324 



SUMMARIES OF THE HISTOLOGIC CHARACTERS, ETC. 



desirable to inquire somewhat critically into the evidence 

 at hand so as to learn to what extent, if any, each of the 

 various agents and reagents exhibits a definite propensity 

 to elicit one or the other parent-phases. Consequently, 

 the data recorded in the preceding tables have been given 

 a resetting in Table H, Parts 1 to 26, in each of which 

 division will be found the reactions of all of the hybrid 

 starches with each agent and reagent, thus presenting in 

 a most succinct and striking form the peculiarities mani- 

 fested by each agent and reagent in the elicitation of such 

 reactions. Each division of the table is, as in the pre- 

 ceding set, so characteristic of the agent or reagent that 

 each is specific and diagnostic in the former set, specific 

 and diagnostic in relation especially to the starch ; in this 

 set, specific and diagnostic in relation especially to the 

 agent or reagent. Even the tables representing the off- 

 spring of the same cross (Brunsdonna sanderce alba and 

 B. sandercs; and Narcissiis poeticus herrick and N. poeti- 

 cus dante) can be distinguished from each other at a 

 glance. In the present table of agents and reagents we 

 find parallels in pairs that are similar to the pairs of 

 hybrids in the preceding tables, as, for instance, in potas- 

 sium hydroxide and sodium hydroxide and potas- 

 sium sulphide and sodium sulphide which are comparable 

 to two hybrids of the same cross, in each of which pairs 

 the two tables will be found to be so definitely unlike in 

 so many respects as to be as specific and diagnostic as are 

 the tables of the pairs of Brunsdonnte and Narcissus hy- 

 brids, respectively. 



It has been pointed out particularly that different 

 starches in their reactions with different agents and rea- 

 gents exhibit marked variations in both kind and dis- 

 tribution of the reactions among the six parental phases, 

 there being all gradations between one extreme that is 

 characterized by almost universal sameness of the hybrid 

 starch to the starch of the seed parent and the other ex- 

 treme where a corresponding relationship was found to- 

 ward the pollen parent; or a striking proneness to 

 intermediateness ; or for the reactions to be in excess of 

 deficit of parental extremes. In other words, certain 

 starches show in their reactions marked likeness to the 

 seed or pollen parent, or intermediateness, etc., while 

 others exhibit a two-phase peculiarity which may be mani- 

 fested in sameness to both parents associated with de- 

 velopment in excess of the parental extremes, or in other 

 forms of combination as pointed out in Table C 17 under 

 Calanthe. Inasmuch as the reactions of the different 

 starches were obtained by means of the same agents and 

 reagents, one would naturally be led to the conclusion 

 that with the starch as the varying factor and the agents 

 and reagents as the constant factor the propensities of 

 different starches to exhibit especially seed or pollen 

 parent propensities, intermediateness, etc., are inherent 

 to the starch molecules, and that the agents and reagents 

 may be inert or indifferent, or in other words, that they 

 do not have any especial propensity of themselves to elicit 

 any given parent-phase in preference to any other. There- 

 fore, in differentiating the part played by starch mole- 

 cule and reagent, respectively, when a given parent-phase 

 is developed, it seems that we should take into account 

 in the reaction whether or not the starch molecule has 

 been altered, for if not altered the peculiarity of the 

 reaction would naturally be attributed to the starch alone 



and would represent an existent phase in contradistinc- 

 tion to a developed phase that is owing to the reagent 

 bringing to light a potential or latent phase. 



In some instances as pointed out the starch molecule 

 is either not. in the least modified or but extremely 

 slightly modified in the reaction, whereas in others it 

 is partially or completely broken down by presumably 

 simple processes of hydration, or by a process of hydra- 

 tion plus some additional reaction or reactions that de- 

 pended upon some peculiar component or components 

 of the reagent. Inasmuch as in the polarization reaction 

 the molecules are unchanged the reaction must depend 

 solely upon inherent properties of the molecules and 

 indicate an existent parent-phase, comparable to the 

 obvious parent-phases that are exhibited in the histologic 

 properties of the starch grains; and it might be taken 

 for granted, as a corollary, that any agent or reagent that 

 yields a reaction with the starch molecules without break- 

 ing down the molecules, would elicit the same parent- 

 phase reaction. That is, if in the polarization reaction 

 sameness to the seed parent is noted the same would be 

 seen in the iodine and aniline reactions ; but as this is, in 

 fact, not the case, any parent-phase of this complex may 

 be demonstrated without or with molecular disorganiza- 

 tion. Thus, in Crinum kircape, we find that the polariza- 

 tion reaction is higher than in either parent, but closer to 

 the reaction of the seed parent; the iodine reaction is 

 intermediate, but closer to that of the pollen parent; 

 the gentian-violet reaction is the same as that of the pol- 

 len parent ; and the saf ranin reaction higher than in either 

 parent, but nearer the reaction of the seed parent, and so 

 on in different starches in varying forms of combination 

 of these reactions. In other words, in the starch mole- 

 cule as in the albumin molecule the components or 

 potentials are in the form of a complex labile aggregate, 

 so that it is easy to elicit any parent-phase component or 

 potential of the starch molecule. Not only are these 

 parent-phases readily separable and demonstrable by 

 proper agents and reagents, but there is also evidence that 

 different agents and reagents exhibit marked differences 

 in their propensities to elicit a given phase or given 

 phases. This is rendered very obvious by the data as reset 

 in the summaries of Table H (page 336) in which, how- 

 ever, those recorded under " same as both parents " should 

 be omitted because in nearly all instances there was no 

 satisfactory differentiation owing to extremely rapid or 

 extremely slow gelatinization. 



It will be seen by the first summary of this Table 

 that while in case of many of the agents and rea- 

 gents there is no manifest propensity to elicit sameness 

 as the seed parent, or sameness as the pollen parent, or 

 intermediateness, etc., the opposite holds good in varying 

 degree for others. Thus, in the polarization reactions 

 the reactions of the 50 starches are distributed quite 

 equally among the 6 phases. In the iodine reactions 

 there is an obvious increase in the number of reactions 

 that fall in the first column, this being associated par- 

 ticularly with a falling off in the " highest " and " low- 

 est" columns. In the temperatures of gelatinization 

 there is a marked lessening in sameness as the seed 

 parent and sameness as the pollen parent, this being asso- 

 ciated with a corresponding increase in the intermediate 

 column, showing that in 21 of the 50 starches heat, in 



