﻿Botany. 
  75 
  

  

  The 
  next 
  point 
  seemed 
  to 
  be 
  to 
  eliminate 
  the 
  source 
  of 
  error 
  

   which 
  might 
  arise 
  from 
  defective 
  germinative 
  power. 
  I 
  there- 
  

   fore 
  communicated 
  the 
  list 
  to 
  Messrs. 
  Sutton 
  & 
  Sons, 
  of 
  Reading, 
  

   and 
  asked 
  their 
  assistance. 
  With 
  their 
  invariable 
  kindness 
  in 
  any 
  

   scientific 
  enquiry, 
  they 
  willingly 
  complied, 
  and 
  sent 
  the 
  samples 
  

   required 
  with 
  the 
  following 
  report 
  : 
  

  

  ' 
  We 
  now 
  have 
  pleasure 
  in 
  sending 
  a 
  packet 
  of 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  

   seeds 
  you 
  name. 
  They 
  are 
  all 
  of 
  last 
  year's 
  growth, 
  and 
  of 
  good 
  

   germination. 
  For 
  your 
  information 
  we 
  append 
  the 
  germinations 
  

   arrived 
  at 
  by 
  our 
  tests 
  made 
  in 
  March 
  last 
  of 
  the 
  various 
  parcels 
  

   from 
  which 
  these 
  samples 
  are 
  taken. 
  We 
  have 
  no 
  doubt 
  that 
  

   each 
  grain 
  of 
  wheat 
  is 
  a 
  germinating 
  seed, 
  as 
  specially 
  fine 
  seeds 
  

   have 
  been 
  picked 
  out. 
  In 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  musk 
  a 
  good 
  growth 
  was 
  

   obtained, 
  but 
  the 
  germination 
  was 
  not 
  counted. 
  

  

  ' 
  Germinations 
  : 
  

  

  Mustard 
  100 
  per 
  cent. 
  

  

  ' 
  Bountiful' 
  peas 
  100 
  " 
  

  

  Vegetable 
  marrow 
  96 
  " 
  

  

  Musk 
  Good. 
  

  

  Wheat... 
  -. 
  - 
  96 
  

  

  Barley 
  100 
  " 
  

  

  I 
  forwarded 
  the 
  samples 
  (which 
  were 
  small) 
  to 
  Professor 
  Dewar, 
  

   and 
  suggested 
  that 
  they 
  should 
  be 
  each 
  divided 
  into 
  two 
  portions, 
  

   one 
  for 
  a 
  control 
  experiment 
  under 
  ordinary 
  conditions, 
  the 
  other 
  

   to 
  be 
  returned 
  to 
  me 
  after 
  being 
  subjected 
  to 
  cooling. 
  Owing 
  to 
  

   some 
  misunderstanding, 
  this 
  was 
  not 
  done 
  ; 
  but, 
  as 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  

   in 
  the 
  result, 
  the 
  omission 
  proved 
  immaterial. 
  The 
  seeds, 
  it 
  

   should 
  be 
  stated, 
  were 
  simply 
  air-dried 
  : 
  they 
  were 
  ordinary 
  com- 
  

   mercial 
  samples, 
  and 
  no 
  attempt 
  was 
  made 
  to 
  further 
  desiccate 
  

   them 
  

  

  On 
  July 
  21 
  he 
  wrote 
  to 
  me: 
  — 
  ' 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  weather 
  I 
  have 
  

   carried 
  out 
  my 
  promise, 
  and 
  cooled 
  some 
  seeds 
  in 
  liquid 
  hydrogen 
  

   for 
  half 
  an 
  hour. 
  I 
  had 
  to 
  seal 
  them 
  up 
  in 
  a 
  glass 
  tube, 
  cool 
  first 
  

   in 
  liquid 
  air, 
  and 
  then 
  transfer 
  to 
  the 
  hydrogen. 
  They 
  have, 
  

   therefore, 
  been 
  cooled 
  to 
  —250° 
  C, 
  or 
  —252° 
  C, 
  while 
  being 
  in 
  a 
  

   vacuum 
  (seeing 
  the 
  air 
  left 
  had 
  no 
  appreciable 
  tension). 
  The 
  

   seeds 
  in 
  other 
  words, 
  have 
  been 
  transferred 
  to 
  a 
  condition 
  

   resembling 
  that 
  of 
  moving 
  through 
  space. 
  Another 
  set 
  of 
  the 
  

   seeds 
  have 
  been 
  cooled 
  only 
  in 
  liquid 
  air 
  for 
  comparison.' 
  

  

  On 
  July 
  22 
  he 
  added, 
  on 
  returning 
  the 
  seeds 
  : 
  — 
  'There 
  can 
  be 
  

   no 
  doubt 
  about 
  the 
  seeds 
  being 
  cooled, 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  hydro- 
  

   gen 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  an 
  hour. 
  In 
  fact 
  I 
  used 
  nearly 
  600 
  cc 
  of 
  liquid 
  

   hydrogen.' 
  

  

  The 
  seeds 
  came 
  to 
  me 
  in 
  the 
  small 
  packets 
  of 
  tinfoil 
  in 
  which 
  

   they 
  had 
  been 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  tube. 
  On 
  opening 
  these 
  it 
  was 
  

   observed 
  that 
  the 
  seeds 
  were 
  as 
  fresh 
  and 
  bright 
  as 
  before 
  being 
  

   subjected 
  to 
  the 
  treatment. 
  There 
  was 
  not 
  the 
  slightest 
  dis- 
  

  

  