1805.] 
without my knowledge; nor was I apprized 
of it until applied to on his behalf, to prove 
that he was not the author. With that in- 
tent I appeared at his trial, but my intended 
evidence was rejected, as inadmiffible ; on 
the yround, that fuch evidence would not 
difprove the aétof publication, 
Powerful indeed is the prevalence of 
fafhion! While the Minifter, in 1783, had the 
reputation of a reformer, exhortations to re- 
formation, as things not merely innocent 
but meritorious, were widely circulated by 
wife and virtuous men; whereas, in 1794) 
when the fame Minifter was no longer a re- 
former, but had made war upon fuch as 
were, the good men and true, of whom our 
juries were compofed, condemned fuch ex- 
hortations as contrary to good manners and 
morals. But fafhions are faid to refemble, 
in fome degree, the feafons, by coming round 
again after intervals of abfence ; and perhaps 
the day is hot far diftant, when we reformers 
fhall again acknowledge our obligations to 
Mr, Pitt.. While climbing to power, he 
helped to keep parliamentary reformation in 
fathion by his arguments; fo, having attain- 
ed the object of his ambition, he has fince 
given tenfold ftrength to our conviction of 
irs neceflity, by his ations. Let us not 
therefore def{pair of the return of a faihion, 
that would do as much honour to our tafte as 
to our wifdom. I remain, dear Sir 
Your moft obedient fervant, 
Jonn CARTWRIGHT. 
er TE Pia 
™~ 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
BSERVING, in your Magazine, for 
O&tober, 1803, page 264 5, the 
refult of -~Mr. Bevan’s experiments, in 
** curing the Smut in Wheat; and hav- 
ing beftowed much time, and no inconfi- 
derable expence, for the fame purpofe, I 
here furnifh you with a detail of my ob- 
fervations and experiments, warranting 
them to be real matters of fa&. As fuch, 
they are at your fervice. 
In the year 1798, being about to com- 
mence farming, and, in this infance, in- 
dulging a fpirit of fpeculation too far, I 
formed an idea, that the fmut in wheat 
could not bea matter of that high im- 
portance which my neighbours reprefent- 
ed it to be ; and in this I was partly con- 
firmed, by recolleéting, that none of the 
other kinds of grain were fubje& to the 
fame kind of deterioration or degeneracy. 
Accordingly, I adopted, as my guide, 
on this occafion, the idea of well dreffing 
- my feed corn, and fowing it in its dry 
natural ftate. This plan 1 purfued two 
years, without obferving a fingle {mut ; 
in the third year, however, to iy forrow 
Experiments on the Smut in Wheat. . 85 
and my lofs, the ‘fmuts appeared fo nu- 
merous, that, at leaf, one ear in four or 
five wasas black as foot! This was a {e- 
rious matter to me, and forthwith I began 
my experiments. Jt muft be cbferved alk 
along, that from firfttolaft, Tnever changed 
my fecd-wheat, bad as it was now become 5 
my principal aim was, how to cure if, 
To make myfelf acquainted, however, 
if poffible, to what degree,of degeneracy 
wheat, in this ftate, might arrive, I 
fowed, next year, a fmall quantity (a 
rood) of my fmutty corn in its dry fate; 
the refult was, three-fourths of the crop 
was i{mutty: the next> year I fowed ano. 
ther {mail quantity (in the fame ftate) of 
the preceding year’s produce, when, ob- 
ferving all the ears, or mott of them, to 
be perfeétly yellow (which indicates, that, 
when come to maturity, they will be 
{mutty), and the firaw a dark bottle- 
green, [ ordered the corn to be mown 
green, for horfes. From this: it would 
appear, that wheat would, in time, fo far 
degenerate, as not even to yield a (ingle 
acre of found corn! What is the reafon, 
1 fhall not pretend to fay. 
I will now lay before you the refult of 
my endeavours for a cure or remedy to 
the {mutty corn which Thad the third 
crop, fromthe year 1798, or the firft year 
of the fmut’s appearing. My firft plan 
was, to drefs well, with a ftrong blaft, 
then to wath off the whole in water, 
wherein was as much common falt as 
would ferve anege: after the liquor was 
run clear off, I mixed among the wheat 
as much quick lime as made it tolerably 
dry, and proper fer fowing. 
This, on being fown, produced a good 
crop; there werv, ‘however, a few ftrag- 
gling {muts, but none to hinder the fale 
of it inthe leaft, Another year commenc- 
ing, I took fome of this laf mentioned 
wheat (that contained a few ftrageling 
ears of {mut), and having it well arefled, 
I poured upon a quantity thereof as much 
old urine, or chamber-lye, as I fuppofed 
it would imbibe, and, letting it remain 
about half an hour, I drained it, and 
mixed it with 2s much quick lime (newly 
flaked) as would make it nearly dry, and 
fit for fowing; I then committed itto the 
ground, and in the harveft I perceived no 
{muts—having completely effected a cure* 
upon my {mutty wheat! 
Adling fleet, J. Tyson, Vicar. 
Dec. 9, 1804. 
WN. B. The wheat thus mixed with urine . 
* I had twelve acres of wheat this year. 
E2 and 
