NIGHTSHADE. 



NIGHT-SOIL. 



times, a^ it is reported, yellow. A grain or two 

 of the dried leaf has sometimes been given to 

 promote various secretions. Both its poison- 

 ous and medicinal powers depend on an alkaline 

 principle, which can be procured in a separate 

 state, and has been called solania. It is a 

 powerful narcotic, and the poisoning principle 

 of the solanums. 



NIGHTSHADE, DEADLY, or DWALE 

 (Atropa belladonna). A plant with narcotic and 

 dangerous qualities, found growing in hedges 

 and waste ground on a calcareous soil, fre- 

 quently about ancient ruins. The root is fleshy 

 and creeping. Stems herbaceous, annual, 3 

 feet high, round, branched, leafy, slightly downy. 

 Leaves lateral, mostly two together of unequal 

 size, ovate, acute, undivided. Flowers solitary, 

 stalked, drooping, dark dull purple in the 

 border, paler downwards, about an inch long. 

 Berry of a shining violet black, partially en- 

 veloped in the calyx, which is persistent, the 

 size of a small cherry; sweetish, and not nau- 

 seous, so that children have often been tempted 

 to eat it to their own destruction. The poi- 

 sonous principle is an alkali named atropiu. 



NIGHTSHADE, ENCHANTER'S. See 



E.M'II I NT Kit's Nli.HTSH \ I) K.. 



NIGHT-SOIL. In agriculture, a powerful 

 manun\ This valuable fertilizer has not been 

 employed in England to the same extent as 

 on the continent, although it is certainly one 

 of the most valuable of the organic manures; 

 and to this neglect many causes have contri- 

 buted. Its disagreeable odour, certain vexatious 

 fiscal regulations \\-ith regard to its removal, 

 and erroneous modes of applying it, either in 

 . e quantities, or mixed with other com- 

 posts in such proportions that its powers could 

 not be distinguished in the mass; its semifluid 

 nature requiring tor its removal carriages of 

 a peculiar construction, the extent and com- 

 pletene^^s of the sewerage of our large cities, 

 and several other minor obstacles, have ren- 

 dered its use not nearly so extensive as, even 

 in a national point of view, is desirable. Davy, 

 however, described it, 25 years since, as "a 

 very powerful manure, and very liable to de- 

 compose: a part of it is ahvayj soluble in 

 water ; and, in whatever state it is used, whe- 

 ther recent or fermented, it supplies abundance 

 of food for plants." (Lecture*, p. 229.) "The 

 disagreeble smell," he adds, " may be destroyed 

 by mixing it with quicklime ; and if exposed 

 to the atmosphere in thin layers in fine weather, 

 and mixed with quicklime, it speedily dries, is 

 easily pulverized, and, in this state, may be 

 used in the same manner as rape-cake, and de- 

 livered into the furrow with the seed." 



Night-soil is a mixture of urine and faeces; 

 and these have been found to contain the fol- 

 lowing substances. Foeces were analyzed by 

 M. Berzelius : the products were 



Water 



Vegetable and animal remains 



Bile 



Albumen ------ 



Peculiar and extractive matter 



Salts 



Slimy matter, insoluble residue, fee. 



106 



Pmrts. 



73-3 

 7' 

 0-9 

 0-9 

 2-7 

 1-2 



14- 



100- 



The salts detected in this analysis, equal to 

 1-2 parts, were carbonate of soda, muriate of 

 soda, sulphate of soda, ammonia, phosphate 

 of magnesia, and phosphate of lime. (Geklen's 



i.nml, vol. vi. p. 536.) To the same great 

 chemist we are indebted for an analysis of hu- 

 man urine. He found 1000 parts to contain 



Parts. 



Water ....... 933- 



Urea (peculiar animal matter) - - 30 - 10 



Sulphate of potash ----- 3-71 



Sulphate of soda ----- 2'16 



Phosphate of soda ----- 2'94 



Muriate of soda (common salt) - - 4'45 



Phosphate of ammonia - rt>5 



Muriate of ammonia - ... 1-50 



Acid matter ~) 



Acetate of ammonia > 17'14 



Animal matter and urea J 



Earthy phosphates and fluate of lime - 1* 



Mucus 0-32 



Silica (earth of flint) - ... 0'03 



1000- 

 (Annul* ofPhilos. vol. xi. p. 423.) 



The chemical composition of urine shows, that 

 it abounds in animal and mineral constituents 

 which must afford a copious supply of food to 

 plants. 



According to very recent experiments reported 

 by I. C. Nesbit, the excretions of one person 

 were found, from actual daily weighings long 

 continued, to average 7 to 8 oz. avoirdupois of 

 solid matter, and 3^ Ibs. of urine. This would 

 make the annual amounts 170 Ibs. of faeces, and 

 1277 Ibs. of urine. But when these are perfectly 

 dried, there remains only 45 Ibs. from the solid 

 matter, and 35-7 Ibs. from the urine, making the 

 annual amount of dry matter in both, about 80 

 Ibs. From a comparison with other manures in 

 the English market, the actual value of this 80 

 Ibs. of dry matter is computed by Mr. Nesbit 

 at $2.~>0. This appears to be a lower estimate 

 than that made by Boussingault, who considers 

 the excrements of a single adult during a year 

 sufficient to produce 14 bushels of wheat ; 

 an estimate which agrees better witb the views 

 of the Chinese, who reckon the ordure of even 

 a superannuated or disabled person as of suffi- 

 cient fertilizing value to compensate for his 

 bread. The odour of night-soil may be de- 

 stroyed by any means which will dry it : such 

 as additions of dry mould, peat, powdered char- 

 coal, or plaster; also by sprinkling with a satu- 

 rated solution of copperas in water, or oil of 

 vitriol diluted with 10 part* of water. 



Davy's plan o destroying the smell of night- 

 soil by the addition of quick-lime, may answer 

 very well to correct a nuisance ; but the agri- 

 cultural value of the manure produced, would be 

 lessened, since the addition of caustic lime to 

 animal matters drives off their ammonia, the 

 most fertilizing portion. 



The account of eastern customs, furnished 

 by modern travellers, illustrates very remark- 

 ably the notices of the sacred historians. "In 

 Arabia, says Niebuhr (vol. i. p. 91), "the dung 

 of asses and camels is chiefly used for fuel, 

 because these are the most numerous and 

 common. Little girls go about gathering 

 dung in the streets, and in the highways; they 

 mix it with cut straw; and of this mixture 

 make cakes, which they place along the walls, 

 or upon the declivity of some neighbouring 

 eminence, to dry them in the sun." Touro* 

 4 B 84-- 



