NOTE VI 



(To page 223) 



The earliest segmentations of the fertilized ova- 

 rian cell occur within a very small space. The 

 organic tissue within which the fertilized ovarian 

 cell is placed by the act of conjugation may surely 

 be regarded as being a uniform medium within this 

 small space. If the reactions of a uniform medium 

 on the things in it differ in results, then the differ- 

 ences can only be owing to differences in the things. 



On page 223 it has been mentioned that a small 

 portion of the fertilized ovarian cell is segregated 

 from the rest of it by one of the earliest segmenta- 

 tions. This segregation, being a difference in the 

 results of the reactions between the medium and 

 the fertilized ovarian cell within it, therefore is 

 evidence of differences existing between the fer- 

 tilized ovarian cell and the portion segregated 

 from it. Reflection may yield a clue to the nature 

 of this difference. 



In the formation of the fertilized ovarian cell, 

 by the intermingling of the two different reproduc- 

 tive materials, it is obviously excessively improbable 

 that the quantities of these two different materials, 

 coming from two different organisms, so to speak 



239 



