The Pomological Magazine. 329 



that the winter wood and the blossom of spring have been forgotten 

 at the proper times; and every one acquainted with the getting up 

 of publications knows the difficulty of getting plates prepared, and the 

 frequent imperfections that result from casual neglect. By giving each 

 kind of secondary illustration by itself at a particular season, the greater 

 simplicity of the objects might reasonably be argued to produce greater 

 perfection and greater accuracy. The plan of publishing the different 

 species of fruits, such as pine-apples, apricots, apples, and strawberries, as 

 in No. I. of the Pomological Magazine, may be suitable enough for the 

 miscellany of a magazine, but, in point of general utility, it is bad ; because 

 there are many persons, who would feel highly gratified in having a table 

 or a book of apples and pears, who would feel little interest in pictures of 

 pines or grapes. On the other hand, if such tables as we have described 

 of all the principal fruits were once published, they would become stand- 

 ards of nomenclature and properties, to which new fruits described in a 

 Pomological Magazine might be referred, in order to indicate their com- 

 parative character and merits. In publishing fruits or florist's flowers in a 

 magazine, we should still adopt the system of squares, in order that those 

 who chose it might cut out the squares and mount them as appendices to 

 the tables to which they are referable. 



It must be evident to any one who has seen No. I. of the Pomological 

 Magazine, that, though there is less secondary illustration to each particu- 

 lar fruit than there would be in the tables, yet, for the sake of effect, there is 

 necessarily more engraving and colouring to each fruit than the tables would 

 require for the sake of utility. This circumstance, independently of every 

 other, will ever render the plan of publishing each fruit on a separate plate 

 more expensive than the tabular form ; and if we take the first number of 

 the Pomological Magazine as a specimen, and suppose that the hardy fruits 

 are to be reduced to an average of 144 of each of the kinds before enu- 

 merated, this will give 1440 sorts, which, at four sorts for 5s. or 5a-. 6d., 

 amount to 95/. 'or 66l. 10s. By the tabular method, printed in Savage's 

 manner, we have ascertained that table ]., of 144 sorts, supposing a sale of 

 1500, might be given for 1/., and the other tables for 10s. each. Of course, 

 tables of gooseberries, strawberries, &c, would be smaller and cheaper. 



Next to publishing such tables, the Horticultural Society would do most 

 good by publishing a select descriptive list of fruits, and selling to every 

 nurseryman plants or grafts of these sorts, to propagate from for the pub- 

 lic. Two great and increasing evils the public expect the Horticultural 

 Society to lessen ; first, the actual number of fruits in cultivation ; and, 

 secondly, the numerous names by which one fruit is known or disguised in 

 different parts of the country, and even in the same nursery. 



We have thrown out these hints for others to improve on, and we shall 

 be happy to have the opinion of those of our readers who have attended 

 to this subject. We shall only add that, since the above was written, we 

 have had an opportunity, through the kindness of Mr. Forsyth, of looking 

 over all the works on fruits which have been published in Europe, and even 

 all the editions of these works, from the Pomona of Batty Langley, in 1729, 

 and the Pomologia of Johann Herman Knoop, in 1758, to Hooker's Po- 

 mona Londinensis, in 1818; and these works have served to confirm our 

 judgment in the view we have taken. It is remarkable that Langley and 

 Knoop have, to a certain extent, anticipated our system, by giving, in folio 

 plates, collections of fruits ranged together according to the time of ripen- 

 ing ; and Langley has, in some of his plates, given collections of wood and 

 of leaves. A number of botanical authors of the same age, as Morrison, 

 Barrelier, and Gesner, applied the same principle to the figuring of plants ; 

 and we shall hereafter show how this practice may be imitated by the 

 moderns with advantage. In the progress of science, the first step and the 



