ALEXANDER W. LIVINGSTONE. 



was sold on a limited scale on the mar- 

 ket, and was canned and sold as a com- 

 mercial commodity as early as 1848, its 

 character was so poor that it is believed 

 that as late as 1865 not an acre of to- 

 matoes had been grown in the United 

 States that would yield one bushel of 

 uniformly smooth fruit. In this year 

 (1865) his attention was attracted to a 

 plant in a field of tomatoes which had 

 distinct characteristics, being stronger 

 than the average of the plants in the 

 field, having heavy foliage, and bearing 

 smooth fruit. His active mind now 

 readily seized the idea of selecting spe- 

 cial plants from which to take the best 

 fruit for seed for future crops. Experi- 

 mental work for a year or two confirmed 

 the correctness of this line of selection, 

 for the improvement of the tomato and 

 further work on the same line was so 

 successful that in 1870 he was able to 

 place on the market the " Paragon," the 

 first uniformly smooth tomato. This 

 placed tomato growing on a permanent 

 and profitable basis. Fifteen new and 

 distinct varieties were originated and in- 

 troduced by him between the years 1870 

 and 1897. In the latter year "Honor 

 Bright," a variety quite characteristic in 

 habit of growth and of maturity of fruit 

 was placed on the market, the original 

 plant of which had been found three 

 years previously in a field of the " New 

 Stone " variety. 



Who placed the original plant of the 

 " Paragon " in the field of common 

 tomatoes ? How did the original of 

 " Honor Bright " come to be growing in 

 a field planted exclusively with " New 

 Stone " ? Mr. Livingstone did not pre- 



tend to be able to answer these ques- 

 tions v Perhaps we shall know the 

 answers, some day. 



Mr. Livingstone was born in 1822, of 

 Scotch Irish extraction. His earlier years 

 were spent on a pioneer farm in cen- 

 tral Ohio; and it was only in 1877 that 

 he removed to Columbus to obtain bet- 

 ter business facilities. (He had begun 

 the seed business in a small way in 1856.) 

 Leaving his sons in charge of the Col- 

 umbus business he removed to Des 

 Moines, Iowa, in 1880, where he estab- 

 lished a similar business, but he returned 

 to Columbus in 1890, having transferred 

 the Iowa business to one of his younger 

 sons. His business motto was — " Give 

 every man the worth of his money : and 

 his many business friends bear testimony 

 to his integrity, fair dealing, and courte- 

 ous attention to their wants in his line. 



When a young man he became a 

 member, and shortly afterwards an office- 

 holder in the United Presbyterian church 

 and to the end of his life he continued to 

 take an active interest in its work. He 

 took a lively interest in general affairs, 

 and whether in the educational or muni- 

 cipal matters of his home city, or in 

 state or national politics, he was always 

 ready to defend the right and to give 

 battle to the wrong. He was exemplary 

 in his domestic life ; and his kindly dis- 

 position and broad sympathy enlisted 

 the confidence of the children and young 

 people of his circle of intimate friends, 

 as well as the warm friendship of the 

 elders. 



He is dead but his works live after 

 him. Origen. 



Ohio. 



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