388 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY, 



eral results seem to substantiate the observation that the use 

 of a mixture of all the fertilizers essential to plant growth, 

 especially of the three in which the soil is deficient, viz., ni- 

 trogen, potash, and phosphoric acid, is better than employ- 

 ing them separately ; since one, by reason of the accidental 

 deficiency of the others in the soil, may not be able to exert 

 its full effect. The author concludes that it is possible, by a 

 mixture of the active ingredients of Peruvian guano, to pro- 

 duce a substitute for that fertilizer. 28 C^ January^ 1873, 19. 



IMPEOVED USE OF STABLE MANURE. 



Mr. Von Horskyfeld, the owner of large landed estates in 

 Bohemia, has since 1854 introduced a method of treating 

 the accumulating stable manure which differs from the usual 

 process, and for which he claims many advantages, viz.: econ- 

 omy of time, space, feed, and bedding, a great saving of mon- 

 ey and of hands, and no necessity for such contrivances as 

 cellars, tanks, pumps, etc. ; also, a far better product, no loss- 

 es occurring from evaporation and rot ; and, finally, a de- 

 cided improvement in the condition of the cattle-yards, which 

 never show any trace of manure, either solid or liquid. He 

 says all these favorable results are obtained in the follow- 

 ing way : The manure is not removed from the stable until 

 it reaches the height of five feet; the straw for bedding is cut 

 into lengths of about five inches, and thus more readily ab- 

 sorbs the liquid portion, and facilitates the distribution of the 

 manure in the furrows. The entire mass is constantly com- 

 pressed by the weight of the animals, and thereby kept moist, 

 Avhile air and consequent putrefaction are excluded. After 

 about three months, this manure is carried to the field, and 

 immediately covered in the furrows, where it readily decom- 

 poses and yields all its strength to the soil fully double its 

 usual value, according to Mr. Yon Horskyfeld's experience. 

 Besides this, the air in the stables is never tainted by exhala- 

 tions injurious to the health of the cattle. 9 C7, 1872, vi., 82. 



REAEING OF OSTRICHES FOR THE FEATHERS. 



The artificial rearing of ostriches is fast becoming a regu- 

 lar business, the number of establishments in South Africa, 

 where this avocation is prosecuted, increasing continually, 

 and causing a considerable rise in the price of young birds. 



