Viewing page 211 of 285

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

112 ANNUAL REGISTER

be sufficiently prepared in three or four months.
After several experiments, I found two methods free from the above inconveniences, and which I have great reason to think will answer the purpose fully from four or five years experience.

The first method has some affinity with Mr. de Reaumur's, and is as follows.  When the subject and spirits are put into the bottle, carefully wipe the inside of the neck and edge till quite dry; prepare some thin putty, of the consistence of a soft ointment, and put a coat of it, about a line or two thick, on the side of the bladder or leather, which is to be next to the bottle, and tie it tightly about the neck; place the bottle with the mouth downwards in a small wooden cup, and fill it with melted tallow, or tallow mixed with wax, until all the bladder or leather cover is buried in it, and the tallow adheres to the sides of the neck.  This will effectively prevent the fine part of the spirits from flying off.  Great care must be taken to have the edge of the bottle very dry, and if rubbed with a feather dipped in oil, it will be better; and in filling the cup, to have the tallow no hotter than is barely necessary to make it fluid.

The second method is, after the specimen and spirits are put into the bottle, dry the inside of the neck and edge thoroughly, and anoint them with a feather dipped in oil; stop the bottle with a cork, well fitted in steeped oil, till it has imbided as much as it can contain; cover the cork and edge of the bottle with a layer of putty prepared as above directed, and tie a piece of soft leather or bladder of the whole.

3

Olive, or any other fat oil, is to be preferred to such as dry easily.  I would also recommend the use of spirits of a moderate strength, as those that are very strong burn up and discolour the specimens, particularly such as form fine colours.  These two methods have the advantage of Mr. Reaumur's, in the smallness of the expence, and easiness to procure the materials.  For specimens that it will not be necessary at times to take out of the bottles, I would recommend the first method, as more obstacles are opposed to the evaporation that in the second; besides the cup, the cost of which is very trifling, puts the bottle in less danger of being overset and broken, than most bottles when standing on their bottoms.

The proper Method of raising a White-Thorne Hedge; from Mr. Comber's Treatise on Agriculture.

The raising a good White-Thorne Hedge is a matter of very great importance in Husbandry.  It deserves, therefor, to be strongly inculcated; and the following Reflections on the subject may, accordingly, be of use to Practitioners in Agriculture.

The method of setting old thick-setts of white-thorn was long pursued as a sure method of quickly effecting a good hedge: but experience evinces, that practitioners could not depend on the thickness of the stems of their fences, but rather the contrary; as many of these were stunted in their growth, and the young small setts soon overtook them in growth and left them.  It has therefore been a practice for some years, over all the kingdom I believe, to set no thorns 
but

For the YEAR 1772.

113

but such as had young small stems; and, in general, the method has succeeded well.

But now we seem running into the extreme contrary to the old, as it usually happens, and setts two small are now frequently planted.  There must be a medium which is the properest size for setts of white-thorn; and he who plants as small I have lately seen will certainly be on year backwarder in the growth of his hedge then his neighbor who setts stronger wood, although they may grow as well in proportion.

I must onw myself an advocate of planting quick in a single row, having this foundation in theory, that the roots of thorns, set in double rows near each other, will certainly encounter and retard, if not destroy, their mutual progress; and the confirmation in practice in Yorkshire, that single rows make a fine hedge both in channelly or gravelly and clayey foils.  

But another and worse error is the setting of plants think in the same row.  Walking lately by a new inclosure at Woolley, I was amazed at the thickness of the plants in the line, and laid down my walking-cane at random in two places, and found thirteen setts in extent in one place, and fourteen in another, although my cane is of usual length.  Before I finished my walk, I met a pretty judicious farmer, and asked him as what distance the plants should stand in the line, and he answered, at about the distance of six inches.  I think this too close planting; but on this plan the rows at Wooley are set twice too thick; and, the rows being double instead of single, three-fourths of the wood are wasted and 

Vol. XV.        I

worse than wasted; for they do harm instead of good. -- When such a super-abundance of wood is employed, who can wonder that the price of quicksets is raised to extravagantly as they are in some parts of the kingdom!  It is said, that the growth of this commodity for some late years has not answered by any means to the demand, and that the hips have been so poor a crop of late, that future inclosures must be delayed, till a supply of quicksets can be procured.  Who can wonder that such a waste as this, which is just no mentioned, should be followed by want!  The quick-seller encourages the sale of more than wanted, the he may enhance the price of what remains on hand.  The quick-setter recommends the planting of more setts than are wanted, that he may be better paid for extraordinary trouble; and thus the quick-grower is choufed out of his money, and pays for what he had better want.

The properest time for planting of quicks is much disputed.  The generality of planters are for planting early in the spring; but experience will soon teach them, that, the frosts continue so long as they usually do, and so late as they continued in the spring particularly, the roots and life of their plants will suffer greatly; and, if they plant them late in the spring, the dry weather will frequently kill this plant, which naturally shoots early.  Experience will shew, that the best time of planting white-thorn is between twixt Michaelmas and Martinmas; but then a quantity of short half-decayed litter should be laid along the line, as in gardens on many beds.  By this means the roost of the plants will be preserved from the