274 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



March 14, 1832. 



to reason and fart. Nature has furnished every 

 species of insect with an instinct, «liich is an 

 impulsive sagacity or nattirul inchnalion to pursue 

 a certain course, and this without variation. For 

 instance, the common was|) constructs her nest 

 witli a kind of lint, deposits an egg in each cell, 

 and feeds her young. She cannot huild her nest 

 like her neighhor, the mud-wasp, which forms her 

 cells of clay, and deposits her eggs in tlie midst 

 of half-killed spiders, leaving her brood to take 

 care of themselves. One can never pursue the 

 course of the other ; neither can the insect in 

 question pursue any course but that pointed out 

 by instinct. Now, what is this course ? It is this: 

 When they wish to lea%e the animal, they inva- 

 rialilv pass by the intestines. Instinct has taught 

 no other way, and they must pursue it or die. 

 Did the insect know the horse to be dead and 

 wish to leave the body, we should find them, on 

 dissection, instead of clinging to the stomach, 

 passing the intestines in crowds. But this is not 

 die fact. The author of the "new theory " ob- 

 serves, that " all insects that live on or near ani- 

 mals, endeavor to make their escape as soon as 

 the animal dies." This may be true with those 

 tliat are taught by instinct, not to taste of dead 

 matter — but this is not the case with bots. In- 

 stinct never teaches a direct road to destruction. 

 For them to leave the stomach in their unprepared 

 state, is death, and of course they cling to it as 

 their only chance for life. 



While inhabitants of the stomach, they have 

 nothing to do but to eat and grow. They proba- 

 bly keep themselves gorged. They are not pro- 

 vided with the means necessary to eat hastily and 

 ravenously, nor do they, it is believed, have stated 

 times to riot on the animal. Their work is done 

 leisurely and gradually. They cannot eat more 

 ui one hour after death, than they consumed iIm^ 

 hour before and probably not so much. But sup- 

 pose that they have the knowledge of the horse's 

 death, and wish not to " eat," but to gnaw out. 

 They have not the means to aecom|>lish the object. 

 But suppose still further, that they have the means; 

 llien, what becomes of the gnawings ? none have 

 ever been observed ; and who ever knew of any 

 animal or insect that wished to leave its place of 

 residence, and undertake the laborious task of 

 gnawing out, when a passage way was left wide 

 open, through which it might pass with ease ? 



Lastly. However active the insects may be 

 while the horse is living, and however tenacious 

 of life, they do not well sustain the cold and are 

 found in a torpid state, on inspecting the stomach 

 soon after death. The reason isi evident. The 

 heat of the horse's stomach, while living, is said to 

 be 102 degrees of Fahrenheit ; and when the heat 

 is much reduced, as in fact it is soon after death, 

 they of course become torpid, as we commoidy 

 see them when exposed to the atmosphere. Yet 

 they still have animation enough to hang to the 

 stomach, as their last and only eftbrt. They can- 

 not, probably, know the animal to be dead, oidy 

 by the diminished temperature of heat, on which 

 they become less active and less disposed to riot 

 in a " last meal." 



Without doubt, the insect in question (Oestrus 

 equi) is the most formidabh natural enemy to the 

 horse. About the year 1800, the insects in their 

 perfect state were in this vicinity, very numerous, 

 and many horses died in consequence of bots. 

 This circumstance led the writer to an investiga- 

 tion .of their habits, with a view to discover a rem- 



edy for the apparently increasing evil. A number 

 of dissections and experiments were made about 

 that time, in order to complete their history, not 

 having seen any writer on the subject. The eifec- 

 tual means of prevention, as detailed in the result 

 of his inquiries, were put in practice ; since which, 

 the insects have beccome comparatively few, and 

 very few horses have died of diseases occasioned 

 by them, in this neighborhood, for several years 

 past. 



In the close of this paper, I would remark, that 

 dissections and ex])eriments conducted by those 

 who are not competent for the task, often lead 

 into error. Often something is overlooked by 

 carelessness or want of knowledge, which would 

 have given, had it been noticed, a diflerent result. 

 In the prosecution of dissections and experiments 

 every part ought to be noticed, nothing overlooked, 

 and everything weighed without prejudice or par- 

 tiality, having nothing in view but the discovery 

 of truth. 



Having extended these remarks far beyond 

 what I first intended, I ought to apologize to the 

 reader for detaining him so long. As the subject 

 is of some importance to those who are foiid of 

 and keep that useful animal, the horse, I hope to 

 be excused. 



CULTURE OF GRAPES AND PLANTS. 



