Modification of Germinal Constitution of Organisms 23 1 



ontogenetic history of the parent from which it came. In 

 view of the fact that the real relation which exists between 

 L. miiltitaeniata and L. melanothorax must remain unknown, 

 no conclusion as to the significance of this wide divergence 

 in the development of the color pattern can be safely 

 drawn. The relation between L. miiUitaeniata and L. 

 melanothorax may be that of two hybridizing species in 

 which L. melanothorax is in the process of assimilation, and 

 if this attribute is a "unit-character" it follows that in the 

 reappearance of the recessive form which L. melanothorax 

 appears to be, it is to be expected that the recessive char- 

 acter would exhibit the ontogenetic series of stages charac- 

 teristic of itself, and not those of the parent species out 

 of which it came. There is, however, another possibility, 

 namely, that the reappearance of L. melanothorax in each 

 generation of L. multitaeniata may be considered a recurring 

 mutation which diverges in its direction independently of 

 the parental type. 



This observed condition can be explained on the basis 

 of multifarious mutations in the sense of DeVries, or on the 

 basis of unit-characters recessive to L. multitaeniata, but 

 recurring with greater or less frequency. Under condi- 

 tions of nature it is not possible to determine which one of 

 these two possibilities is the correct one. 



2. HYBRIDIZATION 



The results obtained by the horticulturist and husband- 

 man through hybridization in achieving the modifications 

 of plants and animals which are desired have long been 

 known, and in plants a very considerable array of the modi- 

 fications produced never get beyond the first hybrid genera- 

 tion and are perpetuated by cuttings, or other forms of 



