The letters of Mr. akon and D. M. He ais & Co., hae i. he 
gether with the quotation from Mr. Darlington, are strong ee 
in favor of an effect of a cross the first year. On the other hand, if, 
“such an eilect exists, it is remarkable that such seedsmen as Messrs. 
~ Comstock, Kolb, and Henderson, as shown in their subjoined letters, _ 
have never observed it. 
During the past season Professor Bailey,* Mr. Skeels,”* and Mr. 
Crozier* ‘each made successful crosses between different varieties of 
summer squashes, but the fruits differed in no observable respect 
from those self-fertilized. 
In regard to the ordinary fruits the testimony is equally discord- 
ant, About 1873 Dr. B. D. Halsted and Mr. C. W. Garfield, under 
the direction of Dr. W. J. Beal, at the Michigan Agricultural Col- 
lege, made one hundred crosses between different varieties of apples. . 
sae twenty fruits were the result, some of which seemed to com- 
bine the characters of both parents, Both Dr. Halsted and Mr. Gar- 
field believed at the time that these results were due to an influence 
of the pollen used. Dr. Halsted still holds to that opinion, but Mr. 
Garfield, in view of the variations which spontaneously appear among _ 
apples, now doubts whether the appearances then observed were due + 
to ihe crossing, 
Other experiments of the same nature have been made by students 
of ‘Dr Beal, but from none of them is he satisfied that there is an in- 
fluence of a cross the first year. 
In 1886 Dr. Halsted’* crossed flowers of the Longfield apple with 
‘pollen of the Roman Stem. The resulting fruits combined the char- 
acters of both varieties and were believed: to show a direct influence 
of the foreign pollen. Other crosses, made by himself and Prof, J.: 
L. Budd at ‘the Iowa Agricultural College, gave the same result. 
In:1887 Prof, L.. H. Bailey’ crossed Hyslop crab with the Olden- 
burg apple, and another variety of crab with Sweet Romanite, but 
no change i in the fruit was observed. He also crossed the Spiny- 
fruited Datura stramonium with pollen of the Smooth-fruited Da- 
tura mermis without observing any change in the character of the 
pods (see letter of Professor Bailey, given below). Among citrus 
fruits there is a prevalent belief in the immediate influence of cross- 
fertilization. 
Mr. Hart, whose letter is given, and Mr. Lyman Phelps, of San- 
ford, Fla., believe that they have observed a change in the appear- 
ance of or anges due to the pollen of other varieties growing near. 
The Bahia, or Washington Navel orange is believed to be especially 
potent in impressing its peculiar mark upon other varieties; but as 
this variety produces very little pollen and is a shy bearer unless 
fertilized by other varieties, and as specimens having the Navel mark © 
are found in varieties wher no Navel trees exist, the evidence from 
this source for the immediate influence of pollen on the fruit does — 
not seem to be conclusive. No direct experiments in the crossing of 
oranges to determine this point seem to have been made, though some 
are now in progress in the orange house of the Department of Agricul- 
ture. Inthe crosses between varieties of the orange which have been 
made by Mr. Saunders, superintendent of the Department grounds, 
and his assistants, no immediate influence has been observed. 
A cross of a lemon with pollen of an orange was made the past 
season by Mr. Henry Pfister, head gardener at the Executive Man- 
sion. The fruit is now (January, 1888) full size, and resembles thé 
other lemons upon the same tree. 
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