in the coliiinns of the .Tiily number of the American .Journal of Sciences and 

 Arts. It had been cotniniiiiicatcd to his hidy by a frii'iid (if Mr. Michaux, who 

 thus relates the circumstaucos of his death : " 1 liave to s]ti'al{ to you of the death 

 of our good friend, Mr. Michaux. lie was carried od with frightful suddenness by 

 a stroke of apoplexy, on the 23d of Octol)er, I8r)5. He had been occupied the 

 whole day planting American trees, and himself directing his journeymen, lie 

 withdrewfrom his work in good health, dined moderately, but with good a]i|ietite. 

 He went to bed as usual, and fell asleep. At about one o'clock in the morning, 

 his wife heard him move about and calling. She instantly rose from her bed and 

 ran to his apartment. He was still struggling on the floor when she etitered hi.s 

 room ; but on reaching him she found that he had breathed his last. Physicians 

 were called in immediately, but all in vain ; life was totally extinct. He died at 

 the age of eighty-five years. 



Michaux left no issue. He had lived single to an advanced age, when quite 

 suddenly he became tired of celibacy, and changed abruptly his condition, by 

 marrying a relative of his, who, for a long time, had l)een the manager of his 

 house, his attendant in sickness, and companion in his solitude. They lived most 

 happily together, and at his death he left her a comfortable provision for the re- 

 mainder of her life. Mr. Michaux was in easy circumstances, but by no means 

 rich. To his title of Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur lie added those of Corres- 

 pondent of the French Institute, of Member of the American Philosophical 

 Society, of the Central Society of Agriculture of Paris, of the Society of Agri- 

 culture and Arts of Boston, &c. &c. 



PRACTICAL HINTS TO AMATEURS. 



BY THE LATE A. J. DOWNING. 



Grafts may be cut now, as well as later in the winter, if more convenient to 

 you. Keep them in a cool place, half buried in earth or sand, till you want them. 

 If not wanted till spring, bury them out of doors, with only a couple of inches of 

 the points exposed, and throw two or three inches of litter over them. 



Strawberry beds will produce good crops in open winter quarters, in the 

 northern Sta'tes ; but they will bear much better ones, and much larger fruit, if 

 you cover them lightly with straw, salt-hay, or stable litter ; otherwise yon are 

 likely enough, in stiff" soils, to find half the plants dead or injured by being 

 "thrown out in the spring." 



You may transplant, ail winter, when the ground is not frozen ; only take care 

 not to expose the roots to frost while not covered with soil. In winter planting, 

 it is best to pile up a mound of earth six or eight inches around the trunk of the 

 tree. This keeps it steady, and protects it, partially, against severe frost. 



If you are very anxious to be cheated, send to some nursery that modestly in- 

 forms the public of its immense superiority over every other establishment in the 

 world; or that offers hundreds of varieties of "splendid, pre-eminent and deli- 

 cious" fruits, not to be found elsewhere — or that challenges competition for 

 accuracy. Where there is so much modesty in boasting, there must be great 

 diffidence in sending you anything but what the dealer knows to be first rate ; and 

 you must be aware, yourself, that there are now hundreds of Jirst rate fruits. If 

 you send to a nursery for a new variety of tree or plant, don't expect to see the 

 plant as high as your head, or the tree fit to bear a bushel of fruit. Be content 

 if it is healthy, has a good root, and is a foot high. People "in the trade," can't 

 ~ ' to send you large trees, full of grafts or cuttings, of sorts which are scarce 



