﻿Origin 
  of 
  Peloric 
  Toadflax 
  477 
  

  

  called, 
  of 
  some 
  hidden 
  tendency. 
  The 
  real 
  

   nature 
  of 
  this 
  state 
  of 
  the 
  hereditary 
  qualities 
  

   is 
  as 
  yet 
  wholly 
  unknown. 
  It 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  safe 
  

   to 
  formulate 
  further 
  conclusions 
  before 
  the 
  evi- 
  

   dence 
  offered 
  by 
  the 
  evening-primroses 
  is 
  

   considered. 
  

  

  Thirdly, 
  the 
  question 
  arises, 
  whether 
  the 
  

   mutation 
  is 
  complete, 
  not 
  only 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  mor- 
  

   phologic 
  character, 
  but 
  also 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  hered- 
  

   itary 
  constitution 
  of 
  the 
  mutated 
  individuals. 
  

   But 
  here 
  unfortunately 
  the 
  high 
  degree 
  of 
  ster- 
  

   ility 
  of 
  the 
  peloric 
  plants, 
  as 
  previously 
  noted, 
  

   makes 
  the 
  experimental 
  evidence 
  a 
  thing 
  of 
  

   great 
  difficulty. 
  During 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  several 
  

   years 
  I 
  isolated 
  and 
  planted 
  together 
  the 
  

   peloric 
  individuals 
  already 
  mentioned, 
  all 
  in 
  all 
  

   some 
  twenty 
  plants. 
  Each 
  individual 
  was 
  nearly 
  

   absolutely 
  sterile 
  when 
  treated 
  with 
  its 
  own 
  

   pollen, 
  and 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  insects 
  was 
  of 
  no 
  avail. 
  

   I 
  intercrossed 
  my 
  plants 
  artificially, 
  and 
  

   pollinated 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  thousand 
  flowers. 
  Not 
  

   a 
  single 
  one 
  gave 
  a 
  normal 
  fruit, 
  but 
  some 
  small 
  

   and 
  nearly 
  rudimentary 
  capsules 
  were 
  pro- 
  

   duced, 
  bearing 
  a 
  few 
  seeds. 
  From 
  these 
  I 
  had 
  

   119 
  flowering 
  plants, 
  out 
  of 
  which 
  106 
  were 
  

   peloric 
  and 
  13 
  one-spurred. 
  The 
  great 
  major- 
  

   ity, 
  some 
  90$, 
  were 
  thus 
  shown 
  to 
  be 
  true 
  to 
  

   their 
  new 
  type. 
  Whether 
  the 
  10$ 
  reverting 
  

   ones 
  were 
  truly 
  atavists, 
  or 
  whether 
  they 
  were 
  

  

  