With this necessary prelude I will now give a condensed survey of the historical facts relating to the origin of new horticultural varieties. An ample description has been given recently by Korshinsky, a Russian writer, who has brought together considerable historical material as evidence of the sudden appearance of novelties throughout the whole realm of garden plants. The oldest known, and at the same time one of the most accurately described mutations is the origin of the cut-leaved variety of the greater celandine or _Chelidonium majus_. This variety has been described either as such, or as a distinct species, called _Chelidonium laciniatum_ Miller. It is distinguished from the ordinary species, by the leaves being cut into narrow lobes, with almost linear tips, a character which is, as we have seen on a previous occasion, repeated in the petals. It is at present nearly as commonly cultivated in botanical gardens as the _C. majus_, and has escaped in many localities and is observed to thrive as readily as the native wild [610] plants. It was not known until a few years before the close of the 16th century. Its history has been described by the French botanist, Rose. It was seen for the first time in the garden of Sprenger, an apothecary of Heidelberg, where the _C. majus_ had been cultivated for many years. Sprenger discovered it in the year 1590, and was struck by its peculiar and sharply deviating characters. He was anxious to know whether it was a new plant and sent specimens to Clusius and to Plater, the last of whom transmitted them to Caspar Bauhin. These botanists recognized the type as quite new and Bauhin described it some years afterwards in his Phytopinax under the name of _Chelidonium majus foliis quernis_, or oak-leaved celandine. The new variety soon provoked general interest and was introduced into most of the botanical gardens of Europe. It was recognized as quite new, and repeated search has been made for it in a wild state, but in vain. No other origin has been discovered than that of Sprenger's garden. Afterwards it became naturalized in England and elsewhere, but there is not the least doubt as to its derivation in all the observed cases. Hence its origin at Heidelberg is to be considered as historically proven, and it is of course only legitimate to assume that it originated in [611] the year 1590 from the seeds of the _C. majus_. Nevertheless, this was not ascertained by Sprenger, and some doubt as to a possible introduction from elsewhere might arise. If not, then the mutation must have been sudden, occurring without visible preparation and without the appearance of intermediates.