Coeur d'Alene evening press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1907-1929, 1908-03-06
RIDDLE OF INSTINCT,
Scientists Are Studying Myster'
les of Inherited Traits.
CURIOUS EXPERIMENTS MADE

ties Make nelF way 10 tne oea
Developing New Fruits.
when the hands are claspeu togeth
or there is usually a perfect constancy
as to which thumb is uppermost, but
some people always put the right up
permost, others the left. hope tOI
find out II this character Is inherited
and, If so, what laws are followed
says +. Il. Lutz of the Carnegie lnstt
tute's laboratory OF experimental eyo
luton, according to Washington dis
patch to the Kansas City Star. A sim
liar character he finds In the hind wing
coverings Of crickets, the right usually
overlapping the left In males, although
In some OF the latter the reverse Is the
case. The inheritance Of this position
Is being tested by Mr.. Lutz, who, with
insects as material. IL studying the
problems OF heredity. He has mated
125 pairs Of crickets for this seasons
work, and on his pedlgreed stock he
has bred a new form, having under
developed wings, wing coverings and
ovlpositors, or egg planters.
To learn how heredity can be con.
trolled 10 the primary function OF this
new laboratory, toward whose sup
port $4,000 Of the ironmaster's mil
lions IL being annually appropriated
'@The most important definite question
to answer is, How may the course Of
the stream OF germplasm that has
come down to us from remote ages be
controlled In Its onward courseT' says
DR.. q. Il. Davenport, director OF the
laboratory. Presenting that heredity
Ia governed by the same laws In man
and beast, Or. Davenport Is studying
the lower animals first, because nat
urally they are more easily handled
and more amenable to discipline. Fol-
this years experiments he has twenty
controlled strains in mammals, sixty
In poultry. fifteen in cage birds, Ave
in crlckets, some two dozen in other
insects and 400 In towering plants. In
some Of bis insects he has controlled
the heredity for twenty generations.
The mysteries Of "lnstinct" are being
inquired into In the course OF another
series OF Investigations lately com.
menced by the institute. The ability
Of the newly Matched turtle to run
directly toward the sea without losing
time cropping In a landward direction
has been one OF the phenomena Of In
stinct long puzzle to science. At the
Institutes new laboratory Of marine
biology at Tortugas Fla, this problem
has been lately attacked by Davenport
Hooker Of the laboratory staff After
experimenting with loggerhead turtles
he hnds that they are born with au
instinct to go down hill and In the ID.
rectlon Of the greatest light This In
stinct leads the animals to the sea. as
the shores on which they are hatcheA
always slope down toward the ocean
and as the reflected light from the wa.
ter IL always greater than that from
the land. Neither the sound Of the
surf nor the smell Of the sea guides
them.
a study Of the mysteries OF 'protec.
tive coloring' In Insects has been com
menced at the Tortugas station by Pro
fessor Charles r. Stockard. He has
begun with that unEalnly creature, the
walking stick" which nature has not
only colored, but formed to deceive Its
enemies. for when hidden In foliage Il
looks like u slender twlg with branch,
es Professor Stockard says that II
feeds and breeds by night. ana by day
remains motlonless In a protective at
tltude among the stems of It's food
pant from which II Is difficult TO dis.
tlngulsh Us form. Both the stems and
the Insect vary considerably IN color.
but the latter generally falls TO select
branches matching It's own shade
When disturbed II usually drops bodily
to branch below or to the ground
where II felgns death Ia new series
OF experiments with these uncanny In
sects nr. Stnckard blaCkens their eyes
and removes their feelers, after which
he subjects them to various noises and
colored lights ito test the modification
OF their behavior" lie viii announce
his results later. He has also set upon
wire legs dummy figures made up OF
parts OF the bodies OF dead walking
sticks and has studied the behavior
OF live specimens toward them
Az ANtcEullhe what eN0uounlc plants
can be- made TO flourish In the great
deserts Of our arid southwest the des
ert botanical laboratory which the In.
stltution has bullt at Tucson. Ariz., is
doing interesting work under the guild.
ance OF u, 7. Macpougal. director Of
the department OF botanical research,
A boat lately built for this laboratory
Is now elrcumnavigating the great in.
land "Salton sea" OF California. which
has an area OF 500 square miles. Mr..
Macnougal estimates that the greater
part OF this lake win disappear in ten
years, and this expedition Is tracing
movements Of vegetation along its
shores. He also Is directing explorations
OF the Pattie basin. In California. one
Of North Americas most arid regions.
Luther Burbank. the wizard Of SAINTS
Rosa. under grant from the lnstf
tute Is developing new fruit and fOd