--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Harris, F. S. - Butt, N. I. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 28 number: 3 published: 1925-01 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: "F. S. Harris and N. I. Butt, “Heroes of Science,” *Improvement Era 28, no. 3 (January 1925)*: 232–234." source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2803unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2803unse start_page: 232 end_page: 234 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1925-01) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2803unse publication_year: 1925 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1925, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Heroes of Science HEROES OF SCIENCE By F. S. Harris and N. I. Butt, of the Brigham Young University 7. Mendel Farmers, gardeners and stock men are constantly striving to im- prove the types of plants and animals they produce. Formerly im- provement was very slow because the laws on which it was based were not known. Now that many of the fundamental principles of breed- ing are known it is becoming less difficult for farmers to make the much-desired progress in crop and stock improvement. New varieties of grains, fruits, and vegetables are being devolped from less desirable types so that crop failures are less frequent, quality is improved, and yields are greater. In our gardens we now have beautiful flowers which were unkown a generation ago. When we wish to breed rab- bits, or sheep, or chickens we can secure nearly the sort we wish if we apply the latest principles of breeding. Gregor Mendel, who was born in 1822, was the man who first discovered one of the fundamental principles by which characters are transmitted from one generation to another. He began life with less opportunity than the average American boy has today; he belonged to the lower class or peasantry of Austria, but in Austria during his time, as in America today, those who work hard enough advance in spite of obstacles. Mendel was studious and decided to enter the min- istry in an Austrian monastery. Many of the monks in the monasteries did little outside of the daily routine, but Mendel was an exception. He loved nature and taught many of his students to appreciate the hand of God in the world about him as well as in the Holy Scriptures. In the garden of the monastery Mendel had noticed a great difference in the growth of plants. Some of them were tall; seed from these produced nothing but tall plants, whereas seed from some of the small plants produced nothing but small ones. Being a deep student, Mendel knew that God created the world so that everything acts ac- cording to a definite law, even though man does not always understand the law. Seeing an opportunity to help man "gain dominion over the earth" Mendel planned an extensive series of experiments. About a century and a half before Mendel's work began, nature students had discovered that plants have male and female organs the same as animals. It occurred to this investigator that if he removed the sex organs of plants which he did not wish to be reproduced he could discover the laws of breeding. This he did during a period of eight years, the plants being as carefully mated as animals might be in a HEROES OF SCIENCE 233 like experiment. The record of each plant was kept the same as we keep genealogical records. When the results of the tests were brought together one of the great secrets of breeding was revealed to Mendel. Where unlike in- dividuals were mated, there seemed to be great confusion in the char- acters of the product. His problem was to discover the laws underlying the results that might be expected from these crosses. When he con- sidered only the inheritance of a single factor such as color in sweet pea blossoms, he found the problem very simple. Instead of the cross being a blend between the colors of two, it was the color of one or the other of the parents. But even though a red blossom apparently disap- peared in the purple one with which it was bred, the red character was still present in hidden form, and would reappear in a future gen- eration if properly bred. The mixing and separating out of the charac- ters was found to follow definite mathematical laws so that if we know which characteristics, such as purple and red in sweet peas, are mated we can tell what to expect in the first, second and succeeding generations. Characters act as units instead of blending into each other. After Mendel had proved that this is what happens he gave a lecture on it to a scientific society in a town near his monastery and this society published the results in 1865. He also tried to get some of the scientists of that day interested in his discovery, but they were so wrapped up in Darwin's new theory of evolution then being much talked of, that they did not see the great importance of the work of Mende\. It was not until 1 7 years after his death, which occurred in 1884, that the world saw how vital were the discoveries made by this almost unknown and forgotten experimenter. In 1900 other investigators became interested in the same ques- tions of breeding on which Mendel had worked and his results were re-discovered. Progress in farming and other fields of endeavor in which breeding is essential had been handicapped through lack of knowledge, so that when the facts were again brought to the attention of the world, they were eagerly accepted and the name of Mendel became world famous. The law of heredity which he discovered now bears his name. Since 1900 hundreds of investigators have been searching for the unit characters or those which can be distinctly traced throughout the breeding processes. Mendel worked eight years on sweet peas, and pointed out only a relatively few such unit characters. He found that tallness of the plant, color of the blossom, wrinkling of the seed, shape of the pollen, fertility of the sex organs, and several others all acted according to his law. Workers since that time have traced the operation of the law through many characters of both the plant and animal kingdom. Some of the best varieties of wheat grown in the great wheat 234 IMPROVEMENT ERA producing sections of the world have been created by scientifically combining, with a knowledge of Mendel's law, two or more desirable characters. Likewise new varieties of corn, cabbage, watermelons, asparagus, flax, alfalfa, cotton and many other crops have been built up for special qualities which make them better than ordinary varieties. Many boys are becoming familiar with the working of Mendel's law by breeding rabbits. They know that a pink-eye rabbit always breeds true if mated with another pink-eye, and when a colored rabbit is mated with a pink-eye the young separate out nearly as Mendel found for his sweet peas. We are also gradually learning many of the unit charac-; ters in man so that we can predict what sort of children to expect from a man and woman who marry. Provo, Utah. The Cripple The school gong sounds: the air resounds With song and laughter gay; With yell and shout, the boys rush out, Out in the sun to play. But I must sit — just idly sit — Day, and day — and day. Oh, that I might, for just one night, Have limbs made well and strong! That at the call, down through the hall, I might — just once — go 'long. But I must sit — ah, yes, just sit, So long, so long — so long. I vainly cried, "Oh why, Oh why, Must I be punished so?" "Dear Lord," I cried," why can't I die, And end this pain and woe? Must I still sit, and sit — and sit — And never, never know?" For years I've borne the cross and thorn, As Christ our Lord on high: I've learned to sup the bitter cup, Without a tear or sigh. And I can sit — in patience sit — Week, and month and year. Yes, while they've played, I've stayed and prayed; While my sad heart has learned; Till from our Lord this answer came, And on my soul is burned. That — "How to wait — in patience sit, The world from me has learned." Clifton, Idaho. ORVID E. HOWELL.