PUBLISHED WEDNESDAYS AND SATURDAYS BV 7OHK ri:N\7n *.• r lm , ; — FtNhO, No. 6g, Hll-H-SIREET, BETWEEN SUOND AND THIRD STREETS, PHILADELPHIA [No. 64, of Vol. lII.] LETTERS, BY THE EARL OF DU .V D 0 N A I D, ON MAKING BREAD FROM POTATOES. LETT £ R 3. ENOUGH lias been (aid in die two foregoing letters, to convince individuals of the bene fit to a rife to them, by applying the potatoe and its farina, to the uses there mentioned. 1 lha!l jiovv proceed to give a statement of the produce and value of :.n acre of potatoes, manufactured as recommended : Likewise, a statement of the produce and value of an acre of wheat.—The da ta for the fore Paid calculation, proceed upon the quantity I had, this feafan, oil an acre of ground planted in drills, and cultivated by the plough. Nor will it appear, that the produce is greater than is generally had from an acre of ground, cultivated in the fame manner ; and, which is always lei's productive than ground cultivated for potatoes by the spade ; either in the hill, or as it is pradtifed in Ireland, in the lazy-bed iu,iy ; where, from the frequent coverings and earth ings up by the spade, an instrument fitter for that purpose thai, the plough, a much larger produce in potatoes ma)' be had : and those po toes drier, and more meally, from the ground be ing better drained, and more free from moiituie. 1 mult not be supposed, by the comparative statement which follows, to recommend it* to farmers and oLhers to give up, or to prefer, be yond the bounds of prudence, the cultivation of potatoes to wheat: Nor, indeed, can such a con clusion be warranted from my former letters ; ■wherein it is stated, that a proportion of wheac ilour, or the meal of other grain, must be mixed with the potatoe-flour, to allow its forjrning a pafle, or dough, and being made into bread. According to good hufbaiidry, especially when potatoes are dug up in proper time, wlieat should follow the potatoes ; and fowi> gtafs, such as clover and rye-graft, fhouid follow the wheat : —and, by far the best method'of preparing and retruiting the ground after two fucli severe crops, as those of potatoes and wheat, is by pasturing, and top dressing with dung. Potatoes and wheat are very exhaujiing crops \ yet, fortunately, they act on the ground in different manners. Wheat confol.idates & hdrdens the furface of the ground ; while the frequent ltirrings and earthings given to potatoes, open, and allow the action of the air and the wearlier to mellow it, and rendering it friable ; forming an excellent preparation for the 'subsequent crop of wheat, to which a drefl ing with lime will be particularly serviceable.— By laying the dung upon the gtafs, the bad ef fects of it in rendering potatoes watery, as well as late io their growth, will be avoided. The, ground, when broke up for potatoes,will, with tlie subsequent culture given to it, be in high order for wheat : For which the lime may be applied with peculiar advantage, as lias al ready been observed. After the ftateinem proniifed lias been given, proceeding upon the quantity of farina got from a given quantity of potatoes, the attention of tlie proprietors of the foil in Britain and Ireland, will, then, be called to the expediency, nav, juf tici, of their leafing out final] portions of ground, to cottagers, tradefintv., and!ewcr c/afjes of thepupls, on Jeafes of three I'tvs or pxty years. Thele peo ple do all, and pay for, alinuil, all ; yet have no permanent intere'ft in thi foil, and in tks pmfperity cf the country "which they inhabit. STATEMENT A boll of potatoes confifls of sixteen pecks ; slid is, in this part of the country, the Linlith gow bailey measure, heaped. The peck, on an average, weighs 241b. averdupo;fe. From a peck of good potatoes were got 6 lb. 2 1-2 oz. of flour, and 2oz of bran. Say, however, of flour 6 lb. ; every boll of potatoes will, therefore, yield 96 lb. of flour. Fo< iv bolls of potatoes will give 3840 lb. equal to 120 br.fliels of ;2 lb. each. The flour is rated atone half-penny per lb. un der the average pi ice of u heat-flour, for some years pafl ; viz. at one penny half-penny per lb. equal to four/hillings per bufiiei ; being, like wise, the average price of oat-menl in the moil populous parts of Scotland for several years. £. s. d. By i2obu(bels potatoe fionr, at 4s 24 : o : o By 10 bolls, equal ro 40 Win chefler bolls of wheat, at ss. 6d. 11 : o : o Balance in favor of potatoe floor, 13 :o : o (Concluded.) Wednesday, December 7, 179 1. Nothing is charged above for manufacturing or preparing the potatoes into flour, as it is sup posed to be done by the cottager or manufactuc turer's wife, or louie one of his family. The liquor got in the process if given to a milk cow, (and each cottager, irc. fljotild undoubtedly'be allow ed or enabled on account of his children to keep one) will, from the additional quantity of milk, to be had thereby in the winter time, be - fufficient to defray the charges, or to pay the person employ ed in preparing the flour. The dung made by the cottager's of tradeftnan's cow, will enable him to keep his little spot of ground alway in good heart, especially if he applies the dung in the manner that has been recommended. It is a fortunate circuniftance to a country like Britain, wliere the breed of black cattle and hors es are so fa ft driving out the breed of men, that a greater produce in potatoes may be had by the spade than by the plough. The author is afraid that the predilection to four-footed beasts will con tinue, until the cottager shall, by a higher rent, bribe the landlord to prefer him to the tillage farmer or monopolizer of ground ; at least to the extent of ns much, as will enable the cottager to keep a cow, and to produce food for his family. It is fortunate too, from the advantages attending the cultivation of potatoes, that the cottager can afford to bribe the landlord by an addition of jo per cent, of rent ; and ft ill to live much more com fortably, and better than he does at present. The benefits arising from the culture of potatoes, will not be confined to the cottager and other growers of that root. All ranks of people will feel the benefit that must ensue, by keeping at a moderate rate, wheat-flour, which has been so very high for fonie years part. For as wheat-flour will bear a proportion ill price to potatoe flour, the grower of potatoes, or the cottager will have, to a certain degree, the fixing of the price for the farmer's wheat, who must either content himfelf with less profits, or have a dedutftion of rent al lowed him, by his landlord : which the landlord can afford to give, in as much as he receives ad ditional rent from the cottagers for the ground occupied by them. So that even at that rate nei ther landlord nor tillage-fariner will be loser ; and the great body of the people will befupplied with food at a moderately Iqw and regular price. I caunot\but anticipate with peculiar pleasure, the increased population of Great-Britain and Ireland, in consequence of the lower claiies of' people being better fed, and enabled to do all things at a cheaper rati. This andthe two former letters have been made as concise as could con fidently be done with cbnveying to the public my ideas on the great and important fubjetls they contain. A plentiful supply of flour to be got from under the furjace of the earth, protiihd from the feafdns is a great and pleasing idea. By the more general cultivation, of potatoes, and by adopting what has been recommended in these letrers, the inhabitants of northern countries where grain seldom comes to full maturity, will have ii in their power to provide themselves with food at a season of the year-ijtfacn potatoes in their raw and unprepared fVate cinnot be prevented from ger;nl/iatiug. A final! supply of flour or meal im ported, or oat-meal of their own produce reserv ed until the summer months, will enable thein to be plentifully supplied with food at a time when they ofien experience the greatest want. May God hlel's these and other attempts to al leviate the distress and wants of others, and in extending to the poor, comforts they are at pre sent (hangers to. Culrofs dbbey, Feb. I 79 T FROM THE MAIL. PATRIOTIC PRINTS, AMONG the objects. deemed worthy the attention of a po lilhed people, painting lias ever held a diftinguilhed rank. The Greeks made this delightful art the handmaid of religion : the Romans did the fame. The Moderns, whose taste ft.ll reraim a tineeof Gothic and Chiva'rous colouring, have maae it the lllul tration of their own pillions; and an.exhibition of the pageantry of a court, of the imagery of superstition, or the atch'.cvemcnts nl ; wicked ambition in martial scenery, has generally been the objett of the modern painter. America has produced an artist formed bv profeflion as a patriot foldicr. and amply gifted by attainments to take a new road to fame—to a fame that is to alfociatc the ideas of pollerity with the progress of freedom in this land —with the fcencs of a virtuous and gallant foldicrlliip, displayed in patriotic trials ol danger. The paintings of our Trumbull exhibii, amid .I the perfections of his art, the solid glories of bin country—Thev area scries of historical events visibly pourtrayed, that lead the mind's eve from the firft to the lait flage of the American revolu tion. This feri(« of patriotic paintings ought to be dear to Ame- 253 [Whole No. 272.