﻿Multiplication 
  of 
  Extremes 
  755 
  

  

  shortly 
  afterwards 
  in 
  Java 
  and 
  in 
  other 
  sugar- 
  

   producing 
  countries. 
  In 
  the 
  year 
  1885, 
  Solt- 
  

   wedel, 
  the 
  director 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  experiment 
  sta- 
  

   tions 
  for 
  the 
  culture 
  of 
  sugar-cane 
  in 
  Java, 
  

   conceived 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  making 
  use 
  of 
  seedlings 
  

   for 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  improved 
  races. 
  This 
  

   idea 
  is 
  a 
  very 
  practical 
  one, 
  precisely 
  because 
  of 
  

   the 
  possibility 
  of 
  vegetative 
  propagation. 
  If 
  

   individuals 
  would 
  show 
  the 
  same 
  range 
  as 
  that 
  

   of 
  partial 
  fluctuability, 
  then 
  the 
  choice 
  of 
  the 
  

   extremes 
  would 
  at 
  once 
  bring 
  the 
  average 
  up 
  

   to 
  the 
  richness 
  of 
  the 
  best 
  stocks. 
  Once 
  at- 
  

   tained, 
  this 
  average 
  would 
  be 
  fixed, 
  without 
  fur- 
  

   ther 
  efforts. 
  

  

  Unfortunately 
  there 
  is 
  one 
  great 
  drawback. 
  

   This 
  is 
  the 
  infertility 
  of 
  the 
  best 
  variety, 
  that 
  

   of 
  the 
  " 
  Cheribon 
  " 
  cane. 
  It 
  flowers 
  abun- 
  

   dantly 
  in 
  some 
  years, 
  but 
  it 
  has 
  never 
  been 
  

   known 
  to 
  produce 
  ripe 
  seeds. 
  For 
  this 
  reason 
  

   Soltwedel 
  had 
  to 
  start 
  from 
  the 
  second 
  best 
  sort, 
  

   and 
  chose 
  the 
  " 
  Hawaii 
  ' 
  cane. 
  This 
  variety 
  

   usually 
  yields 
  about 
  14$ 
  sugar, 
  and 
  Soltwedel 
  

   found 
  among 
  his 
  seedlings 
  one 
  that 
  showed 
  

   15$. 
  This 
  fact 
  was 
  quite 
  unexpected 
  at 
  that 
  

   time, 
  and 
  excited 
  widespread 
  interest 
  in 
  the 
  

   new 
  method, 
  and 
  since 
  then 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  ap- 
  

   plied 
  to 
  numerous 
  varieties, 
  and 
  many 
  thou- 
  

   sands 
  of 
  seedlings 
  have 
  been 
  raised 
  and 
  

   tested 
  as 
  to 
  their 
  sugar-production. 
  

  

  