LUTHER BURBANK 
characteristic and delectable flavor. And I regret 
to say that many people who suppose themselves 
familiar with this product know it only in a diluted 
and adulterated form in which only a suggestion 
remains of the real maple quality. 
Nor does there seem to be much prospect of 
improvement in this regard, for, so far as I know, 
the maple tree is seldom or never cultivated for the 
garnering of its unique crop. The relatively small 
quantity of maple sugar that finds its way to the 
market is the product of trees that chanced to grow 
in the woodland and they are reserved not so much 
as sugar producers but as ultimate material for 
lumber. Yet maple sugar is a sweet of acknowl- 
edged quality, and one that deserves a larger 
measure of recognition as a commercial product 
than has hitherto been given it. 
Possibly the time may come when maple trees 
will be set out and cultivated for the production 
of sugar. But it is hardly likely that such cultiva- 
tion of the maple can ever constitute a significant 
industry, because the product of a single tree is 
relatively insignificant. 
It is only the fact that the sugar maple has wood 
of such quality of fiber as to make it valuable for 
the cabinetmaker that could justify the cultivation 
of these trees as a commercial enterprise. 
On the other hand the amateur orchardist 
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