PHENOMENA OF INHERITANCE 225 



mained buried and practically unknown for 

 thirty-five years. Plant hybridization had 

 been studied extensively before Mendel began 

 his work, but he carried on his observations of 

 the hybrids and of their progeny for a longer 

 time and with greater analytical ability than 

 any previous investigator had done. The 

 methods and results of his work are so well 

 known through the writings of Bateson, Pun- 

 nett, and many others that it is unnecessary 

 to dwell at length upon them here. In brief 

 Mendel's method consisted in crossing two 

 forms having distinct characters, and then in 

 counting the number of offspring in successive 

 generations showing one or the other of these 

 characters. 



During the eight years preceding the publi- 

 cation of his paper in 1866 Mendel hybridized 

 some twenty-two varieties of garden peas. 

 This group of plants was chosen because the 

 different varieties could be cross-fertilized or 

 self-fertilized and were easily protected from 

 the influence of foreign pollen; because the 

 hybrids and their offspring remained fertile 

 through successive generations; and because 



