468 Selective Elimination in Stapliylea 
number of ovules per locule we note that locales with 7 ovules or less form 54'6 per 
cent, of the collection, while in the collection of matured fruits they form only 
31"4 per cent. In all three series we are dealing with over 2000 fruits, or over 
6000 individual locules, so the results can be looked upon with considerable 
confidence. 
Diagrams 2 and 3 show these results graphically. 
Ovules per Locule. 
Diagram 2. Percentile curve showing frequency of different numbers of 
ovules per locule in the eliminated series and the series developing 
to maturity. Dots and broken lines = Elimiuated series ; dots and 
firm lines = Matured series. 
Problem 2. Is there a difference in the variability in number of ovules per 
locule and per fruit in the eliminated ovaries and those which develop to maturity? 
The results of the preceding section indicate clearly that the chances of an 
ovary developing to maturity are not independent of its number of ovules but that 
those with the smaller numbers are apt to be eliminated. 
It is quite thinkable that a strong selective elimination might exist without 
bringing about any sensible difference in the mean values of a character in the 
population before and after elimination. If the elimination were not of the larger 
or the smaller fruits as measured by the number of ovules per locule or per fruit, 
but of both largest and smallest fruits, i.e. of the extreme variates of both kinds, the 
