152 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



been introduced to the public, and some of which were ah'eady favour- 

 ably known, were subjected to the same treatment and many of them 

 were discarded. This great reduction in the number of varieties under 

 test was necessary in order to concentrate our attention and that of 

 the farmers of Canada on the very best sorts available. Among wheats 

 the chief results of these studies (other than the rejection of material) 

 were the isolation of two early-ripening strains of Red Fife, and of 

 improved strains of the cross-bred varieties Huron, Preston and 

 Stanley, and the discovery of the now famous variety, Marquis. The 

 work in oats and barley was not pushed so rapidly, because it was 

 considered less urgent. There is therefore, less to mention in regard to 

 these grains; although the introduction of a selected strain of the 

 Banner oat and of Manchurian barley are by no means unimportant 

 matters. Reference may also be made here to the Arthur field pea, 

 which was reselected at this same period and which is now gaining 

 recognition as the earliest and most productive variety known for 

 most parts of Canada. 



Beyond all doubt Marquis wheat was the most important dis- 

 covery which the writer made in dealing with the descendants of the 

 early crosses. Some account of the pedigree and achievements of 

 this variety will- perhaps be appropriate, in view of the world-wide 

 attention which it has attracted. 



Marquis wheat comes from a cross made in the year 1892 by Dr. 

 A. P. Saunders who was acting for part of the year as one of the Di- 

 rector's assistants. The parents of the new wheat were Hard Red 

 Calcutta (female) and Red Fife (male). The cross was made on one 

 of the branch experimental farms and the cross-bred seeds, or their 

 p'rogeny, were subsequently transferred to Ottawa. Here some se- 

 lection was done, but the work was not carried far enough to separate 

 out simple, fixed types. It was therefore a mixture, lacking in uni- 

 formity, which came into the possession of the writer when he took 

 charge of the Cereal Division. By a careful study of individual 

 plants selected from the plot, and especially by applying the chewing 

 test to ascertain the gluten strength and probable bread-making value, 

 radical differences in quality were found, and a few of the most promis- 

 ing plants were used as the foundation of new strains. These strains 

 were propagated (each separately) for some years until they had been 

 sufficiently studied to ascertain which was the best. This best strain 

 was named Marquis. Its high bread-making strength and colour of 

 flour were demonstrated in the baking tests made by the writer at 

 Ottawa in the early months of 1907, and all the surplus seed was at 

 once sent to the Experimental Farm at Indian Head, Sask. for propa- 

 gation. 



