THE CABBAGE COUSINS 
clustered upon it. The new crop was called Brussels 
sprouts, after the capital of the country in which they 
were developed. 
As cabbages were cultivated more and more, others 
developed a quite different peculiarity. When they came 
to bloom, they did not always do so normally. Occasion¬ 
ally there would be a bloom that would be quite swollen 
and thick. It was a very meaty sort of bloom. In France 
the peasants tested it and found it good to eat. They 
selected the cabbage plants that yielded it and from them 
produced a generation of cabbages that had these swollen 
flowers. They carried these to market and sold them. 
They called the new plant choufleur, or “ cabbage 
flower.” Cauliflower comes from that word. It has been 
said of this vegetable that it is a cabbage with a college 
education. 
55 
