[183 ] 
to relieve our poor geese from the horrible torture 
our luxury makes them undergo. 
I am, dear sir, 
With esteem, 
Your most ob’t humble serv’t. 
ROB. R. LIVINGSTON. 
Benj. De Witt, Esq. Secretary 
to the society for useful arts^ 
METHOD 
OF PREVENTING SMUT IN WHEAT, 
By EZRA L^HOMMEDIE U, Vice-President of the Society- 
In the first volume of the transactions of this so» 
ciety, there is a communication of experiments 
made in England, to prevent the smut in wheat. 
This has been tried in our western country to good 
effect. A farmer in Montgomery county informed 
me, that the publication had been some thousand 
dollars advantage to the town he lived in ; they 
there soaked their seed wheat in lie, as recommen^ 
ded in the experiments published. For three years 
past, in the county of Suffolk, the wheat has been 
subject to smut, which was never known before.-— 
The soaking the seed wheat in lie or lime water 
was recommended, which had a good effect, and 
prevented the smut the next harvest. Finding that 
it was usual with English farmers to soak their 
wheat in brine, to prevent smut, which was not 
