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  Ever-sporting 
  Varieties 
  

  

  One 
  of 
  these 
  doubtful 
  terms 
  is 
  the 
  word 
  sport. 
  

   It 
  often 
  means 
  bud-variation, 
  while 
  in 
  other 
  

   cases 
  it 
  conveys 
  the 
  same 
  idea 
  as 
  the 
  old 
  botan- 
  

   ical 
  term 
  of 
  mutation. 
  But 
  then 
  all 
  sorts 
  of 
  

   seemingly 
  sudden 
  variations 
  are 
  occasionally 
  

   designated 
  by 
  the 
  same 
  term 
  by 
  one 
  writer 
  or 
  

   another, 
  and 
  even 
  accidental 
  anomalies, 
  such 
  as 
  

   teratological 
  ascidia, 
  are 
  often 
  said 
  to 
  arise 
  by 
  

   sports. 
  

  

  If 
  we 
  compare 
  all 
  these 
  different 
  conceptions, 
  

   we 
  will 
  find 
  that 
  their 
  most 
  general 
  feature 
  is 
  

   the 
  suddenness 
  and 
  the 
  rarity 
  of 
  the 
  phenom- 
  

   enon. 
  They 
  convey 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  something 
  un- 
  

   expected, 
  something 
  not 
  always 
  or 
  not 
  regularly 
  

   occurring. 
  But 
  even 
  this 
  demarcation 
  is 
  not 
  

   universal, 
  and 
  there 
  are 
  processes 
  that 
  are 
  reg- 
  

   ularly 
  repeated 
  and 
  nevertheless 
  are 
  called 
  

   sports. 
  These 
  at 
  least 
  should 
  be 
  designated 
  by 
  

   another 
  name. 
  

  

  In 
  order 
  to 
  avoid 
  confusion 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  possible, 
  

   with 
  the 
  least 
  change 
  in 
  existing 
  terminology, 
  

   I 
  shall 
  use 
  the 
  term 
  " 
  ever-sporting 
  varieties 
  " 
  

   for 
  such 
  forms 
  as 
  are 
  regularly 
  propagated 
  by 
  

   seed, 
  and 
  of 
  pure 
  and 
  not 
  hybrid 
  origin, 
  but 
  

   which 
  sport 
  in 
  nearly 
  every 
  generation. 
  The 
  

   term 
  is 
  a 
  new 
  one, 
  but 
  the 
  facts 
  are 
  for 
  the 
  most 
  

   part 
  new, 
  and 
  require 
  to 
  be 
  considered 
  in 
  

   a 
  new 
  light, 
  Its 
  meaning 
  will 
  become 
  clearer 
  

   at 
  once 
  when 
  the 
  illustrations 
  afforded 
  by 
  

  

  