Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, rapid-growing, hardy, moderately productive; trunk stocky; branches thick, reddish-brown, overlaid with dull gray scarf-skin, marked with large lenticels; branches thick, dull brown, glabrous, with numerous slightly raised, conspicuous lenticels.
Leaf-buds large, above medium in length, obtuse or somewhat pointed, appressed. Leaves 2½ in. long, 1¼ in. wide, oval, leathery; apex taper-pointed; margin finely serrate; petiole 1½ in. long. Flower-buds conical or pointed, free; flowers 1⅛ in. across, in dense clusters, 13 or 14 buds in a cluster; pedicels ½ in. long, thick, pubescent, greenish.
Fruit matures in October; large, 2¾ in. long, 2½ in. wide, uniform in size and shape, turbinate, often with a tendency to oblateness, symmetrical; stem ¾ in. long, thick, nearly straight; cavity obtuse, deep, slightly furrowed, occasionally lipped; calyx large, open; lobes very broad, obtuse; basin wide, obtuse, symmetrical; skin thick, granular, tender, roughish; color dull greenish-yellow, with a brownish-red blush, overspread with russet nettings and streaks; dots numerous, small, russet; flesh whitish, somewhat granular, tender and melting, very juicy, sweet, and vinous, with a rich and pleasantly aromatic flavor; quality very good to best. Core large, closed, with clasping core-lines; calyx-tube short, wide, conical; seeds acute.
SOUVENIR DU CONGRÈS
1. Pom. France 4: No. 162, Pl. 162. 1867. 2. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat. 34. 1875. 3. Flor. & Pom. 37, Pl. 1875. 4. Jour. Hort. N. S. 38:120, fig. 19. 1880. 5. Hogg Fruit Man. 647. 1884. 6. Cat. Cong. Pom. France 350, fig. 1906.
Andenken an den Congress. 7. Oberdieck Obst-Sort. 237. 1881. 8. Mathieu Nom. Pom. 168. 1889. 9. Deut. Obstsorten 6: Pt. 16, Pl. 1910.
Souvenir. 10. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat. 24. 1897. 11. Ont. Dept. Agr. Fr. Ont. 179. 1914.
Very similar to Clapp Favorite and Bartlett, and not as good as either in fruit-characters, Souvenir du Congrès hardly merits a place in American pomology. The crop ripens between those of the two sorts with which it has been compared, and the fruits are larger and often handsomer. The fruits are said to be larger and of better quality when the tree is double-worked on the quince. The tree is remarkable for vigor, hardihood to cold, and healthfulness; and bears so abundantly that the crop must be thinned to prevent breaking of branches. The variety grows especially well in New York, and is deserving a place in home orchards and in fruit-collections. The accompanying color-plate illustrates the size, shape, and color of this pear remarkably well.