294 HISTORY OF FRUITS. 



It was from the crowns of these pines, most probably, 

 that Mr. Rose the king's gardener, raised the first pine- 

 apples that fruited in England, if not in Europe. At 

 Kensington palace is a curious picture of King Charles 

 receiving a pine-apple from his gardener Mr. Rose, who 

 is presenting it on his knees. The earl of Waldegrave 

 has a similar painting in the breakfast-room of his beau- 

 tiful residence at Strawberry hill, Twickenham. The 

 painting represents king Charles the Second, in a garden 

 before his palace at Ham, attended by two of his fa- 

 vourite breed of spaniels, and Rose, the royal gardener, 

 presenting his Majesty with a pine-apple. This picture 

 formed a part of the collection of the celebrated Horace 

 Walpole, whose descriptive account informs us, that it 

 was bequeathed by Mr. London to the Rev. Mr. Penni- 

 cott, of Ditton, by whom it was presented to himself. 

 He adds, the painting is supposed to be by Daneker. 



As forcing-houses had not at that period arrived at 

 any degree of perfection, the plants were probably by 

 the severity of the weather, or some accident, lost in this 

 country, until they were introduced a second time, which, 

 the Sloanean manuscripts in the British Museum inform 

 us, was not until the year 1690, when the earl of Port- 

 land procured plants from Holland. 



In the Fitzwilliam Museum, at the University of Cam- 

 bridge, is a painting by Netscher, of a landscape with 

 a pine-apple, there stated to be the. first that ever 

 fruited in England, which was in' Sir Matthew Decker's 

 garden at Richmond, in Surrey, grandfather to the late 

 Lord Fitzwilliam. Gough says also, that it was Sir 

 Matthew Decker, Bart, who first introduced the culture of 

 the Ananas. 



We have not been able to ascertain in what year the 

 Ananas first fruited in Sir Matthew's garden, but surmise 

 that it was about the year 1724 or 5, as in the v*ar 1726 





