No. 526] SEXUAL REPBODUCTIOX IX AXGIOSPERMS 613 



whether such embryosacs, whose egg-cells contain the 

 these apogamous species, an apparently normal gameto- 

 pbytic. However, progress in science is not accom- 

 plished by controversies and discussions of terminology. 

 The main thing which interests us here is the effect, 

 from an hereditary standpoint, that apogamy, of the 

 sort mentioned, lias upon the species so affected. True 

 it is that such apogamous progeny have the characters 

 of both parents, male and female, but it is a remote 

 parentage. There is no new parent introduced with each 

 new generation, that is. each time a plant comes from a 

 seed, and it seems not improbable that the loss of cer- 

 tain very important reproductive functions may be ex- 

 pected in later generations of such plants. In reality 

 certain observed facts seem to bear out this suggestion, 

 as Strasburger found that, in some of the Kualchimillas. 

 degeneration took place in the pollen mother-cells before 

 the spores were fully formed. Whether apogamously de- 

 veloped plants will behave in a manner similar to those 

 propagated vegetatively, e. g., by cuttings, or as normal 

 sexually produced individuals, future research must de- 

 termine. Until the observations of the several observ- 

 ers have been confirmed by others, and until experimen- 

 tal cultural studies are made to ascertain the behavior 

 of apogamous plants along with those possessing sexual- 

 ity, speculation seems idle. 



In regard to parthenogenesis as defined in a preceding 

 paragraph, this phenomenon is claimed to occur in cer- 

 tain species among rather widely separated families. 

 The best known instances are Thalictrum Fendleri, as 

 reported by Day (1896), Thalictrum purpurescens, by 

 Overton (1902, 1904) and Wikstrcemia indica, by Wink- 

 ler (1904, 1905). However, for Thalictrum purpures- 

 cens, Overton (1904, p. 278) expressly states that in some 



curs in the embryosac mother-cells, and that tetrads are 

 not formed, so that apogamy certainly occurs in this 

 species also. In regard to Wikstnvmia it may be added 

 that the recent investigations of Strasburger upon this 



