THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



361 



content. But if you or he, or bo!h of you, throw 

 down the glove, I cannot, as the " knight chai- 

 lenser," Le Noir Faineant, reliise to pick it up. 



But before I dismiss the editor, 1 must say one 

 or two more things to him. One of the reasons 

 assigned why lie did not earlier oppose my "hete- 

 rodox" opinions on the sutiject of rotations, is 

 that he ie " already engaged to oppose me upon 

 one particular ground of controversy, which could 

 not be avoided." This allusion I suppose is to the 

 subject of liming. Now why he has not already 

 met and opposed me on this subject, i cannot tell ; 

 unless indeed, he is waiting (or some more daring 

 knight to bring on the attack. The editor also 

 intimates, in another place, that I have "shifted 

 my ground" on this subject. This I regard as no 

 charge at all. I have, upon fun her thought, and 

 under the influence of sound argument, shifted 

 my ground more \hanjifly limes in the course ol 

 my life. And if the editor or his associate, either 

 eingly or jomtly, can convince me that the posi- 

 tions taken in this paper, or in any ol my papers, 

 are wrong, they will find no one more ready to 

 shift his ground, than their humble servant, 



J. H. Turner. 



[We have no de&ire, nor indeed is there any 

 ground left, for continuing this discussion ; lor not 

 only does Mr. Turner's practice, (as before ad- 

 duced,) but also his reasoning, (as now present- 

 ed,) go to sustain our own position in favor of 

 rotation of crops. The only reason for rotation 

 which we assumed in our remarks, (though not 

 the only one which might have been maintained,) 

 was, that one kind of crop prepared the land 

 better for another kind, and that when so 

 changed, the products and the profits would be 

 greater than by continuing any one kind of crop. 

 This Mr. Turner as lully maintains, and there- 

 fore we are altogether in accordance on this, which 

 is the main question. — Ed. F. R.] 



NATURAL CHANGKS OF THE KINDS OB" SUC- 

 CESSIVE GROWTHS OF TREES. 



[In the preceding number, reference was made 

 to this subject, and some general facts staled in 

 proof of the truth of such natural and entire 

 changes. The following extracts, from commu- 

 nications to the Philadelphia Agricultural Society 

 by the venerable Judge Peters, and from the let- 

 ters of some of his correspondents, are presented 

 as more particular evidence and better authority, 

 for euch of the facts as are not notoiious here.~ 

 Ed. F. R.] 



Extract from a communication by Judge Richard Pe- 

 ters. (Memoirs, Phil. Agr. Soc. vol. i. p. 28.) 



"There is an account in the public prmts of the 

 general decay of \.he pine-woods in South Carolina ; 

 efiecled by a disease, which commenced in 1802. 

 Vol X.~46 



It would be highly useful to ascertain and record 

 the facts, relative to this catastrophe. It haa 

 fallen under my observation to know, that this 

 phenomenon is not rare, or singhilar. Intelligent 

 surveyors, who have been occupied in running 

 out new lands, in Pennsylvania and other slates, 

 remark, in a variety of instances, a total change 

 of timber, in many extensive districts of the wild- 

 erness. They discover by the fallen timber, coat- 

 ed with a diversity of the mosses (by which the 

 air, and other means of decay, being excluded, 

 they were the better preserved) that the present 

 forest trees are entirely dillierent from those of the 

 former growth. Those prostrate are, in many 

 instances, of the resinous tribe, where those of a 

 totally different kind are now growing, of enor- 

 mous dimensions ; in sites where white pine, 

 pitch pine, and hemlock had formerly possession ; 

 so that the living timber must be very ancient. 

 The largest trees majpstically flourish among the 

 fallen trunks of their predecessors. Those of ua 

 who have traversed our distant forests, especially 

 beyond the mountains, where the limber is truly 

 gigantic, must have noticed this striking circum- 

 stance. The variegated verdure of these immense 

 recumbent trunks, numerous and extensive, af- 

 fords to the traveller a curious, pleasing, pic- 

 turesque, and stupendous contrast, with the dusky 

 glooms of the shades surrounding him. 



"In my memory, on a smaller scale, a total change 

 of timber has occurred, in a tract ol mine, contain- 

 ing about 800 acres, in Northampton county. 

 Previously to our revolution, perhaps 35 years ago, 

 I knew it to be covered w'uh pitch pine. It was 

 called the Pine Tract. This first growth of tim- 

 ber having been blown down by a tornado, was 

 consumed by fires of the woods, a practice mis- 

 chievously common in that quarter. It is now 

 entirely reclothed with oak, hickory, and other va- 

 luable well grown and thriving timber ; anil 

 scarcely a pine tree is to be seen. 1 can give 

 (within my own knowledge) several instances 

 similar, but of less extent. One, of a fine grove 

 oi' lohite pine, thrown up spontaneously, on old 

 fields, where no timber of that species had 

 originally grown ; and far from any euch timber. 

 Another, of a large body of valuable chestnut, 

 where a person, now living, has reaped wheal and 

 olher grain ; and where hickory and oak had been 

 the precedent growth ; and no timber but of the 

 latter kinds, is now lo be seen in the adjacent 

 lands. May it not therefore be probnbIe, that 

 a change in the timber of the southern country is 

 about lolake place? Dissolution and renovation, 

 are constant operations in nature. Some whole 

 races of animals have become extinct. The 

 manwioih, the former monarch of the woods, is a 

 proof, in the knowledge of every body. Beasts 

 of a very diflerent race now occupy hie haunts. 

 Yet this has excited more curiosity, liian impor- 

 tant research, or useful inquiry. 



"I do no! find that the particular species of limber 

 growing on land, invariably designates its qualities, 

 or strenglh ; all hough it is certain, that some 

 kinds are the most frequently found, on lands of 

 similar quality. I have known hemlock, white 

 pine and pitch ;jmc, grow on very rich, deep sta- 

 pled, and strong land ; as well as on the most 

 sandy, thin and sterile soils." — p. 37. 

 ' # # * * * 



" Since this communication, I have met, acci- 



