| Show POWER OF STATION FOB THE OP EVOLUTION branch of the carnegie institution at washington which Is carrying on a most novel work on log ilind few know of the station for ex perl mental evolution at cold spring harbor long island or understand the novel character of the work being carried on this laboratory as it Is generally called Is a branch of the carneg institution at wash ington and about a year and a hall ago for the purpose c studying heird ity in lants and animals and as an outgrowth ot the work thus far accomplished there has just been appointed by assistant sec rotary of agriculture hays a commit tee on eugenics whose will VIE OF THE MAIN sg be to make a study of the heredity in man with a view to racial improve ment this committee will use tor its data some of the researches that are being made into the heredity ot plants and animals although experimental evolution Is one of the latest practical develop ments of modern science this car negie laboratory has chosen tor the scene of its labors a locality that Is thoroughly primitive being marked by the absence of all those modern am prove ments that usually characterize the suburban village if indeed cold spring harbor can be dignified by that designation the laboratory buildings are erected on a small fresh water pond empty ing into the harbor beyond ten acres of land are utilized by the institution for its various experiments in botany and animal life as shown by a num ber of neat In closures containing de mure looking poultry dignified goats of a somewhat questionable parentage judging by their outward appearance cattle sheep a greenhouse and a tor the accommodation of insects adjoining the land belonging to the laboratory the brooklyn ansti tute of arts and sciences has a build ing to which it it at present making considerable additions devoted to bio logical studies while across across the vay is the new ork state fish hatchery where millions of trout shad bass smelt and cod are turned out yearly for the benefit of the lakes and streams throughout throng hout the state davenport who has been as so clate professor of zoology at the university of chicago tor the past foul years Is at the head ot both biological laboratories at cold spring harbor in his report of the first year s work prot davenport states that the first efforts have been directed to studley of heredity which he de dares in spite of their Import anco tor evolution have been relatively neglected to deal with this abject the laboratory his planned work which it will undertake in compera alon with others on all the main groups of animals and plant following this pro gramme two and a halt acres of laboratory land hav bern devoted to tre rearing of adl arcel plants whose welthie has been v arched by drs britton and mac bousal ot the new daa i cat garden well as by the botanist 0 the labora ory dr shull lighty on different species of plants were choden and kept under careful observation leveni showing notable variations what the laboratory Is don ath plants it Is doing alo wita anoe ti in fact cold spring harbor just now might bo called an insect paradas ls and tor entrance to the laboratory from those minute denizens of the forest should be numerous side special experiments that are being made at the labor tory with ahn and snails the principal investigation have been so far to dome iti bated animals fowl duck pigeons canary birds goldfinch goats sheep eattle and the plain everyday harm less nee cat the two goat connected with t laboratory are irish and are decorated v ath certain peculiar on the neck the interest Int prest attacked att acred to thes wattle according to arct davenport depends on the fact that the are cyp cal abnormalities and no function they have been repeatedly observed in man now the question Is f ath these two irish goats at the laboi tory how will the wattles ap I 1 pear in their descendants 7 the in te resting pair have had four offspring since their arrival at the laboratory some v ath wattles some without prof davenport calculates that with greater numbers he should get three times as many as non offspring the same kind of experiment Is be ing conducted with the five sheep a the laboratory and with a pair of jer sey and holstein cattle from which prof davenport hopes to improve the quality of the holstein milk the alve cats with which the laboratory shartel have already had 13 kittens and the experiments regarding them are thus described by prof davenport it characteristics are for the most part inherited entire and can be corn abbed in various ways like atoms in chemistry it should be possible to ob tain any desired combination at the beginning of the year I 1 set myself the task of producing a white blue eved deaf long haired tailless poly dactyl cat my parental stock con arts of no 1 black manx male tailless no 2 black tailed poly dactyl female no 3 female malte no 4 white blue eyed deaf female no black and yellow female As a result I 1 obtained a great va biety of combinations of character ls ties |
