166 AGRICUIiTUKE 0>' THE KIIINE. 



situations where a moment's reflection shows that the 

 ground is not only utterly valueless to its present owners, 

 but that its cultivation must entail a loss. It is, however, 

 not very long since people began to reason any where on 

 these matters ; and it is but justice to say, that the govern- 

 ment has spared no pains in recommending the consolida- 

 tion at least of the present scattered properties, in which 

 task M. Albrecht, the director of the agricultural college, 

 has been very serviceable. It is, however, charac- 

 teristic of the little capital, and of its present burgesses, 

 that in Wiesbaden we could not discover that a single 

 consolidation had taken place. 



Of the nature of the contributions that are made to 

 the weekly publication, an opinion may be formed from 

 the following notices. Among other things a map 

 of the Duchy of Nassau has been given. From this 

 we learn the prevalence of another elementary scourge 

 scarcely less destructive for the moment than the cloud- 

 breaks that we described some chapters back. The 

 hailstorms of Germany are often fearfully destructive. 

 We have seen corn-fields in ear so completely extermi- 

 nated, that the very haulm has been beaten into the earth, 

 and a few hours have sufficed to make it diflicult to say 

 what crop had stood on the ground. These hailstorms 

 are local plagues, seldom extending in breadth beyond 

 a mile ; but the length of the strip they ravage is very 

 various. Calculations of the chances they present have 

 been made, and insurance societies have been established 

 against loss by hail in many parts of Germany. The 

 map shows the loss that has accrued to the Duchy of 

 Nassau within the last fifty years from hailstorms, and 

 by means of various colours the number of times diiterent 

 places have suffered are distinctly shown. 



