which lay very thick on fome grounds, to be carefully picked up and carried away. He did this from an imagination that they prevented the grain from growing out of the earth. Thofe grounds had always before produced very good crops; but he now found, to his aftonishment, that he could hardly get any crops at all. He afked the neighbouring farmers what they thought might be the reafon of it: they were of opinion it must be his cleaning the land of the ftones, and advised him to carry them back and fpread them again all over the land; which he did at a great expence. He had excellent crops immediately fuch as the land had produced before the ftones had been cleared away. Many perfons have been ready to imagine, becaufe nothing can grow upon a bare ftone, that therefore it can be of no manner of fervice to the corn, but rather the reverse, in preventing it from growing freely out of the ground. But this conclufion is by far too precipitate; fince ftones are of furprifing and manifold ufes. For inftance, they greatly affift the plough in working the land:-they alfo prevent land of a binding quality from running together, and hardening like mortar in a wall: they screen the tender blade from blafts and blights :-they prevent the crop, where the ftaple is thin, from being fcorched up by the heat in fummer; and they prevent the exudations of the earth from evaporating; and by that means greatly promote vegetation. Should a doubt arife whether the turnpike. roads, which are now mended chiefly with mate rials gathered from plowed lands, may be kept in as good repair as they are at prefent, without any confiderable additional expence, if the power of gathering materials from plowed lands be taken away,-let it be confidered that the best turnpike-roads in England are thofe which are entirely made with round pebbles, and fuch other materials as are dug from under ground; and, on the contrary, that those which are made chiefly with materials gathered from lands, are, generally fpeaking, the very worst. This is a circumftance any perfon may be fatisfied in with very little inquiry. The turnpike road from London to two or three miles beyond Hatfield, and those from thence to Hitchin, if compared together, will furnish a ftriking initance of the truth of this obfervation. Therefore, fhould there in fuch a cafe be at first an additional expence, there can be no doubt but that it will be more than compenfated for in the excellence and duration of the roads. At the fame time I make this obfervation, I am not clear that, upon the whole, there would be even at firft an additional expence of any great confequence. In fome places, I believe the reverfe would be the cafe. The above inftances and obfervations are fubmitted, and earneftly recommended to the ferious confideration of the Honourable Society of Arts, &c. By their most humble and most obedient fervant, Knelworth, Herts, Mr. Gullett's Letter on Blights. SIR, EVERY member of the community, however diftant from the metropolis or private his ftation, who knows any thing of your laudable inftitution, which not only takes under conficeration, but encourages the propagation of every thing ufeful, from the cedar of Libanus to the Hyffop of the wall, muft, if he be a friend to mankind, or a lover of his country, not only with it well, but with alfo to contribute fomewhat towards the general good. It is that which occafions my giving you this trouble; and at the fame time, makes me hope you will pardon my prefumption in fending you the following obfervations on fo feemingly trivial a fubject. -Viz. the preventing cabbage plants from being eaten by caterpillars; together with fome reasons why the fame means feem capable of preventing blights, and their effects on fruit trees or others.-Thefe thoughts I have likewife extended in idea, to the prefervation of crops of turnips from the fly; as alfo of crops of wheat from the yellows, and other deftructive infects. If thefe latter experiments fhould fucceed.on trial, as I am ftrongly inclined to think they will, then the fame means which produced thefe effects, may be extended to an almoft infinite variety of cafes for the prefervation of the vegetable kingdom. But rifum teneati amici, how will you think you are infulted when I tell you, all this is to be performed with a bush of flinking elder!-Great effects are frequently produced from feemingly trivial caufes. Why may they not in the prefent cafe?