The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-07-01
WATERMELONlS
WITHOUT "KICK''
Ought to Be National Flower of
ProIibs- Can't Entice Liquor
from 1t.
Watermelon wine?

Nothing to it!
The watermelon is the worlds
most "Volsteadish" fruit. Not only
does it bear in its very name an
assertion of its principles but On
the testimony of eager home brew
ers it resists to the death all at
tempts to make it into wine.
Like the prohibition movement it
self, the watermelon is believed to
be of humble origin. Americans
who have not studied its history are
likely, without analyzing the facts
in the case, to rank the watermelon
as an American of the first family
group, along with Indian corn and
tobacco. But although scientists
disagree on it's early history, it is
generally agreed that the water
melon is an immigrant and that it
came over in the steerage instead of
being brought over in the cabin by
son of an arlstocratic family of
Europe exilled from his country.
St0waway Immigrant
Most historians are of the opinion
that the American watermelon be-
gan life in Africa way back before
Columbus found the continent.
They further go on to say that 1t
is highly probable that the fruit
came over, not even as a respect
able immigrant, with it's passage
paid and all its papers ready for
Ellis island. but as a stowaway,
perhaps only some fugitive seeds,
the only possession of some savage
black man captured by slavers and
chained down in the hold of a vessel
for the voyage to the new world. In
the fact that persons of African
blood seem to possess a peculiar
affinity for the fruit may be found
some Endorsement for this theory.
The watermelon was a wild, I'M
tutored thing in it's native land. But
it arrived in this country early and
set itself about trying to be a bet
ter plant and to produce fruit that
would be pleasing to the American
palate. That it succeeded is shown
by the fact that Americans are the
most devoted watermelon adherents
in the world.
Two hundred thousand acres of
land are devoted to growing the
fruit in this country, mostly in
Texas, Georgia and Missouri. Next
after the United States Russia has
been most addicted to devouripg
watermelons. In the days when
real news and real statistics came
out of Russia this was generally
recognized. But since the Lenipe
regime set in it is thought that the
Russians may have turned against
watermelons with the scorn that
they feel for all things bourgeois,
for the watermelon is a bourgeois
fruit, cheerful and harmless and
ever showing a desire to climb
away from the proletariat,
Ally of Cucumber.
In addition to these reasons why
it is believed Russia no longer toll
crates the watermelon this fruit
belongs to the allies-the cucumber
allies, in plant pariance. Other
members of this allied group are
the cucumbers and the preserving
citron.
Although neither good wine nor
good vinegar can be made from
watermelon, it has frequently been
considered as a possible source of
sugar. The fruit is 90 per cent
water and 2 per cent sugar. Plants
have been established for using il
a sa sugar source, but, probable due
to the large number of other sugar
sources, the enterprise has never
been persisted in.