NECESSITY FOR TREES IN ITALY 175

fine preserves and parks, and well-tilled, well-trimmed fields,trodden by the shining shoes of British sportsmen.

I must not leave the silk establishment of Mr. Bottalin,called in Italy, Filatura , without a few words on the realcircumstances of the culture of silk in Italy .

I need not descant upon the mulberry tree, of whichthere are three varieties, the red, the black, and the white.I have heard of many attempts to substitute some otherfood of more easy and cheap production, for the worms.But I have not known of any other having ever succeeded.I do not think it worth while alluding to the young gentle-men and ladies, who in England, are wont to feed their fewpet silk worms upon lettice leaves. By what I have ob-served of the culture of silk, I am decidedly of opinion thateven Italy a family or farm cannot devoted entirely and ex-pressly to that branch of agricultural industry. In no part ofItaly is it ever undertaken upon that exclusive principle.But in as few words as possible it is managed thus:—

In every part of Italy where trees will thrive upon thesoil, some trees or other are planted regularly in every fieldas a support to the vines. This does not prevail in theCampagna di Roma, or iii rocky districts where nothing butthe Olive will hold root. Vines do not thrive under olivesalthough, the best wine is often grown on similar rocky soils.In the neighbourhood of Rome , for lack of trees, the vinesare trained to reeds. Vast tracks of country within fortymiles of Naples there are almost as many poplars as mul-berry trees. This wood grows fast and furnishes an immensesupply of planks and firewood of the cheaper kinds. In orderthat a peasant or a farmer may be enabled to cultivate thesilk worm, he must either have mulberry trees on his ownground, or he must be able to buy the leaves, without havingto go far to get them. Few, but the poorer day-labouring