508 
P R U 
P 11 U 
PRU 
pleas ; the former of which courts has one, j 
and the latter three. The prothonotary of 
the king’s bench, records all civil actions sued 
in that court, as the clerk of the crown-office 
does all criminal causes. The prothonotaries 
of the common pleas enter and iniyl all de- 
clarations, pleadings, assizes, judgments and 
actions *, they also make out all judicial 
writs, except writs of habeas-corpus, and 
distringas jurat or, for which there is a parti- 
cular office, called the habeas corpora office; 
they likewise enter recognizances acknow- 
ledged, and all common recoveries ; make 
exemplifications of records, &c. 
PROTOXIDE, in chemistry, a term used 
to denote the minimum of oxidizement. See 
Oxide. 
PROTRACTION, the same with plotting. 
See Surveying. 
PRO TRACTOR, the name of an instru- 
ment used for protracting or laying down on 
paper the angles of a held, or other figure. 
See Instrument. 
PROVISO, in law, a condition inserted in 
a deed, upon the observance Whereof the va- 
liciit v of the deed depends. 
PROVOST an officer, whereof there are 
divers kinds, civil, military, Sr c. 
Provost of a city or town, is the chief 
municipal magistrate in several trading cities, 
particularly Edinburgh, Glasgow, &c. being 
much the same with mayor in other places 
He presides in city-courts, and, together 
with the baillies, who are his deputies, de- 
termines in ail differences that arise among 
citizens. 
Provost marshal of an army, is an officer 
appointed' to seize and secure deserters, and 
all other criminals, lie is to hinder soldiers 
from pillaging, to indict offenders, and see 
the sentence passed on them executed. He 
also regulates the weights and measures, and 
riie price of provisions, &c. in the army. 
For the discharge of iiis office, he has a lieu- 
tenant, a clerk, and a troop of marshalmen 
on horseback, as also an executioner. There 
is also a provost marshal in the navy, who 
lias charge over prisoners, &c. 
PRO '5 , in navigation, denotes the head 
or fore part of a ship, particularly in a galley, 
being that which is opposite the poop or 
stern . 
PRUNELLA, self-hue, a genus of the 
gymnospermia order, in the didynamia class 
of plants; and in the natural method ranking 
under the 12th order, holorace®. The fila- 
ments are bifurcated, with an anthera only 
on one point ; the stigma is bifid. There are 
three species, herbs of Europe. 
Pruneel.e sal, in pharmacy, a prepara- 
tion of purified saltpetre. 
PRUNES, in commerce, are plums dried 
in the sunshine, or in an oven. 
PRUNING wall-trees. Of this mas- 
ter work of gardening,” it has been said, 
“ that gentlemen prune too little, and garden- 
ers too much;” these extremes are to be 
avoided, as attended with peculiar evils, 
equally mischievous: wall-trees are presently 
spoiled by either practice. If they are too 
full of wood, the shoots and fruits cannot be 
^properly ripened : and if they are too thin (the 
greater evil of the two), the consequence of 
the cutting that has made them so, is the 
production of wood rather than fruit ; forcing 
«nt shoots, where otherwise blossom-bud- 
would have been formed. The designation 
of trees to a wall (from the superabundant 
heat) necessarily occasions cutting, and on 
the skilful use of the knife much depends. 
Every one who lias wall-trees cannot keep a 
professed gardener ; nor is every one who 
calls himself so, qualified to prune. It is a 
great mortification to a man who wishes to 
see his trees in order, not to be able to pro- 
cure an operator to attend them ; let him 
then resolve to learn the art himself, and the 
ability will be very gratifying to him. 
As many words must be used on this article 
of pruning, for the sake of order, the busi- 
ness of managing wall-trees may be, 1 . Con- 
cerning the form. 2. The health. 3. The 
fruitfulness of them. 
1. As to the form, or general appearances 
of the wall-trees. If a tree is young and i 
newly planted, the first thing is to head it j 
down, by cutting off (if it is a nectarine, ! 
peach, or apricot) all the shoots, and the ; 
stem itself, down to a few eyes, that tlie lower ■ 
part of the wall may be furnished with new 
and strong wood. 'Make the cut sloping, 
and behind the tree, taking care (by placing 
the foot on the root, and the left hand on the 
stem) not to disturb the tree by the pull of 
die knife. Plaster the part with a bit of cow- ; 
dung, clay, or stiff earth. It is evident from ; 
this that maiden stocks are the best to plant. 
I he heading down is to he made so as to 
leave two or three eyes, or four if a high 
wall, on each side of the stem, from which 
shoots will come properly placed for training. 
