THE POMELOS. 47 



their enemies in the Old World and the aborigines of the 

 country, except during a period of twenty years 1763- 

 1783 during which time Great Britain controlled the 

 territory. 



During the Spanish regime different citrus fruits 

 were introduced and cultivated in Florida. These, through 

 the agency of the Indian, were carried into all parts of 

 the State. To this day the common lime, generally known 

 as the Florida lime, the rough lemon and the sour orange 

 are to be found in southern Florida growing luxuriantly 

 under such conditions as would lead one, ignorant of their 

 origin and native home, to believe them to be indigenous 

 to the soil on which they stand. 



Following the time of introduction, in many groves 

 and gardens throughout Florida, pomelo trees were to 

 be found, annually laden with hundreds of fruits. By the 

 inhabitants the fruit was considered refreshing and tonic, 

 but that it might have a commercial value did not enter the 

 minds of the owners, or if it did, transportation in its then 

 crude state rendered any attempt to place this then 

 unknown and unappreciated fruit on the market, with an 

 expectation of profit, a precarious and uncertain under- 

 taking. Consequently the ground beneath the trees during 

 a certain portion of the year was covered with the yellow 

 fruit left to rot in the sun. 



Just at this point it is interesting to note that this 

 group of fruits was either unknown to or disliked by hor- 

 ticultural writers, or confounded with the shaddock even 

 within very recent years. George Don, in his Gardener's 

 Dictionary, page 596, 1831, says, "The shaddock is cer- 

 tainly the least useful of the species and is cultivated 

 chiefly for show." Alexander Watson (1) in 1859 wrote 



1. The American Home Garden, page 363. 1859. 



