No. 63.] 77 



The dung of the fattening hog approaches night soil in value, more 

 nearly than any other; indeed Dr. Dana supposes that for all the 

 „ purposes of analysis, these may be arranged under one head. 

 Dung, jj^ practical use, Von Thaer, on the Prussian government farm, 

 determined by experiment its comparative value as follows: If a 

 soil without manure, would yield three bushels of produce for one 

 sown, manured with different substances the result was, 



Without manure, 3 for 1 sown. 



With cow dung, 7 " 1 " 



With horse dung, 10 " 1 » 



With night soil, 14 " 1 " 



In some experiments made by Arthur Young, and detailed in the 

 Comparative Annals of Agriculture, the effect of this manure on wheat 



value of n ^^ 



Nightsoii. was as follows: 



Simple soil, per acre, 12^ bushels. 



Bushels of night soil, 320 37^ " 



" " 240 32^- " 



« « 160 3H " 



Cubic yards of farm yard compost, 60 25 " 



" " " 30 231 " 



30 do. and 1 cubic yard of chalk, 25 " 



Applied to potatoes, the results were not less decisive: 



Simple soil produced per acre, .... 120 bushels. 



Night soil, 10 wagon loads, 600 " 



Bones, 10 " 650 " 



Hog dung, 60 one horse cart loads, 480 " 



Yard compost, 60 one horse cart loads, .... 300 " 



The most common method of using night soil, or at least that in 

 which it is most portable and least offensive, is to convert it into pou- 

 drette. This is done to the best advantage in large manu- 

 factories; and hence they are usually established in the vi- 

 cinity of large cities, where the original article is easily obtained. 

 Different processes are adopted, but the most common is to slowly 

 dry the night soil in pans, having previously mixed it with plaster 

 or ground peat. The object in adding plaster or peat, is to prevent 

 the escape of ammonia, on which the value of the manure is mainly 

 depending. The dried mass is then pulverized — is perfectly inoder- 

 rous, resembles a dry brownish powder, and may be used broad cast 

 or in drills. In Paris, a powerful manure is made, also called pou- 

 drette, by boiling the offals of the slaughter houses into a thick soup, 

 making this into a stiff paste by stirring in coal ashes, then drying 

 and grinding. 



