88 



THE MANURE HEAP AND SEWAGE. 



his barnyard manure, and the constant addition of lime thereto 

 is certainly to be most thoroughly recommended. In other respects 

 this material has exactly the same relations to decomposition and 

 reconstructive processes as barnyard manure. 



The portion of sewage which comes from the wash-water of 

 the sink or the dairy on the ordinary farm is so small that it may 

 commonly be left to care for itself. The amount of solid material 

 in such water is slight, and it can be allowed to run out on the soil 

 where, generally, it is rapidly absorbed and decomposed without 



FIG. 19. Diagram showing the method of applying the septic tank to a farm house. 



any undue pollution. The organic matter undergoes the same type 

 of decomposition as that to which all organic bodies are subjected 

 under the influence of bacteria, and becomes eventually converted 

 into plant food and incorporated into soil. The drainage which 

 comes from the large dairy or creamery may be too much to be 

 disposed of by such a simple manner. In this case some means 

 must be adopted for its disposal. The problem thus presenting 

 itself is precisely the same as that presented to the city for disposing 

 of its sewage, and the same means are to be used in each case. 

 The time is coming, and, in some places, has arrived, when 

 it is necessary to find a plan for disposing of the sewage on the ordi- 

 nary farm in some other way than by emptying it into a stream. 



