WILD APPLES. 



THE HISTORY OF THE APPLE-TREE. 



IT is remarkable how closely the history of the 

 Apple-tree is connected with that of man. The 

 geologist tells us that the order of the Rosacece, 

 which includes the Apple, also the true Grasses, and 

 the Lubiatce, or Mints, were introduced only a short 

 time previous to the appearance of man on the 

 globe. 



It appears that apples made a part of the food of 

 that unknown primitive people whose traces have 

 lately been found at the bottom of the Swiss lakes, 

 supposed to be older than the foundation of Rome, 

 so old that they had no metallic implements. An 

 entire black and shrivelled Crab-Apple has been re 

 covered from their stores. 



Tacitus says of the ancient Germans, that they 

 satisfied their hunger with wild apples, among other 

 things. 



Niebuhr * observes that &quot; the words for a house, a 

 field, a plough, ploughing, wine, oil, milk, sheep, 

 apples, and ethers relating to agriculture and the gen 

 tler ways of life, agree in Latin and Greek, while 

 the Latin words for all objects pertaining to war or 

 the chase are utterly alien from the Greek.&quot; Thus 

 1 A German historical critic of ancient life. 



