O F S I L K. 63 



without beginning to grow mouldy ; per- 

 haps it may be found that they will ripen 

 more equally in elpalier hedges, and alfo 

 that the fruit can be gathered with lefs 

 trouble than on flandards. In London^ 

 where they have mulberries in great per- 

 fection, they ufe ladders, pretty wide at 

 bottom, but tapering fo as that the two 

 legs become join'd in one for about a yard 

 in length at the top, this makes it eafy to 

 be fix'd between the forks of the branches 

 againil: any part of the tree, without dan- 

 ger of overturning ; they gather the fruit 

 in long chip balkets, tapering to the bot- 

 tom, which keeps off the weight of the 

 upper fruit from preffing that which is 

 below, the mulberry being of all fruits the 

 eafieft to be bruifed j the bafket is hung 

 by a hook'd ftick acrofs one of the branch- 

 es of the tree near the gatherer, which 

 allows him to have both hands at liberty, 

 and he moves it as he fees convenient from 

 one branch to another. 



This method doth very well for gather- 

 ing fmall quantities of mulberries, but 

 would be too tedious for making wine, 

 iince mulberries don't grow in cluiters, 

 but fingle, and muft be gathered one by 

 - one; 



