348 Mender s Expermtents 



For each separate trial in the following experiments 

 lOO plants were selected which displayed the dominant 

 character in the first generation, and in order to ascertain 

 the significance of this, ten seeds of each were cultivated. 



Expt. 3. The ofispring of 36 plants yielded exclusively 

 grey-brown seed-coats, while of the offspring of 64 plants 

 some had grey-brown and some had white. 



Expt. 4. The offspring of 29 plants had only simply 

 inflated pods; of the offspring of 71, on the other hand, 

 some had inflated and some constricted. 



Expt. 5. The offspring of 40 plants had only green 

 pods ; of the offspring of 60 plants some had green, some 

 yellow ones. 



Expt. 6. The offspring of 33 plants had only axial 

 flowers ; of the offspring of 67, on the other hand, some 

 had axial and some terminal flowers. 



Expt. 7. The offspring of 28 plants inherited the long 

 axis, and those of 72 plants some the long and some the 

 short axis. 



In each of these experiments a certain num.ber of the 

 plants came constant with the dominant character. For 

 the determination of the proportion in which the separation 

 of the forms with the constantly persistent character results, 

 the two first experiments are of especial importance, since 

 in these a larger number of plants can be compared. The 

 ratios 1*93 to i and 2*13 to i gave together almost exactly 

 the average ratio of 2 to i. The sixth experiment gave a 

 quite concordant result ; in the others the ratio varies more 

 or less, as was only to be expected in view of the smaller 

 number of 100 trial plants. Experiment 5, which shows 

 the greatest departure, was repeated, and then, in lieu of 

 the ratio of 60 and 40, that of 65 and 35 resulted. The 

 average ratio of 2 to \ appears, therefore, as fixed with 

 certainty. It is therefore demonstrated that, of those forms 

 which possess the dominant character in the first genera- 

 tion, two-thirds have the hybrid-character, while one-third 

 remains constant with the dominant character 



The ratio of 3 to i, in accordance with which the 



