232 ANNUAL EEPOET 



pomology, will be made a prominent feature of its system of ex- 

 perimentation. There is, however, a very serious, if not in fact 

 insurmountable obstacle in the way of successful pomological 

 experimentation at the college, namely, the location of the insti- 

 tution in the low and frosty valley of the Cedar river, where 

 only the more hardy fruits can be successfully grown." 



Upon the other hand this feature seems to us as quite desir- 

 able; for why should not these stations be situated where the 

 severest tests of climate, soil, or rigorous treatment may be had ? 

 And where the new varieties of fruits, that may from time to 

 time be recommended, will only be such kinds as have been 

 shown by rigid tests to have sufficient merit to recommend them 

 to the public use at large. 



ARE THEY A FAILURE? 



We have no patience with the pessimistic notion that ' ' it doesn' t 

 pay" to make experiments. In view of all the progress being 

 made and the results accomplished in the past, such empty argu- 

 ments should be like cobwebs, quickly brushed aside. The 

 proofs to us seem wellnigh overwhelming. 



We are reminded that our favorite vegetable, the potato^ 

 comes from the small and bitter wild variety, which has its na- 

 tive home along the rocky coast of Chili, South America. Dean, 

 in his New England Farm Dictionary, published in 1790, says : 

 "No longer ago than 1740 we had but one sort, a small, reddish 

 colored potato, of so rank a taste that it was scarcely eatable." 

 But on the contrary, we find to-day, a single American experi- 

 menter, guided by the knowledge since acquired, claims to have 

 tested and produced six thousand different varieties. 



Our turnips, cabbages and cauliflowers, all come from different) 

 species of brassica, which in their native form have bitter, 

 woody stems and leaves and worthless roots. 



That sweet-scented and umbeliferous plant, the common car- 

 rot, was propagated from the small and spindling wild variety. 



Tomatoes (solanum esculentum) are of American origin and 

 have been brought to their present degree of perfection within a 

 very recent period. 



The apricot, which has become a favorite fruit, was found 

 growing wild in Armenia and Persia, and was from so small and 

 sour a variety as to be considered of little value. The common 

 plum, the varieties of which are very numerous, are said to have 

 been grown from a shrubby plant of southern Eussia. 



