Muck. 279 



buying clover seed when timothy was cheaper. But this time 

 they were right. One man who was born and brought up on the 

 old farm, Mr. Ranson Sanford, said that many years before the) 7 " 

 dug a ditch and drew the muck up and put on a spot for a garden 

 and never could see any particular gain from its use, although 

 they piled on a lot of it. My old neighbor and friend, S. 

 Holcomb, would come along when I was at work at it and say: 

 " Drawing out more swamp dirt, are you? Well, I have had my 

 day at it and found it did not pay, and so will you." About the 

 time of the above analysis a number went to drawing muck out, 

 something as I did ; but every single man has quit after a little 

 trial. I can get that muck out for, say, thirty cents a load, 

 but have not drawn a load except to use in earth closets for some 

 eight or ten years. 



Now, I would not say it does not pay in some cases, but 

 rather advise a little caution, so that you know what you are 

 about before doing much work. Every year some one without 

 practical knowledge tells in the papers a great story about the 

 value of muck. Possibly some muck may be more valuable than 

 mine ; but I know of none that has analyzed higher. I have one 

 clay spot on the farm that I think some time I will try a heavy 

 dose of muck on, to see if I cannot lighten up the soil some. 

 There is one thing against the use of muck, it is full of weed 

 seeds and makes a greatly increased crop of these to fight. If you 

 try drawing out any, be sure and pile it up a year on bank of 

 ditch and let it dry out. You will then have only about half the 

 weight to draw. If I remember correctly, my muck taken out of 

 water would dry out in the oven 85 per cent. You can air dry it 

 about 50 per cent, which saves much in handling. I had an idea 

 for years of trying to kiln dry it in some way, so it would make a 

 better absorbent for stables, but never tried it. 



See how much I wasted for the time at least in buying ashes. 

 This from reading in the papers of their great value, particularly 

 for potatoes. How simple a matter to have put some on part of 

 a field and found out about it before spending money that was 

 sorely needed in other directions ! When I got my bearings and 

 did this, I could not see one particle of gain from their use. I 

 have tried several times since and they never show where they 

 are put. But they are of great value on some soils. The point I 

 would have you fix in your minds from this chapter, friends, is to 

 not go into anything blindly or thoughtlessly. Think and study 

 and experiment lightly until you know you are right and then 

 pull the throttle wide open and let her go. Don't get excited and 

 let out first and think later. 



But, perhaps, I can tell you one thing about muck that will 

 help some one as much as it has me, and that is how to get out a 

 horse or cow that has mired in a muck bottom ditch. We have 

 ditches of this kind that no animal can cross in wet weather, 



