﻿Cultivated 
  Elementary 
  Species 
  67 
  

  

  ity 
  at 
  large. 
  And 
  this 
  assumption 
  would 
  be 
  

   equally 
  sufficient 
  to 
  explain 
  the 
  existing 
  condi- 
  

   tions 
  among 
  cultivated 
  plants. 
  

  

  Of 
  course 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  pretend 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  culti- 
  

   vated 
  plants 
  should 
  be 
  expected 
  to 
  be 
  less 
  vari- 
  

   able 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  wild 
  state, 
  or 
  that 
  swarms 
  of 
  

   elementary 
  species 
  might 
  not 
  be 
  produced 
  dur- 
  

   ing 
  cultivation 
  quite 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  before. 
  How- 
  

   ever 
  the 
  chance 
  of 
  such 
  an 
  event, 
  as 
  is 
  easily 
  

   seen, 
  cannot 
  be 
  very 
  great, 
  and 
  we 
  shall 
  have 
  to 
  

   be 
  content 
  with 
  a 
  few 
  examples 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  

   coconut 
  is 
  a 
  notable 
  one. 
  

  

  Leaving 
  this 
  general 
  discussion 
  of 
  the 
  sub- 
  

   ject, 
  we 
  may 
  take 
  up 
  the 
  example 
  of 
  the 
  beets. 
  

   The 
  sugar-beet 
  is 
  only 
  one 
  type 
  from 
  among 
  a 
  

   horde 
  of 
  others, 
  and 
  though 
  the 
  origin 
  of 
  all 
  the 
  

   single 
  types 
  is 
  not 
  historically 
  known, 
  the 
  plant 
  

   is 
  frequently 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  wild 
  state 
  even 
  at 
  the 
  

   present 
  time, 
  and 
  the 
  native 
  types 
  may 
  be 
  com- 
  

   pared 
  with 
  the 
  corresponding 
  cultivated 
  varie- 
  

   ties. 
  

  

  The 
  cultivation 
  of 
  beets 
  for 
  sugar 
  is 
  not 
  of 
  

   very 
  ancient 
  date. 
  The 
  Romans 
  knew 
  the 
  beets 
  

   and 
  used 
  them 
  as 
  vegetables, 
  both 
  the 
  roots 
  and 
  

   the 
  leaves. 
  They 
  distinguished 
  a 
  variety 
  with 
  

   white 
  and 
  one 
  with 
  red 
  flesh, 
  but 
  whether 
  they 
  

   cultivated 
  them, 
  or 
  only 
  collected 
  them 
  from 
  

   where 
  they 
  grew 
  spontaneously, 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  

   unknown. 
  

  

  