-Of the virtues of elder in preferving cabbages from being deftroyed by caterpillars, I can already fay proba tum eft. We all know how very offenfive to the olfactory nerves a bufh of green elder-leaves is. No body wishes to smell to it, because it is fo difagreeable; and for that reafon every one avoids touching it. I confider the olfactory organs of a butterfly as much fuperior to ours in delicacy and nicety as their bodies are to ours. If fo, why fhould not what is fo offenfive to our fmell, be much more fo to theirs? We often see them alight, and remain on cabbageplants; but who ever faw them on a bush of green 'elder ? Laughable as this experiment feems to be, I last year determined to try it. Accordingly, I took fome young elder-bufhes, the ftems of which I held inclofed in a paper that my hands might not ftink of it, and whipped the cabbage-plants well with it (but fo gently as not to hurt the plants) juft as the butterfles firft ap peared. After this I never faw a butterfly come on them; nor was there, I believe, a fingle ca terpillar blown on any of the plants fo whipped, during the refidue of the feafon. I could often obferve the butterflies fluttering and hovering round the plants (like gnomes or fylphs) but never alight on them; although another bed of cabbage plants in the fame garden which had not been whipped, was infefted and eat by the caterpillars, as this has ufually been. I have tried the fame expe riment again this year, doubting not but to have the fame fuccefs; and and I fhall be happy, if (from its fimplicity) your Society fhould not think it beneath their notice, but take it under their patronage. Reflecting on the effects of this experiment, and the caufe which produced them; and thinking that blights are chiefly and generally occafioned by fmall flies and minute infects, and that their olfactory nerves are as much fuperior in delicacy to butterflies as they are inferior in fize, I whipped the limbs of a wall-plumb-tree, when in full bloffom, as high as I could reach, with a bush of young elder, whofe leaves I had bruifed, that the effluvia might be the ftronger, and fo as not to hurt the bloffom. The effects produced by this whipping are, that the leaves of thefe limbs are very green, fresh, fmooth, and flourishing; the fruit has fet very fair, thick, and thriving; and there is not the leaft appearance of a blight on any of the limbs fo whipped; while those not fix inches higher, and from thence to the top of the tree, are blighted and fhrivelled up as ufual, and as thofe of this tree had been for feveral years paft, and not one-third fo much fruit fet on the unwhipped part as on the limbs whipped, though the bloffom was equal: and there is more fruit promifing to ripen this fummer on the two limbs whipped, than has been on the whole tree for three years paft. I have fince endeavoured to restore one of the blighted fhoots, by whipping the leaves, and tying up a twig of elder among them; which hath, in part had the defired effect, by the offenfive effluvia driving away the flies. By this means thofe leaves have revived which were not abfolutely rolled up in a fcroll, where the infects are out of harm's way, and the finell of the etder. I have tried the like experiment on another tree with the like fuccefs. This has fuggefted a thought, whether an elder - plant, now esteemed noxious and offenfive, may not be one day feen planted with and entwining its branches among fruit-trees, in order to preferve the fruits. I ftruck over a bed of young cauliflower-plants which had been bit, and almoft deftroyed by infects (either fleas or flies) with an elder-bufh; fince which they do not appear to have been touched or hurt, but are reco vering apace; and I promife myfelf they will not be infefted again with any fort of infects, unlefs fome can be difcovered fond of living on elder leaves. This circumftance has determined me to try the following experiment on a crop of young ture nips (which I am about to till); When they come up to the height at which they are ufually eat, and greatly damaged by infects of fome kind or other (either flies or fleas) I intend to let a man draw a bush or two of elder, fpread fo as to cover the breadth of a ridge at once, up and down fimoothly over the young turnips; and I have little doubt of their being effec tually preferved. Crops of wheat, I flatter myfelf, may be preferved in like manner from what the farmers call the yellows, and other like accidents, which they confider as a kind of mildew; but which is in fact (as I have no doubt but you well know) occafioned by a small I 3 fir fly that blows in the ear of the corn, and produces a worm almoft invifible to the naked eye; but appearing through a microfcope a large yellow maggot, of the colour and glofs of amber, with eggs like a very fine yellow powder. Was a perfon to draw an elder-bufh lightly up and down over a ridge of corn, when the ears are first formed, and before thofe flies have blown, I have little or no doubt but the parent infects would be effectually deterred, and prevented from pitching their tents in fo noxious a fituation. As thefe thoughts, and the length I have extended them to, in a variety of other cafes in my own imagination, have afforded me fome pleasure, I truft you will pardon my troubling you with them, when I affure you, that, though the bafis of this fubject is only a fimple bufh of ftinking elder, yet the communication of it is meant as a proof of that refpect which, as a member of the community, I owe to fo truly laudable an inftitution, and is intended (however it may be