The Sun.
London, England, 1845-09-09 00:00:00

DUNDEE TRADE REPORT.
Our markets have undergone no change worthy of notice
during the last eight days. Flax of all sorts is unaltered
either in demand or prices, but from the inferiority of the
most of last year's crop imported here from all quarters, there
will, in all likelihood, be ere long a scarcity of fine flax, and
which may naturally be expected to have the effect of
keeping up the value of all such material. Tows and
codillas are in improved demand and advancing
in prices, especially such as are possessed of colour
and quality. In hemp and hemp codilla, nothing
doing. East India jute is again rather easier, and may now be
quoted, for ordinary parcels, at from 121. to 13/. per ton, for
fine parcels, at from 141. to 15!. per ton, and for the very best
parcels at from IEL to 15!. 10s per ton. Yarns and linens of
all kinds are in steady demand, at the annexed quotations, and
it is understood that, at present there are no stocks of either
in the hands of our spinners and manufacturers. The ar-
rivals consist of one vessel from St. Petersburgb, three
from Pernau, and one from Memel, all loaded with flax,
tows, and codillo. Riga letters of date the 9th ultimo, 0. S.,
and Memel letters of date the 22d ultimo, N.S., have been
received. At Riga the prices of flax had given way, 1 SR.
per berk, whereat there have been large transactions, and there
remained many buyers but few sellers of the raw material at
the reduced rates. At Memel there was an active demand for
fine flax,for the French market, end the dealers weredernanding
38/. per ton for 4 brand when taken by itself, and 10s. per ton
less for that mark when accompained with the usual proportion
of Nota Bene and 3 brand. The reports of the growing crop
of flax were anything but favourable, either in Russia or
Prussia.—Dundee Courier.

THE POTATOE DISEASE.

