1055 
their attendant phenomena will be described, and then conclusions 
will be drawn from the observations. 
The common blue and the common white flax, differing in 
colour but having the same average petal-breadth viz. 7 mm., when 
crossed, give only progeny of the same type of breadth. This shows 
that these two varieties have the same factor or factors for breadth 
of petal. Since the blue and the white offspring agree in breadth, 
there is evidently in this crossing no relation between breadth and 
colour of the petal. 
The common blue flax (7 mm.) and the Egyptian flax (13.4 mm.) 
differ, in contradistinetion to the varieties of the previous cross, in 
breadth, but not in colour. The phenomena, observed in this cross 
with regard to breadth, have been previously ') described by me 
in detail. The following excerpt from this paper will suffice. The 
first generation is intermediate, the breadth of the petal is about 
the average of that of the parents. In the second generation segre- 
gation into various types of breadth occurs. On account of fluctuat- 
ing variability the limits between the different groups cannot, 
however, be observed and all transitional states between the breadth 
of the common flax and that of the Egyptian are found, but in 
definite ratios. The most frequent breadth in /, is approxi-° 
mately the mean of the P-varieties, and the number of individuals 
having any particular breadth diminishes, the nearer this breadth 
approaches that of the P-forms. All F,-individuals together give a 
curve for the breadth, apparently corresponding to a variability- 
curve. The deduction from the whole set of observations was, that 
the Egyptian flax has, compared with the common blue, a few 
more ordinary Mendelian factors for broadness. Since the whole 
offspring is blue and nevertheless differs in breadth, the colour and 
breadth of the petals are evidently independent of each other in 
this crossing also. 
In the cross between the common white flax (7 mm.) and the 
Egyptian (13.4 mm.) which differ in colour, as well as in breadth, 
the phenomena observed with regard to breadth are the same as 
those in the preceding cross. Here also the first generation is inter- 
mediate and in the second generation every transition between the 
breadth of the white and that of the Egyptian flax occurs in the 
ordinary manner. From this we may deduce, that these two varieties 
also differ in factors for broadness and that the Egyptian flax has 
a few more factors than the common white. The observations 
further show that, in this case also, there is no interdependence 
1) le. Vol. VIII, 1911, p. 253. 
