204 LUTHER BURBANK 



Time and patience would, of course, be re- 

 quired to carry out such an experiment, but its 

 results could hardly be in doubt. 



It is possible, however, that the experiment of 

 reducing the size of the peach stone will prove 

 less inviting than the attempt to remove the stone 

 altogether. My success in producing the stoneless 

 plum points the way to a possible development 

 through which the peach also may at some time 

 become stoneless. 



And it is not unlikely that the Bolivian pea- 

 stone peach, which has so greatly minimized the 

 stone, may be utilized advantageously in the 

 course of these experiments. 



It is true that no stoneless peach of any quality 

 is known, like the original wild bullace of Eu- 

 rope that gave the opportunity in the develop- 

 ment of the stoneless plum. But, fortunately, I 

 have been able to demonstrate that the peach 

 may be hybridized with the plum. I have made 

 the hybridization successfully with both the Jap- 

 anese plum and the Chickasaw plum. 



Should it prove impossible to combine the 

 peach directly with a stoneless plum, one of these 

 peach-plum hybrids might perhaps be made to 

 bridge the gap. 



No doubt a vast deal of ingenuity would be 

 required to find the combination that would work 



