on the self-fertilised plants, and many of them were pale, approaching almost to white.  The flowers on the plants from the cross with the purple-flowered Westerham stock were, as might have been expected, much more purple and not nearly so uniform in tint.  The self-fertilised plants were also remarkably uniform in height, as judged by the eye; the intercrossed less so, whilst the Westerham-crossed plants varied much in height.

Nicotiana tabacum.

This plant offers a curious case.  Out of six trials with crossed and self-fertilised plants, belonging to three successive generations, in one alone did the crossed show any marked superiority in height over the self-fertilised; in four of the trials they were approximately equal; and in one (i.e., in the first generation) the self-fertilised plants were greatly superior to the crossed.  In no case did the capsules from flowers fertilised with pollen from a distinct plant yield many more, and sometimes they yielded much fewer seeds than the capsules from self-fertilised flowers.  But when the flowers of one variety were crossed with pollen from a slightly different variety, which had grown under somewhat different conditions,—­that is, by a fresh stock,—­the seedlings derived from this cross exceeded in height and weight those from the self-fertilised flowers in an extraordinary degree.

Twelve flowers on some plants of the common tobacco, raised from purchased seeds, were crossed with pollen from a distinct plant of the same lot, and these produced ten capsules.  Twelve flowers on the same plants were fertilised with their own pollen, and produced eleven capsules.  The seeds in the ten crossed capsules weighed 31.7 grains, whilst those in ten of the self-fertilised capsules weighed 47.67 grains; or as 100 to 150.  The much greater productiveness of the self-fertilised than of the crossed capsules can hardly be attributed to chance, as all the capsules of both lots were very fine and healthy ones.

The seeds were placed on sand, and several pairs in an equal state of germination were planted on the opposite sides of three pots.  The remaining seeds were thickly sown on the two sides of Pot 4, so that the plants in this pot were much crowded.  The tallest plant on each side of each pot was measured.  Whilst the plants were quite young the four tallest crossed plants averaged 7.87 inches, and the four tallest self-fertilised 14.87 inches in height; or as 100 to 189.  The heights at this age are given in the two left columns of Table 6/84.

When in full flower the tallest plants on each side were again measured, see the two right hand columns in Table 6/84.  But I should state that the pots were not large enough, and the plants never grew to their proper height.  The four tallest crossed plants now averaged 18.5, and the four tallest self-fertilised plants 32.75 inches in height; or as 100 to 178.  In all four pots a self-fertilised plant flowered before any one of the crossed.