LUTHER BURBANK 



survives as the remnant of a tribe that flourished 

 abundantly in the Mesozoic age. This species 

 made its way to what is now the southern part of 

 the United States, and has kept up its aristocratic 

 traditions throughout intervening ages of such vast 

 extent that it staggers the mind to attempt to grasp 

 their significance. 



The thoughtful person cannot well escape a 

 feeling of awe as he stands in the presence of this 

 representative of a race that in the main was gath- 

 ered to its fathers at a time when the ancestors of 

 man were perhaps still progressing on all fours. 



But, traditions aside, the tulip tree of to-day is 

 a thing of beauty, prized for itself, regardless of 

 its ancestry. It makes a fine tree for avenue, door- 

 yard, or park, and it may be grown as far north 

 as New York and New England. 



Being a monotypic tree, one would not expect 

 it to show very great variation. But no very keen 

 powers of observation are required to see that the 

 tulip trees are not identical, and doubtless their 

 variation is enough to afford opportunities for in- 

 teresting experiments, though there is nothing on 

 the earth at the present time with which to com- 

 bine them. 



Exceptional interest should attach to a line of 

 experiment in which the plant developer is dealing 

 with racial traditions of such antiquity and such 



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