ACRIC Ur. TUBAL TavsTxisi 33^ 



■Veil known. Our good fi-ieud also supposes, if vapour 

 or eftluvia posscses deleterious powers, that the vouDg" 

 bt'uid of grain would be cat off in May or June, whea 

 more of that vapour appc;irs than at any oilier peri- 

 od of the season. To this we answer, That vapoer 

 prodnc;-] in May or June, cannot have the same effect 

 "with lliat produced in Jrily oi- Aug-ust, because the heat 

 is not ih.en so great ; consequently, when succeeded by 

 heavy rains, the atmosphere cannot possibly be so 

 niuch contaminated But without laying any stress on 

 this point, it is maintained, that thougli the crop when 

 young, ma}' not receive injnj y from putrid effluvia, (per-' 

 baps, on the cqntrary, it is thereby much benefited) it 

 will always in a g'rcater or lesser degree sustain injury, 

 if the atmosphere is filled with such vapoTlr, when the 

 grain is in an embryo state ; and that the extent of the 

 injury will be regulated by the age or strength of tho 

 young grain, and the length of time in which the at-^ 

 mosphere continues sickly and unhealthy. The truth 

 of what is maintained, is fully confirmed' by what 

 happened last season to the wheat crop; every iield in 

 the easter-i counties of Scotland, those on the sea shore 

 j^nd upland districts excepted, having suffered in one 

 respect or otlur, whilst fields on the shore, where the 

 beat was moderated by sea brceaes, were very little 

 atTected. Even wheats in the uplands were fully as 

 good as usual. Now if electrical fluid and excess of 

 nutriment occasioned the failure, unfortunately now too 

 well ascertaiiied. how comes it about that the influence 

 of these causes was not felt as decisively upon the sea 

 shore as in the internal districts ? That they were not 

 so decisively felt is well known to every man who has 

 attended public markets ; and can only be accounted 

 for, by a reference to the cause condescended upon 

 in this and former papers. After all, as the disease 

 which affected wheat last year was of an abstruse na- 

 ture, it is highly probable that more agents than one, 

 were concerned; and tliis may be admitted without im- 

 pugning, in the slightest manner^ the opinion given b^ 

 'p.s oji the subjects 



