The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1880-02-25

imported into the United States.
We should try to supply this from
our home product. l have no means
of ascertaining the amount Of money
valued on imported oranges. Our
own superior fruit must eventually
supplant them in our market.
Characteristics Of the Japan Per-
SimmOn. .ut.
| From the Pacific Rural Press.
Now that the Japan persimmons
are ripening and attracting consider
able attention in various parts OF the
state, we have thought some testimo-
ny concerning the character of the
fruit by one who has long known it
in its native country, would be
timely. We have received from
Rev. Henry LOOMS an account of
this kind written by Ct +. Verbeck,
D. d., who was first president of the
Japanese Imperial College, at Yedo,
and has been many years in the ser
vice of the Japanese government,
| DR.. Verbeck writes as. follows ;fluaiY
/ Although l know very little Of
pomology as science, l shall with.
pleasure, set down in a few lines,
some OF the things that a common
; experience of eighteen years has
taught me in regard to the persim-
| mon in Japan In the first place, /
know that when you ask Japanese
what-he considers his best and sweet
est fruit, in eight cases out of ten the
answer will be: The persimmon.
There is no doubt that to most Tor,
eign palates, too, the Japan persim-
mon is delicious fruit though we
find other japanese fruit, for instance,
the Unshiu (seedless) orange and the
loquat, perhaps quite as good. The
former will generally be found more
refreshing and the latter to have
more flavor than the persimmon.
Aside from the sweetness, and the
highly nutritive quality Of the fruit,
think that what contributes largely
to make the persimmon such a gen.
eral favorite with the Japanese is its
wholesomeness to young and old.
This wholes0meness comes III at a
season in the late summer and fall,
when a prevalence OF looseness Of
the bowels in various phases de-
mands either an abstinence from
fruit generally or the use iof fruit
which alleviates. and counteracts that
state OF the bowels faaSAk1A ]
In my family, hot excepting the
youngest members, l have always
found free use OF the persimmon
beneficial i'll the fall of the year, even
at times when other kinds of fruit
had to be prohibited. And l thini;
that it is equally as wholesome in its
fresh and its sun-dried state. =.
| ascribe the wholesomeness Of
the persimmon chiefly to three things.
One OF these is the gelatinous, or,
rather, albuminous nature OF its
meat. When 1 first came to Japan
| l thought q good jam, Jelly or other
preserve, might be prepared from the
persimmon but when my wife at.
tempted to cook some OF the fruit
for these purposes, it came out OF
the boiler in state somewhat like
that OF an overdone egg, having its
naturally soft and pulpy meat coagu-
lated into a hard, lea,hery consist.
ency. This albuIhinousA nature .ot
theImeat too, l think, will not allow
OF the persimmon being dried by
any other than the mild, drying agen-
cies of sunshine, and air. HIGHER, de,
grees .of1heat would Certainly spoil
the natural texture Of the meat, so
as to make it indigestible, and conse-
quently junwholesome. my brother
ln-law dried some persimmons in. the
fiue of his furnace used tor heating
the house, and they We're superior to
sun-dried. / do not think DR.. Yer.
beck is correct about the drying pro.
cess.-H. L. Another circumstance
which largely contributes to the re-
markable whoIesomeness OF the per-
simmon is the considerable amount OF
iron which is found among its ingred-
tents. THE color OF the fruit, its inky
taste in the unripe state, and the fine
black specks in some OF the smaller
kinds of the hard variety in their ripe
state clearly shows that iron is a not
inconsiderable ingredient of the per.
simmon. Ithink'a chemical analysis
will fully bear ME out in this. And
the third element of wholesomeness
will he found i'll its ast.ingent virtues.
This astrngency does not affect the