252 FRUIT-GROWING 



have no idea where they managed to secure 

 such a fine variety at that early day. The 

 history of the apple is mixed up in international 

 affairs more than any other sort, for Benja- 

 min Franklin took the first one to England. 

 We can just imagine the old chap seated before 

 the evening light of an English fire, passing 

 around his fine American apples. Collinson, 

 who was then "botanist to the King," wrote 

 to John Bartram, the American botanist, for 

 scions. Poor Richard must have shared his 

 store with the King himself. Later, during 

 the first year of Queen Victoria's reign, the 

 American minister presented the young lady 

 with several barrels of this variety and she 

 was so pleased with them that she removed 

 the import tax from Newtowns. Since then this 

 has been one of the most popular apples in the 

 English market. 



It is one of the finest apples grown and is 

 ranked at the top along with the Delicious, 

 Grimes and Spitzenburg, but unfortunately 

 the tree does not adapt itself to a wide variety 

 of soils. It does well only in certain favored 

 localities and for this reason its production 

 is confined to a restricted area. Were it not 

 for this one fact it might easily be our leading 

 apple to-day for it is a true aristocrat in 

 every sense of that much abused word. 



