236 



on another storm, for I did not know that she 

 thoughts© much of Freas. "His 'household depart- 

 ment was the best thing a-going ; she had had the 

 paper since she could read and always would, and she 

 had seen more fruit in his garden in 1 year. than she 

 feared she would ever see in mine.^^ I did not like 

 ' mine ' instead of ours, but I swallowed that. The 

 end was I agreed to let her have Concord to put 

 about the house, over the pump, and along the 

 back fences. She has plenty of fruit such as it is, 

 as Mr. Mead happily expresses it in your review, 

 but ' one remove above a fox grape.' But although 

 I had to wait five years before I got a Delawa- e 

 bunch, and it has not yet done near as well as I 

 know it will after age gives strength to the vine; and 

 although the others have died out altogether, I 

 would not give one bunch of Delaware for ten thou- 

 sand pound weight of Concord, and I am sure the 

 Educated tastes of your readers will agree with 

 me. 



So we have gone on for about ten years, wife and 

 I. She is an excellent housekeeper. Though so de- 

 ficient in the refined taste for good fruits, she man- 

 ages to have the table always filled with good things 

 prepared in some way; but as she knows my hostility 

 to the vulgar varieties of fruits, I am sure she uses 

 none of them. In the garden I only gave away to 

 her in one single thing. After long coaxing I agreed 

 to plant 50 Philadelphia Raspberries two years ago. 

 I hated to give the price I did for them, especially 

 as it was boldly announced that it was a fruit only 

 fit for the "million ;" but I had persevered year in 

 and year out with my Brinckles, Aliens, Hornets, 

 Fillbaskets and so on ; tried saw dust, tan, long 

 pruning, short pruning, pegging down, tying up, 

 and every contrary thing, and I really thought the 

 basket required to be filled was rather too small, and 

 the only Hornet was in the house, (Mr. Editor 

 please send this number to my store instead of my 

 private residence if you print this sentence). But 

 I yet have hopes ; but to satisfy her, I bought fifty, 

 but you may guess I took no care of them, never 

 hoed them, and let them grow as they choose. I 

 put them in a part of the garden near the rubbish 

 and indeed had forgotten all about them. And now 

 comes the curious part of my story, for a week past 

 we have had raspberries all over the house, and sup- 

 posing my wife bought them in the market I kept 

 praising their good qualities, for they were good, 

 and to day she tells me they are from those fifty 

 plants " behind the barn." 



But I am not going o give it up so. I am sure 

 Mr. Parry must have sent us something else for the 

 true Philadelphia. He himself has assented to this 



not being quite so good in quality as some others, 

 but as my taste is an "Educated one," and this 

 one is " good enough for me," I am sure it is new, 

 and I shall make a new plantation of it next year. 



Yours, Percival PixNKerton. 

 P. S. Where can I get $100,000 for the whole 

 stock of this new kind ? 



THE HUCELBBEERY. 

 BY W. 



In your J uly number I notice a very flattering 

 notice of Hammonton, N. J., and its Strawberries, 

 but which from personal knowledge I know does not 

 overstate the fact, and exhibits what a few years of 

 judicious culture may do for even a barren sand- 

 heap ; and as an off'set for said notice, permit me 

 to call attention to another settlement of New Jer- 

 sky,— East Fruitland, on the Raritan and Delaware 

 Bay R. R. , — and its, at present, principal produc- 

 tions. 



1 was forcibly struck, during a recent visit, with 

 the similarity of some remarks made by you in the 

 article referred to, and the actual circumstances 

 occurring there. The first thing you notice when 

 landing from the cars is Huckleberries; all you 

 hear of (at present) is Huckleberries ; the boys are 

 crying Huckleberries through the cars at every sta- 

 tion ; and you walk on Huckleberries. 



The only thing which would make the matter less 

 observable in the case of Huckleberries is, that they 

 are growing wild by the hundreds of acres, while the 

 Strawberries are cultivated by the 10 or 12 acres to 

 each person, and with considerable care and labor. 

 But East Fruitland is a growing village, and also 

 cultivates various kinds of fruit in small quantities, 

 — not to be compared, however, with Nature's own 

 crop, the Huckleberry. 



I have often thought it strange that, with such a 

 delicious berry, there was not more trouble taken to 

 cultivate and bring it to more general notice, and 

 am pleased to see that Mr. A. S. Fuller has noticed 

 the same, and has endeavored to fill the want by a 

 chapter in his new book on Small Fruits, and justly 

 says : — 



" The Huckleberry is one of tho^'e fruits which 

 have always been neglected. None of our horticul- 

 tural writers have deemed it worthy of any particu- 

 lar description, and but very few have thought it 

 worthy of mention. 



"Why this neglect I am at a loss to understand, 

 for the Huckleberry possesses, naturally, better 

 qualities than the Currant and Gooseberry. The 

 berries are more firm than the Raspberry, Black- 

 berry or Strawberry, and are suitable for market." 



