PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 317 



American people regard their native fruits, I cannot believe that 

 they know their intrinsic value, and that we have in them the 

 material for laying the foundation upon which we might, if we 

 ^vould, build a structure that would be an honor as well as a 

 lasting benefit to the country. We not only have an abundant 

 number of species, but many of these species contain innumerable 

 varieties. 



"In valuable qualities they are equal to those possessed by 

 any other country. Besides, the fact of their being natives 

 render them less liable to the endemic diseases to which all 

 exotic fruits are more or less subjected while being acclimated. 

 The value of some of our indigenous fruits was long ago appre- 

 ciated in Europe, and by the application of scientific culture 

 they have become superior to all others of the same class found 

 in any other country. 



" To show what results we may reasonably expect by persever- 

 ance in the cultivation of any particular species, I need only 

 point to the American strawberry. 



"The plant was taken to Europe in 1G29, and although the 

 European species had long been known and extensively culti- 

 vated, yet they were of little value ; and it was soon found that 

 the American species were not only superior to the European, 

 but Avere susceptible of being readily improved, and that too by 

 the application of only ordinary skill in their culture; and to- 

 day nine-tenths of all the varieties of this fruit, in cultivation, 

 have been produced by foreign skill, and in a foreign country, 

 but from the American species ; and although we should feel 

 grateful to those who have taken the trouble to improve our native 

 fruits for us, yet it may be questioned whether these imported 

 varieties would not have been much better adapted to our climate, 

 if not superior in flavor and productiveness, if the so-called im- 

 provement had been made in their native country. , This should 

 be borne in mind, for if, while we are making an improvement 

 in any one quality, a retrogade movement is going on in another, 

 it becomes wortliy of inquiry how can this be avoided, and is it 

 possible to improve any particular quality as desired without a 

 corresponding loss in another ? 



"This improvement of a few of the qualities, with a corres- 

 ponding loss of others, has evidently been the case Avith most, if 

 not^all the fine strawberries of Europe. They have increased 

 their size and productiveness, and in some instances their sac- 



