﻿414 
  Ever-sporting 
  Varieties 
  

  

  of 
  the 
  degree 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  attribute 
  is 
  trans- 
  

   mitted. 
  These 
  are 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  parallel, 
  and 
  

   seem 
  in 
  some 
  sense 
  to 
  be 
  nearly 
  wholly 
  inde- 
  

   pendent 
  of 
  each 
  other. 
  The 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  worst 
  

   atavists 
  may 
  have 
  the 
  highest 
  percentage 
  of 
  

   varietal 
  units 
  seems 
  to 
  leave 
  no 
  room 
  for 
  an- 
  

   other 
  explanation. 
  

  

  Developing 
  this 
  line 
  of 
  thought, 
  we 
  gradually 
  

   arrive 
  at 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  the 
  visible 
  attribute 
  

   of 
  a 
  varying 
  individual 
  is 
  perhaps 
  the 
  most 
  un- 
  

   trustworthy 
  and 
  the 
  most 
  unreliable 
  character 
  

   for 
  selection, 
  even 
  if 
  it 
  seems 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  

   practically 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  only 
  available 
  one. 
  The 
  di- 
  

   rect 
  determination 
  of 
  the 
  degree 
  of 
  heredity 
  it- 
  

   self 
  is 
  obviously 
  preferable 
  by 
  far. 
  This 
  degree 
  

   is 
  expressed 
  by 
  the 
  proportion 
  of 
  its 
  inheritors 
  

   among 
  the 
  offspring, 
  and 
  this 
  figure 
  therefore 
  

   should 
  be 
  elevated 
  to 
  the 
  highest 
  rank, 
  as 
  a 
  

   measure 
  of 
  the 
  hereditary 
  qualities. 
  Hence- 
  

   forward 
  we 
  will 
  designate 
  it 
  by 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  

   hereditary 
  percentage. 
  

  

  In 
  scientific 
  experiments 
  this 
  figure 
  must 
  be 
  

   determined 
  for 
  every 
  plant 
  of 
  a 
  pedigree-culture 
  

   singly, 
  and 
  the 
  selection 
  should 
  be 
  founded 
  ex- 
  

   clusively 
  or 
  at 
  least 
  mainly 
  on 
  it. 
  It 
  is 
  easily 
  

  

  * 
  

  

  seen 
  that 
  this 
  method 
  requires 
  large 
  numbers 
  

   of 
  individuals 
  to 
  be 
  grown 
  and 
  counted. 
  Some 
  

   two 
  or 
  three 
  hundred 
  progeny 
  of 
  one 
  plant 
  are 
  

   needed 
  to 
  give 
  the 
  decisive 
  figure 
  for 
  this 
  one 
  

  

  