TOL. XVII. no. 4S 



AND HORTICULTURAL P. EGISTER 



379 



clear of insects in the autumn if you wisli matured 

 fruit the next year. 



8. The mulberry tree has to some extent shared 

 with the pear tree in whut is called ibcjire blight. 

 This disease has not, to my knowledge, prevailed 

 very extensively, yet it has had its agency aniong^ 

 other causes in diminishing the expectations of 

 gain from this branch of business. Its ravages 

 were more general, so far as I had opportunity of 

 knowing, in 1837; than in any year before or since. 

 The insect which causes this blight seems to he 

 enlarging his field of operation, and there are rea- 

 sons to fear if some effectual remedy be not discov- 

 ered, that other trees will suffer from its opera- 

 tions as extensively as tlie pear tree has in years 

 past. 



It is believed that the above causes, with some 

 others which would be mentioned were it not for 

 the great length to which this article has extended 

 should be regarded as concurring with the cold of 

 a few of the past winters in producing a state of 

 unthriftiness among a great portion of the mulberry 

 plantations, and the actual destruction of not a few 

 of them. 



The question which then naturally presents it- 

 self, is, whether under such circumstances there 

 are sufficient encouragements still remaining to 

 justify further efforts to continue and increase the 

 means of silk culture in the county, or had the 

 patronage of tlie society be better turned to some 

 other source ? In coming to a rational determina- 

 tion on this point, it will be necessary to look over 

 the causes of t'aiUire and see how many of thenj 

 may with proper effort and skill be remedied ; and 

 then to enquire whether those which are beyond 

 human power essentially to modify, are more nu- 

 merous than are usually met witli in most employ- 

 ments of life. Upon such a survey, I apprehend, 

 it will appear that with the e.xception of the cli- 

 mate, all the hindrances to success in this business 

 are as capable of being removed by effort, prudent- 

 ly and perseveringly put forth, as those which pre- 

 sent themselves in nost other occupations in which 

 men engage, and which by resolute effort they ei- 

 ther reuiove, modify, or avoid. Nearly all of them 

 are the very same which are met with in all at- 

 tempts to cultivate the better fruits, and yet men 

 do not despair in respect to them, nor are their ef- 

 forts utiattended with encouraging success. In re- 

 gard to the climate even, it should not be forgotten 

 that trees in past times have lived long and be- 

 come large, and yielded a rich supply of foliage 

 from year to year, and we certainly have no 

 sufficient reason to think that such an essen- 

 tial change has taken place in this particular 

 as to justify the inference that they may not 

 thrive again. And beside this, it is a fact, that 

 during these last years of discouragement, there 

 are no inconsiderable number of trees in differerit 

 parts of the county, which have remained flourish- 

 ing and have already attained a considerable size; 

 while it is a generally admitted fact by those who 

 have given themselves opportunity to observe, th-it 

 there is manifest a general improvement in the ap- 

 pearance of the trees recently, especially during 

 the last year, where any attention has been paid to 

 their culture. 



We certainly do not find, therefore, in the caus- 

 es above enumerated, sufficient reasons to abandon 

 the euterprise, and will therefore subjoin a few 

 reasons which we think should luive considerable 

 influence to induce a continuance in the effort to 

 sustain and increase the business in this county. 



1. Among these we present the fact that there 

 are large tracts of land in this county well adapted 

 to the growth of the inulberry, nuich of which is 

 now yielding but little produce of any kind, and 

 will not, unless it is put under a different culture than 

 that now bestowed upon it. If these tracts were 

 planted over with the mulberry, they would soon 

 begin to yield some profit; the land would at the 

 same time be improved, and the trees when grown 

 would afibrd a great amount of good timber and 

 fuel ; and I will add, by forming obstructions to 

 the course of the winds, would in no inconsiderable 

 degree soften our climate, and thus make the whole 

 county a more pleasant and healthy place to dwell 

 in. 



9. There are many persons, especially aged fe- 

 males and children, whose time and strength in 

 many places can now be turned to very little profit,' 

 who might labor in this employment to advantage, 

 and thus contribute much to their own support. 



3. It might be made the means of giving em- 

 ployment to the inmates of the public alms-houses, 

 penitentiaries, &c., and thus put them in the way 

 of meeting in whole or part the expenses of their 

 maintenance, and so relieve the community from a 

 part of the taxes to which they are now subject. 

 If there are any waste lands suitable for the mul- 

 berry connected with such establishments, it would 

 be good economy for the towns or county to cover 

 them over with young trees ; they would pay good 

 interest even as an article of fuel. 



