THE APPLE. 231 



The knowledge of varieties is a part, and a very 

 important one, of the science of the practical horti- 

 culturists; and one of the most valuable objects which 

 individual growers of fruit, or societies for the encou- 

 ragement of experiments in cultivation, could propose 

 to themselves, would be to diminish the embarrassing 

 list of varieties, by directing their attention to the 

 best sorts alone. In a great public establishment, 

 such as the gardens of the Horticultural Society, it is 

 perhaps necessary that almost every known variety 

 should be found. Their catalogue presents a list of 

 more than twelve hundred sorts of apple. In the in- 

 troductory observations to this list, the difficulties pro- 

 duced by this almost unlimited choice are thus noticed: 

 :" A considerable reduction of the names is to be 

 anticipated whenever a general comparison of the 

 varieties can be effected; but, alter all the discovery 

 of synonyms which can be expected, the list will 

 remain far more extensive than can be either desirable 

 or useful. No sufficient reduction, however, can 

 effectually take place until a public declaration shall 

 be made of those sorts which are undeserving further 

 cultivation."* 



Seeing, therefore, the embarrassing extent of the 

 varieties of the apple in particular, and of fruits 

 generally, and knowing that the progress of experi- 

 ment is daily adding to their number, we forbear to 

 touch at all upon this branch of the subject. The 

 general history of fruits is full of amusing information; 

 and to that, in the present work, we feel it proper to 

 confine our attention. 



It has been asserted that many of the fine old 

 varieties of the apple are now going into decay. This 

 may be owing partly to their being more generally 



* See a valuable paper on the ' Formation of a Select Col- 

 lection of Apple Trees,' by Mr. Sabine. Hort. Trans, vol. iii. 



