﻿Origin 
  of 
  Wild 
  Species 
  589 
  

  

  as 
  in 
  the 
  normal 
  flowers 
  of 
  the 
  species. 
  The 
  

   sepals 
  adhere 
  to 
  one 
  another, 
  and 
  are 
  only 
  

   opened 
  at 
  their 
  summit 
  by 
  the 
  protruding 
  pis- 
  

   tils. 
  Even 
  the 
  stamens 
  hardly 
  come 
  to 
  light. 
  

   At 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  full 
  bloom 
  the 
  flowers 
  convey 
  

   only 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  closed 
  buds 
  crowned 
  by 
  the 
  con- 
  

   spicuous 
  white 
  cross 
  of 
  the 
  stigma. 
  Any 
  inter- 
  

   mediate 
  form 
  would 
  have 
  at 
  once 
  betrayed 
  itself 
  

   by 
  larger 
  colored 
  petals, 
  coming 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  

   calyx-sheath. 
  The 
  cruciate 
  petals 
  are 
  small 
  

   and 
  linear 
  and 
  greenish, 
  recalling 
  thereby 
  the 
  

   color 
  of 
  the 
  sepals. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Easor 
  having 
  sent 
  me 
  some 
  flowers 
  and 
  

   some 
  ripe 
  capsules 
  of 
  his 
  novelty, 
  I 
  sowed 
  the 
  

   latter 
  in 
  my 
  experimental 
  garden, 
  where 
  the 
  

   plant 
  flowered 
  in 
  large 
  numbers 
  and 
  with 
  many 
  

   thousands 
  of 
  flowers 
  both 
  in 
  1902 
  and 
  1903. 
  

   All 
  of 
  these 
  plants 
  and 
  all 
  of 
  these 
  flowers 
  re- 
  

   peated 
  the 
  cruciate 
  type 
  exactly, 
  and 
  not 
  the 
  

   slighest 
  impurity 
  or 
  tendency 
  to 
  partial 
  rever- 
  

   sion 
  has 
  been 
  observed. 
  

  

  Thus 
  true 
  and 
  constant 
  cruciate 
  varieties 
  

   have 
  been 
  produced 
  from 
  accidentally 
  observed 
  

   initial 
  plants, 
  and 
  because 
  of 
  their 
  very 
  curious 
  

   characters 
  they 
  will 
  no 
  doubt 
  be 
  kept 
  in 
  

   botanical 
  gardens, 
  even 
  if 
  they 
  should 
  event- 
  

   ually 
  become 
  lost 
  in 
  their 
  native 
  localities. 
  

  

  At 
  this 
  point 
  I 
  might 
  note 
  another 
  observation 
  

   made 
  on 
  the 
  wild 
  species 
  of 
  Oenothera 
  cruciata 
  

  

  