with that fown broad-caft, though the experimenter complains of the inexpertnefs of his operator. Mr. Cooke, the inventor of a drill machine for which he has a patent, produces a long lift of crops of various forts of corn that had been fown by his drill [narrow drills, for hand-hoeing only, as we understand] which had been ascertained in various parts of the country, that feem ftrongly to recommend the practice as beneficial, Mr. Baker, of Bradley houfe, communicates a very fimple mode of curing the black ruft in wheat-difcovered by Mr. Richard Winfor, which, if it be found effectual, will be a great difcovery. He advises that the wheat fhould only be allowed to ftand two or three weeks uncut, after the time that it is ufually reckoned fit for being cut down. We feldom wish to decide à priori; but the experiment can be eafily tried. Under this head, we have alfo the refult of an experiment by Dr. James Anderfon, intended to afcertain whether lean or plump grain, ufed as feed, produced grain of an equal quality: he found, that the fewer feeds of the lean kind vegetated; the ftrength of the ftems, and plumpnefs of grain produced, were not diftinguishable at harveft.

CULTIVATED GRASSES.

Mr. Onley continues to recommend the trifolium alpestre, which he calls in English, Cow Grafs, as an article of great value; he observes, that the feeds of the trifolium purpureum pratenfe have been fold in the feed fhops for those of the cow grafs, but this is not fuch a valuable plant. He complains that red clover now frequently fails, by becoming tired, as he terms it, of the foil, and advifes that it fhould be lefs frequently fown on the fame field than it has for fome time paft. This disease has been usual in Norfolk and Suffolk, and much and generally complained of lately in the fouthern parts of Great Britain. It does not feem to be quite fo common as yet in North Britain, if we may judge by a letter from Dr. Anderson on that fubject, in anfwer to fome queries that had been put to him.— Broad clover, by itself, he fays, was always found by him rather a precarious crop; but he does not obferve that it has become more fo of late than formerly. He fays, that in a particular kind of fpungy foils, it is extremely liable to be thrown out by the froft, and defcribes the way in which froft, by an operation purely mechanical, produces that effect, illuftrated with a figure. The water, he fays, in thefe foils, in freezing, hoots into cylindrical perpendicular columns, which laying hold of the shoulder of the plant, at the top of the root, forces it upward, tearing the roots out of the ground. We had fome difficulty to reconcile the drawing to the defcription, and are Convinced there must have been an error committed by the

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engraver for the plants, which are defcribed as clover having their roots forced out of the ground, are reprefented as trees with fome branches cut from their ftems -as we were long puzzled with this. He adviles, that in all cafes, a little ryegrafs and fome white clover fhould be fown with broad clover, even where one crop only is intended to be taken. An anonymous correfpondent warmly recommends the culture of burnet, as affording much more nourishing food for fheep than most other plants and fays, in particular, that it is a perfect cure for the rot in sheep. Though we do not place entire reliance on thefe affertions, it is certainly worth while to afcertain the fact by experiment,

DAIRY.

Mr. Wimpey favours the public with fome judicious remarks on the management of a dairy farm, and points out the neces fity of adapting the general plan of farming to the nature and condition of the land; fhewing what land can be most profitably managed for grazing, for dairy, for corn, &c.-and approves of the practice of judiciously blending arable and pasture land. He obferves, that no general rule can be given for the moft advantageous mode of difpofing of the produce of the dairy, as the profits on different articles are greatly varied by local circumstances, &c.-From a particular experiment, he ftates the quantity of butter, and of cheefe, that he obtained from a given quantity of milk from the fame dairy-and ftates the prices at which he could have fold them but in other circumftances, the value of these articles of the dairy might have varied and with the milk of another dairy, the proportion might have been very different. He complains of the hurtful effects of the monopolizing enterprizes of the London cheesemongers. Many ufeful hints occur in this paper, though feveral of his pofitions may be difputed,

BUCK WHEAT.

The only experiment on this kind of crop that here occurs, turned out lefs profitable than thofe recorded in the former volume of the Bath Papers-but this must be in a good meafure attributed to unfkilful management, as the person who tried it, was avowedly unacquainted with the culture of this crop.

ORCHARD S.

Several obfervations occur in this volume, from different quarters, on the important fubject of orchards, and the culture of apple trees. It feems that a notion pretty generally prevails, that the quality of apples in England is now inferior to what it formerly was, Mr. Richard Samuel, with great

feeming

feeming probability, is difpofed to afcribe this deterioration of orchards to the little care that is taken to preserve the most valuable kinds of apples for grafts to young trees, and propofes, that the Bath Society fhould be at pains to obtain grafts of the best kinds of apples from their numerous correfpondents, to be propagated under the care of the Society, and that grafts from thefe trees fhould be diftributed gratis, to fuch farmers as called for them. The principle, if we may adopt a parliamentary phrafe, of this improvement, feems to be unquestionable, and we are perfuaded that were the Society to adopt the plan under proper regulations, it might be attended with very beneficial effects. If gentlemen who have particularly valuable forts of apples, were to fend grafts of none but the beft, accompanied with an exact defcription of the qualities of each, feveral very fine kinds would thus be in a fhort time brought together.But we cannot approve of the propofal for diftributing grafts gratis, for two reafons: First, it is a general rule, that what is gotten for nothing is attended with very little care, so that those who thus had an opportunity of obtaining them, would probably be very remifs in attending to them; and Secondly, whatever bufinefs brings no profit to thofe who have the charge of it, will very foon be neglected. It would therefore, we should think, be an improvement on the hint, if the Society would make choice of a nursery-man on whofe attention and probity they could depend; to whom they should communicate all the grafts that were fent to them from correfpondents, accompanied with a defcription of the kind and qualities of the fruit, fubfcribed by the name of the perfon who fent it, and mentioning the place where the original tree from which the grafts were taken grows. These trees to be numbered in the catalogue, according to the order in which they came to hand, and the catalogue to be printed at the end of each volume of the Bath Tranfactions, as the work advances. Could a small spot of ground be obtained alfo for the purpofe of an orchard, and one tree of each fort be planted in it, in regular order, as numbered in the catalogue, to be preferved for the advantage of fucceeding generations, we cannot doubt but in a few years a much better collection of apples would be obtained than ever could have been with certainty procured in any part of the ifland at a former period. Toward the completion of this plan, we shall juft add, that a few grafts, if cut at the proper feafon, might be con. veyed by poft from any part of England to other parts, and that a fufficient number of thefe grafts for a fpecimen need not ex. ceed the weight of two ounces. Mr. Daniel Grimwood think! the degeneracy complained of (if fuch complaint be justly founded), may be afcribed to the practice of grafting apples on fra ftocks, in preference to crabs. He therefore recommends the

