CALCAREOUS MANURES-PRACTICE. 143 



siderable — and the coarse hay from the wet natural meadows can only be 

 sold to tavern-keepers, or those who feed horses belonging to other persons 

 — and to whom that hay is the most desirable that is least likely to be eaten. 



But even if the waste and destruction of manure m towns were counted 

 as nothing, and the preservation of health by keeping the air pure were 

 the only object sought, still calcareous earth, as presented by rich marl, 

 would serve the purpose far better than quick-lime. It is true that the lat- 

 ter substance acts powerfully in decomposing putrescent animal matter, 

 and destroys its texture and qualities so completely, that the operation is 

 commonly and expressively called " burning" the substances acted on. 

 But to use a sufficient quantity of quick-lime to meet and decompose all 

 putrescent animal matters in a town would be intolerably expensive, and 

 still more objectionable in other respects. If a cover of dry quick-lime in 

 powder was spread over all the surfaces requiring it for this purpose, the 

 town would be unfit to live in ; and the nuisance would be scarcely less, 

 when i-ain had changed the suffocating dust to an adhesive mortar. Wool- 

 len clothing, carpets, and even living tlesh, would be continually sustaining 

 injury from the contact. No sucii oijjections would attend the use of mild 

 calcareous earth ; and this could be obtained probably for less than one- 

 fifth of the cost of quick-lime, supposing an equal quantity of pure calca- 

 reous matter to be obtained in each case. At this time the richest marl on 

 James river may be obtained at merely the cost of digging, and its carriage 

 by water, which, if undertaken on a large scale, could not exceed, and pro- 

 bably would not equal, two cents the bushel.* 



The putrescent animal matters tliat would be preserved and rendered 

 innoxious by the general marling of the site of a town, would be mostly 

 such as are so dispersed and imperceptible that they would otherwise be 

 entirely lost. But all such as are usually saved in part would be doubled 

 in quantity and value, and deprived of their offensive and noxious qualities, 

 by being kept mixed with calcareous earth. The importance of this plan 

 being adopted with the products of privies, &c., is still greater in town than 

 country. The various matters so collected and combined should never be 

 applied to the soil alone, as the salt derived from the kitchen, and the potash 

 and soap from the laundry, might be injurious in so concentrated a form. 

 When the pit for receiving this compound is emptied, the contents should 

 be spread over other and weaker manure, before being applied to the field. 



Towns might furnish many other kinds of rich manure, which are now 

 lost entirely. Some of these particularly require the aid of calcareous 

 earth to be secured from destruction by putrefaction, and others, though 

 not putrescent, are equally wasted. The blood of slaughtered animals, 

 and the waste and rejected articles of wool, hair, feathers, skin, horn and 

 bones, all are manures of great richness. W^e not only give the fiesh of 

 dead animals to infect the air, instead of using it to fertilize the land, but 

 their bones, which might be so easily saved, are as completely thrown away. 

 Bones are composed of phosphate of lime and gelatinous animal matter, 

 and, when crushed, form one of the richest and most convenient manures 

 in the world. They are shipped in quantities from the continent of Europe, 

 and latterly even from this country, to be sold for manure in England. 

 The fields of battle have been gleaned, and their shallow graves emptied 

 for this purpose : and the bones of the ten thousand British heroes, who fell 

 on the field of Waterloo, are now performing the less glorious, but more 

 useful purpose of producing, as manure, bread for their brothers at home. 



* Such was the case in 1833 when this part was first piiblisheil ; imt now a half cent 

 the bushel is the usual price charged for the best marl, as it lies in the river banks. 



