THE PEACH AND NECTARINE. 303 



mental energies, which makes the destruction of 

 tyranny and war of less permanent injury than 

 when their inflictions fall upon a rude people. 

 Sickler, a distinguished naturalist of Germany, who 

 has paid particular attention to the cultivation of 

 fruit trees, had, in the Duchy of Saxe Gotha, 

 formed three nurseries for fruit trees, one of which 

 contained eight thousand grafted plants. In 1806, 

 this nursery was entirely destroyed by the French, 

 after the battle of Jena: Ney's corps bivouacked in 

 it. After the battle of Leipsic, in 1814, another 

 nursery, planted by the same eminent man, was 

 destroyed by the Cossacks. Yet in 1817 he had 

 planted and reared a third nursery with his own 

 hand, persevering, in spite of the injuries which he 

 had received in these dreadful contests, to distribute 

 his fine plants, and the knowledge of their cultiva- 

 tion, over his native country.* The labours of such a 

 man will endure when the fame of conquerors is for- 

 gotten, or thought worthless, or only remembered to 

 be hated as it deserves. 



It has been already stated that some doubts exist 

 as to the difference between the peach and the almond 

 being more than apparent. With reference to this 

 subject, there is a curious fact recorded by the Pre- 

 sident of the Horticultural Society. The fruit of a 

 sweet almond-tree, which had been obtained from 

 an almond kernel, that had, when in flower, been 

 impregnated with peach pollen, was sown, and 

 produced a tree; this tree bore eight peaches, some 

 of which were perfect, and the others burst at the 

 centre when ripe, as is the case with almonds. The 

 peaches were finely formed and coloured; the flesh 

 white, soft, melting, and of good flavour. This ex- 

 periment is curious; for though it does not com- 

 pletely establish the fact of the convertibility of an 



* See an interesting memoir of Sickler in the Hort. Trans. 



