^ild Fruits of Tennessee 69 



WILD FRUITS OF TENNESSEE 



BY ROBERT SPARKS WALKER, EDITOR SOUTHERN FRUIT GROWER 



[Read before the Academy, May 4, 1917.] 



I have a vivid recollection today of the many times when a boy, 

 on Christmas mornings, of going to the fireplace and emptying the 

 contents of the sometimes sparsely filled stocking out on the floor. 

 The candy, apples, fire crackers, and nuts were all carefully sepa- 

 rated. Among the nuts were often represented a number of varie- 

 ties, and the filberts, pecans, Persian walnuts, Brazil nuts, and al- 

 monds were all gathered together, each in its particular class. Of 

 the lot, the almonds were the last to be eaten, and well enough that 

 it was so, for in no uncertain or mild terms did we condemn the 

 person, firm or corporation, unknown to us, who was so grasping 

 as to palm off peach seed on innocent children under the guise of 

 almonds. Our parents, feeling the same about the perpetration of 

 the supposed fraud, by their silence approved of the scathing de- 

 nunciations. In after years, when v/e learned that the almond and 

 peach were true brothers of common parentage but with talents 

 developed in different commercial channels, one being educated for 

 its kernel with neglect for the pulp, and the other vice versa, it was 

 with no little regret that we looked back upon our ignorance and 

 wished that we had then had some one to enlighten us and thus not 

 only save us from the useless condemnation of an imaginary fraud- 

 ulent person, but, being of a daring disposition, might have caused 

 us to accept the challenge of nature. As a result of such enlighten- 

 ment and inspiration we might have accepted the challenge then 

 thrust out before us in the form of wild fruits of Tennessee inviting, 

 nay, daring men to improve them. 



In taking up this subject of the "Wild Fruits of Tennessee," at the 

 beginning I must say that it is useless as it is impractical for me to 

 undertake to give attention to each species. Those that I mention 

 shall be in order of their importance, as I regard them. 



