LUTHER BURBANK 



of attention to be given them. So almost number- 

 less varieties have been developed which meet the 

 most varied requirements. But the small fruits 

 have been the Cinderellas of the pomological fam- 

 ily. Our own generation was first to give them 

 proper recognition, and it remains for our suc- 

 cessors to carry them forward to their true plane 

 of utility. 



So it is these fruits rather than others that we 

 shall have chiefly in mind, as the title of the pres- 

 ent chapter would suggest. But I repeat that much 

 that will be said applies to all marketable fruits, 

 and even where a particular species is referred to, 

 what is said is often susceptible of general appli- 

 cation. 



Bearing this in mind, let us briefly review the 

 story of the modern development of the small 

 fruits, and with equal brevity outline a few sug- 

 gestions as to the lines of future progress. 

 THE INCREASED CONSUMPTION OF FRUIT 



The consumption of fruit has increased more 

 rapidly in the United States, and perhaps through- 

 out the world, during the last one hundred years 

 than has that of any other kind of food, with 

 possibly the exception of nuts. The increase in 

 the consumption of both fruits and nuts during 

 the past twenty years has been particularly re- 

 markable, and they are in fact coming to be 



[270] 



