﻿784 
  Fluctuations 
  

  

  my 
  experiment, 
  while 
  100,000 
  ears 
  would 
  afford 
  

   a 
  chance 
  of 
  one 
  with 
  32 
  rows.* 
  Had 
  I 
  been 
  

   able 
  to 
  secure 
  and 
  inspect 
  this 
  number 
  of 
  ears, 
  

   perhaps 
  I 
  would 
  have 
  needed 
  only 
  a 
  year 
  to 
  get 
  

   an 
  average 
  of 
  20 
  rows. 
  This 
  however, 
  not 
  be- 
  

   ing 
  the 
  case, 
  I 
  have 
  worked 
  for 
  seven 
  years, 
  but 
  

   on 
  the 
  other 
  hand 
  have 
  cultivated 
  all 
  in 
  all 
  only 
  

   about 
  one 
  thousand 
  individuals 
  for 
  the 
  entire 
  

   experiment. 
  

  

  Obviously 
  this 
  reduction 
  of 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  ex- 
  

   periment 
  is 
  of 
  importance. 
  One 
  hundred 
  

   thousand 
  ears 
  of 
  corn 
  could 
  of 
  course, 
  be 
  se- 
  

   cured 
  directly 
  from 
  trade 
  or 
  from 
  some 
  indus- 
  

   trial 
  culture, 
  but 
  corn 
  is 
  cultivated 
  only 
  to 
  a 
  

   small 
  extent 
  in 
  Holland, 
  and 
  in 
  most 
  cases 
  the 
  

   requisite 
  number 
  of 
  individuals 
  would 
  be 
  larger 
  

   than 
  that 
  afforded 
  by 
  any 
  single 
  plantation. 
  

  

  Repeated 
  selection 
  is 
  thereby 
  seen 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  

   means 
  of 
  reducing 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  required 
  cul- 
  

   tures 
  to 
  possible 
  measures, 
  not 
  only 
  in 
  the 
  ex- 
  

   perimental-garden, 
  but 
  also 
  for 
  industrial 
  pur- 
  

   poses. 
  A 
  selection 
  from 
  among 
  60000 
  - 
  100000 
  

   individuals 
  may 
  be 
  within 
  reach 
  of 
  Burbank, 
  

   but 
  of 
  few 
  others. 
  As 
  a 
  rule 
  they 
  prefer 
  a 
  

   longer 
  time 
  with 
  a 
  smaller 
  lot 
  of 
  plants. 
  This 
  

  

  * 
  On 
  about 
  200 
  ears 
  the 
  variability 
  ranges 
  from 
  8-22 
  rows, 
  

   and 
  this 
  leads 
  approximately 
  to 
  one 
  row 
  more 
  by 
  each 
  doubling 
  

   of 
  the 
  numbers 
  of 
  instances. 
  One 
  ear 
  with 
  22 
  rows 
  in 
  

   200 
  would 
  thus 
  lead 
  to 
  the 
  expectation 
  of 
  one 
  ear 
  with 
  32 
  

   rows 
  in 
  100,000 
  ears. 
  

  

  