80 ON ANIMAL MATTER. 



most approved kind, in order to supply the cattle-growing 

 interest. These should have their lands well cleaned by- 

 cropping, and well prepared for laying them down into pas- 

 ture. All the manure that is to be put on the land should, 

 the year previous, be made into compost with lime and other 

 earth, well mixed by turning it over two or three times in 

 summer ; by this means all the insects, seeds, and roots in 

 the manure will be destroyed by the lime. This plan will 

 insure a good crop of grain and grass, adequate to the expense 

 of the manure. The ditches should be cleaned, and the dirt 

 laid in heaps ; both the common and rich earths made from 

 the decayed leaves, should be prepared to mix with the manure 

 and lime. In cases where the soil is light, lime, chalk, and 

 marl are the best manure. In clay soils, sand and carbona- 

 ceous earths are proper. The land should be ploughed deep, 

 so that the soil that has been subject to cultivation should be 

 turned down to rest and recrystallize. Upon this principle, 

 the people would be living upon provisions raised from virgin 

 earth, which would indeed be a blessing to them ; for then 

 there would be few diseases, and the farmer would contribute 

 to the wealth of the country. Paring and burning are good 

 methods of getting the fields cleared of buttercups, poppies, 

 dandelions, and other noxious plants, whose roots do not run 

 deep into the soil. The flavor of all grains, fruits, and vege- 

 tables are much improved by being manured with burnt earth 

 and vegetable ashes. 



ON ANIMAL MATTER. 



All bodies endowed with life, and with spontaneous mo- 

 tion, are called animals. These are all capable of reproducing 

 their like in life. Some, by the union of the two sexes, pro- 

 duce small living creatures ; others lay eggs, which require 

 a due temperature to produce young ; some multiply without 



