﻿False 
  Atavism 
  211 
  

  

  which 
  reassume 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  varietal 
  

   parent, 
  all 
  the 
  others 
  apparently 
  remaining 
  true 
  

   to 
  the 
  type 
  of 
  the 
  species. 
  Now 
  it 
  is 
  easy 
  to 
  

   foresee 
  what 
  must 
  happen 
  in 
  the 
  second 
  gen- 
  

   eration 
  if 
  the 
  first 
  generation 
  after 
  the 
  cross 
  

   is 
  supposed 
  to 
  be 
  kept 
  free 
  from 
  new 
  vicinistic 
  

   influences, 
  or 
  from 
  crosses 
  with 
  neighboring 
  

   varieties. 
  

  

  We 
  may 
  limit 
  ourselves 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  place 
  to 
  

   the 
  seeds 
  of 
  the 
  unobserved 
  hybrids. 
  For 
  the 
  

   greater 
  part 
  they 
  will 
  repeat 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  

   their 
  parents 
  and 
  still 
  remain 
  concealed. 
  But 
  a 
  

   small 
  number 
  will 
  display 
  the 
  varietal 
  marks, 
  

   as 
  for 
  example 
  showing 
  white 
  flowers 
  in 
  a 
  

   field 
  of 
  blue 
  ones. 
  Hence, 
  the 
  indirect 
  conse- 
  

   quence 
  of 
  the 
  spontaneous 
  crosses 
  will 
  be 
  the 
  

   same 
  in 
  the 
  species, 
  as 
  was 
  the 
  direct 
  effect 
  

   in 
  the 
  variety, 
  only, 
  that 
  it 
  appears 
  a 
  year 
  later. 
  

   It 
  will 
  then 
  be 
  eliminated 
  in 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  

   selection. 
  

  

  Obviously, 
  this 
  elimination 
  conduces 
  only 
  to 
  

   a 
  partial 
  purification. 
  The 
  conspicuous 
  plants 
  

   will 
  be 
  destroyed, 
  but 
  a 
  greater 
  number 
  of 
  hy- 
  

   brids 
  will 
  remain, 
  still 
  concealed 
  by 
  their 
  re- 
  

   semblance 
  to 
  the 
  general 
  type 
  and 
  will 
  be 
  

   spared 
  to 
  repeat 
  the 
  same 
  process 
  next 
  year. 
  

   So 
  while 
  the 
  variety 
  may 
  be 
  freed 
  every 
  year 
  

   from 
  the 
  impurities 
  brought 
  into 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  pre- 
  

   ceeding 
  summer, 
  the 
  admixtures 
  of 
  the 
  spe- 
  

  

  