received) pro bono publico. I have the honour to be, Sir, You most humble fervant, CHRIS. GULLETT. Tavistock, Devon, 4th June, 17718 P. S. Since writing the foregoing account, I have obferved, that the fame caufe is the deftruction of great part of our apple bloffom; and, could the above method of whipping our appletrees take place, I have little or no doubt of its contributing effentially to the increafe of our cyderbearings. For, allured by the fragraney of the apple-bloffom, or guided by instinct, or both, not only a fmall black fly produces fwarms of young ones in the leaves, which contract, farivel, and blight them, but they, or fome other flies, blow alfo into the bloffom, which produces a white maggot; in confequence of which, the bloffom is contracted, fhuts itfelf clofe round the worm, and forms a complete covering to it, like a fhell; where it continues devouring the heart of the bloffom till that is effectually deftroyed, and turned to a yellowish red colour, like a dried dock-leaf. Mr. Gullett's Second Letter on Blights. Sir, YOUR obliging letter, of the 20th inftant, in confequence of mine of the 4th ultimo, gives me pleasure, as well as confers an honour upon me, which I was apprehenfive the fimplicity of my fubject would scarcely entitle me to; and therefore demands, and you have my thanks, Sir, for the early notice you have been pleased to take of it, and your promife of laying it before the Society.-I was and ftill am doubtful, whether you meant to have an immediate anfwer to your queries, or at any time before your next meeting in October; but concluded upon the whole, it was better to err in fhewing my over-readiness, than the leaft backwardnefs to enter on a correspondence with fo worthy a fociety of literati, which would do me fo much honour; more effentially, as I think with you, that the fubject under confideration may be of public utility; which I confider as the bafis of your inftitution, and which should animate every individual to encourage it. Therefore, as the poor widow threw her mite of money into the public treafury of riches, fo do I my mite of obfervation into your Society, the public treasury of useful arts, and the great promoter of commerce; and which has fo largely contributed to that afcendency this kingdom is gaining over the rest of Europe in these feveral branches. The elder I made ufe of was the fambucus fructu in umbella nigro, the common hedge-elder. But then it was folely of the young fhoots of this laft fpring, which at that time fmelled much stronger and more offenfive than they do at prefent, when arrived at their bloffoming feafon. For the rind, or outer skin, of the fhoots of this year, is now much thicker than when I used them; and confequently lefs permeable to the juices, which are now become more vifcid, beginning to lofe their fluidity, and to acquire an arborical quality. The large ftems of elder, which are covered with a thick rough cortex, do not, I apprehend, give any ftrong fmell; and the expreffions in my former letter was meant to be confined folely to young elder twigs, or fhoots of this fpring only. The dwarf kind of elder, mentioned in your letter, which botanifts, I apprehend, call ebulus, being more offenfive than the young fhoots of common elder, muft undoubtedly be much preferable to it; by fo much as the fmell is more offenfive, fince all the virtues I attributed to elder are derived merely from the ftrong, ill-flavoured, difagreeable effluvia it emits: of which, I apprehend, it lofes con fiderably, the nearer it approaches to its bloffoming ftate; as the bloffom in particular scarce retains any of the genuine flavour. I do remember to have feen the ebulus. Since my last letter, I have been informed of the following fact, which feems to corroborate my hypothefis, viz. That when this county was infefted with fuck fwarms of cockchafers, or oakwebs, about eight or nine years ago, in many parishes, like the Egyptian locufts, they eat up every green thing but elder; and there was fcarce a green leaf left, unless on the elder-bufhes. I have been credibly affured, that they remained untouched, amidst the general devaftation; which can only, I think, be accounted for from their unpalatablenefs, which muft certainly be great, to occafion their efcaping fo voracious a multitude. As the farm I keep in hand is at fome diftance from this town, I ordered my hind to be fure to draw an elder-bufh over the wheat fields, as I mentioned in my last, as foon as the corn was eared, and before it began to bloffom: but the very dry hot weather bringing on the corn fooner than was expected, I was furprifed, and greatly vexed, on taking a ride thither one day, to find it got and getting into fine bloffom. 1, however, ordered, and accordingly next morning, at day-break, two fervants went with two elder bufhes on each fide the ridge, from end to end, and fo back again, and drew them over fuch of the fields as were not got too far in bloffom. Thefe I examined last week, and found pretty clear 14 01 |