XX P 1 
MOORE’S RURAL MEW-YORKER. 
fjwtmtlfml. 
A FRUIT PRESERVING HORSE. 
[Concluded from page 255, last No ] 
Oxyoen, heat, moisture and light, being the 
principal agents in producing decay and decom¬ 
position, Mr. JTyco has endeavored, as far as 
possible, to reject them in his process, and in 
the construction of the home we think in these 
he has, to a great extent, succeeded. He has 
not aimed at ornament or tinisli in constructing 
the building. 
Every part of if exhibits economy, and per¬ 
haps the Inside would be better if there had 
been more care taken in the carpenter’s work, 
as this part of it is rude, and exhibits a want 01 
finish which injures the appearance of the 
fruit. 
]t is, however, suited to experiments which 
may hereafter prove the theory of Dr. Saussure, 
who states that fruits, while green, act like 
the green leaves and twigs in absorbing carbonic 
acid from the air, but. that as they approach 
maturity, they absorb or retain oxygen and 
begin to give off carbonic acid. The same 
absorption takes place when unripe fruits are 
plucked and left to ripen in the air. After a 
time the latter also emit carbonic acid. This 
respiration or transpiration of the fruit is essen¬ 
tial to its development. When covered with a 
coat of varnish, its growth is stopped, though it 
be still left on the tree. When fruit is ripe, the 
functions of plants are discharged. They no 
longer require to absorb and decompose car¬ 
bonic acid, for their growth is at an end. Their 
leaves begin, therefore, to take in oxygen only, 
become yellow and prepare, along with the 
fruit, for being finally resolved again into those 
elementary substances from which they were 
originally compounded. It. is at this point and 
state of the fruit that Mr. Nyce checks the 
operations of oxygen, and other decomposing 
substances, by which he holds the fruit in that 
condition when it ripened on the tree; and so 
long as he can keep the decomposing agents 
from acting on it. he will succeed in preventing 
decay, and in retaining the juices and flavor. 
In the first room iu which your committee 
entered, they found the thermometer at 34 de¬ 
grees, and on examination of the walls and ceil¬ 
ings, we did not discover a particle of moisture. 
In this room we saw apples placed in quantity 
in bins arranged one above the other, extending 
from the floor to the ceiling, containing several 
varieties of apples, which, for size and beauty, 
were not carefully selected, and Mr, Nyce in¬ 
formed us that they had been put into the house 
in September and October, and never handled 
since that time, until your committee over¬ 
hauled some of them to find the decayed speci¬ 
men*. 
This fruit we found iu a remarkably good 
state of preservation, not more than two or 
three decayed apples in a hundred, and on cut¬ 
ting the flesh, we found it crisp aud juicy, appa¬ 
rently in as good order as when they came from 
the orchard. The lemons were in the original 
packages, and had been in the house some 
weeks. These appeared to be sound, with the 
exception of one or two in the boxes, bruised, 
probably, by transportation. 
We also saw firkins of butter in this room, 
and several large cans of cooked tender fruit, 
such as peaches, raspberries and blackberries, 
the cans contaning several gallons each. Mr. 
Xyce says this fruit keeps without any evidence 
of fermentation iu the cans, nor any discolora¬ 
tion of the tin on the outside or inside. This 
he considered a profitable branch of the busi¬ 
ness, as the fruit might be retailed daily from 
the cans, without the necessity of keeping the 
cans sealed. 
\our committee visited two other rooms con¬ 
taining apples. In these rooms were some indi¬ 
cations of a slight degree of moisture on the 
ceiling, and on examination of the fruit, we 
tound it in a good state of preservation, similar 
to the first room. In examining some of the 
bins, we came across some decayed apples, but 
much fewer than wo could have expected, as 
some varieties were such as decay out of the 
house in December and January. We found 
the Belleflcur, the Ashmore aud Rhode Island 
Greenings, In a good state of preservation. 
These apples are all considered bad keepers, 
a ud out of market by decay in December or 
January. 
