DOMESTICf NOTICES. 



347 



city water-works, would think of furnishing their 

 country seats or farms with a constant su])ply of 

 running water by means of the steam engine. I 

 do not know how long this may be said, in this 

 high pressure age of improvements ; but I speak 

 of the present. I have been thinking upon the 

 subject, and hoping, rather than expecting, that 

 experiments might demonstrate that the battery 

 could be substituted for the boiler, and, at least 

 the expense of an engineer and fuel saved. The 

 question may have been examined, and may be 

 familiar to you. If so, you would doubtless con- 

 fer a favor upon many who are alike uninformed 

 with myself by giving the result of your experi- 

 ence and observation. If this can be accomplish- 

 ed somewliat in the manner I have suggested, or 

 in any other way, as easily attainable, what a 

 change would be effected in this and many similar 

 localities! Water, the " River of Life," to every 

 vegetable, thus easily raised from our deepest 

 wells, might be carried to an elevated tank or 

 reservoir, which like the lake in the vision of Or- 

 tugral, the supply, though slow, yet constant, 

 would keep always full. We shall then have ac- 

 complished jWhat nature would have done lor us, 

 had she given us a mountain stream, or bubbling 

 brook. Our country seats will be supplied with 

 one of the rarest beauties, whereof they are now 

 deprived, and many a cooling stream will gladden 

 the dry and thirsty land. Yours, truly, S. B. 

 G. Terra Haute, Indiana, Dec. 1, 1848. 



The Original Seckel Pear Tree. — Yester- 

 day, in company witli my frieud Dr. Emerson, I 

 visited, for the first time, the original Seckel 

 pear tree. Dr. E. has long been familiar with 

 this tree, and very kindly offered to take me to 

 it. It was pointed out to him, many years ago, 

 by Geo. Shaeff, Esq., who owns much property 

 in its immediate vicinity. This venerable tree 

 stands in a meadow in Passyunk township, less 

 than a quarter of a mile from the Delaware river, 

 opposite to League Island, not more than half a 

 mile from the mouth of the Schuylkill, and about 

 three and a half miles from the city of Phila- 

 delphia. The property on which it stands, is 

 a portion of the Girard estate, and now be- 

 longs to the city. It is one of the largest 

 Seckel pear trees I have ever seen, measuring 

 more than six feet in circumference , one foot 

 above the ground, and four feet nine inches in 

 circumference higher up. It is about thirty feet 

 high. The head of the tree has the usual round- 

 ed appearance so characteristic of this variety, 

 and is in good condition. The trunk, to the 

 height of six feet, is very much decayed on its 

 south-western side. The bark half way ai-ound 

 the trunk is entirely gone, together with a great 

 portion of the wood itself, leaving a large hol- 

 low in the tree. Such being the decayed condi- 

 tion of the trunk, it is greatly to be feared that 

 the tree will not be able to stand the blasts of 

 many more winters. No artificial support having 



been afforded to enable it to resist the dreaded 

 effects of the stormy winds, nature herself is 

 making an effort to provide for the anticipated 

 disaster by throwing up shoots from the trunk, 

 an inch or two above the surface of the earth. 

 But the tree stands on grazing ground, and un- 

 less protected by an enclosure, the effort will 

 prove a vain one. From these shoots I cut seve- 

 ral scions, for the purpose of ascertaining whe- 

 ther or not the tree had been worked above this 

 point ; it is scarcely to be presumed it had been 

 done below it. Some of these scions I now send 

 you to experiment with. I also send some scions 

 cut from the branches of the tree. Very sincere- 

 ly, vours, W. D. Brinckle. Philadelphia, Nov. 

 2, 1848. 



Public Parks and Gardens. — Mr. Editor: 

 Could any eflbrt on my part aid you, iu even a 

 remote degree, towards bringing about such a 

 state of feeling as would lead to the end contem- 

 plated by your leader on Public Parks and Gar- 

 dens, in your October number, most gladly would 

 it be given. But living in the country, in a new, and 

 to you, remote portion of it, and being too much 

 unknown to have any influence, I can only as one 

 of your subscribers give you " aid and comfort," 

 by assuring you that there is one in the land who 

 goes with you heart and hand. 



I have seen a great deal of men, and I have 

 all my life observed, that the birth-place had an 

 important bearing on after conduct, and I might 

 also say, with after usefulness. Men born and 

 educated where there was some attention paid 

 to culture of fruits and flowers, where there was 

 fine scenery and a bountiful nature, always speak 

 of their homes with so much fondness. They 

 refer to beautiful landscapes, to their play-grounds, 

 to even the " moss-covered bucket," with so great 

 a love, that I have oftentimes thought a little la- 

 bor and money expended in ornament, was more 

 than paid by the delightful recollections of homo 

 in after life. 



So great an effect have these things had upon 

 my mind, that many years ago, I made every 

 endeavor to have one of our interior villages 

 ornamented by planting trees, making lawns, 

 laying out walks, placing seats, &c., &e., but 

 with no ctFect. In another I tried to have the 

 village burying-ground improved handsomely. In 

 anotlier I oflered for my conditions, a liberal aid 

 to have a neatly laid oH' and ornamented burying, 

 ground, wliere the widow's friend, and the dis- 

 tressed brother's friend might offer to the way- 

 farer a last resting place. Failing in all, I re- 

 solved, though too poor to do it well, to ornament 

 my own little cot, and thus endear at least one to 

 " home, sweet home." 



I frankly admit that the party in the ascendant 

 in these United States, -would be foremost in crying 

 out against squandering the people's money, in put- 

 ting anything in Washington city, much less in 

 New-York or Boston, that would be merely orna- 