The number of eyes may be also according to 
the strength of the tree, and its roots If i 
there are not two well-placed eyes on each j 
side of the stem, two shoots, thus situated, 
may be left, cutting them short to two or three 
eyes each. Eyes or shoots behind or before, 
consider as of no use, and let them be early 
displaced by rubbing or cutting. This work 
is to he performed in spring, when the tree is 
putting forth shoots ; i. e. about the begin- 
ning of April. 
II towards the end of May there should be 
wanting shoots on either side the tree, having 
perhaps only one put forth where two were 
expected, this one shoot should be cut, or 
pinched down, to two or three eyes; and be- 
fore summer is over there will be found good 
shoots from them, and thus a proper head be 
obtained. This work of shortening shoots of 
the year may be done any time before Mid- 
summer ; but in this case, all ill-placed or su- 
perfluous growths must be rubbed off as soon 
as seen, that those to be reserved may be the 
stronger, receiving more nourishment. 
As the lateral shoots grow, let them be ; 
timely nailed to the wall, close, straight, and 
equidistant, but use no force. If they are 
quite well placed, they will need no bending; j 
but sometimes shoots must be laid in which I 
are not perfectly so. Lay in as many good 
moderate-sized shoots as may be throughout 
the summer, for choice at winter pruning, yet 
do not crowd the tree. As the shoots pro- 
ceed in length, nail the n to the wall, that no 
material dangling of them may be seen ; but 
avoid using too many shreds. 
In the formation of a tree, keep each side 
as nearly as can be equal in wood ; and the 
shoots inclining downwards, which is a mode 
of training necessary to nil the lower part of 
the wall (none of which should, be lost), and 
to check the too free motion of the sap, which ; 
wall-trees are liable to from their warm situa- 
tion and continual cutting. All the branches 
should have an horizontal tendency, though 
the upper cannot have it so much as the j 
lower ones. Those that are perpendicular, 
or nearly so, mount the wall too fast, and run I 
away with the food that should pass to the j 
horizontals ; which being impoverished by the i 
vigorous middle branches, gradually become I 
too weak to extend themselves, and nourish 
the fruit. The pruner, therefore, must be : 
content to have some of the wall, over the j 
midd.e of the tree, unoccupied; or, at least, 
suffer none but weak or very moderate shoots : 
to find a place there. 
The idea of a well-formed tree is somewhat 
represented by tiie ribs of a spread fan, or 
the fingers of the hand extended. Regularity 
is allowed to be so necessary to the beauty of 
a wall-tree, that some have even drawn lines 
for a guide to train by; but nature (ever free 
and easy) will not submit to so much icnnali- 
ty, and such a perfect disposition of the 
branches is not necessary. A tree may be 
regular without being linear, and the proper 
useful shoots are not to be sacrificed to a fan- 
ciful precision. Though crossing of branches 
is against rule, yet cases may happen (as in 
want of wood or fruit) where even this awk- 
wardness may be permitted. The object is 
fruit; and to obtain this end, form must some- 
times give place. 
All foreright and back shoots, and other "i 
useless wood, should be displaced in time, for I 
they exhaust the strength of the tree to no 
purpose, and occasion a rude appearance. It 
is a very expeditious method to displace su- 
perfluous young shoots, by pushing or break- 
ing them off ; but when they get woody it is ■ 
apt to tear the bark, and in this case the' knife 
must be used : the better way is to disbud by 
rubbing; yet a young luxuriant tree should 
be suffered to grow a little wild to spend the 
sap. 'J here is one evil, however, attending 
on disbudding, and rubbing off young fore- 
rights, that some fruit spurs are thus lost ; 
for apricots are apt to bear on little short 
shoots of from half an inch to an inch (or 
more), and there are peaches which do the 
same; so that it is a rule with some pruners 
to wait to distinguish spurs from shoots, and ] 
then to use the knife, yet use it as little as 1 
may be in summer. 
In regulating a tree at any time, begin at 
the bottom and middle, and work the way or- 
derly upward and outward. Never shorien in 
summer (which would produce fresh shoots), 
except a forward shoot where wood may be 
wanting ; but where the tree is really" too 
thick, cut dean out what may be spared. 
None of the shoots produced after mid um- 
mer should be nailed in, except where wood 
is wanting to fill a naked place. They never 
bear fruit. 
_ 2. The health of wall-trees is greatly pro- ■ 
vided for by observing the directions already 
given concerning their form ; for if observed, 
each shoot will have the proper benefit of sun 
and air, to concoct its juices and prepare it 
for fruiting. 
It injures a tender shoot when it presses , 
hard against a nail. If the hammer strikes a ’ 
shoot, and bruises the bark, it often spoils if j 
not kills it, by the part cankering. The I 
shreds may be too tight, so that the shoot • 
