SUMMARIES OF PLAN! CHARACTERS, ETC. 



337 



2. THE PLANT TISSUES. 



Mai i.d.m .urn' \\i. .Mi< 'lidscMnr ('iiai:a<i i.ks or 

 HyBEIB-STOCKS IH COMPARISON WITH THE EtEAC- 

 TION-INTENSITIES OF StAECHES OF HyBBID- 

 STOOKS AS REGABDS SAMENESS, [nTEBMEDIATE- 



ness, Excess, and Deficit of Development in 



BELATIOH In THE PaBENT-STOCKS. 



(Tablr I, Pari.-, 1 to 8, and Summaries 1 to 7. Churts 1 . 1 to II) 



Inasmuch as the macroscopic and microscopic char- 

 acters of plants arc, like the microscopic characters and 

 reactions of starches, expressions of physico-chemical 



processes, it follows, as a corollary, if starches exhibit 

 well-defined peculiarities in their parental relationships, 



such as have I d shown very clearly in preceding pages 



that corresponding characteristics should be manife ted 

 by the plant tissues. This is not only what has been 

 found, but. also a remarkable eougruity of the data con- 

 sidering the exceptional diversity of the methods of 

 investigation in the two entirely distinct although co- 

 operative lines of investigation. In the studies of the 

 starches the records show that each form of starch ex- 

 hibits in its histologic, polariscopic, and chemical proper- 

 ties varying relationships to the parents, some of these 

 properties (varying in kind and number in different 

 hybrids) being the same or practically the same as the 

 property of the seed parent, or of the pollen parent, or 

 of both parents; others being intermediate between tin; 

 corresponding properties of the parents; and others 

 showing development in excess or deficit of parental 

 extremes. As exceptionally striking facts it was also 

 observed that the distribution of the data of parental 

 relationship under the six parent-phase divisions varied 

 with the different hybrid starches so markedly and 

 characteristically that each table of the characters of 

 each starch is diagnostic of the starch ; that the propor- 

 tions of intermediate and non-intermediate characters 

 vary within wide limits in different starches; that the 

 development of characters in excess or deficit of parental 

 extremes is more conspicuous than intermediateness or 

 sameness to either parent or both parents; and ilia! the 

 comparative degree of influence of the seed and pollen 

 parents varied within extremes characterized by an almost 

 universal dominance of one or the other parent. Tables 

 F, G, and H give recapitulations and summarii 

 the reaction-intensities of the starches of hybrids which 

 are not only exceptionally well adapted for comparisons 

 <d' certain fundamental data of the peculiarities of 

 starches, but also for bases of comparison of starch and 

 tissue characteristics. 



In Table I the macroscopic and microscopii 

 hybrid-stocks are formulated in correspondence with the 

 n a< i ion-intensity data of the starches in Tables F and If. 

 Comparing in a general way the two sets f tables one 

 gets at first glance the impression of concordance, and 

 of so definite a character that it seems obvious ili.u if 

 the two sets of tables were intermingled, the botanical 

 names having been removed, it would be impossible 

 to distribute them to their proper plant and starch 

 groups. The tissue tables differ from each other as do 

 the standi tables, and each is as indivii 

 nostic of the plant as is each starch table. In comp 

 the data, of Table 1 and its summaries the most con- 

 22 



spicuo i m cnt 



en tiic E - columns : the 



-mall number i 

 same as one or tic other or both parents in comparison 



with the number that are intermediate, highest 



ctlj mailer Dumber thai 

 in comparison with the combined numbers that are 

 highe.-t ami lowesl ; tie- small n 



are interim , 



criterion of hybrids I : and the mat 



iribution of the i, ... 

 microscop the six i 



ing these comparisons it is preferable to tal 

 inasmuch as the numbers of characters and rea 

 are no! the same. 



Referring to bhe firs! summary, it will be found 

 that of the 959 tissue characti i L7.8 pei enl are the 



same as one or tl ther parent or both parent-, and 



that 82.2 per edit are intermediate, highest, and li 

 while with the - of the star e F) the 



figures are 36.2 and (!3.8 per cent, re . , the 



ratio of the former being 1 : 1.1 and of the latter 1: 1.8. 

 Comparing the figures of the corresponding columns of 

 the two tables, the following percentages will be i 

 the first figure nd the second 



for the starches: Same as seed parent 5.8 and 13.4; 

 aame as pollen parent 6.8 at d 9.2 ; sat 

 5.2 and L3.6; intermediate 43.2 and 23.2; highesl 

 and 18.4 ; and lowest 14.1 and 22.2. Intermediate char- 

 acters in the tissue n 13.2, and highest and lowest 

 characters 39, compared with 23.8 and 10.6 in I 

 tions, showing in both cases thai I es of 

 characters and reactions developi or deficit, 

 of parental extremes are very large, and in the rea I 

 very much larger than the intermediate percentages. It 

 therefore would seem to follow, as a corollary, that if 

 intermediateness is of given value as a criterion of hy- 

 brids, development i ;s and deficit of pai 

 extremes is a criterion of greater value. 



One of the most unexpected features exhibited by 

 these data is the presence or absence of close corresj 

 ence in the form of distribution of the macroscopic and 

 microscopic characters among the six parent-pha Oj 



would naturally be led I imption that if, for in- 



stance, a given percentage of macroscopic chara 



were the same as those of the s 1 parent a similar or 



very closely similar percentage of microscopic characters 

 would fall under the same heading; but, strange enough, 

 there ma] bi a range of relationship between almost or 

 practical identity and very marked divergence, and even 

 inversion, of the percentages of the two groups of 

 characters. Thus, in Ip leri (Chart PI, Table 



I. Part 1 and Summary 1 ) there is in general cL 

 the two curves, the only marked variation being in the in- 



diate characters. The pen I of char, 



that are the same as those of the pollen parent and both 

 parents, and that are developed in deficit of parental 

 extremes, are in eaeli case Vi 

 of macros, opic i hara ters under 

 phases is lower than the corresponding ] 

 charact( I in intermedi 



In the latter the percentages are not only markedly dif- 

 ferent (macroscopic 17 .4 and micros 

 there is also an inversion of the | 