} ricans : the men seen in the copy now, some of them, live If these inestimable works leave this country without recal, we ne ver more can have others of equal merit. The original will foon> be no more ; and where could we find an artilf, who, as a soldier, " lived through the icene, and was what we behold" in his works, a firft rate painter. Prims may multiply copies fufficient to sup ply every man in America who has a reiilh for the fine arts, with these works. An enlightened public ought to wish for such a work if none existed : it ought to cherish it as it does exist. CONGRESS. PHILADELPHIA. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, TUESDAY, November 22, I 79 r. Sketch oj the Debate on the Report of the Committee of Eleilions on the Elettion of j. F. Mercer, Mem? ber from Maryland. THE law of the State of Maryland regulating elections being called for, was produced and read—by which it appeared that the Gover nor and Council of that State were authorized to fill up vacancies in the representation of that State in Congress. Some objections having been offered Sgainft accepting the report, Mr. Seney observed that the cafe appeared to him to be so plain, that he was surprized to find gentlemen objecting to an acceptation of the re port of the committee. He then slated the whole process of the business in the resignation of Mr. Pinckney, and the election of Mr, Mercer—in which the law of the Stare had been flriftly ad hered to. He concluded by faying that two cases in point had already occurred in the State of Connecticut, and no difficulty refpeiSing ihtm had taken place in the house. Mr. Giles said that he was a member of the feleA committee which had made the report— and from an accurate attention to all thecircum ftances of the cafe, he was led to think the re port a very improper one. From recurring ro the Constitution, he was of opinion a re signation did not conftitutea vacancy. The Con stitution speaks only of vacancies in general, and does not contemplate one as resulting from a re signation. Adverting to the British House of Commons, he observed that in that body there could be no reiignation. This is an established principle. The people having once chosen their repre feniatives, their power ceases, and confeijuently the body to which the resignation ought to be made no longer exists. From the experience of the Britifli government in this refpeift, he argued against a deviation from this rule. ' ' He fliewed from the Conflitution that the exe cutives of the States who are empowered to fill vacancies, are not at all authorised to declarethe existence of such vacancies—for if they are to judge in the cafe, the whole power is inverted in rhetn of determining the whole business of va cancies—an idea that materially and essentially aflfe&s the privileges of the members of the house. Ke remarked that even by the law of Mary land, the requifire fleps had not been pursued by the executive of that State. He concluded by faying that if the principles he had advanced were just, he hoped the report would not be ac cepted. Mr. Smith (,S.C.) said he had had hisdoubts on the report, but on more mature consideration he was convinced that on accobnt of the inconveni ence which would result from rejeifting it, and from other considerations, it was proper to adopt it, hut not without a full difculTion. He then flared forne particulars to ihew that the vacancy which hail occured on this occafiou could not properly be called a reftgnation— Mr. Pinckney had never taken his feat, nor the requisite oath. He said that there was no analogy between the parliament of Great-Britain and this house—the mode of iiTuing the writs originally, and of fill ing up vacancies, is eflentially different. No parts of the Constitution prohibits a mem ber from refiwning, and for convenience it ought to be concluded that he may resign. The pub
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