372 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



June 16, I82e. 



(I^The author of strictures on Knight's Theo- 

 ry thinks it quite unnecessary to pursue the arga- , 

 ment any t'urtlier at present. If what he has said 

 be just, it needs no cefence ; if it be not just, he 

 can give it none. The President of the Essex Ag- 

 ricultural Society has brought forn-ard his strong 

 arguments, but, notwithstanding the very respect- | 

 able source whence they have procce.lod, t!ie auth- i 

 or of tlie strictures cannot but cont'.'ss tliat he is j 

 still of tlio same opinion which he first expressed. | 

 He feels perfectly convinced tliat Mr Knight'sThe- ! 

 ory is fallacious,aiid lie is liappy to find,that sever- 

 al gentlemen distinguished for their scientific ac- j 

 quirenients on the subject of horticulture, thought ' 

 so, and still tliink so. | 



The President of tlie Essex Agricultural Socie- 

 ty, has not replied to the argument of the author. 

 The point in dispute he has not touched, nor even j 

 alluded to. It was not the facts, that the author j 

 of the strictures denied ; it was the liypothesis to i 

 explain them. lie did not deny, that when Mr i 

 Kniglit first asserted that the apple and pear trees j 

 in England were in a diseased state, such was the 

 fact. Evi'ry writer acknowledged it as well as i 

 Knight. They were apparently in a state of irrc- j 

 trievable decay, covered with canker and unpro- j 

 ductive. These were the phenomena — but these 

 phenomena are to be explained in a satisfactory 

 manner, without adopting the strange hypothesis 

 of Knight, which does not explain them. It is a 

 well kno.vn fact, that from tlie commencement of) 

 the present century up to 1818, a succession of j 

 cold rainy seasons was experienced in England ;! 

 and it is further known, that since 1818, the sue- i 

 cession of seasons has been dry and warm. Un- j 

 der the cold and rainy seasons, the apple and pear | 

 trees of England became diseased ; but, as soon | 

 as the propitious we;tthcr became continual, the I 

 trees which were in the "/n.sY stage of decaij" put 

 on their good old healthy appearance, and became 

 as productive and flourishing as ever. That this 

 was the cause of tlie apparent decay, no one can 

 doubt, because, in Madeira md the United States, 

 those varieties of trees wftich were in the "last 

 stage of decay " in England, or to use a phrase 

 whiclr has been introduced into the argument, 

 " apparently nui om<," were flourishing all the 

 time, and grafts taken from them produced healthy 

 trees. It was the climate and season, therefore, 

 and not the visionary notion, that the graft was 

 only an elongutiun of the parent stock, and would 

 thrive or decay with it. 



If the President of the Agricultural Society will 

 make the distinction between fact and hypothesis, 

 which ho has not done in his late communications 

 on the subject, he will see at once the ground of 

 difference between us. In the mean while, the 

 excellent remark of Dugald Stewart, on the de- 

 lusive nature of hypothesis, and how easily it in- 

 sinuates itself into tlie mind without the mind be- 

 ing at all concious of it, is worthy of'n particular 

 study by (veri/ one who attempts to consider the 

 present question. 



As the author of the strictures considers Mr 

 Knight's theory a mere conjecture, which subse- 

 quent facts thatliave occurred in tlie course of the 

 twenty years since the conjecture was first made, 

 have shown to be groundless, it becomes a ques- 

 tion, whether a doctrine which is causing a neglect 

 of old varieties, and influencing many practical 

 men to neglect their orchards, under a mischie- 

 vous and false theory, ought to be propagated in a 

 ^manner, to say Uie least of it, imposing and influ- 



ential.- With regard to the president of the Lon- 

 don Horticultural Society, Mr Kniglit, and the 

 president of the Essex Agricultural Society, Mr. 

 Pickering, the author of the strictures must beg 

 leave to remark, that although great respect is due 

 to age, yet he must say, 



" Amicus Plato, amicus Socrates, sed majiis 

 arnica Veritas.' [Essex Register.] 



AGRICULTURAL. 



Roxhunj, June 1, 182G. 

 Mr Editor. — All fact.^ respecting the Canker 

 fl'orm, which has made its appearance this year, 

 may be worthy of record. I therefore mention, 

 that on Monday the '2ihh ult. on visiiing my or- 

 chard I found tiie trees filled with countless num- 

 bers of worms all in voracious activity. — On the 

 next day, having occasion to examine the same 

 trees, not a single one was to be found after the 

 strictest search. No trace of their exit could be 

 discovered, and the leaves of some of the trees 

 were not more than half devoured. The greater 

 part of the fruit is destroyed : but the destruction 

 is not general. The farmers this year, having had 

 no warning, are not liable to any imputation of 

 neglect in not using preventives against this old 

 enemy. The most effectual one is tarring the trees 

 after placing paper around tliem to prevent the 

 tar from doing injury. The process should com- 

 mence in November, when it can be seen if the 

 vermin are ascending. — If they are not, the tar- 

 ring may be defcrrred till early in the Spring, 

 when it is necessary it should be repeated while 

 any trace is left of tliem. The process is simple, 

 not costly, and may be executed with rapidity. It 

 has been found effectual. 



