DESCRIPTION OF VAUIETIKS. 



At four ye.irs oM many of tliem showed great excellence, by tlie pro- 

 Juction of fruit better than Isabella and Catawba ; but meanwliile the 

 Btindanl of excellence had greatly advanced, by the dissemination of 

 the DeUnvare and Diiina, so that qualities which would formerly have 

 been valuable had happily ceased to be so, by the advent and dissemi- 

 nation of these. 



Of those which bore fruit at four years old, one, now named Israella, 

 very clearly stood far above all of the others in the assemblage of good 

 qualities which constitute an excellent and valuable grape, although 

 there were six others of great excellence, and so good that I can not 

 now permit them to be lost. Unless, however, farther advance in the 

 maturity of tlie vines shall exhibit an increase in valuable qualities, 

 these will not come before the public as articles of commerce. Our 

 collection of grapes is not to be made more valuable by adding to it 

 such as are nearly as good as the best, with»ut ^ome important quality 

 In which they excel ; but additions, to be valuable, must possess all 

 the good qualities in an eminent degree, with some valuable character- 

 istics superadded. 



■With lona and Israella added to Delaware, Diana, Allen's Hybrid, 

 Klsingburg, Lincoln, Lenoir, Ilerbemont, and Alvey, we have a list of 

 ten, all of excellent quality for the table, when tried by the highest 

 standard of foreign grapes, with all of the variety in character and 

 flavor that can easily be supposed to belong to that number of varieties 

 of hardy grapes. 



/ might here present hundreds of tesiimonials from the most 

 respectable sources, but the one from Mr. Mead will suffice for the 

 present. JTe has tested it, perhaps, with more critical nicety 

 than any oilier person, and his judgment will not be disputed by 

 any one. Ilis letter covers the whoU ground of interest in regard 

 to a grape. 



New-York, September 1st, 1S68. 



Dear Doctor : I am very greatly pleased to learn that the Iona4s at 

 last to be sent out. I am pleased, not only on your account, but on 

 my own and that of the public. I am released from a certain restraint 

 which it is not always pleasant for an editor to be placed under, that 

 Is, of saying just what I please. Now it would have greatly pleased 

 me, many a time, to say publicly, and without circumlocution, how 

 highly I prize the lona grape ; instead of which, I have used figures of 

 speech and uncertain allusions. You may have guessed when the 

 lona was alluded to, but others could not. It is my firm conviction 

 tiiat a man does both the public and himself injustice in announcing 

 his wares prematurely. I think, therefore, that you have acted judi- 

 ciously in having said so little about the lona, but occupied your time 

 more profitably to yourself and the public, in thoroughly testing its 

 characteristics as a good grape. 



You have acted wisely, also, for your own reputation and that of the 

 vine, and justly toward the public, in delaying to pro])agate plants for 

 sale until you had grown strong, mature wood from which to take the 

 eyes for propagation, thereby securing plants of the best quality for 

 first sending out, which la an important consideration that has been 

 too often disregarded. 



I shall have occasion to congratulate the public in being put in posses- 

 sion of a grape of such marked excellence. You may remember what 

 I said of the lona when I first tasted it at your Island, several years 

 ago. I have tasted the fruit every year since, and I have grown the 

 vine. My first impressions are fully confirmed. You know I always 

 give my opinion quite candidly. It Is hardly necessary to tell you 

 what I think of the lona. It is worthy to take Its place by the side of 

 the Delaware. That you will probably esteem pretty high praise ; and 

 such it really is. There is one point, however, in which I must give 

 the Delaware the preeminence : I tliink it surpasses the lona in the 

 extreme sugary richness of its juice ; but then how very eminent the 

 Delaware is in this respect ! The lona, however, has its counterba- 

 lancing qualities, and possesses in a high degree more of the important 

 points now looked for in a good grape than any yet brought before the 

 public. It is a healthy and vigorous grower, making nice, short- 

 jointed wood, with thick, clean foliage, is perfectly hardy, and ripens 

 some time before the Isabella. That is its character with me. Then 

 tiie bunch is large and the berries are large, the latter being nearly 

 transparcnL The color ii beautiful, being almost amethystine. The 



flesh is tender and melting to the center, sweet and vinous, with a de- 

 cided Muscat flavor ; and it is tlie only native grape that I have seen 

 that has it. I have several times told you that it looks and tastes much 

 like the Red Frontignan, and the transparency of the berry helps the 

 illusion. I shall advise my friends that they can not plant too many 

 vines of it. 



