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the purpofe for which the Abbé de Commerelle 
recommends ‘ removing the mould from the roots 
_with mattocks” (probably a kind of hoe:) this I 
never tricd. It appears an alarming expence, but 
in a fituation where women and children are glad 
of employment, might not prove tremendous, as I 
do not wifh the plants to be left clofer in the rows 
at the fecond hoeing than the drills are. I think 
22 inches is the wideft that Cooke’s machine is 
calculated for; on land in good heart, I fhould 
prefer two feet, as one large root is lefs trouble, 
and more profit, than many fmall ones. 
May I be allowed to fuppofe that from the fize 
of the leaves imbibing more moifture from the at- 
mofphere, and the roots ftriking deeper in the 
ground, they are likely to draw lefs from the fur- 
face of the foil? 
I am, Sir, your humble fervant, 
MORDAUNT MARTIN. 
Burnham, Norfolk, 
Feb. 11, 1793. 
