50 



HISTOLOGIC PROPERTIES AND REACTIONS. 



gallic acid, nitric acid, sulphuric acid, and hydrochloric 

 acid. It is of interest to note that while the //. puniceus 

 curves are high, those of H. katherince and the hybrid 

 are very low in the reactions with pyrogallic acid and 

 nitric acid and variable from high to low in those with 

 sulphuric acid and hydrochloric acid. 



(4) The earliest period during the 60 minutes at 

 which the three curves are best separated, and hence the 

 best time to differentiate the starches, varies with the 

 different reagents : with sodium salicylate at 5 minutes, 

 with chromic acid and sulphuric acid at 15 minutes, with 

 chloral hydrate and hydrochloric acid at 30 minutes, with 

 pyrogallic acid at 45 minutes, and with nitric acid and 

 the remaining reagents (15 in all), all of which react 

 very slowly with H. katherince and the hybrid, in 60 

 minutes. 



REACTION-INTENSITIES OF THE HYBRID. 



This section treats of the reaction-intensities of the 

 hybrid as regards sameness, intermediateness, excess, 

 and deficit in relation to the parents. (Table A 6, and 

 Charts D 106 to D 126.) 



The reactivities of the hybrid are the same as those 

 of the seed parent with temperature, potassium hydrox- 

 ide, potassium iodide, potassium sulphocyanate, potas- 

 sium sulphide, sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphide, cal- 

 cium nitrate, uranium nitrate, strontium nitrate, cobalt 

 nitrate, copper nitrate, cupric chloride, barium chloride, 

 and mercuric chloride; the same as the pollen parent in 

 none ; the same as those of both parents in none ; inter- 

 mediate with iodine, chromic acid, pyrogallic acid, nitric 

 acid, sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and sodium sali- 

 cylate (in one being mid-intermediate, in one closer to 

 the pollen parent, and in five closer to the seed parent) ; 

 highest in the polarization reaction, and closer to the 

 pollen parent; and the lowest in the reactions with gen- 

 tian violet, safranin, and chloral hydrate, in all three 

 being closer to the seed parent. 



The following is a summary of the reaction-intensi- 

 ties : Same as seed parent, 15 ; same as pollen parent, ; 

 same as both parents, 0; intermediate, 7; highest, 1; 

 lowest, 3. 



While intermediateness is common, the inclination 

 here and elsewhere, with three exceptions, is to the seed 

 parent, and in over half of the cases the reactions are 

 the same as those of the seed parent. The closeness of 

 the hybrid to the seed parent almost throughout is very 

 striking. 



COMPOSITE CUBVES OP REACTION-INTENSITIES. 



The following section deals with the composite curves 

 of the reaction-intensities, showing the differentiation of 

 the starches of Hcemanthus katherince, H. puniceus, and 

 H. konig albert. (Chart E 6.) 



The most conspicuous features of the chart may be 

 summed up as follows: 



(1) The close correspondence of type of all three 

 curves, excepting in the pyrogallic-acid reaction, in which 

 those of H. puniceus exhibit an aberrant character, the 

 curve rising instead of falling in order to be coincident 

 with the curves of H. katherince and the hybrid. In 

 the reactions in which both H. katherina and the hybrid 



are very resistant, which are numerous, no satisfactory 

 relationship can be determined. 



(2) The tendency of the curve of //. pimiceus to be 

 distinctly higher in most of the chemical reactions and 

 therefore to be well separated from the curves of //. 

 katherince and the hybrid. In the sodium-salicylate 

 reaction all three curves impinge at practically the same 

 point, and in the reactions with uranium nitrate, copper 

 nitrate, cupric chloride, barium chloride, and mercuric 

 chloride they approximate very closely or are practically 

 identical. The stereochemic peculiarities of these three 

 starches are strikingly suggested in the sameness of reac- 

 tion with sodium salicylate, associated with the marked 

 divergencies in the reactions, especially in the pyrogallic 

 acid, nitric acid, sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and 

 other reactions. 



(3) -In H. katherince, the very high reaction with 

 sodium salicylate; the high with polarization, gentian 

 violet, and safranin ; the moderate with iodine, chromic 

 acid, and sulphuric acid ; the low with chloral hydrate ; 

 and the very low with temperature, pyrogallic acid, nitric 

 acid, hydrochloric acid, potassium hydroxide, potassium 

 iodide, potassium sulphocyanate, potassium sulphide, 

 sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphide, calcium nitrate, 

 uranium nitrate, strontium nitrate, cobalt nitrate, cop- 

 per nitrate, cupric chloride, barium chloride, and mer- 

 curic chloride. 



(4) In H. puniceus, the very high reactions with 

 pyrogallic aoid, sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and 

 sodium salicylate; the high with polarization, gentian 

 violet, safranin, chromic acid, nitric acid, and potas- 

 sium hydroxide; the moderate with iodine, potassium 

 iodide, and potassium sulphocyanate; the low tempera- 

 ture, chloral hydrate, potassium sulphide, sodium hy- 

 droxide, sodium sulphide, calcium nitrate, strontium 

 nitrate, and cupric chloride; and the very low with ura- 

 nium nitrate, cobalt nitrate, copper nitrate, barium 

 chloride, and mercuric chloride. 



(5) In the hybrid, the very high reactions with pola- 

 rization and sodium salicylate ; the high with sulphuric 

 acid ; the moderate with iodine, gentian violet, eafranin, 

 and chromic acid ; the low with chloral hydrate and 

 hydrochloric acid; and the very low with temperature, 

 pyrogallic acid, nitric acid, potassium hydroxide, potas- 

 sium iodide, potassium sulphocyanate, potassium sul- 

 phide, sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphide, calcium ni- 

 trate, uranium nitrate, strontium nitrate, copper nitrate, 

 cupric chloride, barium chloride, and mercuric chloride. 



The following is a summary of the reaction-intensi- 

 ties: 



NOTES ON THE H^EMANTHUSES. 



The haemanthuses belong to a group of plants that 

 yields starches that have distinctly low mean reactivi- 

 ties, all three species and their two hybrids showing this 

 peculiarity, only one-sixth of the total number of reac- 



