No. 3, July, 1921] GENETICS 273 



(1) bagging silks an inch long after they had been exposed to pollen, and (2) exposing previ- 

 ously bagged silks for about half an hour and then rebagging. In neither case was the source 

 of the pollen controlled. The ears of the 1st lot had seeds arranged compactly but confined to 

 the butts, while those of the 2nd lot had seeds scattered throughout. Both lots were compared 

 with normally fertilized ears of the same strains but no significant differences in yield were 

 obtained. — J. H. Kempton. 



1920. Honing, J. A. Selectie-Proeven met Deli-Tabak IV. [Selection experiments with 

 Deli tobacco IV.] Mededeel. Deli-Proefsta. Aledan [Sumatra] II. 10: 43-59. 1920.— In the 

 1918 ilarge-scale tests, light (colored) line No. 1 produced longer, broader leaves lighter in 

 color, with less of the fallow-colored and checkered or dapple grades, as compared with the 

 control tobacco, the results thus agreeing with those obtained in 1917 and 1918. This line is 

 especially valuable on the higher-lying estates which tend to produce relatively dark tobacco. 

 Fallow-colored line 3 yielded a distinct fallow shade, running through all the color grades. 

 The percentage of checkered leaf was smaller than in the control but the leaf was somewhat 

 shorter and a little dryer in character. Two additional lines gave good results while another 

 was not a success. A new selection -grown on 16 estates did not equal some of the 

 older strains. — W. W. Garner. 



1921. Humphrey, S. H. The menace of the half-man. Jour. Heredity 11: 228-232. 

 1920. — A general discussion of the rate of reproduction in the "morons" or "borderliners," 

 so-called poorer stocks, and best stock, in its bearing upon the national life and society. 

 The influence of the reproduction rate of the poorer stocks is traced in the school, in charity, 

 and in industry. Emphasis is placed upon the futility of attacking the problem through 

 an improved environment when heredity is at its base. — M. J. Dorsey. 



1922. Johnson, E. C. Twenty-ninth annual report. Washington [State] Agric. Exp. 

 Sta. Bull. 155. 57 p. 1920. — Brief summary is made of inheritance, in wheat crosses, of resist- 

 ance to smut. In crosses between winter and spring wheats the Fi ripened late. In F2, 

 spring, Fi, and winter type appeared in a 1 : 2 : 1 ratio. Minor factors were also involved. — 

 Early dropping of apple fruit was found to be correlated with failure to set sufficient seeds per 

 fruit. As much as 68 per cent of dropped fruit contained no normal seed. — Plans for Men- 

 delian studies with blackberry and raspberry hybrids are outlined. [See also Bot. Absts. 

 7, Entry 1554.].— i/. A'. Hayes. 



1923. Kempton, J. H. A brachytic variation in maize. U. S. Dept. Agric. Bull. 925. 

 28 p., 19 pi., 8 fig. 1921. — A new dwarf type of maize, "brachytic," is described and its in- 

 heritance discussed. This type is the result of a shortening of the internodes without corre- 

 sponding reduction in their number or in the number and size of other organs. It was 

 discovered in a 2nd hybrid generation of a cross between Algerian pop-corn and Chinese 

 waxy-endosperm corn, the inference being that it had been carried by the Chinese parent as 

 a recessive, heritable character. — When self-pollinated, the brachytic type produced nothing 

 but brachytic plants. When crossed with normal-type plants, the Fi proved to be tall and 

 in F2 the brachytic character segregated in the simple monohybrid fashion. The F2 brachytic 

 segregates, from a Boone County White-brachytic cross, showed no increase in variability 

 as regards height of plants compared with ordinary brachytic plants. The length of ear, 

 however, of some of these dwarf segregates appeared to be increased, showing that the dwarf 

 type can be maintained and the yield increased somewhat by such crossing. This is an 

 important consideration if the brachytic type is ever to be used commercially (a possibility 

 that the author suggests) since its present yield is relatively low. For dry land and irrigated 

 regions, the brachytic type of structure might prove to be well adapted. — Two teratological 

 forms of maize are also described and a preliminary note concerning their heritability is given. 

 In one of these, designated "adherent," the leaves of the seedling, or even of mature plant, 

 do not unroll normally. The growing culm is unable to break through these leaves and is 

 forced into many contortions in attempting to elongate. This form appears to be recessive 

 in inheritance. — Another abnormality described is one in which the ears end in staminate 