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1

ufe of crab ftocks in general, and propofes to make fome experiments with a view to afcertain with certainty whether it is true, that in any cafe apple trees which have at one time bore a fine fort of fruit ever degenerate fo far as to bear fruit of a different kind. We much approve Mr. Grimwood's propofal, and hope he will perfevere in the attempt, and communicate the refult in fome future volume of thefe memoirs. It will be right in him to fpecify, at a very early period, the particular experiments from the very out-fet of the business, that the trees may be identified, so as to admit of being obferved with certainty at any future period, fhould the author himself not be in a capacity to obferve them. Mr. Gillingwater and Mr. Wagstaffe feem to apprehend, that the degeneracy complained of may be occafioned by a mixture of different kinds of farina fecundans impregnating the plant at the time of flowering; but as it is not the practice to raise apple trees in this country from feeds without grafting, we do not fee how it can be attributed to that cause.

Befide the above, there are feveral fmaller articles relating to a variety of particulars in farming that occur in the prefent volume, viz. on the culture of rape or colefeed, by Mr. Hazard,-on mustard, by Mr. Onley,-on flax and hemp, by Mr. James Elleker, on the culture of flax, woad, coriander feed, anife, and several other articles, by Mr. Bartley,-on planting wafte land, by Mr. Wagstaffe,-on the importance of planting timber trees, by Mr. Pavier,—on the advantage of river weed as a manure, by Mr. Wagstaffe obfervations on the wind in fheep, by Mr. Webb,-and on the blaft in fheep, by Mr. Poticary. All thefe contain ufeful hints to the inexperienced farmer, but nothing new that requires to be here particularly Specified.

The only machines here defcribed are, Mr. Winter's patent drill machine, accompanied with a plate, the fame with that given in Mr. Winter's own publication-another drill machine by a Somerfet farmer, anounced but not particularly defcribed, a drag harrow by Mr. R. Triffy, a combing pot for coals, and a tranfplanter for turnips; none of which could be properly defcribed without the plates.

Mifs Henrietta Rhodes, who hopes to introduce the culture of filk worms into this fland, on a large fcale, though subjected to various unforeseen accidents in her favourite purfuit, continues her laudable exertions, with unabating zeal. In a letter, written with her usual elegance and perfpicuity, the here controverts a received notion, that the breeding of filk worms is

* "Compendious Syftem of Husbandry," See Review for April, 1788.

an

an unhealthful employment, and contends, from her own experience and obfervation, that this notion is erroneous. She thinks that nothing will fo much retard the progrefs of this art, as the difficulty of propagating the mulberry tree in great quantities, according to the mode of encreafing it that hath hitherto been practised in this country-and therefore proposes that the Bath Society fhould offer a premium to the perfon who fhall discover an easier method of multiplying thefe trees than any that is hitherto known. The views of this lady feem to us to be just, and we cannot help warmly wifhing that her exertions may be crowned with fuccefs. On this fubject we beg leave to hint, that as the black mulberry ripens well in this country, there seems to be no reason to fufpect but that it could be raised from feeds, as well as moft other plants-we have never heard of this mode of rearing it having been attempted-but if it shall be found to fucceed, it could thus be propagated fo as to make very numerous plantations in a fhort time. We mention the black mulberry in particular, because it has lately been found in France, that its leaves are rather more proper for the filk worm than those of the white sort.

Befide the papers that immediately relate to the fubjects of agriculture and the arts, we have in this volume an elaborate Effay on the most practical method of an equitable commutation for tithes, in general, throughout the kingdom, by Mr. Pryce ; and a learned differtation by Dr. Falconer of Bath, on the prefervation of the health of perfons employed in agriculture, &c. Both of thefe fubjects are treated in a way that reflects honour on the respective writers; but the great length to which this article has been already extended forbids us to enter on farther particulars. We fhall therefore conclude with recommending the prefent volume of the Bath Society papers to the attention of fuch of our readers as are interested in rural affairs-as it contains a great many useful, and fome new facts; with a variety of hints that ferve to turn the reader's attention towards objects of confiderable importance *.

*We have often had caufe to complain, that gentlemen who communicate to the public facts in agriculture, take fo little care to ascertain the nature of the weights and measures mentioned by them. It gives us pleafure to find that two of the Bath Society correfpondents, Sir Thomas Beevor, and Dr. James Anderfon, have adverted to this particular. We hope others will follow their laudable example in this refpect. It will tend much to the advance. ment of knowlege,

ART.