176 



Thorn Fence. 



Vol. IIL 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Cabinet : 



Thorai F«Mce. 



Tn the last number of the Cabinet there is 

 a cominunical-jn from a Corrospnadent from 

 Mercer comity, setting forth the importance 

 of Thorn Fences. I fully agree with him 

 that fences have become a subject of great 

 interest with farmers, and will contniue to 

 he increasin^rly so, as timber suitable therefor 

 is continuaUy diminishing; how far the 

 Thorn may succeed in aiercer county I am 

 unable to say ; but on my own farm, where 

 it ha^ been pretty extensively tried, as well 

 as on mmy others in the neighborhood, itha^ 

 proved an entire failure, which I attribute 

 principally to an insect which deposits its 

 po-crs in the branches, producing knots similar 

 to those which have destroyed the morella 

 cherry trees, only not so large, occasioning 

 the death of the branch so affected, which 

 renders it in my opinion useless further to 

 try the Thorn. Where stone of a suitable 

 quality can be easily procured, it appears 

 likely to answer the best purpose; but unless 

 in favorable situations, it is found to be too 

 expensive for general use; we are therefore 

 generally in the practice of using chesnut or 

 white oak posts, with cedar or chesnut rails. 

 Practical farmers differ very much as to 

 which of them is the best— also whether it 

 is be^t to plant them green, or to have them 

 seasoned before using. So far as an expe- 

 Tience of more than twenty years will enable 

 me to judfre, I am of opinion that chesnut 

 po4s, planted as we say top down, are pre- 

 ferable to oak, I am cxperimentmg on a few 

 of each, both green and dry ; but as they 

 have not been planted quite thirteen years I 

 am unable to give the result as to which wi, 

 prove the most durable. At present T should 

 o-ivea (iecidel preference to chesnut it any 

 means could be devised effectu illy to prevent 

 the worms o-etting into them, which they are 

 verv apt to do, near the surface of the gmund, 

 especially in the heart of the wood ; with me 

 they do not much injure the sap; on that ac- 

 count [ prefer the round to the split post. It 

 anv of the correspondents of the Cabinet could 

 point out some clienp. yet effectual mode ot 

 destroviu'r that prouertv in the wood or sap 

 which makes it pdatable to the worm, they 

 would couf.T a verv sireatbenptiton farmers; 

 foi I am of opinion that the posts would gene 

 rally last near twice as long if the worm 

 couid be kept out of them, tt occurred to 

 mP some ten or twelve years past, to try 

 wltat effect the soaking of them in water a 

 conmderable time would have; with the 

 view of trvino-it I had a holoducr in wet clay 

 jrrouna sufficiently large to contain near one 

 hundred, an<l fdled it with trreen chesnut 

 py^s which I suffered to be there perhaps a 



year, when they were taken out and planted ; 

 they appear as yet to be of a firmer texture 

 and heavier than others; but what success 

 will attend it, there has not been time to de- 

 termine, yet from their appearance, I have 

 continued the practice. 



My object in this communication is not so 

 much to say what 1 have done, or to pnblisij 

 my opinions, as to draw forth the experience 

 and better judgment of others, many of wliom 

 must undoubtedly have devoted a portion of 

 consideration to this interesting subject ; any 

 information through the medium of the Cabi- 

 net, which would enable the farmer to make 

 a gofjd, yet economical fence, would he ot 

 vast benefit, and would enable them to do 

 what no good farmer is satisfied to omit, that 

 is, having his farm well fenced. 



A Montgomery Couxty Farmer. 



We thank our correspondent for the hint 

 contained in his private note— his sugges- 

 tions are good, and we shall endeavor to pro- 

 fit by them. 



SpontaaieoHS Combustion. 



[The object of the Cabinet is to promote 

 not only the cause of agriculture, but the 

 welfare and comfort of the farmer, to en- 

 ighten him on subjects to which he may not 

 have turned his attention, and to guard him 

 against the evils and accidents affecting life 

 and property. In reference to this last point, 

 the following article has been selected from 

 a late vol. of Professor Silliman's Journal of 

 Science and the Arts, by Dr. Mease,Vice Presi- 

 dent of "the Philadelphia Society for Pr.> 

 moting Agriculture ;"* and it would bo well 

 for our readers to attend to and guard against 

 the various causes enumerated therein which 

 have led to the production of combustion. 

 Many cotton and woollen fiictories, and 

 doubtless dwellings and barns have been con- 

 sumed without the agency of actual fire, 

 which were ascribed to incendiaries.] 



In my " Archives of Useful Knowledge." 

 vol iii p. 167, 1 recorded three cases of the 

 spontaneous combustion of lirge masses ot 

 bituminous coal from Virginia, two in eel ars, 

 and a third under a close arch, all ot which 

 occurred in Philadelphia.f A fourth caso 



* Thi'5 ii thf> pnrporati- nam'- ortl)'- S.vnty. 



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