PRACTICAL ASPECTS IN HEREDITY. 



9 



to me it is as important as that. I expect to use this book as a basis for all our work 

 in plant breeding. 



William Saunders: Mr. President, this paper has thrown light upon many subjects 

 which have been somewhat dark in my mind. For instance, in the cross-fertilizing of 

 wheats we have often found that the crossing of two beardless forms will produce a 

 bearded form, or we have a beardless wheat as the result of the crossing of two bearded 

 forms. This explanation that Professor Bateson has given us throws light on that point 

 and on many similar points which have puzzled many of us who are practical workers 

 in this very interesting field. 



H. H. Groff: The principles referred to by Mr. Bateson are certainly of great 

 interest as regards primary crosses, and those crosses are related to our comparatively 

 early experience in work of this kind. But the great question of interest to us in the 

 future (and even now to those workers of extended experience) will be in regard to those 

 crosses which are multiple to a limitless degree. These will present the questions in 

 the future. It is not so much what we expect to find between hybrids or crosses con- 

 taining a limited number of characteristics, but when crosses contain many thousands the 

 problem will be far greater. 



W. J. Spillman: I have with me some specimens, or rather some figures, of the 

 specimens of wheat illustrating this law. I place them on exhibition. 



The Chair: I could have presented from my own fields this season ten acres of il- 

 lustration of Mr. Bateson's statement in regard to growing wheat. I have been 

 growing a hybrid wheat for a number of years in a practical way as a farmer, and the 

 seedsmen have taken the crops, and every year I have had to fight these bearded speci- 

 mens of plants that came up in this field. To me it has been one of my greatest puzzles, 

 as I was making no progress whatever; and while I never allowed one of those plants to 

 go into my field, yet year after year I had the same result. I can see that it has been a 

 bottomless work that I have been trying. 