I am glad to learn, too, that the Israella is to be brought out. I 

 ought to feel some interest in it, for it is the grape that I selected among 

 all your very early kinds, and named after Mrs. Grant ; and I am sure 

 I would not name any but a very good giajie after her. It is not so 

 vinous as the lona, but it is melting, juicy, and very sweet. The 

 bunch and berries are both large. It is better than the Isabella, and I 

 should think three weeks earlier, as I have seen if at ^ona Island. Its 

 early bearing and great productiveness I hope will ))rove to be a per- 

 manent characteristic of it. I can not speak so confidently of th« 

 habit of the Israella as I can of the lona, as I have not yet grown it ; 

 but what I have seen of it during the past three years, leads me to 

 think highly of it in this respect, and I must beg of you for one of the 

 first vines sent out. Feeling the interest I do in the Introduction of 

 really good grapes, I could hardly do less than congratulate you, as I 

 will any other friend engaged in the same good work. 



Sincerely yom-s, PETER B. MEAD. 



New-York, October 5th, 1863. 



Dear Doctor : The lona has taken the first prize for the best seed- 

 ling grape at the New-York Grape Exhibition, for which I congratulate 

 you. Knowing the lona as I do, it would have been matter of great 

 surprise to me if it had been otherwise. 



You will have observed that I place the Delaware and lona side by 

 side. In doing this I have no idea that either will supersede the other ; 

 I only wish to have you inferthat the Delaware and lona are my favor- 

 ites, and that I consider both indispensable. 'While they diffei greatly 

 from each other, both are most excellent in their way. In an imp,->rt- 

 ant sense they are the complement of each other, and give us, in 

 yariety for the table, with great certainty, something that will satisfy 

 a very nice taste, even though it has had a " foreign " education. 



Both are very sugary, rich, vinous, and spicy, but the Delaware is 

 the most concentrated. The lona is the Delaware enlarged, with a 

 greater degree of melting tenderness, perfectly uniform to the center, 

 with a distinctive flavor. The Delaware is among grapes what the 

 Seckel is among pears, an exquisite refinement of them all, with a flavor 

 peculiarly its own. The lona, to continue the simile, may be likened 

 to the White Doyenn6 in its best estate, not so extremely rich and con- 

 centrated as the Seckel, but with an equally pure, spicy, vinous flavor, 

 a little diffused in a larger size, and, to use one of your own expres- 

 sions, full of " refreshing enjoyment," to which constant indulgence 

 gives increasing zest, but never cloys. 



There is in them all a happy commingling of the " sweet and sour," 

 with a spice added to the vinous spirit of the grapes, that makes them 

 most delightful to the palate, and more invigorating to the system than 

 any other fruit. 



I could carry the comparison still further, and show that, by their 

 efTects and in their flavor, they are essentially wine in their character, 

 having its excellent generosity without its alcoholic stimulation, which 

 restricts the use of the latter to particular ages and conditions, while 

 the full advantage and enjoyment of good grapes, such as we now 

 have, may be flreely extended to all, even to the most delicate, and par- 

 ticularly to children. 



I am too much pressed by business to pursue this interesting subject 

 further, but will only say in conclusion, that I shall increase my allow- 

 ance of grapes from five to ten pounds a day — five of Delaware and 

 five of lona — as soon as I can get them. One word more; we are 

 now able to sympathize with Europeans of the grape countries, who 

 have spoken so warmly of the benefits of the " Grape cure," by which 

 those who are well arc made better, and those who have become debili- 

 tated beyond the aid of medicine or ordinary curative regimen, are 

 restored without resorting to any more disagreeable remedy than a 

 plentiful diet of rich, vinous grapes. I have recently felt their restora- 

 tive power very markedly, and seen their good elTect in children. One 

 advantage will not be forgotten : there is not often much difficulty, 

 after the first dose, in getting the patient, of whatever age, ti; take the 

 medlchie freely. Yourt truly, PETER B. MEAD. 



