tigues, found at length a peaceful retreat in our country, where he received numerous marks of the munificence of His Majesty the Emperor. We are not informed whether Father Chrysanthus has left any manuscripts of his travels.

AMERICA.

American Traveller.-Mr. T. Nuttall, honorary member of the American Philosophical Society, and of the Academy of Natural Sciences, has lately published a Journal of his Travels into the Arkansa Territory. His prime object was to furnish a sketch of the natural history of the countries watered by the river Arkansa, previous to its joining the Mississippi. This last forms an extraordinary basin, comprehending a vast bed of waters, in a channel strikingly grand, and through a rich variety of scenery. It receives a number of tributary currents, some as large as the Danube, before its efflux into the Gulf of Mexico. It extends from the Allegany and Apalachian mountains, which border on the ancient territory of the United States, to the rocky mountains that separate it from New Mexico, and from the other regions along that side of the Continent. The whole of this tract, formerly occupied by numerous tribes of natives, is now replenished with European establishments, which cannot be surveyed without emotions of tranquil pleasure. Mr. Nuttall set out from Philadelphia in 1818; and, after crossing the chain of the Allegany, arrived at Pittsburgh, built on the banks of the Ohio, at the confluence of the Monongahela and the Allegany. Excellent roads lead to it from all the eastern countries, and it is considered as an entrepôt for those situated on each side of the mountains. More than a hundred vessels of all descriptions were on the Ohio. Steam-boats and coal-barges were impatiently waiting for the rising of the waters, then very low. Pit coal is in ✓ great abundance about Pittsburgh, and is a considerable source of gain. Here Mr. N. took his passage in a vessel, proceeding down the Ohio, till in five days he arrived at Wheeling, a commercial depot for those parts of Virginia. He visited the Swiss colonies of Vevay and Gand, where attempts have been made to cultivate the vine, but without success. He came next to Louisville, in Kentucky, a large and flourishing town, with a number of banking houses; their credit was

1

at that time in a depreciated state. He then passed the Falls of the Ohio, the force of which was much inferior to the expectations he had formed The steamboats of New Orleans, which come up the Ohio, as far as Shippingsport, below the Falls, are from 300 to 500 tons; their passage back is effected in eighteen days. This traveller at length reached the mouth of the Ohio, and entered the Mississippi. The lands adjacent to these two rivers are not inhabited, on account of the inundations; but they abound in game. Here the navigation becomes difficult, and often dangerous, from the trees dragged along by the current, which, meeting with obstruction, adhere to the bottom of the river, forming a sort of dyke or rampart in the channel. The banks both of the Mississippi and Ohio are interspersed with plains, woods, hamlets, rising towns, and Indian camps. After a navigation of twenty-four days on the Mississippi, Mr. N. entered the Arkansa. The first habitations that he discovered formed a part of a little French settlement, where the land was under culture, producing wheat and cotton. Advancing further, the vegetation seemed to be monotonous, and mostly covered with immense forests, where no pathway could be discerned. The author afterwards traces an outline of the ancient population on the banks of the Mississippi. This is borrowed from a Narrative of the Expedition of Ferdinand de Soto, who sailed from Cuba, in 1539, with 1000 men, and, landing in Florida, penetrated to the Mississippi, and explored many parts of the adjoining regions: of those that attended him, only 113 returned. The author has arranged and shaded, with distinctness and precision, two most interesting topics,-the gradations of a civilization, rapid in its progress; and the primitive aspect of countries and inhabitants, as yet unexplored.

American Patents. In 1822, 194 patents were granted in the United States, of which 33 related to agriculture. In 1823, 164 were granted; of these about 28 were for agricultural implements, or systems, and 7 for improvements in steam-engines. The other arts to which the new patents were applicable, were principally those of distillation, the preparation of cotton, brick-making, navigation, &c. There was one for a machine for the removal of sick persons.

