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HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK. 



make a protest. I believe there is another way to interpret the whole class of phenomena 

 that does not include the apparent contradictions. I don't believe that it is necessary 

 to explain these phenomena by assuming any concrete things which are combined and 

 separated and so on; that is, there is no reason why these are not mutations in the one 

 case as much as in another. And I believe that it will make it reasonable to believe that 

 the crossing of two mutations restores the parental type without the necessity of per- 

 ceiving a concrete or supposedly concrete combination of characters or separation ot 

 them into aggregate units such as has been attempted by many theorists, from Darwin 

 and Weissmann down. Of course, it is now put on the basis of characters instead of 

 being put, as Darwin did it, on the basis of pangens, or whatever you choose to call 

 them. 



H. H. Groff: I trust that none of the plant breeders who are here to-day will for 

 one moment attempt to place any limitations upon their effort by endeavoring to find 

 definite results — certain clearly defined lines — as the end of their work. There are two 

 classes of workers in this field of hybridism: One for finding out the why and where- 

 fore, the other for the producing of results. I think I may claim Mr. Burbank, of Santa 

 Rosa, as probably the greatest hybridist in the world of a practical character. And in 

 that field we should not place any limitations upon the possibilities of our work. It may 

 simplify the situation very much if we look to those greatest manifestations of the hybrid 

 form that are available at the present moment. For example, we might take the human 

 race, showing that there is really no possibility of limitation. The worker should look 

 upon his work as far as possible from the position, if it were possible, of the great 

 Creator of the universe, and assist in the advancement and improvement of the human 

 race at the present time. Rather than place any limitations we should work to an 

 unlimited degree for the advancement of our specialty. I have had the satisfaction of 

 producing some 250,000 hybrids of my specialty, and the more I work the more I am 

 satisfied that the broadest and most liberal view should be taken of our work and its 

 future. 



The Chair: I believe this statement of Mr. GrofT, of Ontario, is entirely correct. 

 We should not suppose there are any limitations; and not only not place them on 

 ourselves, but not suppose tliere are any limitations upon the possibilities in this field. 



