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De Vries' experiments in variation and Mendel's rediscovered work on plant hybridization had hopelessly undermined the older notion that the evolution or progress of species has taken place through the inheritance of acquired characters that is, that the individuals developed or adapted themselves to suit their surroundings and that these body-modifications were inherited by their offspring.
"Nevertheless, my studies were by no means unfruitful, since they resulted in a triumphant vindication of my theory, which, contrary to that universally received and more closely allied to the 'exploded' Mendel's Law, ascribed the appearance of such monsters not to any strict physiological process but to a hitherto unclassified law of embryology which I had hoped would one day take its place in science under my name.
Quetelet's law of variation had not yet been published. Mendel's claim of hereditary units for the explanation of certain laws of hybrids discovered by him, was not yet made. The clear distinction between spontaneous and sudden changes, as compared with the ever-present fluctuating variations, is only of late coming into recognition by agriculturists.
Activity and latency are such conditions, and therefore Mendel's law obviously applies to them. They require pairs of antagonistic qualities, and have no connection whatever with those qualities, which do not find an opponent in the other parent. Now, only pure varieties afford such pure conditions.
Master Spiesz, Ann's father, had been bidden from Venice, where he had been in the service of the Mendel's merchant house, to become head clerk in Nuremberg, first in the Chamber of Taxes, and then in the Chancery, a respectable post of much trust.
Recently many instances have been tested, and even in many cases third and later generations have been counted, and whenever the evidence was complete enough to be trusted, Mendel's prophecy has been found to be right.
'Still, gentlemen, he said, 'if I may intrude my humble opinion Reb Mendel's advice is also good. God is, of course, our only protection. 'True, true. And the faces grew still cheerier. 'In God's name, wake up! David burst forth. 'In Samooborona lies your only salvation. Give the money to us, not to the Governor. We can meet and practise in your Talmud-Torah Hall!
This discussion gives a clear insight into the fundamental phenomena of hybrid fertilization. It at once shows the correctness of the assumption of unit-characters, and of their pairing in the sexual combinations. But Mendel's law is not at all restricted to these simple cases.
The spikes would show exactly the same mixture as in the above case, but now this may be considered as conclusive proof that half the pollen-grains represent the quality of one parent and the other half the quality of the other. Another corollary of Mendel's law is the following. In each generation two groups return to purity, and one-half remains hybrid.
Thus Professor Bateson, the great exponent of Mendel's doctrines, who has told us in his Presidential Address to the British Association that we must think much less highly of Natural Selection than some would have us do, has, as has been set forth in the previous section of this essay, his opinion as to the rule of life which we should follow.
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