Origin of Peloric Toadflax 473 



, stray pelorie flowers were observed in 

 somewhat larger numbef than in the previous 

 generations, 11 plants bearing Ofig or two, 

 or even three such abnormalities. This, bow- 

 ever, could not be considered as a real advance, 

 since such plants may occur in varying, though 

 ordinarily, small numbers in every generation. 



Besides them a single plant was seen to bear 

 onlypeloric flowers ; it produced racemes on sev- 

 eral stems and their branches. All were peloric 

 without exception. I kept it through the winter, 

 taking care to preserve a complete isolation of 

 its roots. The other plants were wholly de- 

 stroyed. Such annihilation must includes both 

 the stems and roots and the latter of course re- 

 quires considerable labor. The following year, 

 however, gave proof of the success of the opera- 

 tion, since my plant bloomed luxuriously for the 

 second time and remained true to the type of 

 the first year, producing peloric flowers ex- 

 clusively. 



Here we have the first experimental mutation 

 of a normal into a peloric race. Two facts were 

 clear and simple. The ancestry was known for 

 over a period of four generations, living under 

 the ordinary care and conditions of an experi- 

 ment garden, isolated from other toad-flaxes, 

 but freely fertilized by bees or at times by my- 

 self. This ancestry was quite constant as to 



