AND HIS PLANT SCHOOL 147 



proven to be one of the finest shipping plums in the whole 

 world. It is sometimes spoken of as the "king of plums," 

 owing to its extreme earliness, and its immense sized fruit, 

 which is heart-shaped, deep, dark red in color, with rich 

 yellow flesh. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

 THE PLUMCOT 



Standing at the head of the class of distinctively new 

 fruits is a pupil of such renown that "All the world won- 

 ders." Men in high authority upon plant growth said: "No 

 use to try." "It cannot be done." "A waste of time to 

 experiment." "Such crosses have never been made, and 

 never can be successful. Members of so widely differing 

 species cannot be united." 



These and many other discouraging messages reached 

 the ear of the master of the plant school. Still, patiently 

 he toiled on, and his reward is one of the greatest victories 

 yet recorded in the field of horticulture. As a result of 

 this perseverance Plumcot ranks first in the class of new 

 products of the plant school, although many other new 

 fruits and flowers have been given to the world. 



Wishing, if possible, to develop an entirely new fruit, the 

 master chose a plant pupil from Japan, for he has learned 

 through years of experimentation that, in order to get 

 results from cross-pollination, it is better sometimes that 