The house used by Mr. Nyce he says answers 
all the purposes which he intended for preserv¬ 
ing fruit, and altogether it is rude and cheap in 
structure, without ornament or finish on the 
outside or inside; the essential parts appear to 
be well adapted to the main considerations 
which he had iu view, that is, to exclude light, 
heat, moisture, and to preserve a uniform tem¬ 
perature of 34 degrees. 
lliia he has effected $ but cold houses, refrig¬ 
erators, and air-tight chambers have been con¬ 
structed before he commenced his. lie claims, 
however, to be the first to adapt such buildings 
to the preservation of fruit on a large scale; 
aud in addition to this lie claims his absorbents 
und iUhW0 arrangements of the building as his 
own invention. 
Tius house is an experimental structure, on 
, a scale for an extensive business, and 
improvements may hereafter be suggested for 
1 M erec 'tiou of larger buildings and the preser- 
MUion on a more extensive plan of many vege- 
Dtdes, fruits, animal meat, aud all other varie¬ 
ties of food subject to decay. 
'i our Committee, therefore, can not see any 
-°"d leason why buildings of that construction, 
“u * much more extensive scale, might not be 
u, great profit in fruit-growing districts, 
11 e twighborhood of largo vegetable gardens, 
? r n * !U 'S e cities, where a market would be af- 
°™ ed at a11 seasons of the year for the sale of 
fresh fruit, either at wholesale or retail; and in 
the summer season a great advantage would be 
gained by furnishing in their fresbuess and deli¬ 
cacy such fruit as could not he held over from 
decay by any other known process. 
Tour committee did not see grapes in the 
house, but in the early parr of this month, Mr. 
Nyce exhibited before theSoeiety, Kelly’s Island 
grapes kept, in bis house ail winter, which were 
pronounced by a committee as fresh and perfect 
as if they had been taken but a few hours from 
the vines. 
Your committee regret that the full commit¬ 
tee appointed to visit the house could not be 
present at the appointed time. The under¬ 
signed have, however, assumed the responsibil¬ 
ity of making an early report, as it is due to the 
Society, and also to the proprietor of the fruit 
house, for the hospitable reception which he 
extended to them; and the intelligent manner 
in which he explained the construction of tbc 
buildings, and the process of preserving tbe con¬ 
tents of it. 
WHY WESTERN APPLE TREES DIE. 
Observation leads us to add some farther rea¬ 
sons to those given by your correspondent why 
the apple trees of this section are dying out so 
rapidly. 
Bark lice are playiDg the mischief. They 
have been at work in some orchards for two or 
three years and some orchardists have just made 
the discovery this year. One orchard of five 
hundred trees, just coming fairly into bearing, 
the owner is cutting up into stove wood as the 
life has been sucked out of it by the Aphis. A 
few days since I visited a young orchard which 
had been stunted by seeding down to grass for 
three or four years, and found over one half of 
the trees dead and dying, and completely seated 
over with the bark louse. They were so thick 
in spots that the scales lapped over one another. 
This orchard had not failed for lack of pruning, 
as the cattle and sheep had attended to that 
thoroughly iu its younger days. Its present 
proprietor is making a vigorous effort to conquer 
the enemy. Lots of trees will die for ihe want 
of a little knowledge how to care for them, and 
many more from lack of perseverance in 
thoroughly applying the remedies necessary to 
eradicate this pest. 
Many trees die from carelessness, and shiftless¬ 
ness, and pemu iousness. The orchard is not 
fenced and the cattle, horses and sheep roam 
through it, harking, browsing and breaking 
down tlie young tTees. In cultivating, the trees 
arc barked and raked down, and grow up sap- 
rotten and heart-rotten, pass a sickly existence 
and perhaps bear some fruit for a few years, 
aud when an extra dry time, or a cold snap, 
comes, give up the ghost. Then the farmer con¬ 
cludes this country is not adapted to fruit. Far¬ 
mer Penurious thinks it wont pay to lay out his 
money for trees and not protect them by a fence. 
