176 THE EVOLUTION OF OUR NATIVE FRUITS 



Gillett, Townsehd and Robinson as synonyms of it. 

 The Robinson now known is a very different fruit. 

 The Miner is one of the best and most popular of the 

 native plums. The fruit is large, round or roundish- 

 oblong, dull red, skin rather thick; stone cling, shorl 

 and broad, smooth or very nearly so. very short- 

 pointed, rather sharp on the front edge ; leaves lai-r 

 and heavy, usually inclined to be obovate, rather long- 

 pointed, the stalks glandular. It is one of the Latest 

 ripening of all the plums of its class. 



The second important event in the evolution of 

 the native plums is tin 1 origination of the Wild 

 Goose. On account of its productiveness, earliness, 

 beauty, good shipping qualities, and its early intro- 

 duction, this is the most popular of the native plums. 

 It was first brought to notice by James Barvey, of 

 Columbia. Tennessee. Some time before L850, a man 

 shot a wild <4'oose near Columbia; and on the spot 

 where the carcass was thrown this plum came up the 

 following spring. It was introduced about 1850 by 

 the late -I. S. Downer. Fairview. Kentucky. The 

 fruit is large, round-oblong, lighl red. -.kin thin, the 

 flesh thin and juicy : cling, stone long and narrow. 

 prolonged above into a sharp point and below into a 

 narrow base, iinel\ pitted; leaves oblong -lanceolate, 

 peach-like, not prominently pointed, the margins finely 

 and evenh senate. Early, of poor quality, but because 

 of its many striking features it i> widelj grown. 



Another important, evenl was the introduction of 



the Robinson. This is a seedling grown by a .Mr. 

 Pickett, of Putnam county, Indiana, from a seedling 



broughl with him from North Carolina about titt\ 



years ago. ami almosl everj season (since large 



