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the osent ones, ae | in oth og Gta yee maa thers is a pes 
_ Two unrelated observations but there is a fair chance of their deve- 
loping a new type. 
Before taking up a concrete suggestion for classification, I wish to 
state my opinion as to the limitation of Iris development because any 
system which does not look to the future cannot prove permanent. 
With two exceptions, yellow venation of the falls, or markings of the 
standards, and a velvety upper petal, I consider all other combina- 
tions of our present colors and their distribution factors perfectly 
possible of development. It may take years, but if our interest in 
Irises continues, we have but to review the advances made in the last — 
decade to realise what the future may bring forth. 
A classification, to be of value to even amateurs, must have two 
between the various classes, and second, sufficient classes and sub- 
divisions to separate varieties into groups numbering not over thirty 
_orforty. An even smaller number would provea greater convenience 
* in description and. identification. Furthermore, no classification 
which depends upon the arbitrary placing of varieties by a small 
. Committee can become of international importance. We must have 
definitions pliable enough to admit all futureintroductions and yet so 
. clearly expressed that anyone who can read and observe, may classify 
| a variety without error. 
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iM 
ne 
The color of the flower is our reason for growing Irises and is 
therefore a fitbasis for a garden classification. Botanical distinctions 
will not be understood by the average grower; variations in height, 
- in time of bloom, are wide under different conditions of soil or cli- 
mate. Coloration at the base of the leaves has been suggested as a 
basis, but it also is variable and should merely be considered as an 
aid to identification when the plant is not in bloom. There remains 
color, but color also varies in response to atmospheric conditions. 
Certain varieties hold their color in.the hot sun, others fade; certain 
. varieties develop splotches or veins of deeper tone, under moist con- 
es 
ditions; in short, we can draw no sharp lines of distinction between 
. slight variations of color. I do not mean that we should not use the 
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terms light and dark, for example, but we should use them only as a 
last resort in a subdivision of very minor importance. If you accept 
these statements, you will agree that a good classification must make 
use of the distribution of color, as well as of color itself, and per- 
_sonally, I think that the inherent factors which govern the distribution 
are of first importance. 
My proposed classification is based on these principles and I trust 
À that in substance, if not in detail, it will meet with your approval 
ndency toward an absence of sap color at the center of the falls. — 
- qualifications : first, a clearly defined and easily perceived distinction — 
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