RIVALRY OF PLANTS 157 



the Atlantic to America. It followed them west- 

 ward across this continent as the pioneers pushed 

 their way to the Pacific. 



In the same way it worked its eastward jour- 

 ney through Siberia, and China, and Japan — 

 more slowly, perhaps, than under the influence 

 of European and American hurry and enter- 

 prise, but just as constantly, and just as surely — 

 till now, in friendly climates, it is a world-wide 

 fruit. 



Both of the pear trees described here, as in 

 fact all of the pear trees which we know to-day, 

 seem to have come from those common parents 

 in eastern Europe or western Asia. 



The one which bears the luscious fruit is the 

 Bartlett pear — an excellent though common 

 variety in the United States. 



The other, with its bitter, indigestible fruit, is 

 one which was imported from China. \ 



The lesson which these two pear trees teach is 

 that fruits, like flowers in their rivalry to please 

 us, adapt themselves to the tastes, desires, and 

 ideals of the human neighbors among whom they 

 grow. 



Here, in America, we like fruits that are soft, 

 large, sweet, luscious, juicy, aromatic, easy to 

 digest when eaten raw. Our pears grow that 

 way. 



