134 MENDELISM chap, xn 



razor all the male organs together with the stigmata 

 through which the pollen reaches the ovules. The flower, 

 nevertheless, sets perfectly good seed. But the cells 

 from which the seeds develop are not of the same nature 

 as the normal ovules of a plant. They are not gametes 

 but retain the double structure of the maternal cells. 

 They are rather to be regarded as of the nature of buds 

 which early become detached from the parent stock to* 

 lead an independent existence, and, like buds, they re- 

 produce exactly the maternal characteristics. The dis- 

 covery of the true nature of this case was only rendered 

 possible by the development of the study of cytology, and 

 it was not given to Mendel to live long enough to learn 

 why his hybrid Hieraciums all bred true. 



