The gazette and Democrat. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1860-1860, 1860-06-14

Origin Of Fralts. cts.

We and the following 10 an address.
delivered By DR.. Charles 7. Jackson, OF
Boston. before the Plymouth Agricultural
Society. ~ sSs.sgs.r. t,sss
cit the glory of our noble art, that
il possesses almost creative poSers. Not
only has every seed been made to produce
'aiter its kind. but also to yield still 9th.
or kinds; net indeed new species, bRl va.
rieties so improved that they cannot by
ali the skill OF science be identified with
the wild plants nom which they original.
ed. Who can point ou, the native or or.
iginsl wild grasses, from which our cere.
d grains have been produced? Botan1ts
have suggested that they must have had
such origins, butttey have not been able
to identity the particular species of grasses
from which wheat. barley, rye and oats
have been derived.
"our large, plump. juicy and mellow
apples are all said to have originated from
the bitter and sour wild crab apple. wbicE
differs so much from them that it is diff
cult for us to conceive how those rich
fruits we're derived from so humble al or.
igin. From an insignificant and almost
tasteless wild fruit, originated all our nu
merous varieties of delicious pears. Onr
large, plump and luscious peach would
blush at seeing its dry, withered and bit
ter father; and our JUICY plums would be
slow (sloe) to recognize theirs. Tive a
pricot and uectarine canno. boast Of the
excellence Of their ancestors. The recta.
rine is said TO be variety Of the peach.
"From nauseous and poison weeds have
many Of our garden vegetables spruug.--
The tender and juicy asparagus is sup
posed to have been originally, bitter and
disagreeabls plant, growing upon the san
dy shores ofthe sea. The cabbage with
its head full Of tender and highly nutri.
tiOus ltnves, was originally weed grow
ing in meadows by the sea shore, and The
delicate cuiihower has no better paIeDtagc.
Our mealy potato belongs to the same
family with the deadly iigItshade, and in
it's wild state was an Insignificant plant,
with littlc tnbers not worth digging from
the earth, or Of eating when they were
dug. The onion was a nauseous shore
plant, growing in the sand. like its reIs.
tion the medicinal squills. ParsDips,
turnips and carrots, in their wild state,
were also strong, uDpnlaIablc roots unfit
for food.
From small beginnings came our
plump, cereal grains, our rich, juicy aud
delicious fruits, our nutritious escuents,
lents, and savory garden vegetables. Who
as IL were, created wheat, harley and rye,
or first put the wild fruits and vegeta-
blss in the way Of improvemt we may
never know. The ancients ascribsd these
creations to NEUROLOGICAL deiles, and thus
did the farmers injustice, unless indeed
they meant by their fables to defy them,
and exat their labors.
IL would suggest TO you that it is bigl-
ly profile that The wild rice of the lakes
and rivers in the northwestern portions
Of the United States, which is highly
nutritious grain rnd very prolific. now
feeding myriads Of wild g'ese, ducks,
pigeons apd otber tirdo aud supp ying
winter food 10 tho Indian hunter, Wgn
te advantageousIy inuo luced into our
flowed meadows, and be improved by Gu
tivation. The wild kale has been sac
cessfully cultivated in Europe, and IS now
extensively used for food.
progress is a law Of nature. From
the earliest dawn Of creation, there has
beer constant series Of improvements in
progress. Geology reveals that the lower
order Of sensitive beings gave way to a
those Of higher grade, until the last
term OF physical creation oi man, whose
Improvement. as rational creature. and
an immortal soul, is still destined to be
onward and upward"