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of which the vine was a part, descended to his daughter, Mahala, and from her to Benjamin F. Meekins, her son, who is the present owner.

"The vine is situated on the northern end and on the eastern shore of the island, about two miles south of the supposed site of Fort Raleigh. It covers an area of about one-fourth of an acre, and as far back as can be remembered its growth has been stationary, probably due to a lack of proper training and inducement to spread. The vine has five large trunks averaging two feet in circumference which are indescribably gnarled and twisted. It is still vigorous and yields abundantly, seemingly unaffected by age in this respect. A conservative estimate of its yield is an average of sixty bushels of grapes a season."

—(Courtesy B. W. Kilgore.)

There is no part of the country, however, that grows grapes so abundantly as California. Many thousands of acres are covered with vines, both for table use and wine making. The climate is remarkably well suited to produce a grape very rich in sugar. The edible grapes do not have so high a content of sugar as those used for wine making, as is shown by the data below.

Composition of California Grapes (three samples) (edible portion):

Water,           80.12 percent Protein,          1.26 " Sugar,            16.50 " Pure ash,         0.50 " Fat, fiber, etc.,  1.62 "