LUTHER BURBANK 
in which the first-named member of this Oriental 
trio was used. This is popularly known as the 
Chinese cucumber quince, sometimes called Pyrus 
cathayensis, the Cathay pear. 
In its general appearance this Chinese tree is 
a small, upright grower, quite unlike the ordinary 
quince. It is not hardy in the northern United 
States. The leaves resemble those of the apple 
or pear more than those of the quince. They turn 
scarlet in the fall. The flowers for which the tree 
is mostly grown vary from pink to crimson, mak- 
ing a gorgeous display in the early springtime. 
The fruit is variable, but is usually long, green, 
very hard, bitter, and uneatable however pre- 
pared, but quite fragrant. 
In shape as well as in size the fruit suggests a 
large, full-grown, white-spine cucumber. It has 
usually a smooth, though sometimes netted waxy 
skin. A single fruit from it may weigh more than 
two pounds. 
It will be clear from this description that the 
Chinese quince, or Cathay pear, differs very widely 
from the European quince. Its fruit is wholly in- 
edible, yet there is no reason why this might not 
be made over into a profitable and delicious fruit. 
It is merely a fruit that has retained the qualities, 
undesirable from the human standpoint, of its re-. 
mote ancestors. Perhaps it is not much worse to- 
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