PERSONAL HISTORY 197 



When Luther was twenty years of age, he de- 

 cided that the physician's profession would be 

 the most congenial as a life work, and so he 

 began the study of medicine; the value of the 

 knowledge thus gained in practical hygiene and 

 physiology as applied to plant life can hardly be 

 estimated; but father's death, occurring at this 

 time, the purpose was abandoned, and the family 

 moved to Groton — ^now Ayer, Massachusetts, 

 where we lived two years. It seems that nothing 

 was to turn Luther from his great hfe work; 

 and having purchased seventeen acres in the 

 village of Lunenburg for raising seeds and 

 market garden products, he began definite ex- 

 periments with plants, in which field he saw 

 great possibilities. 



It was here that the now world-famed Bur- 

 bank potato was produced and numerous experi- 

 ments inaugurated for the improvement of plant 

 life which have been continued uninterruptedly 

 until the present time. After spending three 

 years in this work he moved to Santa Rosa, Cali- 

 fornia, where he has resided since October 1st, 

 1875. 



Although the time intervening between the 

 date of his decision to come to California and 

 the time for starting was short, not being more 

 than sixty days, yet during that period he sold 



