HOSES APPLES. 105 



the Eose might stand as emblem, appears in the pathetic lines 

 of Mrs. Hemans : 



" It is written on (he Rose 

 In its bright array 

 ' Hear thou what these buds disclose, 

 Passing away ! ' " 



We now come to the Apple group, in which the seeds are 

 ensconced in a horny case or core, and further protected by the 

 juicy swollen flesh of the calyx-tube. 



For some years I sought the Wild Pear in vain, until some 

 botanical friends of mine migrated to Shropshire, and then I 

 got information of the object of my search. This tree is indi- 

 genous in that county as well as in the neighbouring one of 

 Herefordshire the great locality for Pear cultivation. Here 

 I had afterwards the good fortune to find it growing in Pen- 

 yard Wood, near Eoss, and blossoming in April. A Pear, 

 very little removed from the wild species, is there grown in the 

 open fields, and called Barland Pear. The fruit is safe enough 

 from depredation, for it is so woody, even when ripe, that it 

 has originated a country proverb, "as hard as a Barland Pear." 

 There Pear orchards exist as systematically as Apple orchards, 

 and the perry a refreshing beverage somewhat resembling 

 cider is made from the fruit. Before Kensington became so 

 extensive, the inhabitants used to gather the Wild Pear 

 blossoms in the hedges ; but squares and palaces stand now on 

 the home of the wild shrubs. 



The wood of the Pear tree (Pyrus communis), is very hard, 

 and is used instead of Box by some for wood-engraving. 



The Crab Apple (P. malus, Plate VIL, fig. 7), is familiar to 

 us all for its clusters of pale cupped flowers and rose-tinted 

 buds. I have gathered it in a lane at the back of the Bishop's 

 Palace, at Eipon ; also in the Eichmond district ; and, abun- 

 dantly near Horningsham, in Wiltshire. Fanny has specimens 

 from Somersetshire, and Ned from Kent. The orchards of 

 Herefordshire, Somersetshire, and Devonshire are beautiful 



