36 



GENESEE FARMER, 



Feb. 



"Science and Agriculture." 



Mr. J, J. Thomas replies in the January 

 number of the Albany Cultivator to our criti- 

 cism on his I'rize Essay, and makes the follow- 

 ing remarks : " Dr. Lkk occupies nearly a col- 

 umn in controverting the fact that, animals se 

 Crete highly fertilizing substances ; and con 

 eludes by saying 'no farmer must expect his 

 domestic aninals to supply hitn with more or 

 better manure t'lan their food and drink wi" 

 furnish.' According to this assertion tlien, the 

 richest stable manure is no "b^ ter" than hay 

 :>traw, oats and water, spread o\n' the surface of 

 the land — a ridiculous error, which every farm 

 er must see at a glance." 



The question of transfonniiig "hay, straw 

 and oats" into manure, and that of *' animals se 

 creting highly fertilizing elements''' out of noth- 

 ing, to enrich one's farm, is obviously a matter of 

 great public interest, it is not then from any 

 iove of controversy, nor a spirit of hypercriti- 

 cism, nor feelings of hostility toward the re- 

 spected author, that we again allude to this sub- 

 ject, lie has received from the State Society 

 more money for his agricultural compositions, 

 within the last five years, if we mistake not, 

 than all the other writers in the State and coun- 

 try put together. This is mentioned to his cred- 

 it, and higli reputation as an author, not as an in- 

 timation of favoritism in certain influential quar- 

 ters. Hence, what he says is entitled to re- 

 spectful consideration. Mr. Thomas thinks we 

 Gonmiit " a ridiculous error" when we say that 

 "no farmer must expect his domestic animals to 

 supply him witli more, or better manure than 

 their food and drink will furnish." To make 

 out his case, Mr. T. must sliow from what other 

 sources besides their food and drink, animals can 

 obtain " fertilizing elements" for the benefit of 

 the dung heap and the crops. This he will not 

 attempt to do, and if he should, "a ridiculous'' 

 failure would be inevitable. So far frcm adding 

 any thing to the weight and sul)stanceof the mat- 

 ter taken into their stomachs, only about sixty 

 j>er cent of tliis is voided by their bowels and 

 kidneys. The other forty per cent escapes in 

 the form of air or vapor from their lungs, and 

 by insensible perspiration. On page 1377, Bous- 

 singoult gives the particulars of an experiment 

 of feeding a horse, in wiiich he consumed in 24 

 hours, 20 lbs of hay, li)s of oats, and 4^3 water. 

 He voided in his dung and urine only 4U lbs ; 

 giving off from his lungs and through his skin 

 27'] lbs. Tiioroughly dried, his food weighed 

 22 lbs 6 oz.; while the dry matter in his excre- 

 tions weighed only 10 lbs 3 oz. Here was a loss 

 of more than one half in the dry solid matter 

 taken into the stomach of the animal. The horse 

 took into his system 10 lbs 6 oz. o{ carbon in his 

 fjod. Of this only 3 lbs and 11 oz. were found 

 in his dung and urine ; the balance having been 



burnt to keep the animal warm, and escaped 

 from the respiratory organs in the form of car- 

 bonic acid gas. 



A cow consumed in after math hay and po- 

 tatoe i, dry weight, 28 lbs. 1 oz. 1 dwt, in 24 

 hours. This was her regular allowance. She 

 gave in dry matter : 



In her dmr,'— 10 lb.>. 8 oz. 12 dvvt. 

 '• '• iiriiiK — 2 ■■ 6 •' 17 •' 

 '^ ■' milk— 3 ■• 1 " 00 '• 



16 4 9 



The loss in this case was 11 lbs. 8 oz. 12 dwt. 

 out of 28 lbs. 1 oz. 1 dwt., or some 42 per cent. 

 Must not a cow "secrete fertilizing elements" 

 very powerfully out of nothing, to make good 

 t'lis loss daily of 42 per cent of the elements of 

 plants taken in her food, which escape into the 

 air, and never go to the dung heap 1 Is the 

 author of this ?^100 Prize Essay profoundly 

 ignorant of these things ? 



Nothing is easier than to weigh all the sub- 

 stances consumed, and voided by domestic ani- 

 mals. According to some recent researches in- 

 stituted by order of the British government, and 

 made by Prof. Thomson, of the University of 

 Glasgow, it appears that when a cow consumes 

 7 lbs. of carbon in her daily food, 6 lbs. go to 

 generate heat, and escape into the air, like so 

 much hay buiiit in a stove. He remarks that, 

 in burning 6 lbs. of carbon, a co.v consumes all 

 the oxygen in 9-36^ cubic feet of atmospheric 

 air, showing the great necessity of ventilating 

 cow houses, horse stables, &c. 



The expense of warming animals by the com- 

 bustion of hay and grain deserves far more at- 

 tention than it has hitherto received. Some four 

 years ago we went into an elaborate calculation 

 1 the subject, and proved the needless annual 

 loss in this branch of rural economy equal to 

 $4,000,000 taken from the pockets of the fai'm- 

 ers of this State alone. It is about time that we 

 went over the ground again, for the Genesee 

 Farmer has many new subscribers. 



Asiies on dry Plains. 



Mr. Ed tor : — I wish to know the flict wheth- 

 er one busliel of dry or unleached ashes is wjorth 

 as much as four bushels of leached ashes, to put 

 on dry plains. It is contended by some that the 

 lye of ashes is not what the dry plain land wants. 

 Yours, respectfully, 



ROSWELI, LOCKWOOD. 



North Sjmngfield, Vf., 1847. 



Remarks. — For the first crop, one bushel of 

 unleached ashes is worth as much as four of 

 leached. But in the course of ten years the 

 latter will be worth more than the former. — Ed. 



Cato, the Censor, said to a very debauched 

 old fellow, " Friend, old age has deformities 

 enough of its own — do not add to it the deformi- 

 ty of vice." 



