182 Descendenz und Hybriden. — Physiologie. 



PEARSON, K., Variation and Correlation in Lesser 

 Celandine from divers Localities. (Biometrika. Vol. IL 

 p. 145—165. 1903.) 



This paper gives the results of investigations on Lesser 

 Celandine from Bordighera, Guernsey, Dorsetshire 

 and S ur r ey. 



Attention is drawn to the fact that in 2149 cases there 

 were certainly not more than three heads with only 2 sepals, 

 and that even in these the 3 d sepal had probably been knocked 

 off, or accidentally removed, whilst Dr. F. Lu dwig's 3000 heads 

 from Greiz gave 60 such cases. It is suggested that this 

 difference is due to want of proper precautions in collecting 

 the Greiz specimens. 



A Table is given showing the Means, Standard Deviations, 

 Coefficients of Variation and of Correlation of the sepals, petals, 

 stamens and pistils of the plants from the four localities, and 

 similar results are cited from Mc. Leod's and from Ludwig's 

 series where these were available; this table suggests three funda- 

 mental points (I) local races in plants cannot be defined by the 

 existence of differences, many times the value of the Probable 

 Error, between means, variations or correlations, (II) the influence 

 of environment and of season are of supreme importance and 

 screen differences due to local race, (III) race cannot be defi- 

 ned by correlation. It is noticed that the earlier data give very 

 high variability in sepals and in petals compared with the new 

 data, much of this difference arising from the absence of indi- 

 viduals with less than 3 sepals or 7 petals in the new series. 



The new data shew that the local races which have flowers 

 with more numerous parts have these parts more variable and 

 more highly correlated. 



The regression line is drawn for the interracial correlation 

 of stamens with pistils, from 1 this it is evident that the inter- 

 racial correlation between the mean number of stamens and the 

 mean number of pistils is very much greater then the mean 

 intraracial correlation, and caution is urged when attempts are 

 made to extend conclusions drawn from intraracial to interracial 

 relations. 



The correlation tables between sepals, petals, stamens and 

 pistils for the four localities are printed in füll. Pearson. 



AUDEMARD , Recherches sur la localisation des a 1 - 

 calo'i'des dans les Genets. (Bull, de Pharmacie du 

 Sud-Est. 1903. T. VIII. p. 128.) 



L'auteur a etudie les especes suivantes: Genista purgans, G. 

 tinctoria, Sarothamnus scoparius et Retama sphaerocarpa, riches en 

 alcalo'i'des ; Spartium junceum, Genista candicans et Retama monosperma, 

 moins riches que les precedentes; eniin G. germanica, G. horrida et 

 G. Scorpius, ne contiennent pas d'alcaloides. 



Les alcalo'i'des se repartissent de la maniere suivante dans les 

 especes qui en contiennent: parenchyme cortical et endoderme des jeunes 



