their sturdy development, and approved their best efforts, is it not
yours to accept whatsoever they offer as reward and recompense for past
labour and present appreciation?

From the artistic standpoint the most admirable of all the citrus-trees
is the pomelo, which, however, lacks merit from the commercial side. The
tree grows more sedately than the orange or the mandarin, but on a
grander scale. The leaves are bigger, tougher, and the appendages on
either side of the stalk (which botanists call the stipules) more
developed. The blooms are greater, and endowed with a much richer perfume
than the orange; the fruit is huge and fragrant, though somewhat
disappointing to the individual who expects the sweetness of the
mandarin; while, if the views of the learned in such attributes are
trustworthy it possesses medicinal qualities which are foreign to its
dainty, diminutive relative. It would be mere affectation to refrain from
these compliments to the pomelo when the atmosphere is saturated with the
perfume from lusty trees. Certainly one has to wait patiently for many a
long year ere his trees greet him with white flowers which pour out
perfume of rare density and enrich him with golden fruit almost as big as
footballs. From nine to twelve years must elapse, but expectancy is not
wholly measurable by the arbitrariness of time. The true standard is the
desire, tempered by the patience of the custodian of the trees.

In August the pomeloes put on their most attractive appearances. The
young leaves of lively tint contrast with the almost sombre green of the
older foliage, and flowers in clusters give a most becoming adornment.
Big and beautiful as they are, scent is their most conspicuous feature.
Even in the open air it is rich almost to cloyness. It hangs about the
tree while the wind is still, and the slightest movement of the air wafts
it hither and thither. It stings sensitive folk with its intensity at