So he fences his orchard. Some fine day in pass¬ 
ing by the orchard he discovers that there is 
quite a good bite of feed around the edges, and 
there are some corn-stalks and weeds that the 
cattle might just as well have as not So in 
the cattle go. When they get the best of the 
feed cared for they turn to and trim trees and 
do any ajnount of rubbing, hooking and tearing 
about. 
As you pass through the West you will see 
plenty of orchards suffering from neglect and 
want of proper care. W onus’ nests by the score 
in the tops, broken limbs and scarred bodies, 
bark lice by the thousand, and the roots bound 
down by an almost impenetrable sod, or culti¬ 
vated crops and weeds drawing all the nourish¬ 
ment from the soil that should go to furnish the 
tree with food for a healthy growth. Truly, it 
is no wonder our trees die. It would be a won¬ 
der if they did not. 
People ought to understand that a fruit tree 
will not thrive in a pond hole. Yet how many 
there are that set their orchards on low, wet, or 
moist grounds, where water stands half the win¬ 
ter and during every long, wet spell, vainly 
wondering why they die out. Wheu Western 
people read and observe a little more, and ex¬ 
ercise a little more common scn-c, they will suc¬ 
ceed in raising orchards that will do them credit 
and fill their pockets. But they never will suc¬ 
ceed until they have had a little more dear ex¬ 
perience in the selecting of varieties adapted to 
the climate, and in their proper cultivation aud 
care. No man has any business with an orchard 
until he comes fairly to the conclusion that it 
will be worth to him all the care, cost and pains 
that are required to select, plant, cultivate and 
care for it iu the best manner known to success¬ 
ful cultivators. L. L. Fairchild. 
Dodge Co., Wis., 1864. 
~ 1 1 — 1 
TAKING UP BULBS. 
Tho Editor of the Gardener’s Monthly having 
advised his readers in July, not to take up bulbs 
until tbe foliage is quite ripe, says iu his August 
issue that a friend informs him that the contrary 
Is the practice in the bulb growing countries of 
Europe—that the practice with tho best bulb 
growers—and which is considered one of the 
secrets of their trade—U to take up the bulbs as 
soon as the flowers fade, aud lay them on their 
sides iu some vacant place and cover them with 
a few inches of soil, where they are left to ripen. 
Tho bulbs are said to be much larger when so 
treated than when suffered to ripen where they 
grow, aud the offsets are thrown off, making a 
clean, round bulb. And the flower produced 
the succeeding seeson is said to be finer than 
when the root is ripened undisturbed. The Ed¬ 
itor says his friend has tried this practice in this 
climate and confirms its advantages, above des¬ 
cribed. Let those who have bulbs make a note 
of it. 
GATHERING AND KEEPING FRUIT. 
It is becoming a well understood principle 
that pears are improved by being gathered be¬ 
fore fully ripe. Some should approach nearer 
maturity than others. But early apples should 
lie fully ripe. ■ - a general rule, before gather¬ 
ing. Late fall and winter apples should not be 
eatable when picked, and all the late winter 
varieties should be gathered when loo hard to 
yield to the pressure of the thumb, and always 
before he ivy fall frosts. A dry time should be 
selected, if possible. There will be a few spec¬ 
imens not yet mature, but von can afford to 
throw thom out to save tbc best and the main 
crop. "When a good keeping variety begins to 
drop freely from the tree, as is sometimes the 
case, secure the balance of tbe crop that re¬ 
mains on the tree as soon as possible; but they 
should not be mixed with those on the ground 
—notone should be saved with those picked. 
Windfalls will not keep, for in addition to the in¬ 
jury sustained from the fa)!, they become heutr 
ed by lying upon the ground exposed to the sun 
and hot air, and the ripening process already 
commenced is hastening it to a rapid decay. 
No matter how hot the weather is, an apple 
is always cool while upon the tree, and m that 
condition should be taken care of, if we would 
have it keep in its most perfect condition for the 
full development of all the delicious juices with 
whieh it is so abundantly supplied. How to ob¬ 
tain it in that condition will be my purpose now 
to show. We have seen that it must be care¬ 
fully gathered before it is too ripe, as it is com¬ 
monly termed; but I say before it is ripe, for 
when it is ripe it is fit to eat, and that should 
Certainly not be tbe case with winter apples 
when gathered. 
