MET 



MIC 



269 



six days the meat will become as 

 sweet as when it was first packed 

 See Sallinsr of Meat. 



MELON, a pleasant tasted,cool- 

 ing fruit. It grows best in a warm 

 climate ; and is large and excel- 

 lent in the southern States. But 

 they will ripen in New-England, in 

 the common way of planting ; but 

 are not so large, nor so early in the 

 most northern parts. Some im- 

 provement has lately been made in 

 this fruit, by bringing seeds from 

 the southward. Whether this will 

 be a lasting advantage time will 

 shew. 



Melons grow best on a sand\ 

 loam, which has a warm exposure 

 to the south or south-east. I h*- 

 vines should be sheltered against 

 cold winds which stop theirgrowth : 

 and against boisterous winds from 

 any quarter which will hurt thein, 

 by disturbing and displacing their 

 viries. 



A good manure to be put under 

 melons, is an old compost of good 

 loam, with the dung of neat cattle 

 or swine. The ends of the runner?, 

 and the fruit latest formed, should 

 be taken oflf, that the fruit first for- 

 med may have more nourishment, 

 grow larger, and arrive to the 

 greater perfection. To raise me- 

 lons on hot beds, under frames, or 

 under hand glasses, see Gardener's 

 Dictionary. 



METHEGLIN, a pleasant fer- 

 mented liquor, made of honey and 

 water. It is made thus : Put so 

 much new honey into spring wa- 

 ter, that when the honey is dissol 

 ved, an egg will not sink to the 

 bottom. Boil the liquor for an 

 hour. When cool, barrel it up. 



adding a spoonful of yeast to fer- 

 ment it. Some add ginger lialf an 

 ounce to a barrel, and as much 

 cloves ai»d mace ; but I have it very 

 good without any spices. One 

 luiiidred weight of honey will make 

 a barrel of metheuhn, as strong as 

 good wine. I once had a barrel 

 made with 90 pounds of honey. Af- 

 ter fermenting and fining, it was an 

 excellent liquor; some part of 

 which ! kept bottled several years; 

 it loses the honey taste by age, and 

 .jrows lighter coloured : But on the 

 whole it does not improve by age, 

 like some liquors. 



MICE, a well known genus of 

 quadrupeds, troublesome to all 

 iiousekeepers, but more especially 

 to farmers, and those who keep 

 juantities uf grain in their houses, 

 or in granaries. Farmers should 

 know the best ways of opposing 

 their depredations, and of destroy- 

 ing them. The field mouse eats 

 the bark of trees in nurseries and 

 young orchards, when snow is on 

 the ground, and mostly when it is 

 deep. A good way to prevent this 

 mischief is to tread down the snow, 

 and make it very compact, about 

 the stems of the trees. And though 

 laying mulch about the roots of 

 trees be good for the trees, it occa- 

 sions the mice to increase ; there- 

 fore I do not go into that practice, 

 while the trees are small, and have 

 a smooth bark. It is only while the 

 trees are young that mice eat the 

 bark. 



It has been said of late that the 

 application of tanner's spent bark 

 is an admirable substitute for the 

 mulch so much recommended by 

 early writers, to be laid about the 



