258 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



animal, or the enormous umoimt of food required to satisfy his 

 ravenous appetite. 



Paper Bonnets. 

 Mr. Colvert exhibited something new for the ladies, in the form 

 of a paper 1:»onnet, a French invention, suiBciently durable to 

 answer the ephemeral purpose of this article of dress, and much 

 cheaper than any other material. These bonnets are made of all 

 colors, and quite as pretty as any other. We recommend our 

 country friends who desire to follow the fashion, to procure suit- 

 able paper, cut it in strips and plait it like straws. They are also 

 made shirred and corrugated. To make them water-proof, the 

 paper is first dipped in water saturated with alum. Dr. Smith 

 said men's hats are now made of fjapier macJie ; perhaps ladies' 

 bonnets could be made in the same way. 



Peach-Growing at thk West. 



Mr. E. M. Morrison, Noljlesville, Hamilton county, Ind., pro- 

 poses to try an experiment next spring in growing peaches, if the 

 Club see no ol)jection to the plan. He says: " I will set the trees 

 eight feet apart, in rows sixteen feet apart. I will train them low, 

 and fan-shaped. When winter comes, press the limbs together as 

 compactly as possible, and cover them with corn fodder shocked 

 around them, or other material to protect the buds from the win- 

 ter as much as possible. I hope in this way to be able to raise 

 peaches. Will I succeed? We protect grapes and other tender 

 fruits to some extent on this plan, and as peaches are the greatest 

 luxury in the fruit department, it is of much importance to come 

 upon a plan to raise them with certainty, and cheaply. 



Several members expressed the opinion that this plan would 

 succeed. 



Mr. Pardee spoke enthusiastically of the great profit of peach- 

 growing in Illinois. He alluded to one peach orchard near Duquoin 

 which produced $15,000 worth of peaches the present season. This 

 is a greater sum than his whole farm would have sold for. 



Mr. N. C. Meeker said such statements "needed a little qualifica- 

 tion. He had a peach orchard not far from that section which did 

 not give him a peck of peaches from 1,500 trees. This crop is 

 one of the most uncertain grown in that State. The very orchard 

 spoken of by Mr. Pardee had remained barren for six years, and 

 the owner intended to cut it down last spring, but it escaped 

 destruction through lack of time to do so. The present crop was 



