218 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



manure. What in your judgment is the relative value of the one 

 placed by the side of the other ? This question is being agitated 

 extensively. 



Prof. Jonxsox. That depends somewhat upon the food which 

 the animals have. If they are kept upon low rations the liquids 

 would be the best. But if they are supplied with rich food, grain, 

 meal or oil-cake, that indeed increases the value of the liquids, 

 but increases more, relatively, the value of the solids, because you 

 cannot get into the circulation of the animal beyond a certain 

 amount of nutritive matter ; but you can run through the intestinal 

 canal much more material which is only partially digested, and so 

 the value of the solid manures, compared with the liquids, is 

 increased by increasing the richness of the food. 



When oxen or other herbivorous animals are kept on rations 

 which just maintain them without much gain or loss of live 

 weight, the daily urine usually contains rather more nitrogen than 

 the dung. Sometimes the nitrogen of the Mung exceeds that of 

 the urine, but while all the nitrogen of the urine is adapted for 

 immediate use as plant food, much of that in the dung is compara- 

 tively inert. The urine contains also more alkalies than the dung, 

 but the dung usually contains nearly all the phosphoric acid and 

 most of the lime. 



Measured by assimilable nitrogen or by alkalies, the liquids are 

 much the best ; measured by phosphates, the dung is most valu- 

 able. Practically, however, we cannot make a sharp separation. 

 The solids nearly always absorb a good portion of the liquids. 



I think I have now gone over about the ground that I contem- 

 plated. At least, we have approached pretty near the hour for 

 dinner. With regard to the question about the improvement of 

 pastures, there are a variety of ways in which the land can be 

 saved from being useless. One of the most practical methods is 

 to put on a top-dressing of some sort. The fact that moss grows 

 there indicates that the soil is getting a litLle too moist, and it is a 

 question whether plants will do well unless that moist condition 

 of the soil is somewhat broken up. If those fields admitted of 

 under-drainage, and it did not cost too much, that would be an 

 effectual remedy against moss; you would never see that again. 

 My excellent friend, Mr. Blakeslee, whispers to me, "Put on a 

 flock of sheep I" and that is also an excellent prescription. 



Mr. . We can't do it ; the dogs kill them. 



Prof. Jonxsox. The treatment which the gentleman suggests 



