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144 



(born 165 i): "The making of fruits without core or stone is 

 likewise a curiosity, and somewhat better, because whatsoever 

 maketh them so, is Hke to make them more tender and delicate." 

 With such authority is it surprising that the " Christian Advo- 

 cate/'^ properly a disciple of humanism or idealism rather than of A 

 realism, soberly says ; *' Fruit of all kinds may be grown without 



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seed by reversing the cion — rooting the top end of the cion. 



Apples are grown without cores, peaches without seed, 

 and grapes, plums, cherries, blackberries and every other kind of ^ t 



fruit may be grown without seed by simply reversing the cion. 

 Persimmons without seed are not to be excelled by any other 

 fruit in this country when dried. Apples cooked without cores 

 are delightful. Grapes have been raised for five thousand years 

 without seed. Peaches dried whole without seed would be a 

 hundred times better than those shaved up and dried. The 

 seeding of cherries has been a great trouble to cooks." ! ! 



I Quoted In the New York Analist, Sept. i, 1S85. 



2Democritus, Geopon. lib. 4, c. 7. Palladius, De re nist. Feb. c, 29. Colum- 

 ella, De arb. c. 9. Bacon, notes, 1. c. 

 3 Balfour, Bot. 261, 



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The taking the pith from the vine in order to produce seed- 



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lessness, receiv^ed the approval, if not the trial, of the ancients, as 



we find directions from Democritus, Palladius, Columella, and f 



the well-read Bacon^ 



In the present stage of this investigation, I prefer to give such 

 facts and statements regarding seedlessness, mostly in fruit, used 

 in the horticultural sense, that have come to my attention, allow- '^ 



ing the facts to speak for themselves. If such a correlation be- 

 tween quality and seedlessness exists, as I infer, this presentation 

 has a value in calling attention to a possible method whereby our 

 cultivated fruits may be more improved, and wild fruits be more 

 successfully brought into cultural use. 



It may be proper to call attention in advance to the fact that - 



as regards size of fruit, there seems to be no way of generalizing 

 at present In the bunches of our cultivated grapes the larger 

 berries contain usually the most seed ; in the banana, increase 

 of size apparently accompanies seeding, and the opposite conclu- ^ 



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sion IS stated by Balfour also in relation to the breadfruit as 

 well as the banana.^ 





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