January, kjt,'^.] 
THE ORCHID WORT.D. 
87 
plants. In this way a factorial analysis of the 
plant can be made, and as regards each 
heritable character the plant will be found 
to be either homozygous, heterozygous, or 
zerozygous, and as such it will behave when 
bred from. Once the factorial analysis of a 
plant has been made all future breeding from 
that plant is reduced to practically a certainty." 
This ascertaining of a plant's germinal, or 
gametic, constitution seems rather a formid- 
able undertaking, and would surely end 
inconclusively. Major Hurst is not taking 
into consideration the heritable characters of 
the plant with which it is to be cross-bred, 
which might negative the value of any- 
factorial analysis that would ensue. And 
after the factorial analysis had been made, 
surely any " certainty " in future cross- 
breeding would always be subject to modifi- 
cation by the plant with which it was mated. 
Major Hurst says that no less than five 
different kinds of albinos may exist. The 
results of my own experience, and as far as 
my knowledge of the experience ot other 
raisers goes, point to there being one kind of 
albino only, and it always breeds true whether 
selfed or crossed with another albino. But, as 
I have already pointed out in the ORCHID 
World, if it be crossed with a pseudo-albino, 
of which there are many about, all the hybrids 
will be distinctly coloured. A Cattleya 
Schroderae but very slightly flushed crossed 
with a white Cattleya Mossiae reverted (or 
advanced?) so much that the seedlings were 
hardly distinguishable from a batch of typical 
Cattleya Mossiae. A good many pseudo- 
albinos, which to the trained eye would have 
been readily distinguishable as such, have 
been used in crossing, but it is quite possible 
that purple sap might be present in the flower 
and not be visible. The shade of white in the 
flower is not of importance, and various shades 
of white, or green-cream and white, may be 
observed in the same flower as it develops 
to maturity and then fades av/ay. The 
density of a flower has also much to do with 
the shade of whiteness. 
I know of a good many crosses in different 
collections that have been made from 
so-called albinos, the results of which have 
invariably been all coloured, but nothing has 
come under my notice to sui)i)ort Major 
Hurst's tables under " colour and albinism." 
I shall endeavour to collect further evidence 
on this point for publication in the ORCHID 
World. 
The single instance recorded of albino and 
coloured Orchids coming out of the same 
seed capsule is the Cattleya hybrid Myra 
Peeters, a cross between C. Gaskelliana alba 
and C. Warneri alba. It has always puzzled 
me — in the light of the foregoing — why this 
(I believe the first albino Cattleya raised) 
should have behaved in this way. It was 
raised in Mr. Peeter's nursery 111 Belgium, 
and T suggest some solution of the conundrum 
as follows : Perhaps two capsules were set on 
two C. Gaskelliana alba, one of which was 
not a true albino, and the seed was mixed and 
sown together ; if the C. Warneri alba carried 
the seed, perhaps the pollen from a true and 
a false albino Gaskelliana v\'ere used ; or 
perhaps the pollen from a true and a false 
albino Warneri were put on a true albino 
Gaskelliana. 
Any of these crosses would give a simjile 
explanation of the singular and unique 
results from this particular cross. • In any 
case, this Belgian raised Cattleya is the only 
evidence to date in Orchids that gives any 
semblance of probability to the exij>tence of 
Major Hurst's five different kinds of albinos. 
I should like to point out that while the 
visible evidence of coloured sap in the foliage 
of a Cattleya proves conclusively that it is 
not an albino, the want of coloured sap is in 
no sense any guide as to its being one. 
Major Hurst is on perfectly safe ground 
when he advocates "the making over again 
of the best hybrids, using as parents the 
best individuals of the best varieties of the 
best species of the best genera. The primary 
hybrids thus obtained would be pedigree 
hybrids, and the best individuals of these 
might be further utilised in accordance with 
the particular aims that the breeder may 
have in view." 
This is exactly what the Orchid breeder 
who has sense and reason has for long been 
endeavouring to do. J. M. BLACK. 
