SPORT AND SCIENCE ON THE 
ii. FRUITS 
North China is well favoured in the quality and 
variety. of her fruit-bearing plants. The Chinese 
are essentially fruit lovers, and will consume enor- 
mous quantities when the chance offers. 
Though thriftless or ignorant in the matter of 
tree-culture for wood, they are skilled in the art 
of fruit culture, being well acquainted with the 
various methods of grafting, and judicious in se- 
lection. In this way some of their favourite 
fruits, such as peaches and persimmons, have been 
brought to a high state of perfection. 
On the whole the fruit of this country resembles 
that of Europe ; but there are some very character- 
istic kinds. 
The commonest, and perhaps most characteristic 
of the fruit-bearing trees of the country on the 
south side of the Great Wall is the Jujube (Zizyphus 
sativa) or “Tsao.” In and round every village 
and town on the plains and in the lower foothills 
of Chihli, Shansi and Shensi numbers of these 
trees may be seen. They are especially abundant 
in Western Chihli, on the plains of T’ai-yiian Fu 
and Hsin-Chou in Shansi, along the banks of 
the Yellow River from He-K’ou to T’ung-kuan, 
and up all the tributaries of that river in Shensi 
and Shansi. In Shantung also the Jujube is ex- 
tensively cultivated, many specialized varieties 
being grown there; but this province scarcely 
comes under our title. 
226 