Mr Fessenden — Contrary to my expectations, 

 I find your correspondent, "Rnsticus," has endea- 

 vored to substantiate his tbrmer remarks, respect- 

 ing the " gross inequalities" in the general award 

 of premiums by the Massachusetts Horticultural 

 Society, :n a communication of some length ; and 

 wliih' I regret that he slioidd have written so much 

 without ajiin-oaching the point in view, or giving 

 us the least information on the culture of the 

 plants or fruits that are under discussion, I must 

 avail myself of your correspondent's polite phrase- 

 ology, and ai)ologi/e for " the room I am likely to 

 occupy in your valuable and useful paper," by mv 

 ])resent conunimication, which will, I fear, be more 

 extensive and contain less useful information, than 

 I could have wished. It is, I am aware, the duty 

 of every correspondent to a periodical of useful 

 knowledge, to study the quality rather than the 

 (piantity of his remarks — yet, if I do not possess 

 your correspondeiu's persi)icnity and force of lan- 

 guage, I have the same right to your indulgence, 

 in a sincere desire to be useful, and, with his per- 

 mission, to be just. 



Your corri'spondent regrets that we do not un- 

 derstand the word " forced," alike ; as the term 

 admits of but one definition when ap[)lied to veg- 

 etation, it is merely necessary to explain that ap- 

 plication, and to (!onvince him that to the *ery 

 grajies to which he has referred me to substantiate 

 his argument, the term is not at all applicable. 



The grapes, vitis vinifeia, or wljat is termed 

 here the European or English grape, is a native of 

 Asia, and in its own climate, is cidtivated to great 

 extent. In the vicinity of Candia, where I have 

 understood grapes are grown to as great perfec- 

 tion in the open air, as in any part of the world, 

 the vines break about the first of Jlarcli ; the later 

 kind of grapes, such as the Muscat of Alexandria 

 and Tokay, are ripe the first of August; the Black 

 Ilandnn-gh and Frontignac, of course, three weeks 

 earlier ; and the Chasselas or white Sweet-water, 

 three weeks earlier than those. This will make 

 the first grape of the above kinds, ripe about the 

 middle of July. Their general vintage commen- 



ces about the first of August. Now, according to 

 your correspondent':^ own calculation, this is the 

 very case w-ith tlie grapes we grow here under 

 glass. What must have made my iirevious re- 

 marks appear rather contradictory to him, is hia 

 evident want of knowledge of the difference be- 

 tween the a|)plieatiou of artificial heat to force any 

 plant, and merely to protect it from injury. On 

 the same grounds that he holds his argument, we 

 may say, wd force our camellias, geraniums, oran- 

 ges, or any other tender exotic that requires an ar- 

 tificial climate to bring it to perfection. In Eng- 

 land, where the only grapes they cultivate are 

 under glass, or at least, are brought to perfection, 

 forcinsc grapes is considered a very different pro- 

 cess tiom merely supplying by artificial means the 

 deficiency of climate — this is done in their peach- 

 houses, fig-house, and green-houses. If yourcor- 

 respoixlent, who presumes to answer for the capa- 

 bilities of the English gardener, had termed in that 

 country, the grape, grown in any of those depart- 

 ments, forced, that were not ripened before the 

 first of August, I am afraid his knowledge would 

 sutler in comparison whh the ignoramus he so 

 facetiously describes — who "engages to bake, 

 brew, and take care of a horse and gig," &,e. The 

 grapes that are forced, are either grown in vineries 

 api)ropriated to their culture alone, or as is more 

 frequently the case, in pine stoves, as the heat 

 necessary to grow pine-a])ples in ]>erfection, will 

 force grapes. In these de|iailmeut^, ripe grapes 

 are gatheied from March until they come to per- 

 fection in the houses above mentioned. These 

 arc properly termed /orccrf, because they are grown 

 and ri])ened at a season which their native climate 

 will not admit of If your correspondent will take 

 an Isuiiella, or any other native grape that does 

 not ripen in its own native climate until October, 

 plant it in his green-house and ripen the fruit in 

 August, he may then with jM-opriety say, that he 

 forces grajjes. 



In my previous communication, I observed, that 

 I knew from practical experience, that it required 

 more skill and attention to produce good grapes in 

 the open air, in our jirccarions climate, than under 

 glass. This affirmation your correspondent knows 

 also from experience, to be an error, and with his 

 usual iiolite consideration, regrets that our opin- 

 ions should be so much at variance; at the same 

 time he sup|)lies us with no further information 

 upon the subject, than that one of the gentlemen 

 who obtained a premium last season, for the spec- 

 imens of Handjurgh, informed him that he did not 

 bestow any pains upon them, not even to prevent 

 the ajiproach of mildew. I am induced to think 

 that his experience is, in this case, as it certainly 

 is in many others on the same subject, merely im- 

 aginary. I have grown grapes under glass in 

 America- for nine years, and have never missed 

 ripening a crop without any difficulty, nor have I 

 ever seen a failure in any green-house in the 

 vicinity, to ripen a reasonable crop of fruit, if set 

 upon the vines, unless by some accident and then 

 oidy in one case. It is true, I have seen too much 

 fruit left on the vines ; the result was, its not 

 being so large or high-flavored ; still it ripened. 

 I have cultivated the vine four years, in the open 

 air, in a bearing state — [laid all the attention to it 

 I possibly could and use<l all the skill I was mas 

 ter of, still the best season I was not able to ripen 

 more than two thirds of a crop, and one season 

 scarcely any ; yet every spring I have had an 

 abundant show (if fruit, and this I know to have 



