chap, vii.] FRUIT-TREES. 233 
formis), of which Washington is said to have 
been so fond that he was rarely without some 
in his pocket, which he used to be continu¬ 
ally eating during his campaigns. The 
white hiccory (Carya sulcata), the outer 
rind of which is very thick, is also good to 
eat. 
The sweet chestnut is frequently called the 
Spanish chestnut, because the best sweet 
chestnuts were formerly brought to the Lon¬ 
don markets from Spain. The tree can, in¬ 
deed, scarcely be considered as an English 
fruit-tree; though some of the chestnuts sold 
for the table are grown in Devonshire. In 
France, chestnut-trees are more common; 
and they are divided there into two kinds: 
the chataigniers and the marroniers; the 
former bearing about the same relation to 
the latter as the crab does to the apple. The 
best chestnuts in France are those called les 
marrons de Lyons. The sweet chestnut is a 
native of Asia; but it has also been found 
in the north of Africa and North America. 
It is always propagated by seeds, and thrives 
best in a deep sandy loam; it will grow in 
even the poorest gravel, but it never does 