All that we see, hear, or read of the potatoe crop, convinces
us that the extent of injury which has befallen it is in no de-
gree exaggerated, but the contrary, and that there is no pre-
sent help for it. We see no prospect of stopping the murrain
by human agency, and we believe that the best thing to do,
under the circumstances, is to let the crops alone, unless means
can be found of consuming them immediately, and in
that case they should be taken up and dried. Much
will be found not worth the diggirg. In other cases,
where a part only of the tubers are attacked, it will be
better for the symptoms to become more distinct before
what remain are sorted and pitted. If any means
exist for consuming those which are just beginning to decay
it will be prudent to take advantage of them ; for unless the
rot has eaten deep into the tubers they may certainly be given
to pigs or other animals, with safety, provided they are boiled
or steamed, and mixed with a little salt. This has been done
within our own knowledge; and we have ourselves eaten
roasted potatoes, in which the canker was only skin deep.
Many idle reports are current on this subject, which deserve
no attention.
It is some consolation to know that those tubers which were
sound a week ago remain so, and manifest no signs of being at-
tacked. We have just examined some samples put in a dry
place, and we see that those which were sound at the time of
sorting are sound still ; while, on the contrary, those in which
the disease had shown itself, but a very little are much worse,
and are decaying fast. In the open field, too, the mischief does
not seem to spread, and we are persuaded that if we had hot sunny
weather, the evil would have gone no further. Unfortunately,
however, the gloomy state of the air, and the low temperature,
have been imperfectly compensated for by absence of rain.
It will never do to pit the potatoes in heaps, covered with
straw and earth. If this system is pursued, we anticipate the
totat decay of such heaps. It is very improbable that, with all
possible care, the potatoes will be so sorted that no infected tu-
bers shall be left in the heaps. One such tuber will communi-
cate the malady to a ton ; for it will soon form mouldiness on its
own surface; the potatoes in contact with it will be infected; they
will give it to their neighbours, and so on. In the process of pit-
ting, every potatoe must be separated from its neighbour by
solid earth. Then, if one tuber decays, it will not be able to
spread the mischief, because, being embedded in soil, it will
not be in contact with others. Potatoes therefore should be
stored in heaps ; a single layer of them should be covered with
earth, well worked in between them ; then another layer should
be thoroughly imbedded as before, end so on. If straw could
be had, we should even be inclined to thatch the heaps, so as
to keep them dry; and at all events, if they are in the open air,
we should draw trenches round them so as to carry off all the
water. Wet is favourable to decay, and also to the attacks of
mould plants ; dryness is an enemy to both. The drier, there-
fore, the potatoes can be kept in their pits the more chance
there will be of keeping sound those that are so when laid up.
We cannot too strongly impress upon gardeners the extreme
importance of this precaution.— Gardener's Chronicle.
A correspondent of the same paper says—" As with the
decay of the haulm all further growth is at an end, no good
can accrue by leaving them in the ground ; therefore, the
sooner dug up the better. By exposure for a day or two to
air and solar heat, such of them as are not very extensively
affected may be checked from further decay, sufficiently so for
seed at any rate, and probably by cutting out the diseased por-
tions before cooking, and by mashing, they may be wholesome
as food. if superabundant moisture has in any way contri-
buted to this disease, ridging up the rows very highly, so as to
leave trenches below the level of the roots would not only keep
them dry, but would expose a larger surface for the influence
of solar hest and light to ripen the tubers."
We are sorry to be compelled, from information we have
received from most authentic sources, to class this locality
among the numerous districts in which there is an entire or
partial failure of this important crop. We yesterday heard of
a ease in which twelve bushels had been taken from the
ground, only four bushels of which were fit for use. They
seem to be attacked by one point of the potatoes becoming
damp, which in some cases spreads all round, and in others
strikes at once to the centre, leaving a blackness and rotten-
ness wherever the disease goes. Another singular case we
heard of, in which a large quantity were taken up on
Saturday morning last, all the roots being apparently sound
and good. At evening-time, however, of the same day,
they were all very much specked by this disease, and if not
used immediately will be utterly worthless for any purpose.
We yesterday went into a piece of six aercs, and out of a large
number dug up from various parts of the field, not one seemed
to be thoroughly sound. Frt.m this land, which has yielded as
much as 160 sacks per acre, scarcely any good rotatoes, and
those very small, sill be procured at all. This seems to be
universally the case with the middle, or principal crop of this
root, about this locality. We hear that the early crop is, to a
great extent, unaffected ; but the late potatoes, which ought
now to have green and growing tops, seem to be a complete
failure. The disease attacks the lower part of the stalk, and
spreads its way up and down, so that, in fact, the i lants are
killed before the potatoes are formed. The pink-eyed, and in
short all other kinds of this root, seems to have shared a similar
fate. It has been reported that potatoes so affected are poison-
ous, and that pigs have died in consequence of eating
them—the result of our inquiries does not tend to confirm this
idea. Next to the wheat crop, the potato° crop is undoubtedly
the most important, and we cannot regard so great a failure
without serious apprehension lest the prices of other commo-
dities should be so much enhanced as to press severely on the
resources of the humbler classes. The reports from the west
countie3 and from Ireland are tolerably favourable ; but we
have heard it stated " that aster Christmas there won't be a
potatoe to be had." Difficulty seems to be anticipated in getting
suitable seed for next year. Respecting general farming ope-
rations we may just say, that the }arrest is proceeding glo-
riously. This present week will see an end of the wheat har-
vest in this district, which will be got up in good order. The
barley and other crops are proceeding favourably.—lpswich
Express, Sept. 9.
A quantity of wheat has been housed end stacked in good
condition in Somerset,' and the farmers arc every where getiirig
forward with their barley, which is generally an excellent crop,
both as to quantity and quality. Where the disease which has
attacked the potatoes is found to prevail, the best course is to
cut away the whole of the haulm, and remove it to the mixen,
so that the land may have full exposure to the sun. There is
reason in this—the haulm has done its share of nature's pro-
cess. It is only necessary to perfect the root and ripen its
peel, for which purpose the warmth of the sun is all that is re-
quired. It has been found that where the haulm had been
suffered to decay in the ground, the potatoes were invariably
diseased; but where the stalk was not blackened to the
bottom, the roots were healthy. Potatoes which aro unwhole-
some, turn black when boiled, so that no one can fail to dis-
tinguish them. Yet potatoes are not affected alone ; acres of
pickling cucumbers have gone off in the same manner, from the
same cause, and with the same symptoms.— Somerset Gazette.
We regret to find that the disease prevalent in the potatoe
crop has affected extensively the fields and gardens in the
neighbourhood of Chippenham. In several cases the owners
have dug up the produce, and, after sorting out the unsound
portion, trusted to a drying in the open air for preserving the
remainder ; but it appears very doubtful how far, in so unripe
a state, they can be preserved (so as to be eatable) during the
winter.—Wilts paper.

