234 



KEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



[Feb. 18, 



TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW ENGLAND FAralER. 



Med~ji>ay, January 25, 1 825. 

 VELOCITY OF BULLS, he. 

 Mr Fessenden — The accelerated velocity of 

 water mills during the nia;ht, apppnrs to be a 

 controverted theory : but we have the united 

 testimony ot" those who have the best means of 

 judg-ing, in favour of such an hypolhesis. 1 no- 

 ticed in yoiir p-iiier, |>atre 99, the olisRrvalinns 

 alluded to l<y Mr Pueston, (>age 156, and like 

 him was inclined to believe it wa? a fact that 

 water nulls did acquire an accelerated motion in 

 the night with "• the same gunge of water." I do 

 not intend to account for this ditTerence, nor am 

 1 sufficiently conversant with mills to have made 

 nice observations and experiments; yet I would 

 ask if it is not consistent with philosophical prin- 

 ciples, to suppose that some or all of the follow- 

 ing causes may operate to promote such accel- 

 leration: 



1. May not the natural evaporation of water, 

 (attracting upwards) during the day over a large 

 surface of water, in some degree retard its mo- 

 tion down stream 1 If so, though the att motion 

 be very small, at night fall, as this absorplion 

 ceases, the attraction ivould not only be taken 

 off, but by a descent of jnoislnre from the humid 

 atmosphere, a source of acceleration to the 

 stream would be produced to the same degree 

 that the absorptive power retarded ; which may 

 be exemplified by taking iVom one scale of a 

 small balance a single grain, and placing it in the 

 other, — a double dili'erence would be produced. 



2. May not Ihe diiferent slate of the atmos- 

 phere of the day and night, the air being more 

 rarifled and conserjucnlly lighter in tl;e d.iy 

 time and more dense anil heavy at night, operate 

 by a more heavy pressure at night on ihc .sur- 

 face of water, to give it more power and an ac- 

 celerated velocity through the gateway? 



3. May not, as Mr. Pr.rsTON was led to con- 

 clude, the coldness of the night — exceeding that 

 of the day by (he condensation of water which 

 would be thereby produced— give it sufficient 

 additional spccilick gravity to have some efl'ecl 

 in producing the dilference in the velocity of 

 mills during the night, which does really exi.st. 

 If some o/your correspondents, better able than 

 myself to philosophize on this subject, would 

 have the goodness to notice the above inqniries 

 and either contirm or confute Ihe princijiles 

 they suggest, I .should be gratified. 



than its bulk of water, it must immediately sink. 

 Therefore it must sink before it has absorbed 

 " more than the same bulk of the surrounding 

 water." S. 



[rem.^rks bv the editor.] 

 It would, we think, be most expedif.nt, before any 

 elaborate theories are founded on the supposed facts, 

 stated by our correspondent, to ascertain hy accurate 

 experiments vifhether such facts exist, and what shape 

 tliey come in. A series of correct trials is needed to 

 show what diflercnce of effect, (if any) is produced by 

 the same head, fall, adjutage or aperture, &c. of water, 

 in tunung macliinery in the night and in the daytime. 

 We are assured, however, that millers, generally, 

 entertain an opinion that water will perform more in 

 grinding, sawing, &c. other things equal, when expend- 

 ed in the night, than if drawn off when the sun is above 

 the horizon. They, therefore, frequently attend to their 

 occupations in dry weatlier in the night, for the sake of 

 economy in the use of water. AVe do not know how- 

 ever, that any experiments have ever been made to 

 determine with precision the dilference between the 

 velocity and the power with which mills move in the 

 night, and in the day time, with the same liead and fall 

 of water. We have consulted a number of treatises on 

 mills, hydrostatics, hydraulics, fluidity, &c. but cannot 

 find that any notice has been taken of tlio supposed in- 

 crease of power and velocity in mill machinery, when 

 moving by night. 



But in Ferguson's Lectures, there is the following 

 pas.sage. " As all bodies expand with heat and contract 

 with cold in different degrees, the specific gravities of 

 bodies are not the same in summer as in winter. It has 

 been found that a cubic inch of good brandy is 10 grains 

 heavier in winter than in sn.nmer ; same quantity of 

 spirit of nitre 20 grains ; vinegar 6 grains ; and spring 

 icnler 3 grs. Hence it is most profitable to buy spirits: 

 in winter and sell them in summer, since they are al- 

 ways bought and sold by measure. It has been found 

 thatS'J gallons of spirits in winter will make 32 in sum- 

 mer." Now if water is heavier in winter than in sum- 

 mer in consequence of the condensation which takes 

 place from the loss of a portion of its heat, it must, gen- 

 erally, be heavier in the night than in (he day-time, 

 because it becomes a /////c cooler in the night than in tl e 



weight of the wood in its dry state, exceeds in a given 

 bulk of the solid, the same bulk of the liquid in which 

 it h immersed, the solid will sink. It is wisely ordered 

 that all kinds of wood shall sink in wateV when thor- 

 oughly impregnated with the liquid, otherwise the 

 mouths of all rivers which traverse a woodland country 

 would be blockaded by the dri/l wood brou'-ht down 

 by the current. 



To Corresp'^g Sec'y of Maasachusclls Agric. Soeitty. 



SOFT SOAP, I'KDILITCD, AN EXCELLENT CLEANSER OF 

 FRUIT TREES. 



Easton, [Talbot county) Md. 

