ROT. 



cover the floor with bricks, laid in mortar, which was ac- 

 cordingly done. He called twice fince, the lait time about 

 feven years ago, and has rcafon to think that it never ap- 

 peared again. That the next opportunity of examining it 

 carefully was at Mark-hall, in Effex, the feat of Mr. 

 Montague Burgoyne. In a parlour there were three pillars 

 of about ten inches in diameter, the outwood of which 

 was between two and three inches thick. Two of them 

 were eaten through in lefs than feven years, from the bales, 

 about two feet upward, within the hollow, and were as rotten 

 as if it Lad been the effect of a hundred years Handing. The 

 gardener of this gentleman was a botanilt ; and found the 

 plant where he directed him to fearch for it, and faid it was 

 the boletus lachrymans. And, he adds, that fome authors 

 call it a paraiitieal plant ; and it is fometimes to be lound with 

 the willow and fallow tribe ; but this is not to the purpofe. 

 Till within a few months he has never been without fome 

 leaves of the plant. For many years they appear exhaultcd 

 and dead, and loon crumble into dull ; but he fufpects that 

 frefh wood attracts a frefh growth from the root. 



At another time, he faw it in a houfe at Whitehall, built 

 by fir John Vanbrugh, whole nephew then lived in it. The 

 houfe is, he thinks, only two ftorie;. high ; the plant had 

 afcended to the upper flory, committing devaluation on the 

 wainfcot all the way. It will deflroy half-inch deal wainf- 

 cotting in a year. He has alfo had it twice in houfes he 

 inhabited, one in Suffolk, and the other in Gloucellerfhire. 

 He bore witli the firft ; in the other cafe he undertook to 

 (top it, and did it effectually. 



It is fuppofed, that the caufe is from the floor being laid 

 on the earth, which has been, where he has obierved it, of 

 a gravelly or fandy loam nature. The moiiture from a 

 vvater-courfe at hand, or a north afpeel, where the outer wall 

 Hands in a garden-bed, fo that the rain percolates, are great 

 encouragers ; it requires moifture, he fufpefts. But it never 

 rifes in the middle of the floor ; becaufe, if the feed were 

 there, it could nut germinate for want of air ; but it is eafy r 

 to fuppole that after the floor is fhrunk, an air may be 

 created between that and the vacancy between the wain- 

 fcot and the outer wall, fuflicieut for the purpofes of vege- 

 tation. He fays, he faw an inflance lalt fummer in the 

 houfe of a friend, a Undent in botany. He was furpriied 

 when he told him it was a viiit from a plant ; but fo it 

 proved, and always is, and ever was fo ; nor does it originate 

 from any other caufe. 



With the view of removing it in his own cafe, lie removed 

 the original foil near the part aflected, and lupplied its place 

 with fand. He then placed pieces of tile ; on thole lie laid 

 mortar, and tiles over them, pulhing them under the 

 wainfcot, lo that it had no communication with the joills or 

 floor. Pillars in like manner fhould, he thinks, be kept 

 from the earth. And in laying a floor upon the ground, he 

 fhould take away the earth for a foot in breadth, and four 

 inches in depth, all round the walls, and place the ends of 

 the joills in mortar, covering them with tiles prelled under 

 the floor and wainfcot, quite to the nut ward wall. Iron or 

 tin plates would do ; but are not lo cheap a:, mortar and 

 tiles, and probably much lefs durable in Inch Situations. It 

 is fuppofed that this plant haa no adhefive powers, but in 

 contact with wood. If it could pal', over brick and mortar, 

 it might be feen to fpring from the cellars and infect half 

 the houfes in the kingdom, lie recommends, in Ihort, 

 the wainfcot be kept free from con I. n't with thi i 

 floor. 



It is obferved that the leaves of the plant ap] 

 haufled and dead, is owing to their having imparted all their 



juices to the wood, which change it to a fungus, and not to 

 a powder, like rottennefs from length of time. And that 

 nothing is more eafy than to prevent the damage from the 

 plant. Befides what he has faid above, he is pofitive that 

 a tile laid clofc along the walls round the room, would pre- 

 vent the growth of the plant, even without mortar ; and 

 perhaps it is only neceffary where the walls are next to the 

 air. And charring the ends of the joills for a few inches, 

 and the lide of the wainfcot at bottom next the wall, would, 

 he fuppofes, be fufficient ; for the plant cannot adhere to 

 any thing but wood, and that pofleffed of its natural juices, 

 to a certain degree ; fo that he quellions if old dry oak 

 would receive it. But all the white foft woods, as beach, 

 poplars, and deals, are for a long time ready to receive it. 

 Repairing the damage with frefh wood, without removing 

 the earth and plant, is only feeding the evil, or extending 

 the difeafe. It is fuppofed, tliat as the plant is of the creep- 

 ing kind, and cannot rife two inches, the wood, in all cafes, 

 muft be in contact with the earth to fupport it. He adds, 

 that a fungus broader than the palm of one's hand, and an 

 inch or more in thicknefs, is commonly feen at the bottom of 

 an old poll, on the furface of the earth ; but it is not eafy 

 to difcern whether the wood or the earth furnifhes the 

 matter. 



The writer further remarks, that he had lately a con- 

 verfation with an old friend, who (hewed him two parcels of 

 rotten wood, from an oak barn-floor laid about fixteen years 

 ago. After lying twelve years, it fhook upon the joills. 

 On examination it was found to be rotted in various parts, 

 and the planks, two inches and a half in thicknefs, were 

 nearly eaten through, though the outfide was gloffy, and 

 without blemifh. The joifts, and a large middle beam, 

 were laid at the ends, in brick and mortar, to create a firm 

 level. No earth was near the wood ; and, he thinks, that 

 no air could find a paflage. The rottennefs was partly an 

 impalpable powder, of the colour of Spanifh fnuff, and 

 other parts were black, as if burnt ; the reft was clearly a 

 fungus. And that this gentleman is a perfon of undoubted 

 veracity ; but a nice and exact obfervation is neceffary in 

 Inch examinations. He thought nothing of any plant, and 

 it is likely there was none of the boletus ; fo that his af- 

 lertion that it was always to be found, was rather too 

 fyflematic. He afked him if the timber was dry when laid 

 down. He could not however fay that had been particularly 

 adverted to. It had been fawed from a large oak, and was, 

 as he thought, in all refpects proper for a barn-floor. As 

 this feems not the operation of the boletus, he afks, how 

 did it happen ? We know that the oak, when in vegetation, 

 is fubject to what we (hall call an exudation of juices, which 

 produces the fungus, named the agaric of the oak, with 

 which the Druids of old played many tricks. The oak, 

 then, if (awed into thick quantities, may emit tliefe fame 

 juices, as the progreflive courleof nature to its entire decay. 

 It is added that we have all feen oaks of vail li/.e and ancient 

 record, with a great part of the outfide whole, and all the 

 infide gone ; perhaps the work of a century- In all hollow 

 !S fungus is discoverable. To life a faw term, it is a 

 mtfnomer to call it dry rot ; for tin- rotting principle is in 

 moiiture. He further Hates, that he had never fern th< 

 rot upon fo large a fcale in timber, till lately. The pre. 



vention then of beams, rafter . put 



into the earth, from decay I) , 



which will dry up aU the fungus jui 

 fubftance. Paint, or a bituminou may pro- 



bably flop up the pores, and prevent the rol in High) work, 

 i m it in' b rved, with fixe, 



incom- 