Description of a Method of protecting Cauliflower and other tender Plants during Winter. By Mr. JAMES DRUMMOND.-My success for several years past in protecting cauliflower plants, in earthen pits, from frost and snow, during winter, by means of wooden frames covered permanently with straw, induces me to send an account of the plan to the Horticultural Society. My pits are mostly made in a south and east border, in an inclosure or yard which I have for hot-beds, composts, &c. the fences of which afford good shelter from the cold quarters. To form the pits, I first make the ground as level as I can, and as firm as possible, by trampling in wet weather; I then cut them out ten feet in length by four in breadth, making the sides and ends as firm as possible, by beating the soil when wet with a spade. The depth of the pit is according to the description of plants to be kept in them. Nine inches is sufficient for cauliflower plants, and for these care must be taken that a sufficient quantity of proper soil is left, or placed in the bottom of the pit in which they are to be pricked out. Each pit of the above dimensions holds about four hundred cauliflower plants. For plants in pots the depth of the pits must be proportioned to the height of the plants, the tops of which must, when placed in the pits, be below the level of the surface of the ground. The frames proper to cover these pits are twelve feet in length by six in breadth; I prefer them of that, to a larger size, for such can be conveniently carried where wanted between two men, and can be easily opened and shut, to give light and air to the pits, by a single person. The timbers to form the sides and ends of the frames are required to be about three inches square, and quite straight. These, when joined together, are placed on a level floor, and slips of timber, two inches in breadth and one in thickness, are nailed lengthways on them at intervals of nine inches. When the timber-work is finished, the straw is fastened on in layers in the manner of thatch, and tied to the bars by rope-yarn. The straw used, is what is called in this country, reed; it is prepared by taking the wheat in handfuls out of the sheaf, and beating it against a door firmly fixed on edge; by this method of threshing, the straw is very little bruised except at the points, and is consequently preferred for thatching. The frames are always kept under shelter in summer, being perfectly dried before they are put up, and with proper care will last for several years. When the plants are put into the pits the

frames are laid over them. My method of giving air is by placing in the ground, near the centre of each pit, a forked stick about four feet or more in length, strong enough to support the frames, when raised like the lid of a box, to a sufficient height, and they remain in that position night and day, unless when actual freezing takes place, or when frost is expected in the night. I am far from thinking that these straw frames will bear a comparison with glass, for neatness of appearance; but they have other advantages besides their cheapness: when they are raised, the plants in the pits have the full advantage of air and sun, and are but little exposed to wet, the rain being mostly thrown off on the back of the frames, and when they are shut down frost cannot easily penetrate through them to the plants. It is well known that it is necessary to have mats and other sorts of coverings over glass in severe weather, the removing of which to give air in the middle of the day, and replacing at night, is attended with much trouble; whereas the opening and shutting of the straw frames is but the work of a moment. I have principally used these pits and frames for the protection of alpine and other plants usually kept under glass without fire-heat: but in cases of necessity, tender greenhouse plants may be preserved through the winter in them, as I experienced last season. I had many geraniums and other tender plants which I could not find room for in the glass-houses. By way of experiment I placed them in these pits; and although, from the unusual severity of the winter, I was obliged to keep down the frames night and day for a fortnight together, and cover them with additional straw to exclude the severe frost, the only plants that suffered were a few of the downy-leaved geraniums, and even those, on being planted afterwards in the ground, shot out vigorously in the spring at every joint. I have often tried to keep geraniums in hot-bed frames through the winter, but could never succeed if the weather was severe.-Trans. Hort. Society.

Heaths.-The diminutive size of these plants, says Mr. Phillips, their extreme beauty, and great variety, fit them better for the green-house than most other plants. Our collectors have now about four hundred species of heath, of such various colours and forms, as to defy the pen in description; for some species present us with little wax-like flowers, others with pendent pearls; some are garnished with coralline beads, whilst others seem to mimic the golden trumpet, or tempting

