fiO THE CULTUEE OF THE GEAPE. 



mirably constructed. The houses are built on the side of 

 a low hill, with a gravelly bottom. On the surface of 

 the natural ground, which was coated with concrete, the 

 border has been formed three and a half feet deep at the 

 back, and two and a half feet deep in the front, so that 

 it slopes from back to front, where it is rounded off. 'S.o 

 rain can ever lodge there. It was formed with burnt 

 clay, (the bottom of some old brick-kilns,) loamy turf 

 from an old pasture, plasterer's rubbish, hair and trim- 

 mings of hides (called fleshings,) from the tan yards, and 

 an enormous quantity of thoroughly rotten stable manure, 

 — the last border alone consumed a barge load of forty 

 tons of such manure. All these materials, after being 

 thrown together, were thoroucjlily incorporated. They 

 form so loose a bed that a stick may be easily pushed 

 through it to the very bottom. Every November, these 

 borders receive a good mulching of stable manure, which 

 remains to rot in the succeeding summer ; so that the 

 surface is always covered by a rich decaying material 

 which absorbs heat from thB sun, and detains the natu- 

 ral dampness of the border. The vines are managed 

 upon Mr. Crawshay's plan. 



" These vines were planted in 1843, cut back in 1844, 

 when each at once made the whole of the single rod that 

 furnishes the crop. These rods are now, on an average, 

 five and a half inches in circumference, and run straight 

 up the center of each light, so that the leaves and bunch- 

 es are exposed to all the light and air which the houses 

 can furnish. The fruit produced by this practice is rep- 

 resented as being very fine, the bunches not remarkably 

 large, but the berries are said to be beautiful, and the 