Your friend, A FARMER. 



Reminiscence. — In the week ending June lOtli, 

 177.5, when Boston was besciged, green peas 

 were in higli perfection in Ro.xbury, &.c. and in 

 such plenty that whole panniers full, were carried 

 home by the growers for want of purchasers, al- 

 though the price was then only fee skiUings, old 

 tenor (ten cents, or as then called half a pistarcen) 

 the peck. The present week, corresponding with 

 that of 1775, the abundance of peas has been as 

 great as on that year, and, it is believed for the 

 first time since; and the price from 25 to 37^ cents 

 the peck. .Ill vegetables at that time were trans- 

 ported in panniers. [Centinel.] 



EASY METHOD TO HIVE BEES. 

 Take a stick 4 feet long, with the bark on, 

 about 4 inches in diameter, sharpen it at one end. 

 About inches from tlie other, bore, say, five holes 

 to receive arms an in';h through, with the bark on 

 so as to form an angle with the trunk of about 45 

 degrees. Upon this end fix a piece of plank a lit- 

 tle larger than the bottom of your largest bee 

 hive, either by a tenon and mortice, or by sawing 

 off" the trunk and nailing, also saw off the branch- 

 es so as to reach, or to reach within half an inch 

 of, the plank. Before the bees are ready to swarm 

 force the sharp end into the ground so that the 

 pUuik will be horizontal, and the post stand erect 

 and steady for the season, about three rods south- 

 easterly from the bee house. When a swarm 

 shall come out, it will probably halt and rest under 

 the shade of the p'ank, invited by such convenient 

 supports, in order to prepare the column for a reg- 

 ular march. As soon as the swarm shall have be- 

 come quiet, set tlie hive to receive them on tiio 

 stand, leaving a chance fpr the bees to ascend 



I into the hive, by passing the edge of the plank on 



! the shaded side. If the bees shall not go in vol- 



I unt u-ily it will be proper to turn up the hive, to 



pull up the stand, and, with a smart rap, to drop 



-the swarm into it. The hive must not be set on 



beforehand. 



About a dozen persons have made trial of bee 



standj on the above plan with entire success. 



The first one was made by Simeon Kenney, Esq. 

 of Frankfort in close imitation of the branches of 

 I a small apple tree, w itli a thick shady top, in the 

 jfork of whose branches he found his swarms 

 j would invariably rest, and from which it was dif- 

 i ficult to get theui out. Some of the above direc- 

 tions may seem of no consequence, such as settino- 

 j the stand southeast. It is said that when bees 

 ; are swarming the main body in motion will be in 

 I the direction from the hive towards the sun. The 

 j reason why it is best not to put on the hive be- 

 ( forehand, may be, because it will look too much 

 jlike a contrived plan to take them captive, or be- 

 cause, as a place for habitation, it may have been 

 examined and been disapproved. This will be a 

 great convenience to farmers, on a busy day, as 

 nothing is usually to be done at the time of swarm- 

 ing but to set on the hive. A PARMER. 



VIRGINIA. 



The crops in this sate present a gloomy prospect. 

 In consequence of the incessant drought very lit- 

 tle tobacco has been planted, and the plants in the 

 ground are severely sufleriiig. The wheat and 

 oat fields look badly. Large fields are planted 

 with corn, and not a sprout to be seen ; much has 

 been replanted : the corn planted in the middle 

 of April is the only corn which promises a fair 

 crop. The gardens are literally burnt up, and 

 the vegetables die before they are half grown. 



Maryland! 



The Easton Gazette gives a gloomy account of 

 the appearance of the crops in this state. The 

 wevil fly has made its appearance and caused ex- 

 tensive devastations. Whole fields are destroyed. 



The thin lands will scarcely produce their seed 



some not half. The continue'.! drought has added 

 to the general distress. The corn crops have not 

 yet received any serious injury. Outs promise 

 nothing — the gardens suffer extremely — tlie fruit 

 is generally destroyed ; and grass never promised 

 a worse crop. 



INDIANA. 

 A species of worm commonly called the anny 

 ipor/n, has made its appearance in the neighbor- 

 hood of New-Albany, in such formidable numbera 

 as to defy every effort of the farmer to chock their 

 progress, eating down whole fields, and destroy- 

 ing every vestige of wheat and timothy. The 

 young corn has been also much injured. 



QUEBEC. 



Since Saturday a seasonable rain has fallen in 

 this neighborhood, and from appearances we are 

 led to hope that it has extended to the upper parts 

 of the Province ; extensive fires were in the woods 

 in almost every direction, and threatened much 

 mischief, especially amongst the pines and other 

 resinous trees. — Quebec paper. May 30. 



The friends of a Canal from Norwich, Con. to 

 Boston, continue sanguine as to its feasibility, at 

 a moderate expense, and its utility. 



Tvvo horses on a Railway are said to hoive drawn 

 ia cajriage with 158 passengers. 



