158 LUTHER BURBANK 



at other times the crop is very light, but by many people 

 these faults are overlooked, and it is still called the Royal 

 cherry. 



As usual, when Burbank began to train the Napoleon, 

 many, many thousands of pits were planted, and for years 

 the class received constant care, and- selection of the best 

 was made from year to year, until finally a descendant of 

 this time-honored cherry was graduated. 



The graduate is far rosier than its noted great-grand- 

 parent, its skin is much darker, its flesh is sweeter, a shower 

 does not harm it, and it has never been known to fail to 

 produce a good crop. This cherry has been given the very 

 appropriate name "Abundance." 



The " Giant" is another member of the cherry class. 

 Its training, too, has been long and severe. Its distant 

 relative is the Black Tartarian, but its education has fitted 

 it for greater usefulness than the Tartarian. The tree 

 excels the Tartarian in productiveness. The fruit is of 

 superior size, quality, and flavor. Eleven of these new 

 cherries lying side by side measure twelve and one-half 

 inches. Four or five weigh one ounce. The skin is black 

 and glossy, the flesh is dark and luscious, the tree is strong, 

 upright, and a rapid grower. 



One might think that the master should be content 

 having so many cherry graduates, but he is not. Very 

 little has ever been done before to improve the cherry. 

 That it can be developed almost beyond imagination has 



