MANURES. 229 



enough clay or vegetable matter to make it arable will answer 

 a satisfactory purpose. A very sterile gravel and a nearly pure 

 sandy soil should be rejected. The " mould " of an old garden 

 or field is excellent, and the " yellow dirt " below it is still 

 better. Either of these, treated as above described, will be found 

 to entirely absorb and destroy the odor of the most offensive faces 

 from the moment when it envelops it, until — years afterward, if 

 necessary — it is removed to the field ; so that the earth closet may 

 be in the house or out of the house, as is most convenient, with- 

 out considering the question of foul odors or of ventilation. 



Wood ashes must under no circumstances be used, as the 

 potash that they contain has the eff'ect of driving off the volatile 

 parts of the deposit. Anthracite coal ashes mixed with a little 

 dry earth can be used with perfect success in winter, and probably 

 in summer as well, but we cannot say this positively. We can 

 see no reason why the ashes of bituminous coal may not be 

 equally efi^ective. 



All ashes are objectionable for use in commodes in the house 

 from the dust that flies when they are put into the hopper, but in 

 the case of fixed closets this difficulty would not be noticed. 

 On shipboard, especially on steamships, where water-closets are 

 always a nuisance, the use of ashes would be entirely successful. 



The earth closet, like all other human contrivances, needs 

 attention. The earth in the vault will not deodorize the fouling 

 of the seat ; wet earth will not deodorize the faeces that it covers ; 

 and if "the accumulation is not occasionally leveled, the earth 

 will not be so ■ thrown as to entirelv cover recent deposits. 

 These things must be looked to, but they require no more atten- 

 tion than does the care of the water-closet ; and if the needed 

 attention is given, the depressing odor that so often accompanies 



