Mr. Coles, of Atlanta, one of our most careful pomologists, believes that notwithstanding the great number of varieties now known, this one will be a valuable addition to the list for Southern planting. He gives the following history of it:

" Mr. Henry S. Hames, of Troup County, Georgia, bought of a North Carolina apple wagon, in the town of LaGrange, in November, 1842, some apples called 'Queen' - probably the variety known as Buckingham - and planted the seeds; four came up and grew; at one year old he transplanted them and one died; the three remaining trees bore fruit the third year after they were transplanted; the first commenced to ripen its fruit June 15th; the second in August, and the third in October; the latter two were of no value, and were discarded. The first mentioned promised well, and was called 'Hames Seedling,' and has proved to be the most valuable early apple known.

"This splendid apple was introduced by us in 1876, on evidence sufficiently strong to support even a new thing in the multitude of pomological novelties that are now challenging public notice; but we have since then accumulated facts in regard to it that beyond question leaves it without a competitor among the known varieties of early apples. It ripens with Red June and Astrachan.

"1. As to uniformly large fruit, we had one specimen that weighed 14 ounces, and six average size weighed 3 pounds 10½ ounces, and these from trees twenty-seven years old that bore a full crop. 2. Beauty of appearance, waxen yellow, striped and splashed with bright carmine. See extracts from letters from leading Pomologists. 3. Its quality is better than Astrachan; is high flavored, and cooks well. 4 Vigorous growth of tree, forming fine round heads. 5. Good bearing qualities, the original tree having borne thirty-two annual crops in 1877, and those grafted from it retain the same character. The fruit we had was from trees twenty-seven years old, that had borne twenty-four annual crops.

6. Heavy cropper. Mr. Hames says: ' Bears almost invariably heavy crops.' 7. Early age at which the trees bear, three and four years from graft.' "