184 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



utilizing of this material and the health of our towns and 

 cities. The inception and the spread of contagious and in- 

 fectious diseases, the result of crowd poison, every day's 

 investigation, the deductions of science which crowd daily 

 upon us in relation to this vital suljject, the poisoning of our 

 sources of water-supply, the breeding of infection in the air 

 we breathe, — all combine to give the subject of this paper 

 a deep and serious import, which should command the ear- 

 nest attention of every intelligent member in a community. 



We hope to see the day when what is now an intolerable 

 nuisance, and a source of great disquiet, this material called 

 "night-soil," may become the means of spreading fertility 

 over our lands, and producing plenty and prosperity through- 

 out our borders. 



Mr. Heesey of Hingham. This subject of fertilizers is 

 one of the most important which can engage the attention 

 of farmers. We differ so much in regard to what we shall 

 do, that many of us do wrong, and I confess that I am very 

 much in the dark on important points. There are some 

 things, however, that seem to be self-evident to me ; and the 

 first is, that stable-manure furnishes all the necessary mate- 

 rial to keep our land up in its proper condition. The second 

 is, that our State does not furnish a sufficient quantit}' of 

 that material to properly fertilize all the lands that we desire 

 to cultivate. Consequently we are driven in every direc- 

 tion, and of late we have been driven in the direction of the 

 concentrated mercantile fertilizers. I am very much in the 

 dark in regard to them ; and I think there is great question 

 as to whether we can afford to use them or not. I rise 

 for the purpose of calling up this part of the matter, and, if 

 we can get any light upon it, I, for one, should like to have it. 

 I want to know, first, whether we can afford to use special 

 fertilizers, and, secondly, whether, if used year after year, 

 they will keep the land up. Now, the first question is not 

 so easy to answer. If we could answer that, it would be an 

 answer really to the second. The second question, it seems 

 to me, is one that we can answer in time. I do not know 

 but that there are individuals in this room who can answer it 

 to-day. If there are, I wish they would ; for I consider that 

 this is a very important question. If there are any concen- 



