Los Angeles herald., 1891-11-25
SOMETHING ABOUT OUR APPLES AND
ORANGES.

III OouthCkh OoiliOiAt@ AhoiC PaieiCu
larlv, only approach" the easter n
apple in perfection. In fact, he seems
to think that even the northern apple
presumably that of the states of Wash
ington and Oregon-is only poor sub
stitute for the Michigan apple.
1t Of course requires some hardihoo d
to differ with professional fruit man,
whose experience gives him a certai n
degree of authority, but the HERALD is
obliged to enter into competition as to
this question. The writer once hear d
Hon. G. N. FELTON, say, in company OF
gentlemen in Washington, that he had
never eaten good California orange.
Mr.. Felton's opinion is valuable on
many subjects, and yet in this special
instance he was undoubtedly largely
away from the general judgment. The
writer heard General ,Beale say substan-
tally the same thing. And yet. within
a week, the writer picked up a paper
containing the admission of large
Florida orange grower that the w ash
ington navel orange of Southern Califor-
MIA was incomparably the finest in the
world.
These gentlemen were undoubtedly
sincere in their opinions and were cor
dial to our oranges and orange growers.
They had formed their opinions proba-
bly, on the old Seeding orange,
which frequently was not specially
palatable, yet the old Seeding itself,
where the original stock was good,
was q delicious fruit. The writer heard
the Hon. Thomas A. Hendricks, after
his return from the European tour
which he made after the presidential
election of 1876, say, standing in the
orchard of Mr.. L. ]. Rose, in the San
Gabriel valley, that the Seeding oranges
which he sampled there were finer than
any he had encountered in Europe.
That was a peculiar gronPing around
those old Seeding orange trees. 1t in
cluded, in addition to Thomas A. Hen
bricks, Charles Crocker, David Cotton
and others we'll known in California.
They one and all pronounced the Rose
seeding oranges Incompatible. Cour-
tesy may have entered into this COM
pliment, but sincerity was at the bottom
of it.
But, returning to the apple, there was
a fine test of the California apple at the
New Orleans exposition in 1856.
On the board which made the fruit
award there was not single Califor-
nian. Yet, as a matter of fact, forty
seven premiums were awarded to the
apples from Los Angeles county alone.
The Michigan and other eastern apples
were, as matter of fact. nowhere. The
Southern California apples had been
compelled to traverse immense distances
and to emerge into new climates, and
yet they kept their size, color, flavor
and attractive ensem BILE perfectly. Every
enc of them was sound at the core when
es. open for the purposes of the compet-
tive test. On the other hand, every
Michigan apple was rotten at the core,
eaten up by weevils and pervaded with
that rotten aroma which exhales from
any eastern cellar after mid-January.
The truth is that the future OF the
apple industry of Southern California
and Los Angeles county is a roseate
one. Apples are being brought into this
city from Downey and other points of
Los Angeles county that are inexpress-
IDLY finer than the eastern apples that
are being sold in our, midst. But the
fact must be borne in mind that apple
culture is ss yet in its infancy in this
section. la ten years from now
We shall be So : far ahead
Of our present status in the variety
and perfection of our apples that we
,hall be overwhelmed with astonish-
nent at our easy victory, as recorded at
New Orleans, when we were in modest
md tentative stage of apple production.
What we have done with the orange
We shall do with the apple. Mr.. Earl
iays that the apple requires frost in
rider to attain perfection. He is wrong.
rhe apple requires to be protected from
rost, unless the object sought for is to |
nave soggy, rotten inside. Southern
california will not only be known as the
lome OF the most perfect orange but of
he nonpareil apple as well. This is
the region which will fur
lish apples of gold in pictures OF silver,
0 employ the fervid language OF the
Hebrew poet. The apple is specially
distinguished in the Bible. In the song
+ Solomon we read, "As the apple tree
is among the trees of the wood, go is
my beloved among the sons"
md later the wisest of men
+ his day said: 81 will go
up to the palm tree, will take hold of
the boughs thereof; now also thy
breasts shall be as clusters of the
vine, and the smell OF thy nose like
apples"
The HERALD declines to surrender the
.pple tree in view OF its aromatic
properties and splendid history. On
he contrary, we claim that, as in the
ase of the orange, its greatest possi-
'ilities will be realized in Southern
california. The record of the New
orleans exposition. .shows that many OF
hem have been attained already.
a N y. .4< n 3 s " " IS z. 4