﻿748 
  Fluctuations 
  

  

  inquiry 
  to 
  a 
  single 
  individual. 
  These 
  curves 
  

   give 
  the 
  partial 
  variability, 
  and 
  are 
  found 
  to 
  

   comply 
  with 
  Quetelet 
  's 
  law. 
  

  

  Besides 
  this 
  limited 
  study, 
  we 
  may 
  compare 
  

   the 
  numerous 
  individuals 
  of 
  one 
  locality 
  or 
  of 
  

   a 
  large 
  plot 
  of 
  cultivated 
  plants 
  with 
  one 
  an- 
  

   other. 
  In 
  doing 
  so, 
  we 
  are 
  struck 
  with 
  the 
  fact 
  

   that 
  some 
  plants 
  have 
  large 
  and 
  others 
  small 
  

   fruits. 
  We 
  now 
  limit 
  ourselves 
  to 
  the 
  main 
  

   spike 
  of 
  each 
  plant, 
  and 
  perhaps 
  to 
  its 
  lower 
  

   parts, 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  avoid 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  possible 
  the 
  im- 
  

   pression 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  partial 
  fluctuations. 
  The 
  

   differences 
  remain, 
  and 
  are 
  sufficient 
  to 
  fur- 
  

   nish 
  an 
  easy 
  comparison 
  with 
  the 
  general 
  law. 
  

   In 
  order 
  to 
  do 
  this, 
  we 
  take 
  from 
  each 
  plant 
  a 
  

   definite 
  number 
  of 
  capsules 
  and 
  measure 
  their 
  

   average 
  length. 
  In 
  some 
  experiments 
  I 
  took 
  

   the 
  twenty 
  lowermost 
  capsules 
  of 
  the 
  main 
  

   spikes. 
  In 
  this 
  way 
  one 
  average 
  was 
  obtained 
  

   for 
  each 
  plant, 
  and 
  combining 
  these 
  into 
  a 
  curve, 
  

   it 
  was 
  found 
  that 
  these 
  fluctuations 
  also 
  came 
  

   under 
  Quetelet 
  's 
  law. 
  Thus 
  the 
  individual 
  aver- 
  

   ages, 
  and 
  the 
  fluctuations 
  around 
  each 
  of 
  them, 
  

   follow 
  the 
  same 
  rule. 
  The 
  first 
  are 
  a 
  measure 
  

   for 
  the 
  whole 
  plant, 
  the 
  second 
  only 
  for 
  its 
  parts. 
  

  

  As 
  a 
  general 
  resume 
  we 
  can 
  assert 
  that, 
  as 
  a 
  

   rule, 
  a 
  quality 
  is 
  determined 
  in 
  some 
  degree 
  

   during 
  the 
  earlier 
  stages 
  of 
  the 
  organism, 
  and 
  

   that 
  this 
  determination 
  is 
  valid 
  throughout 
  its 
  

  

  