On Apple Trees and Grafting. 91 
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sion before my mind, that I cannot rely on my memory 
to give an accurate account of its dimensions : but think 
from the best of my recollection, that it must have been 
upwards of four feet in diameter; the quantity of apples 
it bore, was enormous, perhaps too incredible to relate ; 
it stood ona high airy situation, and ina light poor 
stony soil; which I consider most favourable to the lon- 
gevity of the apple tree: the size and colour of the ap- 
ples nearly resemble the vandever ;—they are neither 
sweet nor sour, but of a most delicious rich taste and 
high flavour ; easy to bake or cook ; they ripen in a pe- 
culiar manner, some very early, and then drop off; 
while others succeed them, and at my father’s, we have 
kept some of the later growth until apples came again, 
the next summer. 
The proprieter of this valuable and useful curiosity, 
was one Stephen Townsend, an aged amiable and bene- 
volent man; the tree stood near a public road, and all 
travellers had free access: I remember hearing him say, 
that when his grandfather first took up that place, it was 
a very large apple tree standing in an Indian clearing ; 
his grandfather was Richard Townsend, mentioned in 
Robert Proud’s history of Pennsylvania. 
IT also remember when very young, to have heard 
some of the most aged respectable, and informed people 
the neighbourhood afforded, say, that tree must be 
much older than Co/wmbus ; that was before I knew the 
meaning of Columbus; the proprietor Stephen Town- 
send freely permitted access to his tree ; by all descrip- 
tions of people : and it was most highly esteemed, more 
particularly by the friendly Indians, many families of 
