12 INTRODUCTION. 



Gov. Endicott's farm was known as Orchard as early as 1643, 1 

 and the pear tree stood near the site of his mansion. The tree 

 has never been grafted, as is shown by the fact that two suckers 

 produce the same fruit as the main part of the tree. The fruit 

 is of inferior quality, even coarser than that of the Gov. Prince 

 i pear tree. Tradition reports that the " woodwax " (Genista tinc- 

 toria) which covers the rocky pastures around Salem was intro- 

 duced as a flower in Gov. Endicott's garden. 



In 1648 Gov. Endicott exchanged five hundred apple trees, of 

 three years' growth, with William Trask, for two hundred and fifty 

 acres of land. 2 This statement, and the allusions, in his corre- 

 spondence with Gov. Winthrop, to the exchanges which they car- 

 ried on, very much after the manner of modern fruit growers, give 

 us an idea that he was engaged quite extensively in propagating 

 fruit trees. Writing to Winthrop the second month, 8 22d, 1644, 

 he says, " I humblie and heartilie thanck you for your last lettre 

 of newes & for the trees you sent mee. ... I haue not sent you 

 any trees because I heard not from you, but I haue trees for you 

 if you please to accept of them whensoeuer you shall send. I 

 thinck it is to late to sett or remoue. I could wish j^ou to remoue 

 in the latter end of the yeare jour trees, & I pray you send mee 

 what } T ou want & I will supply what I can. My children burnt 

 mee at least 500 trees this spring by setting the ground on fire 

 neere them." 4 



To John Winthrop, jun., at " Tenne Hills " he writes, the 19th 

 of the first month, 1645, " Let mee say truelie I account not my- 

 selfe to be the lesse ingaged vnto you concerning what you wrote, 

 ffor any such small courtesie as a few trees. . . . What trees you 

 want at any tyme send to mee for them, & I will supply you as 

 longe as I haue a tree. I ame sorry you make so many apologies 

 & cautiones to mee, I partly guesse from whence it proceeds, & 

 that is because I told you I was ingaged to pay 1,500 this springe. 

 I haue almost paid them, & it was to excuse truely that I could 

 not send you such trees as I would haue otherwise done ; but for 

 small trees I can spare you as many more as I haue sent, & would 

 now haue done it, but your man thought the horse (not being well) 

 would not carrie them." This letter is dated at " Orchard," and 



i Memoir of John Endicott, by O. M. Endicott, p. 72. 



* Ibid., p. 80. 



April. 



Mass. Hist. Coll., Fourth Series, Vol. VI. pp. 146, 147. 



