156 AMERICAN GKAPE GROWING 



And finally, that these families of grapes must, with 

 allowances to be made for different degrees of humidity, 

 become the grapes for their respective zones throughout 

 the whole world. In stating this general proposition, it 

 is not disputed but that families with which the horti- 

 culturists are yet unacquainted, may supply varieties in 

 the future, and that the viticulture of every zone may be 

 enriched by new hybrid combinations of material belong- 

 ing to the same belt. But I do protest against the system 

 of wholesale waste of labor and dissipation of capital, 

 which, I believe, must ever result from the indiscriminate 

 planting of every and any variety, whether it belongs to 

 our region or not. 



I began grape-culture by following old masters of the 

 far Northeast. I learned to see that while their teaching 

 may do for New York and New England, it does not 

 apply to our region. They want Labruscas, cordifolias, 

 and their hybrids. We do not, because they are not 

 adapted here. It is in vain that we may determine that 

 because our fancy leads us to prefer this or that variety, 

 that we will, therefore, insist upon its cultivation whether 

 it is constitutionally adapted or not. While peculiar sur- 

 roundings, natural or artificial, may favor different vari- 

 eties of different families, yet common sense tells us that 

 these exceptions do not disprove a rule, and experience 

 teaches the necessity of following the demands of Na- 

 ture. And what are the demands of Nature in determin- 

 ing the varieties of grapes for Texas ? 



While in Northern Texas it is quite likely that the 

 whole of the Labrusca family will continue to give only 

 temporary success, yet the Northern cestivalis, which may 

 be represented by the Cynthiana and Norton, may prove 

 successful as well as the Southern cestivdlis, represented 

 by the Herbemont, Louisiana, Lenoir, etc. If I under- 

 stand Prof. Krausse, of Waco, that the Cynthiana suc- 

 ceeds well with him, I should then presume in favor of 



