19S ROBI.VIA PSEUDACACIA. 



clothed with leaves, tlic trees are reiulenMl iin])roper for this purpose; and tlicir 

 leaves coiiiius; out late in the spring, and tailing oil' early in the autumn, occa- 

 sioned their heing neglected lor many years; hut of late they have been much in 

 request again, so that the nurseries have been cleared of tiiese trees; though in 

 1 few years they will he as little en([uired after as heretofore, when those which 

 have Ihmmi lately planted begin to have their ragged appearance." 



In Ur. Hunter's edition of Evelyn's "Sylva," published in 1786, we have a 

 history of the employment of the locust in ship-building, communicated by Mr. 

 Joseph Harrison. This gentleman, who had resided some time in Virginia, states 

 that in "'about the year 1733, the first experiment was made respecting the 

 application of the locust-tree to any purpose in ship-building, by an ingenious 

 shipwright, sent over to America by some Liverpool merchants, to build two 

 ships there. The shipwright tliought that the oaks, elms, ashes, and many 

 other timber-trees common to both countries, were much inferior to the same sorts 

 in England; but frequently spoke of the locust-tree as being of extraordinary 

 qualities, both in strength and duration. He had observed some very old timber 

 in houses in New England, that had been built of the wood of this tree, when 

 the country was first settled, perfectly firm and sound; and, after having com- 

 pleted his engagement for his employers, he began to build a small vessel for him- 

 self; when, being at a loss for a sufficient quantity of iron, and having observed 

 the extraordinary strength and firmness of the locust-tree, he took it into his head 

 that trenails, or tree-nails, that is, wooden pins, of that timber, might be substituted 

 for iron bolts in many places where they would be least liable to wrench or twist, 

 (as in fastening the floor timbers to the keel, and the knees to the ends of the 

 beams, which two articles take up a large proportion of the iron used in a ship,) 

 purposing, when he arrived in England, to bore out the locust trenails, and drive 

 in iron bolts in their stead. The ship, being finished and loaded, sailed for Liv- 

 erpool, and returned back to Virginia the next year; the builder himself being 

 the captain of her, paid particular attention to see the effect of the locust tre- 

 nails. After the strictest examination, he found that they effectually answered 

 the purpose intended. It was, however, thought prudent to take several of them 

 out, and to put in iron bolts in their room ; and this operation afforded another 

 proof of their extraordinary strength and firmness, as they required to be driven 

 out with what is technically called, a set bolt, (an iron punch,) just as if they 

 had been made of iron ; whereas oak trenails are usually bored out with an 

 auger." The use of the locust for trenails was neglected for some years, till it 

 was revived at the instance of Mr. Harrison, by a ship-builder of eminence, at 

 New York, where, as in other parts of the Lfnited States, as well as in Great 

 Britain, it has been in general use ever since. 



About the latter end of the last century, public attention was powerfully 

 directed to the locust, both in Europe and in America, and various papers in the 

 " Transactions" of societies, and pamphlets began to be published on the subject. 

 In 1786, a " Memoir on the Common Acacia" was published at Paris, in which 

 it was recommended to plant this tree on the banks of rivers, in order to 

 strengthen them by its running roots. The writer also recommends it for pea- 

 sticks, hop-poles, vine-props, wedges, cogs to wheels, &c., and even as a substi- 

 tute for saint-foin, as a forage crop, to be mown thrice a year, and either used 

 green, or dried, as hay, and stacked, mixed with straw, for winter use. 



In the " Gentleman's Magazine" for 1791, there is a long account of a plan for 

 growing locust-trees, and American oaks, for the use of the royal navy. The 

 distance at which the writer proposes to plant these trees is sixteen and a half 

 feet, so that he calculates an acre will produce one hundred and sixty trees, of 

 about one and a half tons each. The locust, he says, will be fit for ship- 

 building in twenty-five or thirty years, the live oak in forty years, and the whito 



