﻿Laws 
  of 
  Fluctuations 
  741 
  

  

  Recapitulating 
  the 
  results 
  of 
  this 
  too 
  con- 
  

   densed 
  discussion, 
  we 
  may 
  state 
  that 
  fluctua- 
  

   tions 
  are 
  linear, 
  being 
  limited 
  to 
  an 
  increase 
  and 
  

   to 
  a 
  decrease 
  of 
  the 
  characters. 
  These 
  changes 
  

   are 
  mainly 
  due 
  to 
  differences 
  in 
  nourishment, 
  

   either 
  of 
  the 
  whole 
  organism 
  or 
  of 
  its 
  parts. 
  

   In 
  the 
  first 
  case, 
  the 
  deviations 
  from 
  the 
  mean 
  

   are 
  called 
  individual; 
  they 
  are 
  of 
  great 
  impor- 
  

   tance 
  for 
  the 
  hereditary 
  characters 
  of 
  the 
  

   offspring. 
  In 
  the 
  second 
  case 
  the 
  deviations 
  

   are 
  far 
  more 
  universal 
  and 
  far 
  more 
  striking, 
  

   but 
  of 
  lesser 
  importance. 
  They 
  are 
  called 
  par- 
  

   tial 
  fluctuations. 
  

  

  All 
  these 
  fluctuations 
  comply, 
  in 
  the 
  main, 
  

   with 
  the 
  law 
  of 
  probability, 
  and 
  behave 
  as 
  if 
  

   their 
  causes 
  were 
  influenced 
  only 
  by 
  chance. 
  

  

  