berries, or porcelain of bull or bottle shape; some remind us of Lilliputian trees, bedecked with Turkish turbans in miniature; some have their slender spray hung with globes like alabaster, or flowers of the cowslip form: nor are their colours less varied than their shape; whilst the foliage is equally beautiful in its apparent imitation of all the mountainous trees from the Scottish fir to Lebanon's boasted cedar, through all the tribe of pine, spruce, and larch, tamarisk, juniper, arbor vitæ, mournful cypress, and funoreal yew. Heath often forms the bed of the hardy Highlander. In most of the Western Isles they dye their yarn of a yellow colour, by boiling it in water with the green tops and flowers of this plant; and woollen cloth, boiled in alum-water, and afterwards in a strong decoction of the tops, comes out a fine orange colour. In some of these islands they tan their leather in a strong decoction of it. They also use it in brewing their ale, in the proportion of one part malt to two of the young tops of heath. Boethius relates that this liquor was much used by the Picts. The cottagers of heathy commons cut the turf with the heath on it, and after drying it, stack it for the fuel of their hearth and their oven. Bees collect largely both honey and wax from the flowers of the heath, but it is generally of a dark colour. Grouse feed principally on the seeds of the wild heath, for the seedvessels are formed so as to protect the seeds for a whole year. Cattle are not fond of heath, although goats and sheep will sometimes eat the tender shoots.

Early Turnips for Soiling.-The great difficulties which Mr. Curwen had experienced in the soiling of his cattle during the latter part of the season, determined him to sow his turnips earlier, for the purpose of supplying the deficiency of green food during the latter part of August, September, &c. With this view, he one year sowed the yellow, white, and green turnips, during the first two weeks in May, and his crop was without exception, not only the best in his own neighbourhood, but was not surpassed in any part either of the north of England or of Scotland. On the 18th of August his turnips weighed 224 tons, and on the 30th of August they were 30 tons on superior soil, and raised with manure; and on the 2nd September they weighed 22 tons. On the 10th September, his turnips raised with bones, sown a week later than the former, weighed 22 tons, and those raised with a kind of manure from London, 20 tons 16 stone, while the common town ashes pro

On the 2eth

duced a crop of 27 tons. September they weighed 36 tons; and en the seventh of October the green globe weighed upwards of 40 tons. The great advantage derived from this system is, that those who soil are not under the necessity of cutting their clover crops a second time, which not only very much deteriorates the soil, but in some instances, as was the case frequently this season, it hardly repays the expense of cutting. It is very possible, in good seasons, to have the turnips ready for drawing in the end of July, since, during this most unfavourable of all seasons, they have been ready in August. If Mr. Curwen had net adopted this plan during the season, he could not possibly have continued to soil his 100 head of very valuable short-horned cattle at the most critical period of the year. In average years, one acre of clover, at the second cutting, may be estimated at five tons, so that one acre of turnips is equal to five of clover. Twelve acres of the second cutting of clover this year would scarcely have produced 30 tons of grass. The expenses of cutting and securing the clover would vary in different situations; but the great advantage derived from turnips, and their comparative cheapness, must be manifest to all; for, if clover be given in a succulent state to milch cows, the quantity consumed of turnips and elover is nearly the same. If clover be given in a state not sufficiently succulent, a great loss of milk must always be expected. Besides all these advantages, less injury is invariably sustained by the ground in case of pasturage, than when cut for soiling a second time. In favourable years, Mr. Curwen's stock of cattle will be supplied with turnips during early 46 weeks, and thus he will find it only necessary to supply the deficiency of six weeks with clover, vetches, &c. It ought also to be remembered, that the period for cutting the second crop of clover is very important, being in general the time of harvest.

Preservation of Fish, &c.-For ensuring the sweetness of fish conveyed by landcarriage, the belly of the fish should be opened, and the internal parts sprinkled with powdered charcoal. The same material will restore impure or even putrescent water to a state of perfect freshness. The inhabitants of Cadiz, who are necessitated to keep in tanks the water for culinary uses, were first indebted to our informant, during the late Peninsular war, for the foregoing simple yet efficacious remedy of an evil which they had long endured.

