MANURE. 135 



thrown out of the account ; there are 14 per cent, of hay ; 

 this is very little altered, it seems only bruised and chopped, 

 but it has lost some of its albumen, gum, &c. Now the 

 last is that portion of nutriment which the animal has 

 extracted from the hay. 



184. It is found that hay which has thus been passed 

 through living organs, has its elements much less disposed to 

 remain combined, or, in other words, decay, that species of 

 fermentation which forms geine, takes place much more 

 rapidly in the hay of cow-dung, than in common hay. The 

 catalysis of life has impressed its power of disassociation on 

 the hay of cow-dung. The hay may therefore be considered 

 geine. 



In the same class may be included the biliary matter, 

 deducting from this the green resin of hay associated with it, 

 and there remains in 100 lbs. of dung, only a small propor- 

 tion of salts and biliary matter. 



The albumen, from its great tendency to spontaneous ide- 

 composition, may also be ranked as geine. It produces 

 abundance of ammonia during decomposition, and probably 

 is the great source of the evolution of that gas, during the 

 fermentation of cow-dung. Its proportion is very small, 

 being only about a sixth of one per cent. 



185. Without violence to chemistry, the composition of 

 cow-dung may be stated as follows — 



Geine, ........ 15.45 



Salts, 0.95 



Water, 83.00 



100.00 



In 100 lbs. hardly ^ of any value in agriculture ! Only 

 about I of cow-dung affords geine. The insoluble is con- 

 verted to soluble by the action of the evolved ammonia. 



