philosophy an incapability of judging of experiments simply
with the sound human understanding; an imaginary something was constantly introduced into the results of experiments
which had not the remotest connection with their conditions and results.
The doubts expressed by Bernhardi in 1811, by Girou in 1828-30, and by Ramisch in 1837 were of a different kind: these men made experiments and judged of them in a scientific manner; but they were insufficiently acquainted with what had been done before them, and their experiments were not devised with the requisite knowledge of the conditions of the problem, or carried out with sufficient precautions. Camerarius and Ray had noticed in the previous century the occasional occurrence of male flowers on female plants of spinach, hemp and mercury; and yet the observers above mentioned chose these plants for their experiments without being on their guard against the possible appearance of these exceptional circumstances, or of other means of pollination.
We see then that doubts were entertained till as late as after 1830 with regard either to sexuality in plants altogether, or to its general prevalence in Phanerogams; the Cryptogams were not mentioned, for they were assumed to be devoid of sex in spite of many valuable observations of earlier times. The great majority of botanists however admitted the sexual significance of the organs of the flower; most of them rested in entire faith on Linnaeus' authority, while some were able to appreciate the experimental proofs of Camerarius, Bradley, Logan, Gleditsch and Koelreuter. But all who took up the subject in earnest between 1820 and 1840 were naturally led to desire that the question should once more be thoroughly examined. The Berlin Academy of science had offered in 1819 at Link's suggestion a prize for an essay on the question, whether there is such a thing as hybrid fertilisation in the vegetable kingdom, in the hope of stimulating botanists to new investigations into the decisive points in the sexual