We have also seen that heat hastens tbe ripen¬ 
ing process, and that cold retards it. Apples 
should therefore be kept cool, barely so as not 
to freeze. A minimum temperature of thirty- 
four degrees is probably about right, with as 
little fluctuation as possible. 
It is not for the purpose of assuming to know 
more than the most of you about the best 
method of keeping apples, that I give the sub¬ 
ject so large a space in this address, but it is to 
give it more prominence in our d< liberations 
than it has heretofore had. I regard it as one 
of the points very much overlooked in all meet¬ 
ings of this kind. 
Whether we regard the ripening process as a 
vital or a chemical action, it is quite sure that it 
should go on gradual aud Unchecked until all the 
good qualities are fully developed, and when the 
highest point of excellence is attained, then the 
fruit should be used. It is never so good as 
when just fully ripe; but is frequently eatable 
for a long time. Some varieties become dry and 
mealy, others tough and leathery. Others, by 
being kept very cool, will frequently remain in 
a vex-y good condition for a very long time, or 
by tbe use of artificial means may be kept for 
an almost indefinite period. 
I hold that tbe ripening process once com¬ 
menced, goes on, no matter how cold, if frost is 
not present, slowly, perhaps, but uninterrupt¬ 
edly, until full maturity. Hence tbe importance 
of a cool cellar, which should always be dry and 
dark. It should be frequently aired, wher the 
outside temperature will allow of it. Some va¬ 
rieties are much more sensitive to their treat¬ 
ment than others. The Winesap, for instance, 
which has a thick skin, maybe abused a great 
deal in handling and but indifferently cared for 
in the cellar, and yet it will keep pretty well; 
that is. it will rot but little; but, if kept close 
and warm ,it is subject to a fungus that renders 
it scarcely tolerable to eat. Eut if it is kept 
cool and dry, all its best qualities are retained. 
It is also one of the varieties that does best kept 
on open shelves. The Belmont, on the other 
hand, which I regard as one of the best and 
most profitable apples, is very impatient of bad 
treatment. Its skin is smooth and thin, and 
flesh of a delicate texture. If roughly bandied 
aud kept in a warm room, it soon decays. If 
carefully handled ami kept in a cool place, it 
keeps with very little waste till April or May. 
Indeed, it is. with me, one of the very best of 
keepers.— Trans. 2nd. Hurt. .Society. 
THE OHIOANS AND THEIR GRAPES. 
We find tbe following report of a talk about 
grapes by the members of the Cincinnatti Hort. 
Society at its meeting July 23d: 
Mr. Mottier stated that his Delawares had 
rotted some, but not near as badly as the Ca- 
tawba. His Capes and Yenangos about the same 
as Catawba; A irginia Seedling and Diana uot 
much rotten. 
Mr. Howarth did not believe that the rot ex¬ 
isted where long pruning had been carried out. 
Several members alluded to instances where 
long pruning had been practiced and the rot as 
bad as elsewhere. 
Dr. Whipple said that he would probably 
have from one-sixth to one-tenth of a crop of 
Catttwhas. His loss resulted more from the 
effects of the cold winter than from the rot. 
Only an occasional bud furnished a fruitful 
branch. The winter had not hurt his Concords, 
ami neither had they rotted much—not -omueh 
as the Delawares. On these latter a few grapes 
had rotted on almost every duster; but still 
there would be a good crop. 
Mr. Challen bad his grapes on an arbor aud 
on trellis, with long wood. The rot aud mil¬ 
dew had taken one-quarter or one-third of the 
crop, but still he had a plenty left. He had be¬ 
come convinced that tho rot was only an effort 
of nature to enable a plant to rid itself of an ex¬ 
cessive quantity of fruit—more than the plant 
hail life and vigor to mature. His Isabellas 
were not so much injured by the winter as his 
i Catawbas. The Delaware [with him), Virginia 
Seedling and Concord are not injured. 
Mr. Howarth spoke again of the importance 
of long pruning. 
