THE JHAWAIIAN 



rORESTER I AGRICULTURIST 



NEW V 



Vol. Hi. MAY, 1906 No. 5«^'rAN 



The excellent paper contained in this number by Dr. Wil- 

 liam T. Brigham, on the culture of the "alligator" pear, will be 

 read with great interest. It embodies the substance of an 

 address delivered by Dr. Brigham at the meeting of the Farm- 

 ers' Institute at Kamehameha Schools last year, and completes 

 the knowledge at present available to us on the culture of 

 this esteemed fruit. We hope that the suggestion of the 

 writer that the native name "palta" be substituted for the 

 absurd "alligator pear" will be adopted. It is said that the 

 tree was introduced by the Incas to the valley of Cuzco from 

 the province of Paita, but wiiether the tree or the province has 

 the priority of name is uncertain. At all events the Inca word 

 should be given precedence to any of the extraordinary appella- 

 tions by which this excellent fruit is designated. The Aztec 

 name, as given by Hernandez, is "ahuacaquahuitl," wdiich it is 

 said means "resembling the oak." The Andulasian "aguacate" 

 and the Castilian form "avocado" are without doubt Spanish 

 attempts to pronounce the more unwieldly Aztec name, and the 

 inap^:)ropriate and grotesque term "alligator" is said to be a 

 corruption of one or other of these. The French name of the 

 fruit, "avocat,"' is a modification of the Spanish "avocado" or 

 ''abogado," from which association the occasionally heard 

 "Lawyer pear," has been evolved. The term "pear" is readily 

 accounted for, as is also such names as "midshipman's butter," 

 which formerly were more frequently applied. The botanical 

 name "Persea gratissima" is more happily given, but for ordi- 

 nary usage none is :-o appropriate or of such historic associa- 

 tion as the original word "Palta." 



Much valuable information relating to the cultivation of the 

 Palta will be found in our March number of last year. 



