NEW CREATIONS IN PLANT LIFE 
more likely the latter,— but the means are the 
non- essentials, the end is paramount. 
It will be seen that in order to accomplish 
the results that are changing in many ways 
the plant life of the world and opening the 
way to still greater changes, something else 
must enter into the matter than mere observa- 
tion, however keen, than knowledge, however 
deep, than experience, however broad. And 
this strange, intangible thing, for want of a 
better term, we call intuition. 
There comes a day each year in Mr. Bur- 
bank’s work when the fruit trees under test, 
for example, must come up for scrutiny. 
Selection is to be put to one of its uses. 
Selection, selection of the best, must be ever 
operative from the time the plant is first 
chosen from its fellows;—it is the continual 
survival of the fittest; but now comes selec- 
tion on a larger scale. Perhaps there are a 
hundred thousand of these fruit trees one or 
two years of age. They have been planted at 
Mr. Burbank’s proving grounds at Sebastopol, 
a few miles from his home in Santa Rosa. 
They have been cared for with patience and 
with trained minds working over them, and 
36 