Mr. Mottier said that it made him sick to bear 
individuals theorizing so much in favor of this 
or that hobby—and having no practical experi¬ 
ence to show in support of their theories. He 
hail been engaged in grape culture for thirty 
years, and he bad never entirely failed of a re¬ 
munerating crop except one year, in tbe whole 
thirty. That is, he had made enough to pay 
expenses every year, but the one year, and fur- 
nirii something fair for interest. While some 
years he bad made very large crops. 
Judge Irwin (of Kentucky) said that be had 
pruned one acre of his vineyard on the spur sys¬ 
tem, leaving two or three or four eyes to the 
spur, but on this part he would not have so 
much fruit as where be bad pruned in the usual 
manner. But bis wood for next year would be 
better. On the poorest part of his vineyard he 
bad more grapes this year than any where else. 
On the richest portions scarcely any fruit. He 
had grapes trained up the walls of some out¬ 
houses, but when the rot prevailed it extended 
to them the same as to the vines in his vineyard. 
gates juta Queries, 
Plant tor name. -(Worthy A. Corell, Chant. Co., 
N. Y ) The plant you send us came in bad condition, 
but we think it unmistakably Lonicera parin'flora — 
Small Honeysuckle. 
—-- 
Watrp.ino Plants when TH8 sun shines.—(A gatha 
Dean.) It is not well “to water plants '.a the broad 
bright sunshine ’’ You know that when nature waters 
them she covers tbesun with acioady screen. Garden¬ 
ers who understand their business regard this law of 
nature in ail their U3e9 of water ou plants. 
Evergreen Nurseries.—I s there any one in Wis¬ 
consin or Illinois who has a nursery of evergreens? If 
so, who and where?— N. L., Ogdeniburg, Wis. 
We do not happen to know any Wisconsin nursery¬ 
man who devotes his attention especially to evergreens; 
but most nurserymen grow them now. Robert Doug¬ 
las of Waukegan, Ill., is paying especial attention to 
tneir propagation— Samuel Edwards of La Moiile, 
Ill., also—both “good men and true.” 
The White Japan Melon.— On page 05 current 
volume, we published an Illustration and discretion 
of this melon. Wc bad never seen it then; but now 
we have, and what is better, have tasted is. It is good 
flavor, and added, it. is early—the earliest musk melon 
with which we are- acquainted. 0>ir friend, James 
Vick, of this city, famished ns with specimens from 
his garden the last of July. It certainly merits atten¬ 
tion from such as are fond of this fruit. 
White Willow for Fence.—(J. W., Benton Cen¬ 
ter, N. Y ) On rich, moist soils, well prepared, cut¬ 
tings planted S to 12 inches apart, the White Willow 
may be recommended if you want timber, shelter, and 
a fence combined. Of the durability of such a fence we 
cannot speak. But if you do not want protection from 
a high bolt of trees, do nor want your fence to shade a 
large area, and want to keep it trimmed down to a 
height of four, live or six feet, you had better try Houey 
Locust, Buckthorn, or Osage Orange; 
Tulips from Seed —Can you give me anv informa¬ 
tion in regard toraisingtulip- from seed—when should 
the seed be planted, and how lut g before they will 
blossom? 1 nave obtatned a few seeds, and would he 
glad of any iutornwtlon you cun give—ilns. E. M. W , 
Farmington. Minn. 
We have never grown tulips from seed, but should 
plant in the spring, as we do other flower seeds. It will 
require sometime to produce bulbs large and strong 
enough to produce flowers—ftom two to live years. 
It sometimes requires a dozen years to get a perfect 
flower. Few Americans have the necessary patience 
Planting Bulbs.—P i ease tell me when Hyacinth?., 
Tulips, *c . should be set, the balls* bring out of the 
ground now — Maria. Unpru,fU, Aug., lst-f 
Spade your bed deeply, enrich it win well rotted 
manure, and plant the but ha about the first of October. 
Plant deep, so that they may not be thrown out by the 
frost. Tulips will not need covering in winter, but it 
is better to cover Hyacinths, Crocus, Jonquils, &c , 
with coarse manure, the coarser part of which may be 
raked off iu spring. And the covering will not harm 
Tulips. In making beds, secure good drainage—both 
surface and under drainage. 
