On Jedburgh Pears, by Mr. James Tate. 195 



ancient trees have perished and been rooted out, they are 

 found to have been planted on a paved bottom. When 

 young pear trees are planted in the sites of those that have 

 died, they invariably get cankered, and entirely fail in the 

 course of four or five years."* 



In a paper communicated many years ago by Mr. Thos. 

 Shortreede to the " Transactions of the Caledonian Horti- 

 cultural Society," a list is given of the kinds of pears still 

 existing, or known to have existed, in the orchards of Jed- 

 burgh, of which the following is a copy : — 



Scots Bergamot. 

 Crawford, or Ballencrieff 



Pear. 

 Lady Lamont. 

 Grey and Red Honey. 

 Douglas Pear. 

 Mother Cob. 

 Fail Maid. 

 Pitfirrane. 

 Bon Chretien. 

 Ludd Pear. 

 Buchanan Pear. 

 Cranstoun Pear. 



Grey Longueville. 

 Green Longueville. 

 White Warden, or Monk's 



Pear. 

 Grey Warden. 

 Drummond, Grey and Red. 

 Musk Pear. 

 White Achan, 

 Grey Achan. 

 Pound Pear. 



Grey Goodwife of Glasgow. 

 Rob Hyal. 

 Worry Carle. 

 Bell-tongue Pear. 



We have already spoken of the steep banks on which some 

 of the gardens are situated, and that probably tends to help 

 the growth of fruit by the radiation of heat, but the soil is 

 likewise uncommonly deep, and the roots can go ten feet 

 downwards without exhausting the nourishment. The 

 pears have long been famous, and Jedburgh Pears have 

 been sold in the streets of London. In Newcastle-on-Tyne 

 it was common to hear the cry of " Fine Jethart Burgundy 

 Pears." The name should probably have been Bergamot, a 

 variety of pear said to have been introduced by the Romans, 

 and still a favourite in the town, but the wood is liable to 

 canker. Of the ancient kinds there is one called the 

 " Worrycarle," of which no specimen remains in Jedburgh, 

 but there is, or lately was, one at Ancrum, three miles dis- 

 tant. The trees are said to have been extremely prolific, 

 but the fruit was so woody as to be uneatable, and, after 

 long keeping, the pears had to be boiled like potatoes before 

 being used. Tradition says that on one occasion a Jedburgh 



* P. 130. 



