74 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



vantages in preparing it, that even saw-dust might 

 be made palatable, while the corn-meal is so sum- 

 marily treated, that men soon tire of it, and con- 

 clude that it is the fault of the bread, while it is 

 the fault of the cooking. Let any family try the 

 experiment of treating the corn-meal with all the 

 seasoning usually applied to flour, and treat the 

 flour in the summary manner usually employed with 

 the corn-meal, and the discovery will soon be made, 

 that corn-meal is more healthy than Graham-bread 

 — more palatable than superfine Horn-. — Dollar 

 Newspaper. 



SELECTION OF APPLES. 



On another page we copy from the Albany 

 Cultivator that portion of an article, written by 

 Mr. George Jaques, of Worcester, which relates 

 to a selection of apples for market and home uses. 

 This distinction is made because some excellent 

 apples will not bear transportation to market, and 

 these are termed apples for home consumption. 

 Mr. Jaques speaks rather disparagingly of sweet 

 apples ; says " there is only a limited demand "for 

 them, most people considering such apples as valu- 

 able merelv for culinary purposes." It seems to 

 us that he must be in error in regard to the de- 

 mand for sweet apples. We have never yet known 

 the market supplied with good winter sweet apples. 

 The early ones are caught up with great avidity in 

 the towns about the city by the country marketers, 

 who find large profits on them. From inquiries 

 made in various parts of the State and extending 

 through several years, it is our belief that not more 

 than one family in twenty-five throughout the 

 State is at present supplied with a barrel of good 

 winter sweet apples, suitable for baking for the 

 table. And this deficiency, if it exists, is not be- 

 cause they are not wanted, for it forms one of the 

 most desirable dishes we believe in all families, is 

 wholesome, nutritious and easily prepared, but be- 

 cause they cannot be found, — the market is not 

 supplied with them. 



Whoever will introduce a new richly-flavored 

 sweet winter apple of good size, or supply the mar- 

 ket with any good varieties now grown, will find a 

 fair profit, and supply the pans of unnumbered ex- 

 cellent housewives with the means of preparing a 

 most delicious dessert. 



Berkshire Co. Agricultural Society. — At the 

 annual meeting of this Society, which took place 

 on the 6th inst., Justus Tower was elected Presi- 

 dent, W. 0. Plunkett, and Lyman Foote, Vice 

 Presidents, E. II. Kellogg, Secretary, and Stephen 

 Reed, Treasurer. 



The Society voted to instruct the delegates of 

 the Society to the Central Board of Agriculture, to 

 urge upon the Board the importance of petitioning 

 the Legislature to establish an Agricultural school. 



$/¥" The total loss of reason is less deplorable 

 than the total deprivation of it. — Covoley. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 THE HISTORY OF THE APPLE TREE. 



BY S. P. FOWLER. 



The apple tree is found indigenous in the West- 

 ern and Middle States, but does not occur in Massa- 

 chusetts. It is of a dwarfish habit, rising to the 

 height of 15 or 18 feet, with a diameter of 5 or 6 

 inches. Michaux says the fruit is small, green and 

 very sour, sometimes used to make cider, and by 

 the addition of sugar is a fine sweetmeat.- We 

 have never been able to improve the flavor of the 

 fruit by cultivation, and it is to be regarded more 

 for the beauty and perfume of its flowers, than for 

 any utility it possesses. It is known by botanists 

 as the American Crab Apple. The common apple 

 tree, which we cultivate, is found in the temperate 

 parts of Europe and A s i a > an & was introduced in- 

 to the colony of Massachusetts at an early period of 

 its history, by Mr. William Blackstone, the first 

 person, who erected a house on the peninsula of 

 Boston, wdiere he laid out and cultivated with suc- 

 cess, a garden and orchard of six acres. He came 

 over to the colony with Governor Endicott in 1628, 

 and left Boston, as is supposed, in 1638, when he 

 removed to Rhode Island, where he again cultivat- 

 ed an orchard, that produced an apple called the 

 Yellow Sweetings ; these are said to be the first ap- 

 ples grown in that State. I think that we shall 

 find that the apple tree was introduced into the 

 colony of Massachusetts, not only by Mr. Black- 

 stone, but also by Governours Winthrop and Endi- 

 cott, about the same period. John Josselyn, Gent. , 

 the author of New England's Rarities, and who 

 arrived into the Bay of Massachusetts in 1638, 

 says, "on the 11th of October, our master having 

 been ashore upon Governour's Island, gave me half 

 a score very fair pippins, which he brought from 

 thence, their being not one apple tree nor pear 

 tree planted yet, in no part of the country, but 

 upon this island." 



This assertion of Josselyn, that there were no 

 apple trees at this time to be found in the colony, 

 except those on this island, a tract of land situated 

 in Boston harbor, and granted to Governor Win- 

 throp, we do not credit. For we believe Mr. 

 Blackstone's orchard was planted before the year 

 1638, and we are almost certain that Governor En- 

 dicott's fruit trees were planted in his orchard 

 farm, as early as 1635, for we find in 1648, the old 

 sturdy and worthy Puritan deeply engaged in the 

 nursery business, and he actually sold to a William 

 Trash five hundred apple trees, of three years 

 growth, for two hundred acres of land. Such was 

 the value of apple trees, and the cheapness of land 

 at this period, that two trees would purchase an 

 acre of land. This orchard of Governor Endicotfs, 

 the first one planted probably in the county of Es- 

 sex, was situated in that part of Danvers, called 

 the New Mills, and was a part of a grant of land 

 of 300 acres, by the colonial authorities. The or- 

 chard»was in front of the mansion-house, on a tine 

 southern slope of land, running down to the river. 

 This orchard and garden was laid out with consid- 

 erable taste, in which w r as cultivated the apple, 

 pear, plum and the grape, and enclosed with pali- 

 sadoes. From the mansion-house, there was a 

 walk, which led down to the river, through this 

 garden, to a landing place, near which was a line 

 spring of water, overshadowed by willows. The 

 landing place on the river was in a small cove or 

 inlet, where lay the shallop used to convey the 



