12 THE PEARS OF NEW YORK 



One other landmark, though a somewhat inconspicuous one, in the 

 history of the pear in Italy, is deserving brief mention. Toward the middle 

 of the sixteenth century Agostino Gallo, an Italian, wrote The Twenty Days 

 of Agriculture and the Charms of Country Life. With the fall of the Roman 

 Empire in the fifth century, agriculture was reduced to the production 

 of the necessities of life and pomology all but perished. It required a 

 thousand years to recover from the domination of the barbarian conqueror 

 of Rome. Hence, it is not surprising that Gallo names but twelve varieties 

 of pears instead of the forty-one of Pliny. Gallo says that he does not 

 name all of the summer pears, but leaves the inference that his list is 

 complete for autumn and winter sorts. There probably was a greater 

 number under cultivation at this time in Italy, but Gallo's list shows that 

 the number was small. Gallo is regarded as the restorer of agriculture in 

 Italy after the dark ages, and as one of the most enlightened men of his 

 time, so that we may accept him as an accurate historian. Besides 

 furnishing a list of the pears of his day in Italy, Gallo names two that 

 are now under cultivation — Bergamot and Bon Chretien. 



THE PEAR IN FRANCE 



Who introduced the pear in France matters little. The Greeks who 

 founded Marseille 600 B. C. may have done so. The Romans, masters 

 of ancient Gaul for centuries, undoubtedly planted pears at widely separated 

 places and in earliest times of Roman occupation. Or, and quite possibly, 

 the original natives of the land began the domestication of the pear for, 

 as we have seen, two cultivated species grow wild in what is now France. 

 Date and manner of introduction matter less than a recognizable landmark 

 in the history of the pear as an orchard plant in France. There is such a 

 landmark and a conspicuous one. 



Charlemagne, the many-sided genius who ruled the Franks in the 

 ninth century, exercised his powerful influence in behalf of agriculture dur- 

 ing the time of his reign, and to him is due credit for establishing the first 

 notable landmark in the history of the pear in France. We are well informed 

 of Charlemagne's various activities while in power, for official annals were 

 kept at the Frankish Court. Charlemagne's secretary has left a biography 

 of his master, and many of the King's Capitularies, or lists of laws, are 

 extant. In these records, agriculture is a matter of constant comment 

 and the pear is often up for discussion. One quotation serves to show that 

 this fruit was cultivated in considerable variety in Charlemagne's orchards. 