THE FISHERIES.
FOWET. —The drift boats in this neighbourhood continue
to bring in fine pilchards, from five hundred to two or three
thousand each. Though several of the seans have shot they
have taken nothing.—Several fine salmon have been taken this
week by Mr. Lowry's sean, and sold at Bd. per lb.
VERYAN.—Several scans shot in Gerrans bay, on Mon-
day last, but the catches were very small, about three to
four bearing matins to a scan. The drivers at Portloe have
done scarcely anything for the last few days ; but on
Tuesday night one of the Portloe scans shot in Gerrans
bay, and took up about sixteen hogsheads of fine pilchards.
ST. IVES.—Several small shoals of playing fish have been
seen from the hills during the week, but too far off for the
scans. The mackerel boats that have been fishing two or
three leagues from the land report that they have seen large
quantities of ilchards passing up the Channel.
Loos.—The drift boats are taking from five to ten thousand
fine pilchards each every night ; but nothing has been done
yet by the seans. The Polperro drift boats have similar
catches to the Looe boats.

CHARLESTOWN.—The drift boats continue to take some
small cotches of fine fish, which hare been sold for Is. Bd. per
hundred.—West Briton.

HERRING FISHING, BERWICK, SEPT. s.—Since Our last
our boats have been at sea every night and have only got a few
crane to add to their former bad fishing. This morning they
are all clean, and there is now little prospect of any more till
the moonlight, when they are going to make another trial; but
many of the half.dealsmen will have to go a harvesting. The
take for this season is only about a third of that of last year and
about a fourth of an average year. The boats upon an average
have not above forty crane each, and the fishermen are very
much cast down. Prices have been during the week from 13s.
to I 7s. per cran.
ETEMOOTH.—Our fishing for the past week has been very
light. There were some good shots in the early part:of the
week ; but these not at all general. The average for the week
has been from two to three crans ; prices 13s. to 17s. per cran.
The average up to this date for the season is 119 crane. A
good number of our boats have left for the south, in consequence
of a report of a good fishing at Craster and Boulmer.
NORTH SUNDERLAND.—Our fishing in the latter end of
last week was very good, some boats had from twenty to thirty
crane. On Monday and Tuesday this week, it was more
general, the highest boat had between thirty and forty crans,
but on Wednesday and Thursday the fishing had fallen greatly
off, the highest boat having only twelve crane. Prices ten to
twelve shillings per cran.
DUNBAR.—The herring fishing at this station is now nearly
closed, after a very successful season. The strange boats are
daily returning.—Berwick Advertiser.

TILE POTATOE CROP.—The most alarming ac-
counts are given of the state of the potato° crops in this neighbour-
hood, Wisbech. We cannot gather a single account where the dis.
ease, which appears in other parts of the country to have attacked the
crop, has not made its appearance. The stem which a fortnight
or three weeks since bore the most promising prospect, is every
where withering. The commencement of the attack is generally
dated here from Tuesday, the 19th ult., which it will be remem-
bered twls one of the heaviest rains almost ever known. It first
appears with a bluish speck on the potatoe, which rapidly extends
through the root. A grave was opened yesterday which had been
formed about the time above.named, and the stench was intolerable,
consequently all the potatoes spoiled. It has given a check to the
purchasers who were sending such quantities from hence, as we
learn that a cargo last week when it arrived in the north was half
of it rotten.—Cambridge Chronicle.
CRYSTALLISATION Or SILEX.—IMPORTANT TO TILE
MANl,FacrunEes:oi, OPTICAL INSTRUAIENTS.-31. Ebehrien, who
has obtained, by a solution of silicic acid in ether, a compound
which he calls silicic ether, further shows that by the evaporation
of that substance in a moist a'mosphere a plate of silex is deposited,
perfectly translucid, and quite tree front double retraction, a dr_
cumstance which must give it a great value in the construction of
telescopes and other optical instruments.—Medical