 Sir — Among the papers published in the 

 third number of the third volume of the Agri- 

 cultural Journal of the M;i.ssachusetfs Society, 

 th.^re appears a letter written by Richard Peters 

 Esq, upon the suliject of Peach Trees, mention- 

 ing Iheir decline for some years past, and the 

 various I cmedies employed by him for relieving 

 their diseases and preventing their decay. It 

 docs not appear that the Peach Trees i"n the 

 neighbourhood of Boston are subject to the same 

 di'crders ; but as the Society have thought prop- 

 er publish this paper for the benefit of their 

 members and other readers in their districts, it 

 mipt he presumed that the subject of it was 

 coreidered worthy of their attention, and that 

 prtbably the Peach Trees there are also more 

 or less afl'ected by casualties or distempers, 

 which it was their desire to remove or prevent. 

 UnJer this impression, 1 shall proceed to stalo 

 an txpedieiil which has been applied to the im- 

 pro;emont of Fruit Trees in this country, and 

 which may be equally serviceable in other por- 

 tidi'S of the country. 



The Peach Trees hero appear to be liable to 

 the same disasters tind diseases which are de=- 

 jcribrd by Mr. i'elers, and tlis-y often wither and 

 decay in the same manner. Pear Trees and 

 other fruit trees are also frequently atfected, 

 and sometimes suddenly decay, without (li=. 

 covering the causes of their decline. A gentle- 

 man of this neiglibourhond some years ago, ob- 

 serving the silunlion of his trees, and having- 

 unsuccessfully used many applications, at length 



day. Eut the question is whether tfiis cause is sufficient [directed their truuks or bodies to be washe 

 to produce twy perceptible effect? Moreover a mill- j and well rubbed with Soft Soap ; and it is not 

 pond full of water might discharge more water through ] eftsy to imagine the early change w liich appear- 

 a given aperture or gate- way in the night time than in j ed in their baik and foliage : the bark became 

 the day, because in the night it receives, — generally smooth and glossy, and seemed sound and bean- 

 speaking, a quantity of water by the falling of dew tif"! I 'mi\ he thought the tree was greatly im- 

 Mr Piii;sT0N observes—" our learned authors into the pond, but during the day the same pond loses ! pi'oved in every respect. I have tried the same, 



Iiave written abundance on the properties of 

 water, yet none appear to have been fully ac- 

 quainted therewith. For instance, in the drj- 

 part of summer, a man may carry on his shoul- 

 iler a dry log that would float him across a river, 

 /..ay (hat log under water all wintei, ami it will 

 absorb so much water more than its bulk, that 

 it will sink like ;i stone. — If it did not absorl): 

 more than the same bulk of the surroundinu; 

 water, it would not sink." If 1 have a right 

 .tindorslanding of his theory, I am obliged to think 

 he is mistaken in this respect. " A body im- 

 mersed in fluid (-ays Blair) will sink (o Ihc liot- 

 lom, if it be heavier than its bulk nf the fluid." 

 The "dry log that would float him across the 

 river," must of course weigh less than its bulk 

 of water; and, if I am not much mistaken, as 

 Vnon as it has absorbed n sufficient quantity of 

 water to become with its own weight heavier 



a portiou of its water by evaporation. ' experiment, and with equal advantage to Af.ple 



With regard to the dilference in the weight of the [ 'I''''^^'''^°'"' Trees and Poach Trees and am 

 atmosphere in the night and the day, it appears to us I'H'S"^''"' ^'^.V have been greatly bencdledb; 

 ,, .,, ■, ij 1 ,•,,; I, ,, . , I this process ; it is used in Ihe .bprina:, and ma\ 



that it would have wr?/ ii///e, but we are not prepared 1 , ' , ' .• ,, . r . 



, ,1 , .. ,j i u n- . I .1 f ■ , I be repealed in lollowing years as Ireiiuenliv as 



to say that it would not have OM!/ effect. In the torrid I ' ^ ■' ' 



zone the-barometer, we believe, indicates most usually i 

 a considerable increase in the weight (and of course of 



the tices appear to require it. 



■ Mr. Peters declares that ho used soup sml 



. . ^, , . , without any beneficial elTeCts ; but it is probable 



tlie density) of the atmosphere in the night time. I.ut .l ., ,i .• /-, .. ; , ,.„u,,„.,„ 



,.' .^ . " that Ihe .b(i/( 6o«;j in subslance is more power- 



m our climate, if we mistake not, the sun'sbeing above (-„, ^„^, „;.„ j,.,;;,,^, „„,g ^,j.^ ,, .n,,'^,-,,,,^ 



or below the horizon produces very little if any appa, , ■..ill,,.,,, ,l,^ ,„,,, .,^ commonly made, it may more 



effect on that instrument. It would be easy to write a 

 long treatise on this subject, hut as we before intimated, 

 accurste experiments ought to prrcfde theoiics. 



W ith regard to a log of wood sinking in water when 

 it is thoroughly soaked, we think there is nothing very 

 my.sterious. Whenever a log of wood or any other per- 

 meable k porous substance has imbibed so much water 

 that the weight of the fluid imbibed in addition to the 



effectually destroy the worms, bugs, and othei 

 insects which so materia ly injure the Irdcs ; 

 and it is believed to be in consequence of their 

 destruction that the bark and branches are en- 

 abled lo derive so much improvement from the 

 a|)plica(ion of this subslai.ce. 



1 am about lo suggest this expedient to Mr. 

 Peters; and if you think it may merit the con- 



