Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/519

487&#93; II R which remark render his flesh plum;) and firm. Of the good efl k from i i having' frequently observed that they improve the coat or hair of the animal, by pro mon HORSE-dHESNUT; or^^cM- Ius, L. a genus of exotic plants, natives of the East, consisting of four spi cies : the principal of the.,e i^ the HippocastanUm, or Common Hbrse-chesnut. It thrives best in t'at land, hut will also flourish on clayey and marley soils. The horse-chesnut was brought from Asia to Europe, in the year JJoO: it is propagated from the nuts, which are gathered in au- tumn, and set in drills, about t'.rec inches asunder. In the spring, young plants will appear, which, at the end of twelve months, are to be taken up, the top roots shorten- ed, and afterwards planted in a nursery. As soon as they are of a proper size to be finally transplant- ed, they should be carefully re- moved, and set in large holes level with the surface of the ground, all the fibres being spread, and cover- ed with line mould. A stale should then be placed, to protect them from high winds, and the depreda- tions of cattle, till they are of a suf- ficient size, to defend themselves. Thi iws so rapidly t' at, in the course of a few years, it be- comes large enough, in groves and alleys, to afford a good shade dur- ing the heat of summer, when it is in full bloom: — Its fruit furnishes a grateful food to horses, and has been successfully employed for fat- tening cattle, the tallow of which it renders uncommonly firm, espe- cially when mixed with ground HOR [ 4 3 7 The milk obtained from With it, is also said to be richer than that produced by any nent. The nuts h • been wen with advanta feeding poultry; but they are un- wholesome for hogs. Deer are pe- culiarly fond of this fruit ; which has also been usefully substituted for soap ; because, on steeping and boiling it in water, it makes a good lather j preparatory to the use of that more expensive article. There are, besides, various other pur- poses to which horse-che^nuts may be rendered subservient in the arts and manufactures. Dr. Bqhmeb informs us, that M. Sprugel, an ingenious artisan of Gera, in Saxony, has discovered a method of preparing a paste, or size, from wild chesnuts, v hich may be used preferably to that made of whea ten -flour, by shoe- makers, Look-binders, card-manu- fa&urers, and especially by paper- hangers, who consume, or rather ivasle, considerable quantities of grain, in their respective branches of trade. "With this design, the nuts are first cleared of the hard shell, as well as the inner skin ; thi n cut into three or four parts j dried hard in an oven ; and after- wards reduced to fine flour, either in a mill or mortar : rain-water is next poured on them, and the whole is properly stirred till it acquire a due consistence. This paste pos- sesses a great advantage over the common size; as no moths, or ver- min, will breed in the articles ce- mented with the former ; but as it is apt to become mouldy, or sour, in 4S hours, it will be necessary to dissolve a small portion of alum in. the water before it is mixed, or to employ equal quantities of chesnut I i 4 and