THK MATES DEWBEBRT 345 



growing in many places in Texas and Louisiana. 

 People from our town were in the habit of visiting 

 this dewberry and blackberry field every spring, t>. 

 gather first the dewberries, and later tin- blackberries. 

 After Mr. Mayes eame into possession of the farm, be 

 began t<» cultivate tin- land where these berries grew, 

 and discovered this berry occupying a small area of 

 not more than hall an acre, or an acre at most. The 

 berries were bo much finer than the other dewberries 

 growing all around it. that he decided t<> save them. 

 He plowed them, and found they grew firm, and so he 

 began bringing his Burplua above home consumption 

 to town to sell. Their large size and earliness at- 

 tracted the attention of our Pilot Point Horticultural 

 Society, bo thai ;i member asked Mr. Mayes to bring 

 them plants — one or two hundred each. Among 

 those purchasing them at this time were Mr. J. W. 

 Austin, Mr. Sam Gaines and myself. That was about 

 1888 or 1889. Since then these berries have con- 

 tinned t<> grow in popular favor. The uame, Mayes 

 Hybrid, was suggested by myself, because tin- plants 

 were found growing where both the common dewberry 

 Rubus tririnlis) and «•« »n i n n »t i Texas blackberry, now- 

 known ;i> the Dallas berry, were both occupying the 

 locality indiscriminately. Col. W. W. Ross, who then 

 lived here, and myself proposed to Mr. Mayes to 

 call it the Mayes Hybrid and form a company, known 

 as the Mayes Berrj Company, to propagate and sell the 

 plants. I first advertised them in 'The Horticulturist' 

 as ' he M.i ;■ • - 1 I > brid I Hackberrj ." 



•I. \V . An-tin. of Pilot Point, Texas, also propa- 

 gated tli'- plant, ami introduced it as Austin's Im- 

 pro berry. 