Plants for Name.— (I. G. P , Danvers, ills.) No. 
1. Dodccathton M'adia, or American Cowslip ; No. 2, 
Silent America, or Garden Catch-fly; No. 3, Gompkn na 
•jlobosa, or Globe amaranth: No. 4, Lychnis—cannot 
say what species. 
•T. H B , Little Rock, Kendall Co., nis.l You send 
us ihe blossoms of the Xigundo ac*roid?s —Ash leaved 
Maple or Box Elder. It is this tree which the horti 
culturistsof Illinois have recently discovered to be a 
sugar tree, they say—those who have tried it—equal to 
the Sugar Maple in the amount and quality of the 
sugar it will yield. If it be so, it is worthy more 
extended planting—and we have no doubt at all that it 
is so, for we have the testimony of too many honest 
men to that effect. 
i ^ ► - 
Tub Rain Fall.— Prof. Henrt, Secretary of the 
Smithsonian Institute, gives the following statistics of 
the rain fall in May, June and July for several years 
past: 
Full of rain a? measured at the Smithsonian Institution 
in May, J une and J uly, since 1859. 
1859.i 
ISM). 
1861. 
1868. 
1863. 
1364_j 
Mean.. | 
May. 
Inches. 
3 920 
6.660 
3 4S2 
2.226 
3189 
5 133 
June. 
Inches. 
5 016 
2.270 
3 914 
4.913 
2 5-18 
0 805 
July. 
Inches. 
1.636 
2810 
5.213 
5 37S 
8 579 
0 600 * 
~To41 
* This quantity t* what has laileu up to July 20. 
“ From this tabic it appears that the quantity of rain 
Which fell in May last, was gun'er than the mean 
amount for tho last six years ; and that the quantity 
which has fallen since the beginning of Juue is much 
less than the average for the same time iu six years, 
and also than for any one year since 1809.” 
The Secretary remarks that tho idea frequently ad¬ 
vanced that a drouth may be interrupted by the firing 
of cannon, is fallacious A little reflection will con¬ 
vince us, that neither the combustion of gnnpowdernor 
tho agitation of the air by a discharge of camion, can 
furnish the moisture necessary to the production of 
vain. If, however, the air is surcharged with moisture, 
and the atmosphere in the unstable condition which 
immediately precedes rain, then a violent commotion, 
or an upward current of air produced by a large tire, 
may bring on a rain which might, in some rare in¬ 
stances, not otherwise have fallen. 
BLACKBERRIES FOR THE SOLDIERS. 
A correspondent of the Boston Journal, wri¬ 
ting from Washington, makes the following ap¬ 
peal, which we know will he responded to by 
all our readers. The recent rains will have ma¬ 
terially benefited the blackberry crop. We 
hope not one berry of this fruit will he allowed 
to waste. Read: 
"A few days since X sent you a communica¬ 
tion in behalf of the soldier, appealing to the 
good people of your State to secure as nearly as 
possible every remaining blackberry for hospi¬ 
tal use. Will you give me the privilege of add¬ 
ing what seems to be necessary to what was then 
said ? 
“ First, in regard to the manner of putting 
them up. Let me say to all, do not send your 
jelly in thin glass, as many have done, but in 
very thick glass or earthern ware, closely and 
tightly covered. Let the sirup be put up in 
thick bottles, tightly corked. Let the cordial, 
wine and brandy be put up in the same way. 
The Aid Societies and Branch Commissions, to 
whom these jars and bottles are sent, will please 
pack them in with cloths, fit for bandages, hand¬ 
kerchiefs, Ac. Then nothing else is injured in 
case of a leakage, and these cloths will at all 
times be very useful; they are very much need¬ 
ed now, 
“Directions were given in my former letter 
for making blackberry brandy only; not because 
more of this is wanted than the sirup, wine or 
cordial, but because people generally are not 
supposed to know so well how to make it. From 
the following it will be seen that the cordial is 
nearly the same, only richer, with half the pro¬ 
portion of brandy: 
“To one gallon of blackberry juice, put four 
pounds of white sugar; boil and skim off; then- 
add one ounce of cloves, one ounce of cinnamon, 
ten grated nutmegs, and boil down till quite rich. 
