AMERICAN HYBRID CONFERENCE. 



1068 



opportunity of seeing his photographs could form some idea of the great 

 interest of the work. 



Professor de Vries communicated an account of his Antirrhinum 

 experiments, since published in the Mutatiortstheorie, vol. ii. 



Mr. R. I. Lynch, of Cambridge, sent practical suggestions as to 

 nomenclature of hybrids, and a committee was appointed to consider this 

 and cognate questions. 



Professor Willet Hays, who will be remembered as an active delegate to 

 the London Conference, described the Minnesota experiments and gave use- 

 ful advice to plant-breeders on a variety of topics connected with their art. 



It was much regretted that Mr. Luther Burbank, whose achievements 

 in breeding are now famous, could not attend to read his paper (since 

 published in the Gardeners' Chronicle). The foreign delegates had 

 greatly hoped to make the acquaintance of this pioneer in the economic 

 branch of the subject. 



The paper of Mr. Orton, of the Washington Station, recorded some 

 remarkable successes in raising a disease-resisting variety of Cotton. In 

 large plantings of Cotton where nearly every plant succumbed to the 

 Cotton-wilt disease, a few plants remained standing. By saving the seed of 

 these a race was immediately produced by one selection only, capable of 

 withstanding the disease. It was understood that the commercial qualities 

 of this immune strain are satisfactory, and great results are hoped for 

 from the work. To the naturalist the very striking photographs shown by 

 Mr. Orton were most suggestive. 



A preliminary communication was made by Dr. Cannon, of Columbia 

 University, indicating the way in which he is disposed to think the 

 Mendelian principles are in accord with the facts observed by the 

 American school of cytologists. This is a subject of exceptional impor- 

 tance at the present moment, when the relation of Mendelian segregation 

 of characters and differentiation of germ-cells to the visible phenomena 

 of cell-division is a question of far-reaching interest. The solution of 

 this part of the problem of heredity is eagerly awaited by both zoologists 

 and botanists, and the announcement even of a possible interpretation is 

 an event. 



Professor Beach, the head of the plant-breeding section of the Geneva 

 Station of the State of New York, showed a fine series of photographs 

 illustrating a practical problem of great magnitude. How may the 

 breeder, of Grapes for example (a special subject of the Geneva work), tell 

 by inspection of his multitude of seedlings which are worth growing to 

 maturity ? By the nature of the case he can only grow comparative :ly 

 few. Is there, then, any correlation between characters visible in the 

 seedlings and the qualities wanted in a serviceable vine ? The question 

 can of course only be settled by elaborate research and recording, and it is to 

 be feared that the answer will, as Professor Beach anticipates, be frequently 

 negative. Nevertheless indications of such correlation had been met with 

 in the Peach, large leaves indicating large fruits. Several colour correla- 

 tions had been noticed, White Raspberries having paler foliage and steins, 

 white-fleshed Peaches also having paler leaves, £c. 



Some valuable notes on the variations in the Strawberry obtained by 

 selection of runners were read by Mr. Kellogg, who has had wide 



