialized arrangements for ensuring cross- (as 
against self-) pollination would be no more than a highly ingenious and most 
interesting, but entirely useless, complication. Nature does not lay herself 
out, however, to produce useless curiosities of the kind or to play mere aimless 
pranks. All she does, she does with some definite object. Therefore, as 
heterostylism exists (and I see no reason whatever to regard it as a survival 
merely), it must serve some useful purpose ; and that purpose can only be 
(so far as anyone has yet been able to show) the one so clearly pointed out 
by Darwin. 
Nevertheless, it seems certain (as stated above) that the flowers of all 
our three Primulas are, in fact, pollinated freely—almost, it seems, as a 
matter of course—by these minute beetles, in a manner in which the highly- 
ingenious contrivances pertaining to heterostylism obviously play little or 
no part. How, then, are we to explain this perplexing fact? 
To me, it seems that the only conclusion one can come to is that the 
irregular pollination effected by the beetles is superfluous and accidental 
(probably, even, injurious, in view of the large amount of pollen and nectar 
stolen by them in the course of their operations), and that it is merely 
supplementary to (though possibly greater in volume than) the pollination 
effected by large long-tongued insects, in the manner obviously intended *. 
In regard to Thripst : it seems probable that they also, like Meligethes, may 
be capable of effecting pollination, both legitimately and illegitimately, but, 
of course, in an irregular manner. Darwin concluded that these insects 
might effect the sel/-pollination of both forms of flower to a small extent 1. 
The Rev. E. Bell even regarded Thrips as the insect which normally 
pollinates the Primrose $; which seems to me inconceivable. But, even 
# The whole case of this irregular pollination of Primula flowers by Meligethes seems 
more or less on a par with that of a gang of burglars who, while breaking into one’s house, 
stealing one's silver, and drinking one's whisky, nevertheless render one (quite uninten- 
tionally and unknown to themselves) a definite service of some value, though a service one 
did not desire—would, in fact, rather have been without—because one possessed previously 
a means of securing the performance of that service in a more effectual manner and through 
a more regular and acceptable medium. 
t See ante, p. 123. 
+ ‘Forms of Flower,’ pp. ? 23, 37, 49, &e. 
N * Primrose and Darwinism,’ pp. 34-36, &c. 
