By the Hon. and Rev. William Herbert. 23 



the ground entirely blue, with streaks of a deeper colour, but 

 no instance of a plant raised from its seed, with all its flow- 

 ers alike, or spotted at the mouth of the tube, has been seen; 

 and, therefore, it appears to be as truly a distinct species, 

 as if it had been distinguished by any other permanent 

 feature. Permanent colour is also a principal feature, in 

 distinguishing the species of Anagallis. On the other hand, 

 as to Pubescence, the lovely Echites suberecta, does not 

 appear to vary in colour, but in a pot of seedlings, I have 

 found one with the stems hairy, whilst the rest have them 

 smooth. If that difference had been found in a wild speci- 

 men, with some variation in the colour of the flower, the 

 Botanist would have named it a distinct species, until the 

 experience of Cultivators had shewn the difference to be 

 uncertain. 



With respect to the fertility or barrenness of mule vege- 

 tables, there is some mystery which I cannot at present and 

 perhaps never shall be able to develope. All the mules I 

 have raised between the African Gladioli have proved 

 exceedingly fertile, indeed certain of producing good seed 

 from every flower; yet the Gladioli cardinalis, blandus, 

 tristis, hirsutus, and recurvus, from the intermixture or 

 which some of those mules have been produced, are 

 plants exceedingly dissimilar to each other, and could 

 not possibly be considered as varieties of one species. I 

 have found no difficulty in crossing one of the mules pro- 

 duced from these, with any third species : but the European 

 Gladioli (which have not winged seeds, and ought to be 

 considered as constituting a distinct genus) have as yet re- 

 fused to breed with the African sorts. On the other hand, 



