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And Pepper-duft fcatter'd upon the 

 BIofToms of Fruit-Trees, has been 

 recommended as very ufeful in this 

 Cafe : And there are fome that ad- 

 vife the pulling off the Leaves of 

 the Tree, as the beft Remedy, 

 when they are flirivel'd up and 

 wither, and to cut off the fmaller 

 Branches when they produce crook- 

 ed and unnatural Shoots, and to 

 fprinkle the Tree with a Watering- 

 Pot or a Hand-Engine. 



Thefe Conjeftures concerning 

 BlightSy how fpecious foever they 

 may appear at firft Sight, yet, 

 when duly conlider'd, will be found 

 far {hort of the true Caufe, as will 

 hereafter be fhewn. 



Some there are who imagine 

 the mod deftrudive Blights which 

 attend Fruit-Trees, are produced 

 .by fmall Showers of Rain, or 

 white Hoar-Frofts falling upon the 

 Bloffoms of Fruit-Trees, which 

 being fucceeded by cold North or 

 Eafterly Winds, or frofty Mornings, 

 are the Occafion of the frequent 

 Blights which happen in the Spring 

 Seafon. To prevent this Mifchiet, 

 it hath been recommended by a 

 late learned Author, to build new 

 Wails i in which, at every third 

 Courfe of Bricks, fhould be laid a 

 Row of plain Tiles, which fhould 

 projedb forward, and hang over 

 the Plain of the Wall above an 

 Inch and an half, to carry off the 

 perpendicular Dews and Rains, 

 leaving Room, at Diflances, be- 

 tween the Tiles, to carry up the 

 Branches of the Tree. This Me- 

 thod is fo politively laid down, as 

 a great Advantage for the more 

 certain obtaining of Fruit, by a Gen- 

 tleman whofe Profeffion fliould in- 

 cline him to Modefly, cfpecially 

 when he was not fure of his Fadis, 

 that I can't pafs it over without 

 fome Animadverfions. 



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I. He fays. That thefe horizon- 

 tal Shelters will be of Advantage, 

 even in the mofl difficult Years, to 

 preferve the Fruit, fo that a good 

 Quantity of it may be almofl de- 

 pended on from fuch Branches and 

 Bloffoms as were fhelter'd by the 

 Tiles, as he himfelf hud often ex- 

 perience. 



As to this firfl Article, I need 

 fay no more than what Mr. Collins 

 hath already written, 'viz.. That 

 this Reverend Gentleman acknow- 

 ledg'd to him, at leafl a Year after 

 his Book was printed, that he ne- 

 ver had any Walls of that kind; 

 but that, a few Days before this 

 Vifit, he had fluck a few Pieces of 

 Tiles and Oyfler-lliells into a Mud- 

 wall, at particular Places, over fome 

 Bunches of Bloffoms, with Mortar, 

 which was not dry at that time; 

 which he declar'd was his firfl 

 Effay: Now how a Gentleman of 

 his Character can aniwer the ad- 

 vifing of Perfons to put themfelves 

 to fuch an extravagant Expence as 

 the building of new Walls for Fruit, 

 with an Alfurance of Succefs, when 

 it was only a firaple Imagination of 

 his own, without fo much as a 

 fingle Experiment to fupport it, I 

 am wholly at a Lois to know. 



But let us proceed to his fecond 

 Article, in which he fays. That 

 Fruit thus flielter'd, will be larger, 

 better fed, and finer' tafled than 

 thofe on the fame Tree, which 

 are more expos'd. This every one, 

 who hath ever made any Obferva- 

 tions on the different Tafte, Size, 

 Colour, or Goodnefs of Fruits 

 which grew on different Parts of 

 the fame Tree, will, upon the firft 

 reading, condemn as falfe j for let 

 us only obferve fuch Fruits as are 

 fometimes produced between the 

 Wood-branches and the Wall-, and 

 are by them depriv'd of the Ad- 

 vantao;e 



