1838] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



811 



the fermentation, though they would add to ihe 

 value ol' the heap as manure. 



All the good, liierelbre, which we consider may 

 be drawn from u lino\vledi>e ot Jaufrrel's process 

 in Englan. , by gardeners or lariners, is the con- 

 firmation of what they already know, though 

 sometimes, perhaps, neglect to put in practice; 

 viz. : that the lermeiitatioii of litter may be great- 

 ly promoted by watering it with the liquid which 

 drains away from it, a"nd by covering it closely 

 with thatch, straw, mats, turls, fagots, branches, 

 or some other material, which will exclude rain and 

 drought. Farther, that the urine of horses, and 

 the urine and fa>cal matters of the human species, 

 promote fermentation in vegetable matters much 

 more powerfully than those of cows, sheep, swine, 

 or poultry; and, consequently, that the mixing to- 

 gether of the manures made by different animals 

 will generally be found to increase fermentation. 



Finally, ifj in any part of Great Britain, there 

 should be a quantity of such materials as, m 

 France, would be made into manure by JauflVet's 

 process, the shortest and most economical way 

 would be to mix them with horse-dung, as prac- 

 tised in Ibrming meadow-bank middens. In this 

 way, one load of horse-dung mii^ht be made to 

 ferment hundreds of loads of other fermentable 

 matter. 



Remarks. 



We are enabled to give above, the earliest account of 

 the process by which JaufFret's new preparation of 

 manure is made. Since our first account of this dis- 

 covery (p. 65, vol. vi. Far. Reg.) it has been cried up, 

 by some, as a most wonderful and valuable improve- 

 ment, and the discoverer denounced, by others, as a 

 charlatan and a cheat. Now we differ from both these 

 opinions; and we have not now, when the secret is 

 fully revealed, to recall or retract any thing of our 

 views stated in anticipation. (See page 125 of this 

 volume.) Jauffret's process consists in applying 

 highly putrescent liquids, as a leaven, to masses of ve- 

 getable matter, so as to produce speedy fermentation, 

 and to bring the hard and insoluble materials to a state 

 fit to feed plants. There is no new principle disco- 

 vered or established by the explanation of the process; 

 no value found that was not before known to exist. 

 The dead vegetable matter, which natural causes, in 

 time, would have brought to the same state, is merely 

 converted to food fit for sustaining living vegetables in a 

 shorter time. It is altogether a question of economy, as 

 to the comparison of the cost of labor in the one case 

 compared to the loss of time in the other — and of the 

 waste of materials in both. Where it is important to 

 reduce hard and coarse vegetable matters in very short 

 time to rotten manure, this process will be effectual, 

 and perhaps profitable. But where labor is worth 

 more than the loss by delay, as generally in this coun- 

 try, it will be cheaper to let time, and the natural 

 causes of fermentation, operate to produce the same 

 results. Thus, we doubt not but that, by Jauffret's 

 process, a farmer here might conveit all the leaves 

 of his wood-land to a manure fit for immediate action, 

 and as rich too as the quality of the materials will fur- 

 bish, and the rapid fermentatioa will suffer to be saved. 



But, if the same leaves had been scattered a year ear- 

 lier, as top-dressing, on land properly constituted to re- 

 ceive and retain putrescent manure, and under a crop 

 of young clover or other grass, perliaps a larger propor- 

 tion of the fertili/.irig products of decomposition would 

 have been put to use, and certainly with much less la- 

 bor than is necessary for Jaullret's process. 



On the other hand, we see no ground to denounce the 

 process as a cheat. That it falls very far short of the 

 value expected by credulous and sanguine advocates, 

 and in that sense is, what we before guessed it would 

 prove, one of the many agricultural "humbugs," is 

 very certain. But no man of common sense and 

 judgment could have believed that the manure could 

 possibly contain more of prepared aliment for plants, 

 than the materials used did of unprepared alimentary 

 matter; and no one, acquainted with the phenomena of 

 fermentation, would have believed but that the origi- 

 nal quantity of alimentary matter must be considera- 

 bly lessened by the fermentative process. Therefore, 

 if Jauffret's manure is sufficiently prepared for imme- 

 diate use, and contains all the strength of the materials 

 used, minus the usual loss caused by rapid fermenta- 

 tion, it would seem that it is all that it promised to be, 

 to judicious and reflecting minds. — Ed. Far. Reg. 



GREAT SALE OF DURHAM CATTLE. 



To tlie Editor of tlie Spirit of the Times. 



Cincinnati (Ohio), June 29, 1838. 



Sir — Believing that every thing connected with 

 the improvement and sale of blood cattle must be 

 interesting to the majority of your readers, allow 

 me to furnish you with a transcript o( the prices 

 obtained at the sale of Maj. Chas. S. Clarkson'a 

 stock of Durham cattle, held on the 27ih and 28th 

 inst. at his (Clifton) farm, th:ee miles from Cin- 

 cinnati. 



This sale was well attended by agriculturists 

 and stock-breeders frf.ii. the Miami and Scioto val- 

 leys of the Ohio, as well as from Kentucky, In- 

 diana, Illinois, &c., and went off with much com- 

 petition and spirit. The stock, as will be seen, 

 was very superior, and showed fine keeping, and 

 the prices which were obtained have fully justified 

 the enterprising proprietor that in his attempt to 

 introduce this valuable breed of cattle into the 

 western country he has not labored in vain. 



The gross sales amounted to §26.867 50, and a 

 number of the animals have been since resold at 

 a handsome advance of prices. I have herewith 

 sent you a catalogue, of which you may make 

 what use you please ; and as this is the second or 

 third sale (only) of similar stock ever held in this 

 section of counfrv, we ask you to furnish us with 

 answers to the following queries, viz. : — 



1st. Where (in the U. S.) has a larger number 

 of fine stock ever been offered (at any one sale) 

 at auction 1 



2d. Where have higher prices been obtained? 



Waiting your reply, I am, sir, yours, &c. 



Buckeye. 



Note. — Imported Minna, and calf Colossus, sold for 

 $1700, were repurchased by Maj. C. S. Clarkson at 

 an advance ; also Lilly-of-lhe- Valley, Maj. C. having 

 made no reservation of bids at sale. 



