THE SUGAR PRUNE 



How A TREE WAS CHANGED TO FIT 

 THE WEATHER 



PROBABLY you have heard the story of 

 the general who declared it impossible to 

 build a bridge across a certain stream that 

 obstructed the march of his army until he had 

 plans and specifications and blue prints for the 

 work. While he waited for these so the story 

 goes a subordinate built the bridge, and re- 

 ported to his superior with the suggestion that it 

 might be well to march the men across the bridge 

 forthwith and then make the drawings at leisure 

 afterward. 



A visitor at my orchard told me this story, and 

 applied it to the case of some of my newest varie- 

 ties of plums. 



"It appears to me," he said, "that your custom 

 resembles that of the young soldier who built the 

 bridge without the plans and specifications. You 

 appear to have developed a good many of your 

 fruits on the same principle. You seem to have 



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