58 Agricultural Experiment Station, Ithaca, N. Y. 



taldng some sprouts of his plum witli him. The plums soon 

 attraxjted attention among Dodd's neighboi's, and the variety was 

 called in its new home William Dodd and Chickasaw Chief. The 

 year following William Dodd's removal to Illinois, his brother 

 moved to Gralena, Illinois, and took some of the plums. About 

 Gralena the plum became known as the Hinckley. I do not know 

 how the name Miner came to be applied to it, but Downing's 

 reference to Mr. Miner of Pennsylvania — who probably gTew aud 

 disseminated it — undoubtedly explains it. It is said by D. B. 

 Wier that the late Hon. James C Soulai'd, of Gralena, intro- 

 duced this plum to general cultivation, and I repeated 

 this statement last year in a discussion of the Soulard crab.* 

 (For a fuller history of the Miner, see A. biddings in Iowa Agr. 

 Rep. 1871, 332.) Downing gives Hinckley, Isabel, Gillett, Town- 

 send and Eobinson as synonyms of Miner. The Robinson now 

 known is a very different frait. (See No. 86.) The IMiner is one of 

 the best and most populai* of the native plums, and is probably 

 grown farther north with success than any other variety of this 

 species (Croups B and C). In Central New York it ripens in 

 October. Colored plate in Agriculture of Pennsylvania, 1881. C. 

 Parsons. — Supposed to be identical with Miner, which see. C. 



71. Prairie Flower. — A variety intn'oduced by Stark Bros., Mis- 

 souri; probably belongs in this group. 



72. Rachel. — Medium, round-oblong, dull red, thick skin; stone 

 cling, short and broad, thin-mai-gined on the front edge, scai"cely 

 pointed, smooth, Americana-like; leaves long, ell iptic-o borate, 

 moderately pointed, stalks glandulai". Medium to late C. 



The Miner group appears to be a strong and hardy race which 

 is pai"ticularly adapted to the northern limits of the cultivation of 

 the Hortulana family. The varieties are much alike. The Miner 

 is the most popular member of the group, and it succeeds even in 

 northern Illinois. In New York the varieties ripen from late 

 September even to late October. 



D. The Chickasaw Croup. — (Pniuus angustifolia, Mar.shall, 

 Arbustrum Americanum, III. [1785]. [Prunus Chickasa, Michx. 



* Amer. Garden XXn, 473. 