4. It would multiply the productive employ- 

 ments of the county, which is always a subject of 

 good policy to every community, for so the danger 

 of suffering from the temporary suspension or fail- 

 ure of any one of them is comparatively diminished 

 and all classes of citizens become less dependent 

 U|M)n the will of others, and the whole community 

 more independent of other nations. 



5. It would call into exercise the inventive pow- 

 ers of man, and thus improve and widen its sphere 

 of operation. 



6. It opens another page in the physical opera- 

 tions of the Creator, affords deep evidence of the 

 wisdom, power, and providence of God, and by 

 communicating a wider knowledge of his works, 

 gives a better knowledge of Himself; a result 

 which will not be thought of small consideration 

 by a moral and religious community, who feel that 

 there are other interests to secure beside the accu- 

 mulation of worldly wealth. 



Taking all these circumstances together, and 

 weighing them as carefully as we can, we feel 

 ourselves justified incoming to the conclusion, that 

 though somewhat moderated in the expectation that 

 the silk business would give unusual gain, that still 

 there are good reasons to suppose it may be found 

 sufficiently profitable to justify individuals in un- 

 dertakii'g it, and that the public advantages are 

 likely to be such as to entitle it to the favorable 

 notice and patronage of the county society. 



(From the same.) 



ON CULTIVATION OF CROPS. 



The Committee of the Essex Aricultural Society 

 on wheat, rye, oats, and barley, have attended to 

 the subject committed to them, and Report : That 

 they recommend that the accompanying statements 

 be published, and that the first premium often dol- 

 lars be awarded to Moses French, of Salisbury, for 

 his crop of barley. For the committee, 



ERASTUS WARE. 



Topsfitld, Dec. 25, 1838. 



MOSES FRENCH'S STATEMEMT. 

 To the Committee on the Cultivation of Crops : 



Grntlemex — I submit the following statement 

 of a crop of barley that I raised the past season. 

 The land on which it grew is a clayey loam. In 

 1837 the sward was turned. The lot was planted 

 with corn and potatoes, principally with corn. A 

 shovel full of manure was put to each hill, and the 

 crop was fair for the season. I cut the corn at the 

 ground the S.^th of September, bound it in bundles, 

 and dried it in the field. The fodder was the best 

 I ever had. Lastspring I spread two loads of com- 

 post manure on the hit. On the part where the 

 potatoes grew, it being the poorest, I spoad one 

 load of night soil, ploughed it all very shallov?, so 

 as to turn up the sod, harrowed it well, and sowed 

 two bushels of the two rowed barley, and then 

 rolled it. It came up and grew finely, until the 

 heads began to show themselves. While it was 

 green and tender, it was beaten down by a shower 

 and wind, and much of it never rose again, espec- 

 ially where the r.i^ht soil was spread. 



The lot contained one acre and twelvre rods, and 

 yielded 39 1-4 bushels of sound grain. 



The straw is very bright, and worth to me more 

 than salt hay. 



I prefertwo the rowed barley as being the largest 

 kernel and best to yield. 



MOSES FRENCH. 



East Salisbury, September 27, 1838. 



TRISTRAM LITTLE'S STATEMENT. 

 To the Committee on Cultivation of Crops : 



Gentlemen — The field containing one acre, 

 upon which my experiment in raising barley the 

 past season was made, was a dark clay loam of an 

 equal quality ; the year before was planted with 

 potatoes. Sometime about the last of April the 

 land was ploughed and harrowed, sowed with one 

 bushel and thiee pecks of clean barley. After that 

 there was spread on one half the land three loads 

 of pond mud, two of which was mixed with two 

 bushels of lime, the other with ten bushels of leach- 

 ed ashes. The other part was dressed with about 

 the same quantity of dirt which was hauled out 

 from under a woodhouse. There was a small strip 

 left between the dressing without any manure, on 

 which the growth was quite inferior to the other 

 parts. At the time of sowing, my intention was to 

 keep the parts separate. Before tlie grain was ripe 

 the rain and wind had beat all the dressed part 

 down, and so badly tangled that it had to be cut 

 altogether, so that the exact quantity of each part 

 could not be ascertained. There were 38 bushels 

 as it run from themill. I think if the measure had 

 been strecked, there would have been forty bushels. 



Respectfully yours, 



TRISTRAM LITTLE. 



jYeu-hunj, J^ov. 28, 1838. 



Finances of a J^ew England Slate. — Connecti- 

 cut owes nobody, and has .$21,000 in her coffers, 

 besides a school fund of $2,000,000, yielding an 

 annual revenue of $104,000. The State paupers 

 cost .$1,700 a year for their maintenance, but the 

 State Prison earns a nett sum of $3000 or over. 



The scrip issued by Massachusetts, in aid of her 

 railroads, commands a higher price on the London 

 Stock Exchange than any other foreign securities. 

 Bositn paper. 



