72 OUR COMMON FEUITS. 



of hastening the ripening of cherries was adopted at 

 Poitou so early as in the 16th century, hot limestones 

 being laid upon the ground under the trees, and hot water 

 poured upon the soil, by which method ripe fruit was 

 obtained by the 1st of May. 



Though cherry-gardens are less numerous than formerly 

 in Kent, this fruit continues to be its specialite. The 

 variety for which it is most famous, which is named from 

 it the " Kentish Cherry," and which is supposed to be 

 the original sort brought by Haines from Flanders, is dis- 

 tinguished by the peculiarity that it suffers the stone to 

 be plucked from within it in much the same style as 

 Richard "robbed the kingly lion of his heart," the stalk 

 establishing so firm a hold upon it by means of the fibres 

 which link them together, that it may be withdrawn by 

 laying hold of that appendage, leaving the fruit seemingly 

 whole in the hand of the gatherer, while its extracted 

 core remains in the tenacious grasp of the stalk. The 

 Kentish Cherry is one of the best kinds for cooking, and 

 its application to culinary purposes is greatly facilitated 

 by this easy removal of what Pliny, in the presumption 

 of his antique ignorance, ventures to call the " faulty su- 

 perfluity," which, in the case of cherries, is, as he phrases 

 it, " environed by the good fruit, whereas fruit otherwise 

 is ordinarily defended by the said imperfection (!) of the 

 shell." Yerily censures when cast upon the arrangements 

 of Nature, like curses, " come home to roost." 



The pale, sweet, firm-fleshed Bigarreau is the cherry 

 most generally seen at the dessert-table, but the one 

 considered by many to be the most delicious fruit of the 

 whole tribe is the Elton, an invaluable hybrid variety 

 raised in 1806 by Mr. Knight. Beautiful in appearance 

 and rich in flavour, it bears a great resemblance to the 

 Bigarreau, but is distinguished by its longer stalk, while 

 it comes into season earlier, and has more tender flesh. 



The Morello, so called either from the dark juice 

 being like that of the morns or mulberry, or from the 

 French word morelle, a negress, on account of its swarthy 

 shining skin, is another of our most valuable kinds of 

 cherries ; and though so austere when exposed to a 



