)'^ AGRICULTUR'AL ESSAYS. 



It is often observed by farmers, that vegetable manure, before 

 it becomes decomposed, or reduced to a state of putrefaction, 

 will improve the soil, though it will not contribute so much to 

 the value of the crop the first year that it is applied. This is 

 true; but the application ofundecayed vegetable manure, such 

 4as straw, &c. spread on land, and mixed with the soil as effec- 

 tually as is practicable with the plough and the harrow, in the 

 usual manner of performing the operation, will contribute much 

 less to the immediate value of any crop, than many farmers 

 have believed. The following account of a celebrated author,* 

 on the science of chemistry, developes facts, relating to this sub- 

 ject, worthy of consideration, and may be of much practical u- 

 tility. " It appears," says he, "from the e>periments of Mr. 

 Hf.ssenfratz, that substances employed as manures, produce ef- 

 fects in times proportioned to their degree of putrefaction: 

 those substances which are most putrid, producing the most 

 speedy effects, and of course, soonest losing their efficacy. 

 Having manured two pieces of the same kind of soil, the one 

 with a mixture of dung and straw, highly putrified, the other 

 with the same mixture newly made, and the straw almost fresh, 

 he observed, that during the first year, the plants which grew 

 on the sand manured with the putrefied dung, produced a much 

 better crop than the other : but the second year, (no new dung 

 being added) the ground which had been manured with the 

 unputrefied dung, produced the best crop. The same thing 

 took place the third year, after which both seemed to be 

 equally exhausted. Here it is evident that the putrefied dimg 

 acted soonest, and was soonest exhausted. It follows from this, 

 that carbonf only acts as a manure, when in a particular state 

 of combination ; and this state, whatever it may be, is evident- 

 ly produced by putrefaction. Another experiment of the same 

 chemist, renders this truth still more evident. He allowed 

 shavings of wood to remain for about ten months in a moist 

 place, till they began to putrefy, then spread them over a 

 piece of ground by way of mai.ure. The first two years, this 

 piece of ground produced nothing more than others which had 



* Thomas Thompsoij. 



i .Carbon exists pure in the state of the diamond only. It forms 

 a constituent part of marble, of chalk, of all VF^etable and animal 

 matter, it is the basis of charcoal. Combined with oxigen and 

 forming a ^a?, it float? in the atmosphere. All the glasses "whirh 

 are produced whe'^ animal matter passes into a state of putrefac- 

 tion, beina: absorbed by it, it is very important in resistin* and 

 checkifg the rrosrress of putrefaction. See Eaton's Chemical In- 

 structor, p. 108-109, 