Then let it cool and settle; afterward drain off 
and add one pint of good brandy. 
The wine and jelly is made just as cun-ant 
wine and jelly. Almost all housekeepers are- 
familiar with the modes of making these. Tb-v 
sirup is made like the jelly, but not so rich,, 
only rich enough to keep well—let it become 
cold before pouring it into bottles. If it should 
form jelly, heat it over and put it up in jars. 
A gallon of sirup or jelly may save as many lives 
as a gallon of cordial wine or brandy, for if 
stimulants are needed they may be given to the 
patient separately. 
*• We know that at the present price of sugar 
and spices the putting up of any of these cura¬ 
tives for the soldier is expensive work: but we 
a>k each and all to do as much as they are able, 
) and we ask them to do tills to the exclusion of 
everything else now, white tho blackberry sea¬ 
son is passing away, I speak the sentiment of 
all connected with commissions and hospitals in 
sayiDg that the entire present fund of any aid 
society cannot be better invested than in the 
purchase of berries, spices and sugar for the pre¬ 
paration of these articles. One of our best hos¬ 
pital surgeons remavked to-day that he should- 
have as much need of blackberry curatives all 
through the fall as now, and that all seasons call 
for large quantities of them. 
The greater part of yesterday your corres¬ 
pondent spent in visiting a few of the wards in, 
Lincoln Hospital, and as in all others, and at all 
other times, testimony in favor of the black¬ 
berry was constantly coming up in a great vari¬ 
ety of ways. 
Almost the first man met was one who had 
been for along time very sick with the chronic 
diarrhea. The ward physician stood by, and 
said that he had tried almost every kind of med¬ 
icine without success in this ease. Upon being 
asked if he had not great faith in the simple 
blackberry, he answered that he had, but, said 
he, 'Madame, that is something which it is 
almost impossible to get in any form. We can 
get it only occasionally. This poor man has not 
had any.' He was promised some. Let us 
hope that it came not too late to save him. 
“ Talking with another, who had care of a 
ward, he said ; Oh! if we could only have 
enough of the blackberry juice, in any way pre¬ 
served, so many need not die of chronic diarrhea, 
it is a most terrible disease. I would rather die 
of wounds, of small-pox, of anything than of 
this. It is so painful, so lingering.’ 
*• Entering another ward, I heard a brave* 
handsome little fellow, not more than seventeen* 
asking the ward-master how loDg it would take 
a package to reach him by express from Michi¬ 
gan. He gave as a reason for asking that he had 
been sick with the diarrhea, and had been cured 
by a dish of ripe blackberries, which had been 
brought to him; that fearing he might have the 
same complaint again, and might not get any 
more berries, he hail written to his home in 
Michigan to have sent him Immediately by ex¬ 
press a bottle of blackberry wine. Whether he 
will ever receive it in that way is doubtful. 
Even letters often fail to reach those iu hospital. 
“ Near by was another man almost gone. A 
sister sat by, fanning him. He had had this 
complaint for two months in the Southwest. 
He had only lately come here. The sister said 
he was running down fast—said she had only 
this hope for his life—that the blackberry cor¬ 
dial which a lady visitor had just promised to 
bring bint the next morning might have power 
to save him. The blackberry curative waa- 
something of which the sister had not known- 
*' Send through the Sanitary Commission, or 
the Christian Commission, or the relief agency 
of your State, as you please, only do not fail to 
scud it. In the name of all that is sacred, send 
it/’ 
The following is the recipe for blackberry 
brandy referred to in the third paragraph above 
quoted: 
“ To two quarts of blackberry juice put one 
and a half pounds white sugar, half ounce cin¬ 
namon, hulfouuee nutmeg, quarter ounce cloves, 
one ounce allspice; let it boil a few minutes, and 
when cool add one pint of brandy.” 
