THE FORMATION OP VARIETIES. 187 



With Plants, there is a great reduction and suppres- 

 sion of many characters. Under domestication, the 

 floriculturist and agriculturist aim at the exclusive de- 

 velopment of those parts which they value. Other 

 characters of the species, are, either, left greatly re- 

 duced, are suffered to become wholly suppressed, or 

 are systematically suppressed by man. 



Darwin says (p. 509, Vol. ii) : 



"The best proof of what selection has effected, is, 

 perhaps, afforded by the fact that, whatever part or 

 quality, in any animal, and more especially, in any 

 plant, is most valued by man, that part, or quality 

 differs most in the several races. This result is well 

 seen, by comparing the amount of difference between 

 the fruits produced by the varieties of the same fruit 

 tree ; between the flowers of the varieties in one flower 

 garden ; between the seeds, roots, or leaves of our culi- 

 nary and agricultural plants, in comparison with the 

 oflier, and not valued, parts of the same plants." 



Thus, if it is the fruit which is the desired feature, 

 the plant will have that character so developed as to 

 approximate perfection; whilst the flowers (including 

 the petals, stamens, pistils, ovaries, ovules) and the 

 leaves, the seed, the roots, the bark, the chemical ele- 

 ments, and the many other characters, will not only be 

 neglected, but will be greatly reduced or suppressed; 

 entailing thus, a development of the most dispro- 

 portionate kind. With different plants of the same 

 species, and even of the .same variety, the neglected 

 parts will vary, to some extent, in the degree of their 

 development, owing to the varying conditions of life 

 to which they are subjected; for, as Darwin says 



