Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1852-04-08

DEAR SIR i read an article in your
paper, relative to an experiment made IN
Windham County, as to the proper mode OF
tapping trees. nope. before you subscribe
fully to that mode, you will test the ques-
ton little further. have sugar lot
which has been tapped, to my knowleoge'
sixty years, every year in successIon-hrst,
by boxing, then by boring with an inch au-
ger, two or more holes, at least five inches
It was hard days work, with the augers
of that day, to bore fifty trees. Of late
years [ tap with half inch bit. i do not
bore in when tap myself over one inch.
My son last year bored out 400 trees ii one
day, and this number may be tapped in
about half that time if new trees. But IN
trees that have over 100 old holes it re-
uuires some time to find suitable place to
tap. l wish you to try the following exper-
iment Take an inch or all inch and quar-
ter auger and bore into the tree so as to cut
off not to exceed two grains Of the wood
or but one fairly cut; then take three
fourths inch anger aud continue the hole
three or four inches. Drive long Spite into
this small h,le, and by this gather the sap
into vessel by itself, leaving place for
another vessel TO take the sap from the first
hole. TO gather this sap, take small
gouge and strike into the bark below the
hole, and insert tin tube to lead this sap
TO vessel | wish you to try the expert
ment thoroughly. 1t will be but little
trouble to tap six or eight trees. If the
outer bark Of the tree be thick, you can
take piece of pine and bore hole thro'
it Of sufficient size to pass over the long
spout. You can then sharpen this in the
common way. aud drive it into the large
hole. If you do so, be careful and make a
short taper, and be sure not to press the
wood so as to prevent the sap passing freely
from the first opening, think you will get
much more sap from the small deep hole
than from the outer one, perhaps three
times as much; and perhaps three times
less sugar. Try it.
Every experienced sugar maker knows
that much of the success in sugarlng de-
ponds upon tapping the trees. The anger
should be held true or the hole will be UNI
true, therefore difficult to make Spite sit
tight without hard driving, and this gener-
ally checks the bark and causes leak -
The spite should be so sharpened as to fiji
the hole perfectly, and press upon the bark
alone. 1t should never press upon the
wood. forward You an instrument which
have used several years for sharpening
spiIes. use sumac, and do not split the
spile. think them much better, as there
is no waste of sap by running over Take
your spes to blacksmith's shop, or In
common fire, with three or four burning
irons hundred may be burnt out IN lew
minutes To sharpen the spiIes, put thl'
instrument into btstock, and lfyou wlsl
to sharpen two hundred in twenty minutes
let one man stand before a common wori
bench, or other platform, and let anothe
take his basket of spiles and place them oil
the bench, then put fiat piece OF tlmbe
Of sufficient weig hit to keep the sPlles from
turning. Let one end of the board or tim
Der be fastened with cord, then you Cal
raise the other end up and put under ant
take out the spiles as they are shaped. Yo
can use common shave horse. The Ill
genuity Of your sugar men will Tx the bus
mess. j. .. PETTIBoNE.
Manchester. March 26, 1852.