LUTHER BURBANK 



the same bush, or as one grape resembles another 

 on the same bunch, as one pea resembles another 

 in the same pod. 



Yet among those million poppies — all looking 

 alike to the unpracticed eye — there could be found 

 by a close observer as many individual differences 

 as could be found among any million human 

 beings in the world. 



Among those million poppies, each with its 

 distinct individuality, Mr. Burbank found three 

 which had a decided tendency to break away from 

 the California poppy family and start a separate 

 race of their own. 



This same tendency could be observed among 

 a million men, a million roses, a million peas, a 

 million quartz crystals, or a million of any of 

 Nature's creations. 



Those one, or two, or three out of every million 

 with tendencies to break away are sometimes 

 called the freaks or "sports" of the species. 



It seems as though Nature, never quite satisfied 

 with her creations, is always experimenting, with 

 the hope of creating a better result — yet limiting 

 those experiments to such a small percentage that 

 the mass of the race remains unchanged — its 

 characteristics preserved — its general tendencies 

 unaffected. 



The California poppy, as it grows wild, is a rich 



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