i82 ■ THE CONNECTICUT POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



rest after it had 3delded a bountiful harvest, for it never 

 lost its usefulness even in the off years. If its only mis- 

 sion had been to bear apples for market there might have 

 been reason to complain both as to the quantity and 

 quality of the fruit. 



It was like a general-purpose animal. If it could not 

 do one thing well, it could do several things indifferently, 

 and because it had so many uses it was indispensable. In 

 former days the general-purpose cow, or horse, or machine, 

 was looked upon with more favor than now. The cow that 

 could make a moderate amount of butter and had a good 

 carcass for beef was considered to be more valuable than 

 one good for butter alone, even though she was far above the 

 average in this respect. There are still some who, as John 

 Gould pithily puts it, "would keep an indifferent butter 

 cow, simply because she would sell for beef at the adminis- 

 trator's sale." 



One can imagine why a Frenchman would choose a gen- 

 eral-purpose horse for a family beast ; he could drive it to 

 the carriage for a score of years and then make French beef 

 of it. 



Even the general-purpose man is not wanted so much as 

 he used to be. We may admire versatility, but the market 

 for skilled labor quotes versatility at a low rate. The man, 

 the animal, the machine which can do one thing, and do it 

 well, is wanted nowadays. So far as the man is concerned, 

 this tendency seems almost deplorable, but the tiller of the 

 soil is not becoming specialized to a dangerous degree. 

 There is still opportunity for him to exercise all of his 

 endowments, and yet he, too, is becoming a specialist on 

 a broad basis. 



But the orchard, the general-purpose orchard, — are its 

 days numbered? I think not, unless tuberculosis removes 

 the necessity of a calf pasture. 



As long as the orchard back of the barn is so very con- 

 venient it will remain. There is no reason why it should 

 not. It still has a mission, but if anyone' supposes that it 

 can fulfil all of the requirements of a modern orchard 

 then he must be one of those who believe that a horse 

 can pull a plow one day and take first money at the race- 



