24 
BLIGHT IN PEAR-TREES.—CURE FOR INFLAMED EYES OF THE HORSE. 
They were near, and in the body, and for several 
feet tip and down, the bark and wood were stained 
as above. I shaved the bark all clean where the 
tree was affected, which was on one side from the 
roots to the branches. I found only six of the in¬ 
sects ; they are inactive, about the size of the hole 
mentioned, and above the sixteenth of an inch in 
length. They have six legs, the sides a deep 
green, the rest part of a brownish color. They 
insert about half the length of their body in the 
wood. I was pretty well convinced at the time, 
that these insects were the cause of the disease, 
but they may simply be the effect of it. They do 
not appear to be a migratory insect, for there were 
other pear-trees standing within fifty feet of this 
one, unaffected two years ago. The tree which 
stood near this one died branch after branch, until 
the top was all cut away. Now this is one stage 
of the insect; and if we can find out its habits, there 
will be some chance for a remedy. 
Professor Main, in his excellent treatise on the 
Physiology of Plants, mentions this disease called 
American Blight, and states the cause to be a very 
small insect, which, in its early stages, is not dis¬ 
cernible with the naked eye. He calls it the coc¬ 
cus, or Mealy aphis, a species of the Cochineal fly 
of commerce. The effect produced coincides with 
my observations; but the insect as I saw it differs 
in color from the one he describes as doing the 
mischief. He says they are so light that they are 
easily wafted from tree to tree, which can not be 
the case with this one I speak of. Apple-trees 
are subject to a similar disease, and I have discov¬ 
ered the red juice, and the red appearance of the 
bark and wood, but not the insects. 
There is another insect that works upon the 
pear-tree, giving it the appearance of blight, but 
it is not the cause of the destruction of our pear- 
trees. The fly deposites its egg in the tender part 
of the end of the twigs, and hatches into a brown 
grub. When full grown, it is about an inch in 
length. It eats out the wood, and leaves the bark 
entire for its habitation ; of course the twig dies, 
the leaves turn brown, which gives it much the 
appearance of blight. I have cut off these twigs 
and found that they were hollow for six or eight 
inches. I can tell you nothing about the habits 
of this insect. 
Weights , and pressing into lard of four pigs .—I 
will give you a statement of four pigs raised and 
fattened by one of my neighbors, David Hadley; 
not for their great weight, but showing the profit 
for the keep. The weights we re 502, 456, 418, 
and 414 pounds, at eighteen months old. 
The heaviest one had corn all winter, what he 
would eat, and corn and slop from the house du¬ 
ring the summer ; the other three had four ears of 
corn per head a day through the winter, and run 
on blue grass pasture through the summer. The 
owner told me he had fed them about fifteen bushels 
of corn per head since he put them up to fatten. 
They were perfect pictures of the grunting family, 
and when killed they were skimied, and all ren¬ 
dered into lard, except the hams and shoulders. 
They turned out 1,200 pounds of good No. 1 lard. 
The object in skinning was to keep the gum and 
©iky matter in the hides out of the lard. 
They were half Grazier, of Mr. Neff’s stock of 
importation: the other half were what he calls his 
Liverpool hogs, you will recollect them. 
To destroy hugs on potato-vines. —An old gentle¬ 
man informs me he has completely mastered the 
potato bug, by boiling up the roots of the mullen, 
and sprinkling the liquor on the tops early in the 
morning. He says it has the same effect on to¬ 
mato-vines. 
Remedy for sore teats and inflamed udders .— 
White-lead and sweet-oil are excellent for cracked 
or sore teats of milch cows. 
Flax-seed oil, well rubbed on the udder when 
inflamed and caked, will allay inflammation and 
soften the hardness of the bag. Rub well twice a 
day until the inflammation subsides. 
With much respect, 
E. Carpenter. 
Brier Patch Cottage , 
Warren Co., Ohio , Feb. 20, 1843. 
For the American Agriculturist . 
CURE FOR INFLAMED EYES OF THE HORSE 
Middletown, Ohio, Feb., 1843. 
Mr. A. B. Allen : Notwithstanding my occupa¬ 
tion requires my attention and exertions, in at¬ 
tempting to cure or palliate the “ ills that flesh is 
heir to” in the human species, my sympathies 
have been occasionally enlisted in behalf of that 
noble animal upon which we are so much depen¬ 
dant for many of our pleasures and comforts, and 
derive so much important service—the horse, in 
consequence of the empyric and barbarous treat¬ 
ment frequently practised upon him. 
If the animal who claims for himself the image 
of his Maker, is willing to indulge in “ Brandreth’s 
Pills, Lobelia Magnetic Ether, and Jew David’s 
Plaster,” and write for his epitaph, “ I was well, 
took physic and died,” let his curiosity be gratified; 
but while we assume to ourselves the guardian¬ 
ship of the fourfooted part of creation, let us dis¬ 
charge the duty in that manner that shall at least 
entitle us to the virtue of humanity. 
Not unfrequently when I have been giving my 
horses high feed and severe service in hot weather, 
over hard and dusty roads, I have observed them 
frightened and shy from objects to which they 
usually paid little or no attention; and upon exam¬ 
ination of the eyes, have discovered the external 
membrane ( tunica conjunctiva) thickened so much 
as to impair or obstruct the vision, presenting a 
whitish appearance occasionally in spots, but fre¬ 
quently involving the entire membrane covering 
the organ. At this discovery many kind friends, 
actuated by the best of motives, would volunteer 
their aid and advice, for the purpose of removing 
the difficulty. Mr. A., exhibiting an air of great 
confidence in his skill in such matters, would say : 
“You must pound glass until it is very fine, and 
blow it into the eye through a quill, to cut the 
scum.” A remedy, or rather an intended remedy, 
that would most assuredly render him blind, even 
though the disease should fail to accomplish that 
result. Then comes Mr. B.: “ Sir, you must blow 
burnt alum in that eye.” Mr. C., quite asknow- 
I ing as his neighbors in these affairs, makes the 
