274 EGYPTIAN AGRICULTURE. 



the agriculturist with organic manures which are greatly 

 needed, but the disposal of some of them is of great 

 importance from a sanitary point of view. It is only a 

 few years since these products were not deemed worthy 

 of attention, but the demand which has arisen for manure 

 has brought into existence a local trade in these minor 

 products. A valuable manure which has not yet been put 

 on the market is fish guano, which is extensively manu- 

 factured in Norway and exported to various parts of 

 Europe. It is also manufactured to a lesser extent in other 

 European countries and America. As its name indicates 

 it is produced from fish which are useless for market 

 purposes, and from fish refuse. It is a valuable fertiliser, 

 the best qualities containing from 8 to 10% of nitrogen, 

 while the phosphoric acid varies from 7 to 15%. The 

 presence of oil impairs its value as a manure, retarding 

 fermentation when it is applied to the soil. It is generally 

 made into a compost Avith other manures before being- 

 used, while sometimes the fish refuse is pressed under heat 

 to extract the oil which it contains, and then subsequently 

 reduced to a fine dry meal in excellent condition for 

 agricultural use. There must be a considerable amount 

 of fish refuse in the neighbourhood of Lake Manzaleh, and 

 at Alexandria, but whether in sufficient quantity to render 

 the production of fish guano possible is not quite clear. 



The first concession accorded by the Egyptian Govern- 

 ment for the disposal of sewage, was in the year 1882, 

 and was extended to Cairo and Alexandria only. Under 

 the terms of this concession, which was for 40 years, the 

 material was to be carted to filter-beds, and a portable 



