132 AMERICAN HUSBANDRY. 



however, abounds in the urine of animals and in all 

 animal substances, as wool, hair, bone, horn, the 

 dung of carnivorous animals, or such as feed upon 

 flesh; it exists in fish, in soap-boilers 1 waste, im- 

 pregnated with animal oil, and, to some extent, in 

 shell-marls. 



We shall be told, probably, in contradiction to our 

 theory, that the primitive formation of New-Eng- 

 land has produced good wheat, and that it promises 

 to produce it again. When first subjected to cul- 

 ture, even soils of primitive formation have a quan- 

 tity of animal matters upon their surface, which 

 have been accumulating for centuries, and which 

 may suffice for one or more crops of wheat ; but 

 these being exhausted, the crop necessarily fails. 

 Art may in many cases supply the deficiency, by 

 the application to the soil of one or more of the 

 above-enumerated animal substances ; and these el- 

 ementary matters may have been accumulating from 

 ordinary manuring, until the soil has become suffi- 

 ciently charged with the specific food of a wheat- 

 crop. We fear, however, that all attempts to raise 

 good wheat we mean the grain, not the straw on 

 soils of primitive formation, without the aid of ani- 

 mal manures, will be found to be rather an uphill 

 business ; and that, even with this aid, like Frank- 

 lin's whistle, it will cost more than it is worth. 



We will extract one other remark from the writer 

 above quoted, which is, that " although practice has 

 long ago shown the necessity of animal manures for 

 the above-mentioned crops [wheat and turnips], still 

 chymical analysis alone could ever have explained the 

 reason for this necessity ; thus placing the advanta- 

 ges to be derived from the science in a truly promi- 

 nent and important light." 



BONE MANURE. 



Since bone manure has become accessible to a 

 considerable portion of the farming community, by 



