The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1901-09-22
TASTE SOUR TO THIEVES ONLY
WONDERFUL BRiND or APPLES
UP IN MAINE.
Invented q Century Ago ny WHY John
Grant for the Express Purpose nj Foot
Ing the Thieves Who Had Been Ravag.
ing Itls Orchards Sweet 60 Others.

Prospect. Ne. Sept. 20.-On the tenth
day Of next month the farmers OF Waldo
and Kennehec counties will celebrate tho
centennial Of John Grant birth by hold
ing meetings in several towns and other
wise honoring the memory Of a man who
was looked upon a a harmless crank while
h. was alive and to whom fame came long
wears after hs was dead. The story goes
tia, Grant was the son 81 an Irish soldier
who deserted from the British Army dur
ing the Revolutionary War and married a
half-hrecd indian squaw. from which
union many Of the Grants In the Fast are
said 10 have descended. The elder Grant
was part lumberman. part farmer and moro
than half hunter. getting a precar1ous
living from many cauingS and DYING a
week after he received notice that a pen
SION had been granted him for his services
in the War Of 1912 John Grant. the son.
inherited more h 1909 acres OF land
and a bot ~ had habits from his father.
and was going the paCe hat Kills when a
Methodist exhorter zane along and gathered
him into the church. after which event
he continued 10 heal a cody life until the
day Of his death.
John Grants only claim 90 fame lies
in the fact TIM he invented a new breed
81 apples in the DAYS when he was given
over 10 sin Most new and desirable varic-
ties 81 apples are produced 10y planting
the SEEDS ~ the natural fruit, and select
ing the best result 81 many paintings as
the tree from which scions should be cut
Grants method Of begetting a new fruit
was wholly different from anything that
was then known. because he may bo said
20 have whitfield out his apple tree witha
pocket knife. thereby performing a feat
tha, even Nature al her best had never
attempted About 200 acres Of Grants
farm was In orchards, which yielded him
great quantities Of cider. for which there
was a good market. He could grow and
harvest all the eour fruit ne cared to uss
bu, when he tried 90 raise sweet apples.
Of which he was very fond. the sailors
who went pas, the foot 81 his orchard on
cnastinR schooner-. walked In by night
and stole every sweet apple az fast as II
was FL 10 eat. often breaking down tho
,roes in their haste 20 secure as many as
possible.
Grant tried ~shotguns. steel traps. bull
dogs and many kinds Of profanity without
erect. Then, after enduring many disap-
pointments for five or six years, he swors
A hig oath that he would build an apple
that should fool the sailors and enable him
20 have sons sweet fruit 10 put In his cellar
for the winter. As tho Methodist Clergyman
had not arrived AZ that time. he took tho
wides, liberty Of speech and those who
heard him aid he went the full limit.
The Indian blood in his veins had made
Gran, quick OF observation and enabled
him 20 learn things about nature that arc
concealed from most men. He was led To
believe that N he could split n scton from
swea, tree and another scion from q sour
tree In halves. and place the half OF a sweet
scion against the half Of a sour scion AMI
make them ~ 20 eSactly that both sdies
would live II they w~re in-"rted In healthy
stock. no would produce n fruit that was
sour on one side and sweet on the other.
On irving the experiment he found that
such a result was not possible from tina
terminal bud ~ the twin scion. but all
shoots further down the graft would Yield
swee, fruit on one side and sour on Oh"
other. Though the terminal bud Is hard
20 make live. ~ hard hat the end scion
10 usually cas-, aside. Grant was succHssful
in about, ono trial ont Of ten, and when his
sour -and-sweet apples wer".found growing
IN the orchard the huilder of thu fruit was
pronounced as one possessed of satan.
and shunn.~i bv the truly good "a II he had
heen an cmissarv from the pit.
Though Grant had proved his theory
and ~astonished the ~neighhorhood, he had
no, accomplished his object. He argued
tina, sailors who stole apples In the dark
made their selection hv tasting IN" fruit.
and that as a man naturally plucked an
ample from a tree hv CRASHING the fruit
from the top near it, Junction with ths
stem. /, was obvious that h" would make
his fir, bite into tho small or blossom end.
II the tast proved the apple 10 Ia sour tho
tree would Ia left alone Otherwise it
would 10 stripped In making an appl"
that was half sweet and half sour. both
qualities running IN vertical lines down
the fruit he had reduced tho danger from
thieves bv 81 per cent. The question now
was to make an apple that should be sour
NJ tho blossom end and sweet at the stem.
A il, was obvious that such an apple was
impossible h" se' about IN" construction
of "A fruit IN which the sweet and sour should
L., inclined to their common axis in such
n wnv thar while ono side should he acid
] and the other sacCharne. III" sour should
! overlap tho blossom end. whore the test
was always made. and tho sweet should
have a monopoly Of the upper half lttook
him xix years 20 accomplish the work
when !, was done and his orchard was
grated 10 S~our-aud-swert apples th" sailors
went To other orchard for their fruit giving
Gran, time To- attend PRAYER m'"ting-.
where he l~came acquainted with IN" cl"rgy-
nan who wrought his reform lndeNi.
/ Gran, alwa W declared that his conversation
Wa directly due To his ability 10 produces
an apple that was proof against m" sailors.
ha,an-, not only did the absence ui th'"v"s
enahla him 20 60 20 the PRAYER m"r'ings.
hut u was n fact thai a man who could
not swear had no business with an orchard
infested with nocturnal thi"ye~
From IA" day - hi- conversion Grant
l"i a Costly and upright life. cutting his
apples ~ two disgonallv. eating the s~e-'t
hall and turning M" sour section into cider.
from which ~ took ~ way 10 IN" vinegar
barrel Ia 1870. l"aniug thai a New York
ppmolugis' hai manufactured m apple
that va- half sour and half ~w'ot b." applied
/ tu tho" [ mites States Patent III" FOR paiers
O., pr1'"r' him IN his right - prior dis
| c,ysrv. hut ne" examiner. banning hat
: Grants invention had h"rn in Use among