﻿188 
  Retrograde 
  Varieties 
  

  

  and 
  limited 
  to 
  such 
  cases 
  as 
  we 
  have 
  spoken 
  of 
  

   under 
  our 
  last 
  heading. 
  And 
  since 
  the 
  defi- 
  

   nition, 
  given 
  to 
  this 
  term 
  by 
  its 
  author, 
  Du- 
  

   chesne, 
  is 
  generally 
  accepted 
  in 
  scientific 
  works, 
  

   it 
  seems 
  better 
  not 
  to 
  use 
  it 
  in 
  another 
  sense, 
  

   but 
  rather 
  to 
  replace 
  it 
  in 
  such 
  cases 
  by 
  another 
  

   term. 
  For 
  this 
  purpose 
  I 
  propose 
  the 
  word 
  

   vicinism, 
  derived 
  from 
  the 
  Latin 
  vicinus 
  or 
  

   neighbor, 
  as 
  indicating 
  the 
  sporting 
  of 
  a 
  variety 
  

   under 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  others 
  in 
  its 
  vicinity. 
  

   Used 
  in 
  this 
  way, 
  this 
  term 
  has 
  the 
  same 
  bear- 
  

   ing 
  as 
  the 
  word 
  atavism 
  of 
  the 
  breeders, 
  but 
  

   it 
  has 
  the 
  advantage 
  of 
  indicating 
  the 
  true 
  cause 
  

   thereof. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  the 
  term 
  variability 
  is 
  

   commonly 
  employed 
  in 
  the 
  broadest 
  possible 
  

   sense. 
  No 
  single 
  phenomenon 
  can 
  be 
  desig- 
  

   nated 
  by 
  this 
  name, 
  unless 
  some 
  primary 
  re- 
  

   striction 
  be 
  given. 
  Atavism 
  and 
  vicinism 
  are 
  

   both 
  cases 
  of 
  variability, 
  but 
  in 
  wholly 
  different 
  

   sense. 
  For 
  this 
  reason 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  as 
  well, 
  to 
  

   insert 
  here 
  a 
  short 
  survey 
  of 
  the 
  general 
  mean- 
  

   ings 
  to 
  be 
  conveyed 
  by 
  the 
  term 
  variation. 
  It 
  

   implies 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  place 
  the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  a 
  

   wide 
  range 
  of 
  forms 
  and 
  types, 
  irrespective 
  of 
  

   their 
  origin, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  second 
  place 
  the 
  process 
  

   of 
  the 
  change 
  in 
  such 
  forms. 
  In 
  the 
  first 
  signifi- 
  

   cation 
  it 
  is 
  nearly 
  identical 
  with 
  polymorphy, 
  

   or 
  richness 
  of 
  types, 
  especially 
  so 
  when 
  these 
  

  

  