Descriptive Outline of the Vacuum-Engine, for raising Water, impelling Machinery, &c. &c. invented by Mr. Samuel Brown, of Printing-house-square, London, with an enumeration of some of the advan tages to be derived from its application.— "This invention (as described in the specification of the patent) consists of a combination, which is thus formed :-Inflaminable gas is introduced along a pipe into an open cylinder or vessel, whilst a flame, placed on the outside of and near the cylinder, is constantly kept burning, and at the proper times comes in contact with, and ignites, the gas therein; the cylinder is then closed air-tight, and the flame prevented from entering it. The gas continues to flow into the cylinder for a short space of time, and then is stopped off; during that time, it acts, by its combustion, upon the air within the cylinder, and at the same time a part of the rarified air escapes through one or more valves, and thus a vacuum is effected; the vessel or cylinder being kept cool by water. On the same principle, the vacuum may be effected in one, two, or more cylinders or vessels. A vacuum being effected by the above combination, it will, by its application to machinery, produce powers in several ways; and, in the specification, the Inventor describes some of the different kinds of machinery by which water may be raised from a pond, river, &c.; an overshot waterwheel turned; and pistons worked which give a rotatory motion to a fly-wheel. The ways being therefore explained, in which, by the pressure of the air, the vacuum produced (and continued) is applied to useful purposes, Mr. Brown claims to be the Inventor of the combination above described for effecting a vacuum, however much it may be varied by the mechanical means with which it may be used, and also the inventor of applying a vacuum produced by the combustion of inflammable gas, to raising water, and to the production of motion in machinery by the pressure of the atmosphere. The advantages to be derived from this engine are, Istly, The quantity of gas consumed being very small, the expense of working the engine is moderate.-In its application on land the saving will be extremely great, the cost of coal gas (deducting the value of the coke being inconsiderable. The expense of working a marine engine will certainly be greater, as the gas used for that purpose must be extracted from oil, pitch, tar, or some other substance equally portable; yet even in this case, it will not equal the cost of the fuel required to propel a steam-boat; and, as a few butts of

The

oil will be sufficient for a long voyage, vessels of the largest tonnage may be pro pelled to the most distant parts of the world. 2dly, The engine is light and portable in its construction, the average weight being less than one-fifth the weight of a steam-engine (and boiler) of the same power; it also occupies a much smaller space, and does not require the erection of so strong a building, nor is a lofty chimney requisite. In vessels, the saving of tonnage will be highly advantageous, both in the smaller comparative weight and size of the engine, and in the very reduced space required for fuel. 3dly, This engine is entirely free from danger. No boiler being used, explosion cannot take place, and, as the quantity of gas consumed is so small (being only about a hundredth part of the cubical contents of the cylinder;) and the only pressure that of the atmosphere, it is impossible that: the cylinder can burst, or the accidents incidental to steam-boats occur. power of the engine (being derived from the atmospheric pressure of nine pounds and upwards to the square inch) may be increased, with the dimensions of the cylinders, to any extent, and always ascertained by the application of a mercurial gauge. It is scarcely necessary to allude to the well known fact, that, after deducting the friction arising from the use of the air and cold water pumps, &c. &c., the general available power of the cons densing steam-engine is from seven to eight pounds per square inch. The cost of the machine will be moderate, particularly as constructed for raising water; it is therefore peculiarly adapted for draining fens, &c., or supplying reservoirs ; the expense of wear and tear will also be considerably less than that of the steamengine, and, when occasionally out of order, it may be repaired at a trifling cost, and with but little delay. The simplicity of the construction of this vacuum-engine (which has been approved by several eminent scientific men), and the certainty of its principle, combined with the advantages above enumerated, will, it is presumed, render it eminently valuable to the public,"

On a Method of taking Casts of Leaves and Foliage.-3y Mr. W. Deeble.-The object I proposed in making casts similar to the one submitted to the Society of Arts, was to supply myself with fac-similes of the form and texture of those plants, which, as an engraver, I might have to introduce in the fore-ground of landscapes. It is well known, that those who have attained eminence in landscape engraving, have devoted a large portion of