The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1879-09-03
A Peculiar Asiatic Fruit.

A writer in the Gdrd'aer'S Chro'a-
5cle in an article on the edible fruits OF
the forests and gardens Of the East
ern tropics, gives long and interest
inc account Of that singular fruit, the
durion, which the Scientific american
condenses as follows: He says that
the regal durion (D,rio @ibetha'ans),
like the finest of nectarines or melt.
inc pears, must be eaten fresh and
lust at one particular point OF ripe
ness, and then it is fruit tit tor a
king. So highly is this vegetable
custard valued that as much as dol
lar each is often paid for fine speci-
mems of the first fruits OF the durion
crops brought into the Eastern mark
cts. 1t is universal favorite with
both Malays and Chinese, but the
opinions of Europeans vary as to its
merits: 1t is a paradox, "the best OF
fruits with the worst Of characters"
and, as the Malay says, you may en-
loy the durion, but you should never
speak of it outside OF your own dwell
ling. It's odor is so potent, so vague,
so insinuating, that it can scarcely be
tolerated inside Of the house. Indeed
nature seems to have gone little
aside to disgust us with fruit which
is, perhaps, Of all others, the most fas-
cinating to the palate when once we
have 'broken the ice" as represented
by the foul odor at first presented to
that most critical of all organs OF
sense, the nose. AS matter OF course,
it is never brought to table in the us
ual way, and yet the chances are that
whoever is lucky enough to taste
good fruit OF it to begin with, soon
develops into a surreptitious durion
eater. There is scarcely any limit to
duron eating if you once begin it 1t
grows on one like the opium habit or
other acquired taste; but, on the
other hand, The very suggestion OF
eating such an "unchaste fruit" is to
many as intolerabIe as the thoughts
alone OF slipping off cheese and spring
onions, washed down with beer, and
following it by Whit from short
"dhudeen," by say of dessert.
About the middle or end OF July,
durion fruits are very common in
Singapore, and their spiny skins lie
about the streets in all directions. AS
you pass along you become aware of
peculiar odor all around you-an
odor like that Of putrid sewer
when half suppressed by holding a
perfumed handkerchief to the nose
a blending OF good deal that is
nasty with a Soupco1a of something
rather sweet and nice. On opening
fruit for yourself, you find that the
perfume, like that of the musk plant,
ceases to be evident after you have
once had a fair Whit at i. at close
quarters. The flavor of the straw
colored, custard-like pulp surround
ing the large chestnut-like seeds is
perfectly unique; and to taste it, as
Wallace tells us, is ''new sensation
worth a journey to the East to expe-
Hence" The pulp is sweet, rich and
satisfying, but never clogs; the rich
ness seems counteracted by delicate
acidity, and the want Of grape-like
juiciness. is supplied by the most
creamy softness of the pulp as it
melts away, ice-like, on your tongue.
The durion is one of Dame Natures
"made Dishes" and if it be possible
for you to imagine the flavor OF a
combination of corn flour and rotten
cheese, nectarines, crushed filberts, a
dish OF pine-apples, spoonful of old
dry sherry, thick cream, apricot pulp
and soapcoa Of garlic, all reduced
to the consistency of rich custard,
you have a glimmering idea of the
durion, but, as before pointed out,
the odor is almost unmentionable-
perfectly Undesirable. The fruit
itself is as large as a Cadiz melon, and
its leathery skin is protected by sharp
broad-based spines similar to those
of horse-chestnut. There are many
varieties in the Bornean woods some
but little larger than horse-chestnut
fruits, and having only two seeds;
others larger but with stiff orange
red pulp, not at all nice to eat, how
ever hungry you may be, and even
the larger kinds, with creamy pulp
and many seeds, vary greatly in flavor.
The trees vary from seventy to one
hundred and fifty feet in height, with
tall, straight boles and spreading tops,
and the foliage is oblong acuminate,
dark green above, paler and covered
with redish hairs or scales below.
The fruit of the finer varieties fall