190 ILLEGITIMATE OFFSPRING OF CHAP. V 



dry, and, though the plants were copiously watered, 

 some few apparently suffered in their fertility, whilst 

 others were not in the least affected. The years 

 1865 and, especially, 1866, were highly favourable. 

 Only a few observations were made during 1867. 

 The results are arranged in classes according to the 

 parentage of the plants. In each case the average 

 number of seeds per capsule is given, generally taken 

 from ten capsules, which, according to my experience, 

 is a nearly sufficient number. The maximum num- 

 ber of seeds in any one capsule is also given ; and 

 this is a useful point of comparison with the nor- 

 mal standard that is, with the number of seeds 

 produced by legitimate plants legitimately ferti- 

 lised. I will give likewise in each case the minimum 

 number. When the maximum and minimum differ 

 greatly, if no remark is made on the subject, it may 

 be understood that the extremes are so closely con- 

 nected by intermediate figures that the average is a 

 fair one. Large capsules were always selected for 

 counting, in order to avoid over-estimating the infer- 

 tility of the several illegitimate plants. 



In order to judge of the degree of inferiority in 

 fertility of the several illegitimate plants, the follow- 

 ing statement of the average and of the maximum 

 number of seeds produced by ordinary or legitimate 

 plants, when legitimately fertilised, some artificially 

 and some naturally, will serve as a standard of com- 

 parison, and may in each case be referred to. But I 

 give under each experiment the percentage of seeds 

 produced by the illegitimate plants, in comparison 

 with the standard legitimate number of the same 

 form. For instance, ten capsules from the illegitimate 

 long-styled plant (No. 10), which was legitimately 

 and naturally fertilised by other illegitimate plants, 



